Sunday, Oct 29, 2006    Text size: 

Ortiz was going to be named as a guest of honor for the Miramar station’s ball, but when he informed the Marines he intended on bringing Jameson, they asked him to disinvite her. Ortiz refused, and informed the organization he would decline to attend.

“We invited him, and he accepted,” Maj. Jason Johnston, a spokesman at Marine Corps Air Station, told MarineTimes.com. “Then, it became aware to us that his guest was going to be his girlfriend. Then, we had to make a decision, and the decision made was that she was not an individual or guest that we really felt was appropriate for the Marine Corps ball. When you invite someone, you don’t go into it thinking ‘who is the individual and who might they bring as a guest.’”

After it initially was announced that Ortiz and Jameson would be attending the ball, some Marines bristled at the notion that the armed services would even invite a fighter and his porn star girlfriend to an official military function.

“These guys in Miramar are making a mockery of what is supposed to be tradition,” Master Gunnery Sgt. Larry Kuzniak said. “It should be about the Marine Corps, not about the movie stars and the athletes. If you’re not going to observe tradition, you might as well just let it die. Next thing you know, Barbra Streisand will be out there. It’s just totally embarrassing.”

The decision to include Ortiz is not as random as it might seem. The Marines base at Miramar, Calif. will play host to a UFC fight night to be broadcast on Spike TV. According to UFC representative Michael Sakin, the UFC has developed a close relationship with West Coast Marine’s recruiters. There is a possibility that both groups will formalize a national sponsorship agreement in the future, MarineTimes.com reported.