Rose Namajunas stands by her remarks about communism being a motivating factor for her ahead of UFC 261. Namajunas (9-4 MMA, 7-3 UFC), who challenges strawweight champion Zhang Weili (21-1 MMA, 5-0 UFC) on April 24, made some controversial remarks that caused an uproar this past weekend. In an interview with Lithuanian National Radio and Television, Namajunas – who’s Lithuanian-American – used the phrase “better dead than red,” an anti-communist slogan that originated during the Cold War in the 1950s. Namajunas referred to Weili as “red,” meaning communist, in describing what Weili represents to her because she’s from China. During an interview with ESPN, Namajunas didn’t backtrack. She further explained what she meant by those comments and the inspiration she drew from “The Other Dream Team” documentary, which highlights the struggle that the 1992 Lithuania men’s national basketball team endured under the Soviet rule
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