The Ultimate Fight Championship (UFC) 293 event held in Sydney made headlines for all the wrong reasons. Two fighters— Charles Radtke and Manel Kape—had to issue apologies for making homophobic slurs following their victories at UFC 293 on Saturday. Despite winning his bout against Brazilian Felipe dos Santos on points, Kape was severely criticised for using harsh words. According to reports, Kape’s controversial remark was aimed at New Zealand’s Kai Kara-France, whom he was initially scheduled to face.
“I’m sorry for that, it was emotion. During the fight, during interviews we say things we don’t want to say. We feel bad about that. I apologise,” Kape reportedly said in a post-match news conference. It is being learnt that Kara-France had to withdraw from his clash against Kape because of a concussion.
Charles Radtke, on the other hand, had lashed out at the spectators, present in the Qudos Bank Arena, for allegedly booing him after his victory against Zimbabwean opponent Mike Mathetha (also known as Blood Diamond). Recalling the incident on social media platform X (formerly known as Twitter), Radtke also apologised to UFC fans.
“I’d like sincerely apologize to UFC fans across the world and to the fans here in Sydney for the remarks I made post-fight today. Those comments are not a reflection of who I am and they don’t belong on a platform as great as what the UFC has provided me. My emotions were running high. It’s hard to explain the way your mind works when you’re locked in a cage to fight another man with your entire livelihood on the line. I plan to learn from my mistakes from both during and after the fight and I’m hoping I can get an opportunity to correct them in the future. Chuck Buffalo loves everybody,” Radtke, 33, said.
There is no official word yet on whether the two UFC fighters could face punishment for their highly controversial comments.
“I think these guys get a little excited, and you make bad mistakes. You know me, we didn’t run over to him and say ‘you better apologise’ – he [Kape] did that on his own when he got backstage. He was embarrassed and got caught up in the moment. We make mistakes, I am not holier than thou either, we’ve all been in positions where we’ve made mistakes, and like I always say, it’s how you recover from it and how you carry yourself after. I’m sure some people will accept his apology and some people won’t,” UFC president Dana White said.
Meanwhile, American mixed martial artist Sean Strickland pulled off an incredible show against Israel Adesanya to become the UFC middleweight champion. Strickland was announced the winner having secured a unanimous decision. It was Adesanya’s first defence during his second spell as a middleweight champion.
