5 great UFC fighters who got angry with reporters
UFC fighters and reporters often get along about as well as a house and flooding. Despite there being obvious benefits in working together - for reporters, there's more interviews and better coverage, for fighters, it can mean better exposure and promotion - the two sometimes butt heads.
Whether it's a question too many or one they feel is unfair, there's been plenty of instances of UFC fighters tearing hapless reporters a new one. It doesn't just stop at the fighters either. UFC president Dana White infamously banned Ariel Helwani from UFC shows in 2016 after he leaked the news of Brock Lesnar's return. While the ban was eventually lifted, White's initial actions hammered home his fury over the leak.
More recently, White expressed his frustrations with the New York Times over a report they ran about UFC parent company William Morris Endeavor. As loud and clear as White's been with reporters who've angered him, he's got nothing on the antics of some of his fighters over the years.
Here are five UFC fighters who lost their temper with reporters:
#5 Former UFC Light Heavyweight Champion Vitor Belfort
Everyone has sensitive topics in life they’d sooner not discuss in the open. For former UFC knockout artist Vitor Belfort, that sensitive topic appears to be TRT (testosterone replacement therapy).
Following his round one KO victory over Luke Rockhold in Brazil in 2013, Belfort was asked by MMAJunkie’s John Morgan about his TRT and if he was frustrated over it being brought up constantly. Evidently, Belfort was incredibly frustrated by the constant mentions of his hormone therapy.
A controversial topic in the sport, TRT is intended to help older men who are struggling with low testosterone levels in their blood. The treatment can also be applied to men of any age provided their hormone levels are imbalanced enough.
Some have claimed TRT should be banned from the sport owing to its similarities to the use of testosterone as a PED. Belfort in particular was under a lot of scrutiny at the time for this reason. Disgusted by Morgan’s line of questioning, Belfort demanded the reporter be assaulted for bringing it up:
“Can someone beat him up for me please? Can somebody beat him up?”
Fortunately for Morgan, no one took Belfort up on his request.