Royce Gracie gives last minute Donald Trump endorsement ‘as a proud immigrant’

It’s no secret that Hillary Clinton is not the popular choice among MMA fighters. While there are a few out there willing to denounce her opponent - or even show their support for Bernie Sanders - there just aren’t that many fighters willing to endorse her outright.

Much more often, it seems, MMA’s stars have lined up firmly behind Donald Trump and his campaign for presidency. Fighters like Tito Ortiz, Donald Cerrone, Chris Weidman, and of course UFC president Dana White have all endorsed the GOP candidate at one point or another. White even went so far as to speak at the GOP convention.

Now, you can add another name to those ranks, as UFC legend and recent Bellator competitor Royce Gracie gave a ringing endorsement for Trump just one day out from election day:

“As a proud immigrant I feel that it is my duty to strongly endorse Donald J. Trump for President of this great land.” Gracie wrote in a message on Instagram. “Discipline and respect are paramount virtues in our martial arts philosophy. Mr. Trump is the candidate of law and order who supports our law enforcement as well as our military communities. Nothing is more important than our safety and he is the only one who shows true respect for those who keep us safe. Unfortunately the dishonest media is manipulating Americans in favor of the political establishment and the big money interests that it represents. I plead with my fellow American citizens, especially those who came from other countries, not to believe the false narrative that Trump is anti-immigrant. This is a straight lie. What he is against is breaking the law and disrespecting our constitution. Remember that a country without laws can never be truly great. The establishment tries to paint him as an unstable lunatic. This could not be further from the truth. Just look at the amazing children that he raised and the great respect that they have for him. Just look at the multi-billion dollar businesses that he created. Let's make America great again. Think outside the box. Don't be a victim of the media brainwash. Show great courage on November 8th and vote for Donald Trump!”

Current polls have Clinton leading heading into the final stretch of the campaign, but there’s no question that the race has tightened up over the last couple weeks. If things stay the course they’re on, however, there may be a lot of unhappy voters in the MMA community, come Wednesday.