When UFC ring girl Arianny Celeste spoke about awkward behind-the-scenes moments - "The guys are almost naked"

Arianny Celeste is undoubtedly one of the UFC's most popular ring girls and has been employed by the promotion for over 15 years. While the 37-year-old model has watched countless MMA fights and been present at as many weighing-in ceremonies, Celeste still gets awkward when fighters strip down to make weight.

Celeste made her UFC debut as a ring girl in 2006 and has won the Ringcard Girl of the Year at the World MMA Awards seven times, making her the undisputed queen of the ring girls. Apart from being a regular feature at UFC events, Arianny Celeste also models full-time and has been featured in top magazines such as Sports Illustrated, Playboy, and Maxim.

In an interview with Iron Man Magazine in 2015, the veteran ring girl discussed everything from her modeling career to her personal life. During the interview, Arianny Celeste revealed that having to watch fighters strip down to bare essentials during official weigh-ins still makes her awkward. She said:

"During the weigh-ins, the guys are almost naked. I have to stand there while being filmed live as they get undressed. Sometimes when the guys are overweight, they keep taking off their clothes and get more and more naked."

She continued:

"Then, all of a sudden, they drop their shorts and are completely naked in front of the crowd. I have to stand there and try to look away while still posing for the camera!"

Celeste has retired as an octagon girl since but is widely loved by the MMA community.

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Arianny Celeste on whether ring girls get paid more than fighters

Not everyone is a fan of how much money octagon girls might be making at the job.

After Jake Paul slammed the amount of money ring girls reportedly make in the UFC last year, veteran Uriah Hall chimed in with his opinion.

Speaking at a media conference ahead of his boxing match against Le'Veon Bell, the former UFC star said:

"I don’t think certain things are fair to athletes... You’re going out there and fighting and you’re putting your brain cells on the line and f–ng ring card girls are making $70,000, which is utterly f–ng ridiculous." [H/t: MMA Fighting]

Celeste addressed the sentiment on TikTok soon afterward, saying:

"I don’t make more than the fighters. I’ve been in this industry for over 15 years, and I’ve worked my a** off to be where I am in life... I gotta just say the rumours are not true, so stop spreading these lies." [H/t: TalkSPORT]

While several ring girls in the UFC make mouth-watering figures, Arianny Celeste was among the highest-earning in the promotion with a reported seven-figure income.