Josh Hokit addresses controversial Michelle Obama comments in first interview after UFC Freedom 250
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Drake RiggsUncrownedTue, June 23, 2026 at 10:55 PM UTC·4 min readJosh Hokit made plenty of noise — as usual — after his win over Derrick Lewis at UFC Freedom 250 at the White House. But rather than his performance gaining attention, it was Hokit's post-fight interview that garnered headlines in the days after the event.
Known for his brash character work and controversial interviews, the heavyweight contender initially appeared to speak without a persona following his second-round stoppage of Lewis. That was, until he closed out his in-cage interview with Joe Rogan by calling the former First Lady of the United States, Michelle Obama, "a man."
AdvertisementAdvertisementSpeaking Tuesday on "The Ariel Helwani Show" in his first interview since the fight, in a rare appearance as himself rather than a character, Hokit declined to apologize and said he has no regrets about the comments he made on UFC's arguable biggest platform ever.
"I thought I was giving her a compliment," Hokit told Uncrowned. "Michelle Obama, being a man, that's like, she knows how to deal with adversity. She knows how to work hard like a man; when the times get tough, the tough keep going.
"I thought it was a perfect opportunity to show the world how great this country is with the freedom of speech. You can go somewhere and you say something like that, and you die. And I'm not suicidal, by the way; I'm in good spirits. I'm a little under the weather right now, but other than that, I'm good. And so in other parts of the world, you say something like that, and you're not here to speak to Ariel Helwani, you know?"
Hokit, 28, hasn't been shy to trash-talk anyone and everyone since arriving in the UFC late last year. Considering the large viewership UFC Freedom 250 figures released by Paramount, and the attention the event drew as a White House spectacle, Hokit's latest remark generated his most blowback yet. But that doesn't mean he regrets it.
AdvertisementAdvertisement"There's a certain side that pokes at another side and there's no outrage there. And so I thought it was a perfect time to take a jab," Hokit said.
"That's one thing about my career. I'm never going to — I think I was watching a [Henry] Cejudo video and he was like, 'That's one thing I regret, is all the stuff I did [to promote fights].' Or you hear people backtrack — even the [Sean] Strickland post-fight speech [after the Khamzat Chimaev fight], where he was like, 'I'm trying to sell the fight, and I don't mean the things I say.' You'll never hear me backtrack from what I say."
UFC CEO Dana White was among the many voices to condemn Hokit's comment. White called the remarks "nasty" and "nonsense" the morning after UFC Freedom 250, then echoed those thoughts again Saturday after UFC Vegas 119, distancing himself from Hokit's "disgusting" remark but also reiterating that White believes in free speech.
Ultimately, Hokit has become a top UFC contender at heavyweight despite the controversy, extending his undefeated promotional record to 4-0 with his latest win. Hokit said 2026 has already been a million-dollar year for him in the UFC and that neither White nor UFC CBO Hunter Campbell reached out to him about his post-fight comments.
AdvertisementAdvertisementAs for everyone else, he's not concerned.
If Hokit had made a remark like that in his past life while on the NFL's San Francisco 49ers practice squad, he knows he wouldn't have expected to keep his spot on the roster.
"That's why I respect [White] so much," Hokit said. "That's why I wanted to fight in the UFC, because you got bosses like that. If I would have said that in the NFL, I don't have a job anymore. That's why I respect them so much. Yeah, they could always feel some type of way, I respect their opinions, but we do got freedom of speech. So it is what it is. I don't like what other people say, but I've got to deal with it, I've got to live with it."
"At the end of the day, I don't care [if anyone's upset]. Now, I'm not trying to piss off the Dana Whites and Hunter Campbells. But they would also message me if they really felt like a certain way. They could comment and stuff like that, but if they really felt a type of way, they would message me. All the other people, they weren't there when I was down. They weren't there when I was broken. So, I could care less what anybody thinks. I'm here to make a splash and back up my words. If anybody feels some type of way, they know where to find me."
Badenoch blasts 'moaning' female Labour MPs over Burnham jobs 'quota'
Kemi Badenoch has told Labour women to earn a job in Andy Burnham's Cabinet instead of demanding they are handed jobs because of their gender.
The Tory leader lashed out today amid reports that female MPs are demanding the de-facto new prime minister introduce a 50:50 gender split 'quota' in his government.
Amid reports that former foreign secretary David Miliband is being lined up to return to the role, possibly with his brother Ed as Chancellor, one female minister also complained that Burnham could not have 'more Milibands than women' in the top posts.
But in a scathing article in the Times today Mrs Badenoch told them to 'stop moaning' and get chosen on merit instead of retreating into 'more of the failed identity politics that is holding back our country'.
'There are many, many reasons why you shouldn't have any Milibands in the cabinet,' she said.
'But complaining that the boys haven't given them the right jobs or that the boys are taking all the jobs, just shows that Labour's women still don't get it.'
The idea of quotas was also attacked by Baroness Jacqui Smith, Labour's Skills Minister.
Asked by Times Radio if Mr Burnham should reserve jobs for women, she said: 'No, I think what Andy Burnham should be doing is building the very best team around him to change this country.'
A letter written by the Women's Parliamentary Labour Party has called on Mr Burnham to ensure a 50:50 split between men and women in government jobs
Amid reports that former foreign secretary David Miliband (above, right, in 2010) is being lined up to return to the role, possibly with his brother Ed as Chancellor, one female minister complained that Burnham could not have 'more Milibands than women' in the top posts
But Mrs Badenoch told them to pipe down and get chosen on merit instead of retreating into 'more of the failed identity politics that is holding back our country'
A letter written by the Women's Parliamentary Labour Party and seen by the BBC has called on Mr Burnham to ensure a 50:50 split between men and women in government jobs after he succeeds Sir Keir Starmer.
'We are asking you to demonstrate this change from day one and address the toxicity and misogyny within our own party and government,' it said.
Labour has never had a female leader, while the Conservatives have had three, and Mrs Badenoch urged the government to follow its meritocratic example.
'If you run a meritocracy, then you do not have to worry about jobs for the boys,' she wrote.
'Every woman who is a Conservative MP, every woman who has ever won the leadership, has had to fight to get where she is.
'By contrast, Labour women are demanding guarantees from Burnham. But the truth is he doesn't have to give any guarantees.
'If none of Labour's women are prepared to get their hands dirty and challenge him for the leadership, their demands are toothless.'
'In fact, it's quite revealing that the women's parliamentary Labour Party has written to Burnham asking him to commit himself to at least 50 per cent female ministers.
'This has nothing to do with meritocracy. It is yet more of the failed identity politics that is holding back our country.'
Venezuela Fury and Noah Price subsidising their life by livestreaming
Venezuela Fury and her husband Noah Price look to be making their own way in the world by raking it in from their lucrative social media accounts.
The influencer daughter of Tyson and Paris Fury, 16, has become an internet sensation after tying the knot with her husband Noah, 19, earlier this year.
Since getting married and moving in together the couple have been earning thousands of pounds a month, livestreaming their life as newlyweds in their static caravan in the East Riding of Yorkshire.
And fans can't get enough of their regular life updates on TikTok and Kick, which have proved to be very profitable for the pair.
They look to be supporting themselves after Noah denied that he was given £5million by Venezuela's family as a wedding gift.
Despite his wife's huge family wealth, an estimated combined £160 million, Noah recently told his Kick followers that he 'pays for everything' for the couple.
Making light of the claims about Venezuela's millionaire financial status, Noah said: 'I actually pay for everything unfortunately. You'd expect the millionaire to pay for it wouldn't you.'
Venezuela Fury and Noah Price are earning thousands livestreaming their caravan life - after her new groom insisted he pays all the bills and denied he had £5m handout from her dad
The influencer daughter of Tyson and Paris Fury , 16, has become an internet sensation after tying the knot with her husband Noah, 19, earlier this year
Venezuela then asked their fans: 'Do you think I am a millionaire?'
Noah joked: 'She isn't a secret millionaire guys', before she broke into song and sang: 'But I live like a millionaire!'
But it seems according to estimated calculations from their social media work, Noah and Venezuela can more than afford to support themselves.
Noah has been livestreaming on platforms such as Kick and TikTok, where viewers can send paid gifts or donations.
He was previously encouraging viewers to send gifts on his honeymoon during livestreams, suggesting this is one revenue stream.
Both Noah and Venezuela have built substantial followings on Instagram and TikTok. They can potentially earn money through sponsored posts, brand collaborations, affiliate links and creator payouts.
Kick allows its creators to take home 95 per cent of the £4.99 subscription cost that fans pay.
Streamers keep 100 per cent of direct tips and donations, minus minor standard payment processing fees.
It is unclear how many subscribers Noah currently has because this information is hidden, but he does have 7,200 followers which is publicly viewable.
An industry insider has suggested Noah is making around £400 per video on TikTok, while Venezuela is likely to make £2,000 due to her following count of 1.3 million.
An industry insider has suggested Noah is making around £400 per video on TikTok, while Venezuela is likely to make £2,000 due to her following count of 1.3 million
In one video on their honeymoon, Noah asked his followers if they'd give them some more gifts now that they were married.
In a TikTok live viewed by 20,000 he said: 'Keep liking our videos people, keep sending gifts.'
After saying thank you to several of his followers he joked they should stick around on the livestream and 'watch Venezuela punch me in the mouth'.
The other half of the honeymooning couple said: 'I am, honestly!'
Noah previously confirmed that the pair don't share their finances after they were asked whether they have a shared bank account.
'She earns her money, I earn mine,' said Noah, as Venezuela joked: 'Yeah, what you gonna do about it.'
Noah went on to debunk the rumour that Tyson gave him £5million when he tied the knot with his daughter as he insisted: 'No Tyson did not give me £5million'.
Meanwhile Venezuela is being eyed up by executives for a fly on the wall TV series.
Noah went on to debunk the rumour that Tyson gave him £5million when he tied the knot with his daughter as he insisted: 'No Tyson did not give me £5million'
Boasting 1.3 million TikTok followers, Venezuela is already entertaining fans with her honest musings and candid moments, from cooking to kitting out her and Noah's static caravan home.
And following the success of the Netflix series At Home With The Furys, it is no wonder bosses are wanting to draw on the Fury popularity.
A TV insider said: 'The couple are not A-list celebrities but everyone has become obsessed with their love story.
'People are genuinely intrigued by them. Whether it’s the fact they have married so young, Venezuela’s famous family or their gypsy lifestyle, they have the ‘X factor'.
'Several TV executives think a proper fly-on-the-wall series following their lives as newlyweds in the gypsy community would be fascinating,' they told The Sun.
It is thought Netflix would be likely to produce the series due to their already established relationship with the Furys.
Venezuela's representatives told The Daily Mail: 'We have many offers on the table regarding Venezuela which we are discussing.'
