President Donald Trump has heaped praise on a UFC fighter with a history of vile slurs against Black people, including former First Lady Michelle Obama.
Hours after mixed martial arts heavyweight Josh Hokit used his victory speech at the White House to call Michelle Obama “a man,” the president paid tribute to the controversial fighter and others who won their bouts at his birthday bash on Sunday night.
“The UFC at the White House last night was incredible,” Trump wrote on Truth Social on Monday night.
“The weather was scheduled to be horrendous, and it turned out to be PERFECT! So much for weather predicting. The Fighters were outstanding—Bo Nickal, Justin Gaethje, Ciryl Gane, Sean O’Malley, Josh Hokit, Mauricio Ruffy, and Diego Lopes were all unbelievable! Most people have never seen anything like that kind of human speed and power before.”
Sunday night was not the first time Hokit has made such an offensive comment about the former first lady.
The former NFL footballer launched the same tirade against Michelle Obama after winning a fight in May last year, in a victory speech that also took aim at Barack Obama, Kamala Harris and Joe Biden.
He has also described women’s basketballer Brittney Griner as a man; referred to Black MMA competitor Torrez Finney as a “human gorilla” and claimed all Brazilian men were “stupid.”
And in another bizarre rant last year, he talked about the kind of fighters he wanted to go up against.
“My opponents will be sex traffickers, pedophiles, rapists, hell you can even throw the transgenders in there,” he said.
“Line them all up, and one by one, I give them a good ol’ American beatdown inside the octagon to show the world that there’s consequences for these types of behaviors in America.”
Despite his history of racist and transphobic remarks, Trump has been a long-time fan of Hokit, who can be so incendiary that even fellow fighters Max Holloway and Ilia Topuria have reacted negatively to his conduct.
After easily winning his bout against Derrick Lewis on Sunday, Hokit was spotted chatting with the president, who stood ringside, and placed a chain around his neck.
Lip reader Jeremy Freedom told the Daily Star that the president responded: “Too kind, thank you. You are the champion”.
Trump also reportedly once described Hokit as his favorite fighter—at least according to Hokit himself.
In an interview with Chael Sonnen and Ian Parker on their podcast, Undefeated & Undisputed, the UFC heavyweight described walking to the ambulance after one of his fights, when matchmaker Mick Maynard told him: “You are now Donald Trump’s new favorite fighter.”
The Daily Beast has reached out to the White House for a response to Hokit’s latest vile slur, which received an immediate backlash on Sunday night—including some boos from the crowd.
“And lastly, Michelle Obama is a man. Am I right, America?” he said in his post-fight comments with Joe Rogan.
Former NFL star Robert Griffin III wrote on X: “Josh Hokit won the biggest fight of his career at the White House and decides to finish his interview by calling Michelle Obama a Man. What a disgrace.
“It takes a really small man to use his biggest moment to attack a woman by calling her a man. Especially with the history behind calling Black women men,” he added.
Sports journalist Jemele Hill wrote: “Nothing says let’s celebrate America quite like that. Truly special.”
However, according to a report from CNN, Trump was seen smiling briefly in a quick moment caught on camera.
The president also came under fire last year for his own vile slur against the Obamas, when he posted a video depicting them as apes.
The controversial clip abruptly superimposed the faces of Barack and Michelle Obama onto the bodies of dancing cartoon apes as part of a video pushing 2020 election conspiracy theories.
The post was eventually deleted after a furious backlash, with the White House blaming an unnamed staffer for “erroneously” posting the video.
