“Took the rep of a villain weapon concealing the image of a thug kept appealing, willing to stick out my neck for respect if it meant life or death,” Josh Hokit freestyled at the media day for UFC 334. “Never live with regret from what I said.” As he gears up to capture Ciryl Gane’s heavyweight title, Hokit keeps his eyes strictly on what’s ahead.

“No, I’ll never look back and be like, ‘Oh, I regret that,” Hokit replied when asked if he had any regrets about the comments he made against Michelle Obama at the White House event.

But what about the venue? Why did he have to make those unsavory remarks at a place where the former First Lady lived? Initially Hokit agreed.

“Sure it wasn’t,” he said, but promptly added, “I mean, it is what it is. I made it on Donald Trump’s Truth Social post. You know what I’m saying?”

Reflecting deeper, Hokit explained why he made those comments.

“At the end of the day, my name’s going to live on forever,” he added. “Media people, whatever, you could not like it. It is what it is. I’m here to be remembered. And if I’ve got to crack a few eggs to make an omelette, then f**k it. If I’ve got to burn the bridge to light the way, f**k it. I’m here to take what’s mine.

“And if I’ve got to rub some people the wrong way, if I’ve got to say some sh*t in the wrong location, it is what it is.

“Was it not a good location to say it? I mean, we’re at the White House. That house represents freedom of speech. I think that was a perfect location to say it.”

Hokit’s justification stems from the comments he made against Michelle Obama at the UFC Freedom 250 card on June 14, 2026. Featuring in the main card, he faced Derrick Lewis and won the fight via second round TKO.

His celebration, however, turned awkward during the post-fight cage interview. Speaking with Joe Rogan, Hokit called Michelle Obama a “man.”

The remarks attracted widespread scrutiny, with many criticizing Hokit for making disparaging comments about a former First Lady. While admitting the fighter’s right to free speech, UFC CEO Dana White felt Hokit’s comments were “disgusting.”

Dana White breaks his silence: Josh Hokit’s comments cross a line

“No, listen, there’s always going to be people [who] say things that most of us don’t agree with,” he said at a press conference. “I mean just the time, the place, the just f**king.

“I’ve said many times, I voted for Obama the first time. Didn’t vote for him the second time,” White added. “Then when I was at the inauguration, he was sitting in front of me, and then I saw all this stuff on the internet where people were like, ‘Oh, Dana’s mad dogging Obama…’ Obama’s the only one that turned around to me. Couldn’t have been a nicer guy and said, ‘Congratulations on all your success and everything that you’ve done, whatever.’ I said, ‘Thank you, Mr. President.'”

“And I don’t believe in this sh*t. Like, all the people [who] hate Trump, he’s not my president. All the people [who] hate Biden, he’s not my president. I got some bad f**king news for you. If you’re an American, that’s your president. And I respect all presidents, present and past. Not everybody does. And got to listen to f**king stupid sh*t like that sometimes, unfortunately, because I also believe in free speech.”

Prominent MMA figures like Daniel Cormier described Hokit’s post-fight comment as “irresponsible, nasty, horrible, and unnecessary.”

Hokit has, meanwhile, maintained a consistent position.

“No, I will never,” he told Ariel Helwani when asked if he had any regrets. “That’s one thing about my career. I think I was watching a (Henry) Cejudo video, and he was like, ‘That’s one thing I regret. All the stuff I did. Or you hear (Sean). Strickland backtracked in his post-fight speech, 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 backtracking from what I say.

“I thought it was a perfect opportunity to show the world how great this country is with the freedom of speech. You 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.”

For a fighter who has been with the UFC for a little over a year, Hokit has earned a reputation for taunting and mocking fighters. The most notable instance remains the way he insulted Alex Pereira’s mother during the buildup to the White House card. More recently he seems to have made crude remarks about UFC bantamweight champion Kayla Harrison.

Even so, very few expected Hokit would target a political figure’s family member.

There are quite a few instances where prominent UFC fighters seem to have expressed provocative comments about politicians and their policies.

Reports indicate Colby Covington and Jorge Masvidal have openly expressed conservative political positions and criticized Democratic leadership. Similarly, UFC middleweight champion Sean Strickland is known to have publicly challenged Canada’s former Prime Minister Justin Trudeau over government policies.

Meanwhile, Beneil Dariush’s widely publicized exchange involving Elon Musk at UFC 262 concerned a delayed Tesla delivery.