Saturday Night Live’s Michael Che has a history of using jokes to diminish women’s sports, and this week was no different. During Saturday’s “Weekend Update,” Che shared that “The University of Iowa announced that basketball star Caitlin Clark will have her jersey retired—and replaced with an apron.”
The joke elicited plenty of groans—followed by some huge laughs when Clark herself joined Che and Colin Jost at their desk just a few seconds later.
Clark wasn’t quite buying it when Che told her that he was a huge fan. “Really? Because I heard that apron joke you just did,” Clark replied.
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Che assured her that it was all in good fun, but Clark couldn’t help but observe, “You make a lot of jokes about women’s sports.”
Che didn’t necessarily agree, but his co-anchor did. “No, it’s definitely a lot,” Jost chimed in before sharing a supercut of just a few of the most recent jokes Che has made about women’s sports in general, and women’s basketball in particular (like when he called the bars that vowed to only show women’s basketball during March Madness “the empty ones”).
While the two agreed that they couldn’t do the other’s job—Che could never play like Clark and she said she could never tell jokes like Che. “But I did write some jokes, and it would mean a lot to me if you read some of them,” said Clark.
Che obliged, albeit somewhat reluctantly, delivering Clark’s jokes as requested.
“The Indiana Fever have the first pick in this Monday’s draft,” Che began. “A reminder that Indiana Fever is an WNBA team and not what Michael Che gave to dozens of women at Purdue University.”
“See,” said Clark. “That’s a good joke about women’s sports.”
So Che did another: “Netflix’s top news show is Ripley, featuring an eerie, unsteady performance by actor Andrew Scott. Critics say it’s the hardest thing to watch on Netflix since Michael Che’s special Shame the Devil.”
Before she left, Clark gifted Che with an apron, which she personally autographed.
“Thank you, I can’t wait to give this to my girlfriend,” Che told her.
“You don’t have a girlfriend, Michael,” Clark shot back.
