Daniel Cormier criticizes Josh Hokit for Michelle Obama comments at UFC event

"

WASHINGTON, DC - JUNE 14: Josh Hokit speaks to Joe Rogan following his win in a heavyweight fight during the UFC Freedom 250 event on the South Lawn at the White House on June 14, 2026 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Jeff Bottari/Zuffa LLC) UFC White House went off without a hitch, save for one thing that Daniel Cormier didn’t care for. On Sunday, the biggest UFC event of all time took place on the South Lawn of the White House. The event was, mostly a rousing success, drawing record numbers of viewers and delivering on the spectacle promised by such a unique event. There was, however, one glaring down spot for the event, and it came from the man most thought might be a problem. Over the past year, Josh Hokit has made a name for himself for his exciting fighting style and his outlandish gimmick outside of the cage, channeling his inner pro-wrestler and intentionally acting inflammatory. Hokit’s gimmick reached a crescendo on Sunday when, after defeated Derrick Lewis, he made a disparaging comment about former First Lady Michelle Obama, calling her a man. The comment drew immediate backlash from many, including UFC CEO Dana White, and Daniel Cormier, who was in the commentary booth for the event, was even more disgusted by it. “Josh Hokit made a comment in the octagon on Sunday night after he won the fight, it was completely uncalled for,” Cormier said on his YouTube channel. “Josh has been in my gym, Josh was in the fighter meetings last weekend, and he wasn’t doing the whole character thing. When he’s not doing the whole character thing, he’s a normal dude. He’s a good fighter, and he’s a great athlete. But the comments that he made in the octagon just made no sense. It was irresponsible, it was nasty, it was horrible, and it was unnecessary. It was unnecessary. “He started his post-fight interview, and he was going to do one of those gimmicky things that, honestly, I think it’s lame as f*ck. And then he stopped himself and he did an interview. And he was good. He could have left, and he could have made more fans than he walked in there with, because they would have gotten to see Josh Hokit. But instead, he goes and says the thing about Michelle Obama, who is as classy a person as you will ever meet, who has only represented herself, her family, and this country with grace and class. She’s been a person that it should be hard to take shots at. It was just an unnecessary shot on her, in a setting that didn’t need any of that type of stuff.” For many, Hokit’s comment was the worst-case scenario for the UFC White House card, and event that drew criticism beforehand for its political nature. While the rest of the evening was primarily about the history of the United States and our shared history, Hokit’s comment stood starkly in contrast. And given that he was coming off the biggest win of his career, Cormier thinks Hokit simply doesn’t need to do things like that. “So many people right now in our country are trying to divide,” Cormier said. “That’s the type of statement that divides, when in reality, we as a country should be trying to come together. So I absolutely hated that. I absolutely hated that. He needs to do better. Because it looks like he’s going to have a good career in the UFC, and he’s going to have a ton of time to work his way toward a championship, or at least fight for it. “I get the gimmicks, but from the presser, where Dana was up and down with his reactions — at times it looked like he thought it was funny, at times he looked disgusted, at times it looked like he wanted to tell him to just shut the f*ck up — to that comment in the octagon, it’s gross. You just don’t need to do it. Especially when you can fight in the way that he does, because at the end of the day, he’s a fighter. He’s a fighter. But it benefitted him none to do that. There was no gain in Josh Hokit doing that, and it was disgusting. “So, get it together, dude. You don’t need to be as outlandish as you are. Again, I know Josh, and I have a relationship with him, but when you do stuff like that, it really is hard to support you and support what you’re doing.” TOP STORIES Views. UFC White House card draws 17 million viewers across U.S. and Latin America on Paramount+. Champ. Justin Gaethje: It’s ‘absolutely insane’ to finally be UFC champion, reveals timeline to fight again. Return. Michael Chandler makes first statement since UFC White House loss, vows to bounce back: ‘I’m impossible to kill.’ Comments. Alex Pereira ‘surprised’ by Jon Jones’ post-fight video: ‘I just don’t understand why he did that.’ Future. Usman Nurmagomedov reveals what’s most important to his future as he approaches free agency. Feed. Israel Adesanya pushes for Conor McGregor vs. Justin Gaethje: ‘It would feed countries.’ Dropped. Child abuse charge dropped against UFC veteran Tim Means. VIDEO STEW Between the Links. Usman Nurmagomedov. Israel Adesanya, DJ. Sean O’Malley reacts to Gaethje vs. Topuria. Kyoji interview. SOCIAL MEDIA BOUILLABAISSE Justin Gaethje. Good posting. Tremendous success for UFC 250, which is great for the continued growth of the sport, the fighters and the fans. MVP MMA had Netflix. UFC 250 had the Whitehouse and one of the most recognized global figures in history in President Trump. Only winners here in all scenarios.… — Nakisa Bidarian (@nakisa_bidarian) June 19, 2026 An amazing month for the sport of MMA and its continued growth in popularity. Congrats to all of the fighters who made these events a success. For all those who doubted @RondaRousey and @ginacarano… sorry for your loss. pic.twitter.com/NQgOEEsUR0 — MVP – Most Valuable Promotions (@MostVpromotions) June 19, 2026 That about sums it up. Gaethje is a straight up 🇺🇸 badass. Huge underdog. Possibly last fight. 37 years old. The White House event. Gets dropped by Ilia, who’s undefeated and looked unstoppable. Puts a life altering beating on Ilia and makes him quit on the stool. Couldn’t make this up if you tried. https://t.co/ld8FV4DaTJ — Matt Brown (@IamTheImmortal) June 18, 2026 Callout. After Mackenzie vs Gillian has been announced, I think Tatiana and I should be the fight to decide the next one to that shot!! #Carcará #UFCstrawweight @Mickmaynard2 @tatianaufc pic.twitter.com/S4gZKHAmJe — Virna Jandiroba (@VirnaJandiroba) June 18, 2026 We all are. Damn, it's been that long? Lol. I'm getting old. https://t.co/gKsCsEzSQi — Adrian Yañez (@yanezmma) June 19, 2026 Tony time. “Visualization” Now That You All Have Seen How Terrible My Wrestling Is, Behind The Scenes During Fight Week’ 🎥 1 min rest, Coach Ran Me Through 2 Rnds Of Stance & Motion Before Live Rounds 🤼‍♂️ Felt It Thanks Again Coach Rick For the notes. Wed Shake Out ⚔️🕶️ -CSO- 🇺🇸🏆🇲🇽 # ♨️ pic.twitter.com/J0EqYipcJt — Tony Ferguson (@TonyFergusonXT) June 19, 2026 FEED ME MORE Apple? FINAL THOUGHTS I’m not sure I’ve seen an event that’s more of an afterthought in the history of MMA than UFC Vegas 119 is. Great main event, but going back to the Apex just 6 days after a card like UFC White House is silly. EXIT POLL If you find something you’d like to see in the Morning Report, hit up @AlexanderKLee of @JedKMeshew on Twitter and let us know about it. Also, follow MMAFighting on Twitter, Instagram, YouTube, TikTok, Twitch, and like us on Facebook.

"

Daniel Cormier blasts Josh Hokit’s comments about Michelle Obama