This woman was walking around with her boyfriend and a black eye. We know it sounds bad, but it’s not what you think.

If you saw them pass by, you’re probably assuming the worst, as do a lot of people. 

But as it turns out, the story behind the bruise isn’t nearly as dark as it looks.

Strangers Give Man The Stank Face

In a viral video, mixed martial arts (MMA) fighter and content creator Kaytlin “Katniss” Neil explained why she was unashamedly walking around with a black eye on her face.

“Why is everyone glaring at him?” the caption read.

In the video, Neil is at a pizza shop with her boyfriend, splitting a pepperoni pizza pie.

But Neil noticed that for some reason, everyone kept giving him dirty looks.

“And I literally have no idea why,” Neil says sarcastically. “He’s like the sweetest guy ever.”

As soon as she flips the camera to herself, you can see that she has a very prominent black eye. The other eye is partly bruised, too.

Why Does Neil Have A Black Eye?

She’s anMMA fighter, so a black eye is bound to happen.

The Utah-based fighter is the No. 46 ranked woman MMA fighter in North America, No. 7 in the U.S. Southeast for women, and No. 4 in Florida for women, according to Tapology.

How Often Do MMA Fighters Get Hurt?

The American Orthopedic Society for Sports Medicine (AOSSM) reported that a review found that 28-46% of MMA fights end in knockout or technical knockout, and 12.7% end in knockout. After trauma, some participants have microstructural brain damage.

A study by The Athletic, which was cited by the AOSSM, found that 61.2% of UFC fighters are worried about potential long-term brain damage, and 21% noticed marked differences in their brain function after their fighting career.

Maybe surprisingly, women’s fights tend to last about 90 seconds longer and tend to end in a knockout after a head injury more than in men’s fights. The average female fighter also receives more head strikes per minute (2.95 vs. 2.37) and more total head strikes (7.73 vs. 6.2) per fight than the average male.

Despite this, MMA is considered to be much safer than other disciplines, such as boxing and kickboxing.

Commenters React

Neil’s TikTok has been viewed more than 2.8 million times. Viewers empathized with Neil’s boyfriend.

“It’s has to be kinda awkward dating a woman who fights for a living because the average person ain’t thinking ‘oh she must be in martial arts,’” a person said.

“He should have a t-shirt with ‘I didn’t hit her! She’s bada– fighter and I do the dishes!’” another suggested.

“Wife got a black eye in the day from qualification with European rifles. I got hate glares for a week,” a commenter shared. 

“I didn’t understand the joke… then it hit me,” a top comment, which Neil liked, read.

https://www.tiktok.com/@kaytlinkatnissmma/video/7518269033884536119

BroBible reached out to Neil for comment via Instagram and TikTok direct message.

The post ‘Everyone Keeps Giving Him Dirty Looks’: Utah MMA Fighter Goes For Pizza With Her Boyfriend After A Fight. Then She Realizes Why Everyone Is Staring appeared first on BroBible.