What started as a celebratory post‑fight interview on the White House lawn — moments after Josh Hokit knocked out Derrick Lewis, handed President Trump a gold chain, and thanked Jesus Christ — turned abruptly surreal when he capped his victory by shouting a baseless insult about Michelle Obama.
“And lastly, Michelle Obama is a man. Am I right, America?” he shouted.
The South Lawn fell silent as Joe Rogan stepped back and ended the segment with a curt, “Ladies and gentlemen, Josh Hokit.” The broadcast never returned to the remark.
The backlash arrived quickly.
UFC CEO Dana White texted Time magazine that while the Obamas are public figures, he was “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 said.
Mr. White also distanced himself from Hokit after he made the same claim about WNBA star Brittney Griner after a win at UFC 327.
Comedian Shane Gillis, who attended the event, didn’t hide his discomfort. “Yeah, I didn’t like that,” he told TMZ. “But whatever, he was funny.”
Former NFL quarterback Robert Griffin III was more direct. “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,” he wrote on social media. “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.”
Sunny Hostin, co‑host of ABC’s The View, placed the moment in a broader historical frame.
“There’s this intersectionality between race, racism, and sexism that was on full display at the White House,” she said on Monday’s broadcast. “The crowd laughed at the statement, and the President of the United States smirked, and never addressed what was said. That is beneath the dignity of the office of the President of the United States, and it’s beneath the dignity of the American people.”
Ms. Hostin added that the remark tapped into a long pattern of demeaning Black women. “Black women have been slurred and made to feel that they were unattractive, made to feel that they were masculine, made to feel that they didn’t have the femininity that a white woman would have,” she said.
Democrats on Capitol Hill piled on. Rep. Melanie Stansbury of New Mexico took to social media, calling the comment “disgusting.”
“Ok, so let me get this straight. The dude who puked on himself live on TV during his weigh‑in is hurling insults at the former First Lady now?” she said, alluding to a weigh-in video that circled online of Mr. Hokit.
Rep. Joaquin Castro of Texas blasted Paramount, which streamed the event: “So is this the kind of trash we can expect from Paramount and CBS now?”
The Democratic National Committee posted a portrait of Mrs. Obama with the caption that she “lives in their heads rent‑free.”
White House spokesman Steven Cheung told CNN that Hokit “had a great win last night” and “showed toughness and the ability to pressure his opponent both on his feet and on the ground.”
Mr. Trump, seated in the front row, appeared to flash a half‑smile seconds after the remark, according to CNN.
Hokit wasn’t supposed to be on the White House card at all. But after Mr. Trump questioned why Mr. Lewis wasn’t fighting, Mr. White added the bout and matched Mr. Lewis with Mr. Hokit.
