Chris Duncan is heading into his UFC main event match this Saturday against Renato Moicano. But ahead of the bout, the Scottish star took a moment to address something that sits close to his heart: national pride, and the UFC’s rules around shorts.
Speaking to the press, Duncan was asked about what it means to represent Scotland on the world stage. His answer quickly turned to a rule he had run into firsthand when trying to customise his gear.
“The UFC don’t allow you to change your shorts unless you change your country to match the color of the shorts,” Duncan said. “And I wanted a different color maybe two camps ago. And I was like, I’m not changing my flag. Like, why would somebody do that? Like, you’re supposed to be representing your country.”
For Duncan, the idea of switching his registered nationality just to wear a different colored pair of shorts was a non-starter. Representing Scotland is something he takes seriously, and no aesthetic preference was going to change that.
“So whether I wanted purple shorts or yellow shorts, I ain’t changing to Brazil. I’m not changing to all these different colors. I’m Scottish, so I’m going to have to deal with the black, the white, or the blue shorts.”
The UFC assigns short colors based on the country an athlete represents. Since Scotland’s flag features blue, white and black tones, Duncan is limited to those options unless he were to register under a different nation, which he made clear he would never consider.
But rather than settle for a standard color, Duncan has a creative solution in mind, and he directed his pitch straight to the top.
“If Dana White watches this, I’ve got a little bit of a design for my shorts. I want tartan shorts. So I’m sure that’ll be a good one. I’ve got a pair in my suitcase back home. I can show them a little bit of a demo.”
Earlier in the conference, he reflected on growing up in Scotland and what the country means to him.
“One of my favorite things of growing up in Scotland would obviously be the scenery and the kind of patriotic symbols that we have, like the bagpipes and these sorts of things. They always bring me chills. They always bring me like sheer pride,” he said.
Duncan also pointed to his rugby background as an early example of wearing his national identity with pride, recalling trips to France representing a Scottish club side.
“That’s why I wear the flag,” he said.
