MMA legend Tito Ortiz was a victim of bullying during his younger years, but his ability to defend himself through wrestling "saved his life," he said.
"I got bullied as a kid a lot," Ortiz said on Fox Nation's "After the Show Show." "I got into wrestling in high school and it kind of saved my life. You know, I was a huge WWE fan. And I watched Hulk Hogan, the Rock and so forth. And I just got into wrestling and wrestling helped me, gave me self-confidence," he said.
Hoping to prevent his children from reliving his negative school experience, Ortiz said he encourages them to learn the sport so that they can protect themselves and others from bullies.
"My kids wrestle, they all wrestle...it helps with their confidence and they actually help the kids that do get bullied. They're little guardians," he said.
LAS VEGAS - NOVEMBER 21: Tito Ortiz (R) battles Forrest Griffin (L) during their Light Heavyweight Fight at the UFC 106 at Mandalay Bay Events Center on November 21, 2009 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by Jon Kopaloff/Getty Images)
"I protect my friends, I protect my family. But I think bullying is just guys who have been bullied themselves and they kind of get lost -- they feel like they've got to defend themselves," he added.
A "defender by nature," Ortiz has been known to use his platform to campaign on behalf of Trump, specifically within the Latino community.
"[In] 2016, about 70 percent [of Latinos] hated me because of me supporting our president...and now, [it switched] around to 80 percent liking you saying 'we kind of -- we get what's going on,'" Ortiz explained.
"In California, there's a lot of Latinos that do support Trump," he added.
TITO ORTIZ EX JENNA JAMESON SPEAKS OUT
Doubling down in his praise for the president, Ortiz described Trump as an "American who wants to fight for the American people."
"Unemployment is at the lowest of all-time. I mean, as far as the DOW, and the economy... it's amazing to see what he's doing. He's keeping his word and he's battling for the people that most other presidents weren't doing. He's keeping his promise. And I back the man because he's not a politician, but he is an American who wants to fight for the American people. And that's what it should be."
Later in the segment, Ortiz discussed growing up on food stamps, and how his upbringing shaped his political views years later.
"I always thought that being helped by the government was great. But being helped over and over and over, it was just holding us down and saying we weren't good enough to be successful, to think outside the box" he said.
"I always thought that being helped by the government was great. But being helped over and over and over, it was just holding us down and saying we weren't good enough to be successful."
"And I didn't want that for my kids. I don't want that for myself. I wanted to be successful. I want to have a house on the water...I want to have a Rolls Royce Phantom. I want to have a fishing boat behind my house. How am I going to get these things? Through hard work and dedication you get them all," he said. "I got them all...and I sit in my house and I live in a dream. I'm living this American dream."
To hear more from Ortiz about the impeachment probe and the upcoming 2020 election, join Fox Nation and watch the latest episode of "After the Show Show" today.
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