Warrior Spirit Film acknowledges they will blur nude images of Nicco Montaño per her request
The NYC premiere of the documentary Warrior Spirit was happening this week, but the bigger news was the statements made by the star of the film Nicco Montaño. The film follows Montaño through her UFC flyweight title run and the lead-up to her UFC 228 fight against Valentina Shevchenko. The film focuses on the extreme weight cut and the hospitalization of Montaño due to severe dehydration. During the filming, Montaño is shown in severe pain and in some cases nude due to trying to cut weight. In response to these scenes showing Montaño in the nude, she has gone public stating that she did not give her permission for these scenes to be used.
“I never said it was OK for me to be exposed on film and when I asked about them taking it down, they just said I don’t know what you’re talking about, it’s a good film, everyone loves how impactful it is,” Montaño told The Fighter and the Writer . Like OK, you’re deflecting. I still don’t want to be exposed for anyone to see cause I’m not getting any royalties, I’m not getting any kickbacks from this documentary. Like nothing.”
Montaño claims she herself never saw the film prior to the release and that the scenes in which she is exposed were never approved by her or her team. My MMA News reached out to the director of the film Landon Dyksterhouse for an interview to talk about the film. After postponement and cancellation of the scheduled interview, we were provided with a statement.
“Nicco was offered every opportunity to see the film and flag anything objectable and didn’t flag anything… However, we respect Nicco and have willingly gone forward and will take steps to blur the scene. We stand by the film and regret any issues this has caused…Throughout the rollout of Warrior Spirit, the goal has been to shed light around improving conditions for all UFC fighters, including weight cutting protocol, fighter pay, health insurance, and overall well-being.”
The film itself focuses on Montaño’s Native American heritage and the honor she has fighting for her community. The film quickly shifts to the difficulty of her weight cut and an attack on the UFC and the severe weight cutting practices. The end of the film shows that since Montaño was unable to make the fight, she was not compensated and did not receive any help from the UFC financially. Montaño was later cut by the UFC following some more health issues.
Nicco Montaño was not in attendance in New York for the premier and the scenes in which she was unhappy were brought to her attention by family and friends. Montaño is still fighting and is targeting a possible return at 145 pounds.
The film is currently open for viewing through the DOC NYC film festival going on now. View the film here.
