UFC 293 fighter unleashes
- Charles Radtke attacked the crowd after the win in Sydney
- The American defeated Mike Mathetha by unanimous decision
- Another fighter on the card also used the terrible slur
Charles Radtke was met with a chorus of abuse and had beer thrown at him after launching into a shocking homophobic outburst aimed at the crowd as he won his fight at UFC 293 in Sydney.
The American came out on top in a narrow, unanimous points victory over Mike Mathetha in a lackluster fight that saw both men booed by spectators for the lack of striking and all-round action.
Radtke expressed his anger towards the fans when he was interviewed by former heavyweight champion and commentator Daniel Cormier shortly after the decision was announced.
“Charles, how good did it feel to get your first UFC win?” Cormier asked.
‘It felt great. And so all the fuck in the fucking crowd. Come here and get some, you son of a bitch,” Radtke replied.
Charles Radtke became public enemy number 1 at Sydney’s Qudos Bank Arena when he verbally attacked the crowd after scoring his first win in the UFC
The crowd wasn’t thrilled with the lack of stand-up action in his fight with Mathetha – and the American let them know as soon as he stepped on the mic
He then leaned over and shouted “f**k you” into the microphone as Cormier pulled him away to stop the tirade, and raised his middle fingers to the crowd.
Radtke was sent backstage as soon as the interview was over, when he was hit by loud and persistent cheering and had a beer thrown at him.
UFC fighter Derek Brunson blasted Radtke for his comments in a post on X, the social media platform formerly known as Twitter.
“Yes, Radtke will be doing community service with the LGBTQ for the next six months, that boy went crazy during his interview,” he wrote.
The American later posted an apology for his comments on social media.
“I would like to sincerely apologize to UFC fans around the world and to the fans here in Sydney for the comments I made after the fight today,” he wrote.
“These comments are not a reflection of who I am and they have no place on a platform as great as what the UFC has provided me.
‘My emotions were running high. It’s hard to explain how your mind works when you’re locked in a cage fighting another man and your entire livelihood and dreams are at stake.”
The fighter known as ‘Chuck Buffalo’ later posted an apology for his outburst on social media
However, Radtke was not the only one to make homophobic comments during Sunday’s action in Sydney.
Manel Kape defeated Felipe dos Santos by unanimous decision and spat a terrible insult as he attacked rival fighter Kai Kara-France in his post-match interview.
“All these numbers two, three, four won’t accept to fight me because they’re damn scared,” he said, referring to world-ranked opponents in his division.
“I had to fight Kai Kara. You bastard, you weren’t there, you show up, you piece of shit,” he told the New Zealander, who was in the crowd and responded by showing Kape both middle fingers.
Angolan flyweight Manel Kape also used a homophobic slur as he insulted his Kiwi rival Kai Kara-France
After threatening to spare Kara-France at the Auckland gym where he trains if he doesn’t fight him next, the Angolan flyweight crossed the line: ‘And no one, no one is going to do anything, you know why? All your teammates are a bunch of assholes.”
Once again, Cormier was forced to pull the microphone away to end the interview before Kape could unleash more insults.
He then turned his vitriol on Israel Adesanya following the New Zealander’s stunning loss to new middleweight champion Sean Strickland.
Kape – who had a fiery clash with Adesanya when he insulted his friend Kara-France during the pre-tournament press conference – was asked what he thought of the incredible upset.
“You know, karma is terrible,” he replied.