Podcaster Joe Rogan has said the UFC fighter who unleashed a slur at former first lady Michelle Obama at Donald Trump’s White House cage fight should never have been invited in the first place.
After Josh Hokit won his heavyweight bout against Derrick Lewis during the UFC fight on the South Lawn of the White House on June 14, he told Rogan, who was emceeing the event, “Michelle Obama is a man. Am I right, America?”
“If they wanted to avoid this, probably shouldn't have had him fight on the White House lawn,” Rogan told fellow podcaster Tim Dillon on Wednesday’s episode of The Joe Rogan Experience.
Trump hosted the fight as part of the celebrations for America’s 250th anniversary of independence — and it also coincided with the president’s 80th birthday.
Rogan explained on his podcast that Hokit has a character known as “The Incredible Hoke,” seemingly a reference to the big, green superhero, “The Incredible Hulk.”
“He's basically like a pro- wrestling bad guy, who also is a really good fighter,” Rogan said.
“If they wanted to avoid this, probably shouldn't have had him fight on the White House lawn because if he said that at the T-Mobile Arena or in Madison Square Garden —outrageous, but not that big a deal.”
In the face of widespread criticism, including from UFC president Dana White, the 28-year-old fighter doubled down on his jibe, claiming he was complimenting Michelle Obama.
“I thought I was giving her a compliment,” Hokit told Ariel Helwani on a recent episode of his combat sports podcast.
Helwani replied: “I don’t think anyone viewed it as such.”
“Michelle Obama being a man, it’s like, she knows how to deal with adversity. She knows how to work hard like a man when the times get tough. You know…the tough keep going,” Hokit said.
White, a friend of Trump’s, told TIME in reaction to Hokit’s crude comment at the White House fight, “I understand that the Obama’s [sic] are public figures but I’m completely against saying nasty and false things about people’s families.”
“Everyone knows my position on free speech but I hate that kind of nonsense,” he added.
