Josh Hokit put on one of the craziest fights in heavyweight history with his blood-soaked win over Curtis Blaydes at UFC 327, but despite enduring a three-round war that sent him to the hospital, he still rhymed his way to a post-fight interview that sounded very much like a pro wrestling promo.
The persona that Hokit created has earned him plenty of criticism, especially when he unleashes some sort of offensive rhetoric with a microphone in his hand, but his performance on Saturday places him among the best heavyweights in the sport now. Even UFC CEO Dana White, who has said repeatedly that he doesn’t really enjoy the character that Hokit created, couldn’t deny what he witnessed in that 15-minute slugfest that unfolded with Blaydes.
“I’m one of them [that doesn’t like his character],” White said at the UFC 327 post-fight press conference. “He walked the talk tonight. When people come out and say stupid shit and have sort of a schtick, it’s not my thing. But nothing but respect for both of those men tonight.
“That fight was unbelievable. You won’t hear a word out of me from here on out about him. Like I said, he walked the talk.”
As a reward for his performance on Saturday, Hokit earned an extra $200,000 after he took home both a Fight of the Night and Performance of the Night bonus.
He was also gifted a coveted slot on the upcoming UFC White House card after he accepted a matchup against Derrick Lewis for the historic event happening in Washington D.C. on June 14.
White said as much as he doesn’t love the way Hokit chooses to promote himself, he backed up his brash attitude and outlandish behavior with his win over Blaydes.
“It’s one thing to have a schtick and act whatever,” White said. “It’s another thing go in and fight the No. 5 ranked guy in the world, who is a bad dude, and do what he did to him tonight.”
Hokit’s fight against Blaydes had everybody impressed, including President Donald Trump, who was seated next to White for the UFC 327 main card.
“Everybody was going crazy,” White said about the fight. “Everybody was saying it’s one of the greatest heavyweight fights they’ve ever seen. Everybody on that side of the cage.”
White added that Hokit didn’t report any injuries after his win, although he was transported to a local Miami hospital for precautionary reasons. Obviously, he’ll need a clean bill of health before he can officially get cleared to fight Lewis on June 14.
Assuming he’s good to go, Hokit can recover and then start preparing for his return at one of the biggest and most historic events in UFC history.
With that kind of stage, Hokit seems destined to crank things up to 11 to ensure when it comes to his appearances at the pre-fight press conference, weigh-ins and whatever appearances he makes that week.
For his part, White anticipates almost holding his breath wondering what Hokit might or might not say but then the former NFL player turned fighter makes the walk into the octagon for his fight against Lewis and all will be forgiven.
“Yeah probably [cringe a little bit],” White said about Hokit leading up to the UFC White House cards. “But then once he gets in the cage, we’ll forget all about it.”
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