I went homeless because of Hans Molenkamp - Former employee backs up UFC fighters' accusations
New details have emerged in the Hans Molenkamp controversy as a former employee shared nauseating details of the Monster Energy executive's questionable treatment of his employees and fighters.
Courtney Hendo, a photographer and former Monster employee, uploaded an exposed video to his YouTube channel to talk about the fallout and subsequent hardships caused by Hans Molenkamp on the back of allegations made by UFC fighter Dominick Cruz. Hendo detailed the incident that caused him to quit his job at Monster Energy and exposed Hans Molenkamp for closing all the doors of opportunity by using his power, leading to Hendo losing his home.
"He would treat you like you are nothing... The last straw for me was I was at my nephew's football game and Hans called me and went 'okay, I need you to be in LA today...' I told him I can't. He told me, 'when I tell you to do something, you do it.' I was like you know what Hans, 'you gotta find somebody you can talk to like that. That was my straw. I quit. And when I quit Monster, he told all the other fighters, gyms, and gym owners, 'if you do business with Courtney, you lose your contract,'" Courtney Hendo said.
"So ultimately, I can't work with MMA anymore, I was blackballed. At the end I went homeless. That's the truth. I couldn't make money in the sport. But I was blessed to save enough money on the side so I opened up my studio. It took me two years to get this thing going so I had to sleep on the floor until I got this studio up... I am just trying to show you guys what's the power and what he does to all these fighters," Courtney Hendo said.
Courtney Hendo's video puts Dana White's remarks on Hans Molenkamp in question
Courtney Hendo came out and spoke after Dominick Cruz called out Hans Molenkamp in a post-fight interview following his win over Casey Kenney at UFC 259. Cruz accused Molenkamp of misrepresenting his relationship with UFC fighters to enhance his own image on social media. Cruz's accusations were later backed by fellow fighters Angela Hill, Cub Swanson, Michael Bisping and MMA manager Ali Abdelaziz.
However, UFC president Dana White dismissed the allegations leveled by Dominick Cruz and maintained his stand on Monster Energy's fair treatment of fighters.
"Is Hans a goofy dude? Yes he is. But they (Monster Energy) are a sponsor... This is a sponsorship deal... There is no guaranteed money from the sponsors, its a privilege... They've been good to us... to the sport and they've definitely been good to the fighters. I get it. He (Cruz) doesn't like him (Molenkamp), some guys have a problem with him and it's easy to figure that one out. but Monster is a company and they've been solid. They couldn't be any better," Dana White said.
In his expose, Courtney Hendo revealed that the financial value brought in by Monster Energy and Hans Molenkamp is too high even for the promotions to voice out the issues faced by their fighters although they have full knowledge of the situation. Hendo's revelations certainly present Dana White's dismissal of Dominick Cruz in a dubious light.
"All the people in the industry know. Everybody knows what Hans Molenkamp is doing. They know he has these fighters as hostage. But Monster is pumping millions of dollars into these organizations. So they're controlling the whole market. It is controlled by one person, the director of monster energy for combat sports, Hans Molenkamp," Courtney Hendo said.