Steve Irwin was a dedicated Brazilian jiu-jitsu practitioner and enthusiastic MMA fan who regularly trained alongside his security guard, Kyle Noke, who later went on to compete in the UFC.
Steve Irwin was a devoted mixed martial arts enthusiast and accomplished grappler who built a private training cage at Australia Zoo, where he regularly sparred with his bodyguard, Kyle Noke, who would later compete in the UFC. After hiring Noke as security in 2002, Irwin soon turned him into a full-time training partner, immersing himself in boxing, wrestling, and Brazilian jiu-jitsu. At 6-foot-2 and more than 220 pounds, years of handling powerful wildlife had given the Crocodile Hunter exceptional strength and a pressure-heavy grappling style.
His commitment to combat sports went far beyond a casual hobby. Before interviews and public appearances, Irwin would sometimes have Noke strike him in the stomach to raise his adrenaline levels. Convinced that Noke had the talent to reach the highest level, Irwin helped fund his trips to train in the United States, a step that eventually contributed to Noke’s UFC career. Although Irwin reportedly dreamed of competing in a professional MMA bout himself, network executives and publicists discouraged the idea, concerned that it could conflict with the family-friendly image that had made him a global star.
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But who prays for Satan? Who, in eighteen centuries, has had the common humanity to pray for the one sinner that needed it most?
- Mark Twain
The line is less about literally defending Satan and more about criticizing humanity’s habit of limiting compassion to people considered deserving of it.
Mark Twain frequently explored the idea that real morality is revealed by whether people can extend empathy even to those who are hated, condemned, or seen as beyond redemption. The quote is powerful because it turns conventional religious thinking on its head: if compassion is truly universal, should it not also reach the ultimate outcast?
It also reflects Twain’s darker later years, when he grew increasingly cynical about human nature, war, imperialism, and what he viewed as religious hypocrisy.