Advertisement

UFC's Cody Durden blasted by fighters for 'send him back to China' comment after win

UFC fighter Cody Durden picked the biggest win of his career to create the biggest controversy of his career.

The flyweight defeated Qileng Aori by unanimous decision at Saturday's UFC Vegas 43, notching his first career UFC win after three fights. He then took things in a bizarre direction in a post-fight interview with commentator Daniel Cormier.

Here's the whole exchange:

Durden: "I knew he was going to be tough, but I had to send him back to China where he came from."

(Five seconds of awkward silence and stunned crowd reactions)

Cormier: "My man, congratulations. Ladies and gentlemen, give it up for Cody Durden!"

That comment inspired an immediate backlash form Durden's fellow fighters, who saw the "send him back to China" line as a clearly racist statement about a Chinese fighter who hails from the autonomous region of Inner Mongolia.

Here's a quick sampling.

Warning, the following tweets contain graphic language.

Durden later offered a halfhearted and defensive apology, claiming that Aori had been disrespectful and that he really meant to say his opponent could go home, before dropping the standard "sorry if you were offended" line

Per MMA Fighting, Durden also defended his comment in his post-fight conference by challenging his critics to sign a contract to fight him. If the tweets are to be believed, he could have multiple takers.