UFC fighter Matt Mitrione has been suspended from the promotion just days after his latest victory after he stepped over the line with his comments regarding a transgender fighter Fallon Fox during an interview on ‘The MMA Hour’ radio show.
If you don’t know, Fallon Fox has been causing quite a stir in the MMA scene lately after it emerged last month that despite being a post-operation transgender women she had been fighting against other women in the cage.
Opinions have been divided on the matter, but many MMA observers, most notably UFC color commentator Joe Rogan, have voiced concerns that despite the operation Fox still has a number of natural physical advantages over her female competitors that makes her competing against them unfair and potentially dangerous.
The subject is a political minefield that has to be approached with great care – a fact that appeared to escape Mitrione when he appeared on Ariel Helwani’s ‘The MMA Hour’ show on Monday and decided to put Fox on blast.
“He’s chromosomally a man,” Mitrione stated at one point. “He had a gender change, not a sex change. He’s still a man. He was a man for 31 years. Thirty-one years. That’s a couple years younger than I am. He’s a man. Six years of taking performance de-hancing drugs, you think is going to change all that? That’s ridiculous.
“That is a lying, sick, sociopathic, disgusting freak,” he continued. “And I mean that. Because you lied on your license to beat up women. That’s disgusting. You should be embarrassed yourself.”
While others have voiced their concerns on the matter Mitrione was the first to stray off-course into what’s clearly been defined as ‘Transphobic’ remarks and that’s lead to the UFC announcing their decision to suspend the fighter.
“The UFC was appalled by the transphobic comments made by heavyweight Matt Mitrione today in an interview on the ‘MMA Hour.’
“The organization finds Mr. Mitrione’s comments offensive and wholly unacceptable and — as a direct result of this significant breach of the UFC’s code of conduct – Mr. Mitrione’s UFC contract has been suspended and the incident is being investigated.
“The UFC is a friend and ally of the LGBT community, and expects and requires all 450 of its athletes to treat others with dignity and respect.”
For the record, Fox was recently cleared of any wrongdoing by the Florida State Boxing Commission regarding her failure to inform them that she used to be a man when she applied for a license to be able to fight.
Fox is currently 2-0 in MMA competition against women, winning her first fight in 39 seconds and her second in 2 minutes.
The issue of whether Fox should be allowed to compete against other women is going to run and run and anybody connected with the UFC who comments on the situation would do well to to pick their words carefully if they don’t want to run into trouble.
