NEW YORK (AP) — Josh Hokit might have a second career as a vulgar comic who leans on off-color, crude remarks to provoke shock and laughter.
The problem? He’s not particularly funny.
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President Donald Trump speaks in the James Brady Press Briefing Room at the White House Monday, Nov. 9, 2026, in Washington, as Dana White, UFC president and CEO, listens. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)
FILE - Kayla Harrison is shown during a PFL (Professional Fighters League) bout against Larissa Pacheco at Nassau Coliseum in Uniondale, N.Y., in this Thursday, May 9, 2019, file photo. (AP Photo/Greg Payan, File)
FILE - Josh Hokit leaves the ring after winning his fight against Derrick Lewis in a heavyweight bout during UFC Freedom 250 on the South Lawn of the White House, June 14, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon, File)
FILE - UFC heavyweight fighter Cyril Gane of France, poses during the UFC Freedom 250 media day, June 10, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Manuel Balce Ceneta, File)
Case in point, for news conferences before his fights on the White House card and this week in New York for his heavyweight title fight at Madison Square Garden, Hokit has opened with so-called standup routines that have barely drawn a polite chuckle out of the usually go-along-to-get-along MMA media horde.
Hokit tried an R-word rage-bait routine targeting another fighter and accused members of the press of suffering from brain damage during a 4 1/2-minute performance.
“I'm trying guys, I'm trying," Hokit said to a silent room.
Hokit, of course, marred what was an otherwise successful event in June on the South Lawn of the White House when he won his fight and then made an unfounded attackbased on a right-wing conspiracy theory about former first lady Michelle Obama.
What UFC officials hoped would be a victory lap the following Monday turned into a day of putting out fires and responding to requests for comment about the incident.
Hokit has refused to apologize and even doubled down on his comment while promoting this fight.
Hokit fights for the first time since then on Saturday when he challenges heavyweight champion Ciryl Gane in the main event of UFC 334 at Madison Square Garden.
A victory would make Hokit one of the most polarizing champions in the promotion’s recent history.
No fan expects MMA stars to act as choirboys. Jon Jones and Conor McGregor are perhaps the two biggest and most popular stars in UFC history, and each have faced multiple legal issues and a slew of other unsavory accusations over the years.
Yet, they sell out arenas, earn record viewership and have fans constantly clamoring for the next bout when the fighters go years without one.
There's just something so uncouth about Hokit that makes a title reign unpalatable to even his peers in the company.
“I think it’s bad for the sport if Josh Hokit wins,” UFC fighter Paddy Pimblett said on a recent episode of Joe Rogan's podcast. “I hate the acting. I hate the trying to be something you’re not. Just be yourself. Why are you putting this act on?”
The 29-year-old Hokit, who spent time on the San Francisco 49ers practice squad, has reveled in playing the sleazy bad guy as part of his “Incredible Hok” persona. He even tried to get under Gane's skin when he uttered a vulgar Maghrebi Arabic term, also used as French slang, to the champion out of western France during a faceoff in Times Square.
Now that did get a laugh.
“He tried to get in my head,” Gane said. “I just wanted to get out and laugh with my guys because it was so funny.”
Not exactly the reaction Hokit wanted.
What can't be debated is Hokit's run of success since he turned pro in 2023. Hokit joined UFC two years later and is 5-0 (10-0 overall) with wins over Curtis Blaydes and Derrick Lewis — hand-picked by President Donald Trump to fight on the White House card — that propelled him into the first title fight of his professional career.
Gane knows that beyond Hokit’s schtick is an accomplished wrestler and devastating knockout artist waiting to pounce.
“He's a smart guy,” Gane said. “He pretends he's just a clown.”
The 36-year-old Gane lost to Francis Ngannou and Jon Jones in previous attempts to win the heavyweight championship. His third attempt ended in a no-contest after an accidental eye poke to Tom Aspinall.
Aspinall has been on the shelf since the October 2025 fight, and the heavyweight division was in a bit of a holding pattern waiting for his potential comeback. Gane defeated Alex Pereira at the White House and claimed the interim heavyweight title before he was promoted to undisputed champion in November.
“My coach called me, (talked) to me about the training, and said, ‘hey, we forgot, but congrats, bro, you are the champion,’" Gane said. “Nothing special.”
Gane possesses devastating knockout power but combines it with an athleticism rarely seen among heavyweight champions.
He said after years of challenging, his mindset hasn't changed just because he's the champ.
“Yes, today I have the belt,” Gane said. “But at the end, I must win my next fight. That's it.”
Amanda Nunes ended her two-year retirement to try to defeat Kayla Harrison in the co-main event and win the 135-pound championship.
Nunes is widely regarded as the greatest female fighter of all time. A UFC Hall of Famer, she held championships in two weight classes, lost only once in 12 UFC championship bouts and defeated the once-indomitable Ronda Rousey. She retired in 2023, citing burnout and a desire to spend more time with her wife as they raised their two young daughters.
“Honestly, after like two years, I was done already to be home,” Nunes said. “I cannot stay without the fighter life. When Kayla signed with UFC, and the division brought in some new girls, that kind of excited me. That's when I really wanted to show I wanted to do this again. Now I'm here."
Stephen Thompson, better known to fight fans as Wonder Boy, is set to have his retirement fight when he fights Charles Radtke in a welterweight bout. He suffered a draw and a loss in his two attempts at winning the welterweight crown. Jim Miller, who holds UFC records for most bouts (47), most total wins (28), and most submission attempts (52) in the promotion’s history, takes on lightweight fighter Terrance McKinney.
See AP’s full sports coverage here
President Donald Trump speaks in the James Brady Press Briefing Room at the White House Monday, Nov. 9, 2026, in Washington, as Dana White, UFC president and CEO, listens. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)
FILE - Kayla Harrison is shown during a PFL (Professional Fighters League) bout against Larissa Pacheco at Nassau Coliseum in Uniondale, N.Y., in this Thursday, May 9, 2019, file photo. (AP Photo/Greg Payan, File)
FILE - Josh Hokit leaves the ring after winning his fight against Derrick Lewis in a heavyweight bout during UFC Freedom 250 on the South Lawn of the White House, June 14, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon, File)
FILE - UFC heavyweight fighter Cyril Gane of France, poses during the UFC Freedom 250 media day, June 10, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Manuel Balce Ceneta, File)
DUBLIN (AP) — Europe will send a team of diplomats from five countries and the European Union to the next round of Ukraine peace talks, the head of the European Council said Friday after a summit dominated by European efforts to avoid being shut out of U.S.-led negotiations on ending the almost five-year war.
European Council President Antonio Costa said the continent will be represented by the EU and five members of the “coalition of the willing” that backs Ukraine: the U.K., France, Germany, Italy and Poland.
Leaders debated whether Europe should be represented by one person or a team at a summit of the 27-nation European Union in Dublin. They have been concerned that a U.S.-backed process will leave them sidelined and Kyiv vulnerable as Moscow and Washington decide the fate of a conflict that has roiled the continent.
Ukraine is eager for support from its European allies. It's reluctant to leave the talks solely in the hands of a U.S. administration that has often seemed to lean toward Moscow’s views. Russia does not want European countries involved in direct negotiations, complaining they are financing and supplying Ukraine’s military effort.
European leaders also distrust U.S. President Donald Trump to negotiate on their behalf after a series of tense standoffs over trade, Greenland and conflicts in Iran and Ukraine.
“Without Europeans, there is no support for Ukraine,” French President Emmanuel Macron said Thursday at a meeting of the European Political Community in Dublin. “There is no more U.S. support.”
“At the end of the day, we will be the ones to define and decide for our future security as Europeans,” he said.
After Thursday’s meeting of the EPC, a larger group than the EU with members including the U.K. and Ukraine, Macron's office published what he called a “historic declaration” by 40 European nations affirming support for Ukraine and the continent’s collective security.
It affirmed that “the path to peace in Ukraine should be decided with Ukraine and that any matter affecting European security should be decided with the Europeans.”
European leaders fear Russian President Vladimir Putin will press Trump to back a peace settlement that weakens not just Ukraine but broader European security. Putin has demanded NATO troops be pulled back from Russia’s borders and that no European forces be deployed in Ukraine.
As envoys from Washington, Moscow and Kyiv met in Abu Dhabi, several European countries, including the U.K., France and Germany, attended discussions nearby.
U.S. envoy Jared Kushner and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said after they met in Dublin late Thursday that Europe would be part of the next round of talks. Zelenskyy said Europe would send a negotiating team, adding, “They will have a voice.”
“We cannot conclude this deal without the Europeans being at the table,” Kushner said. He said Putin “is willing to give it a try.”
Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said Thursday that Europe must first name a representative. “The Europeans squabble like spiders in a jar.”
Supporters of a single envoy, such as Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, argued that the absence of a united European voice has allowed individual countries or small groups to engage in freelance diplomacy.
“There are too many different groupings discussing the issue,” she said.
Meloni has criticized a series of seemingly uncoordinated initiatives, including an October call to Putin by Finnish President Alexander Stubb and Norwegian Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Støre, that she said could undermine European interests.
Martin said that European representation at the negotiations “can't just be European Union.”
“It's a European continentwide issue,” he said, pointing to the role of Norway and Britain in supporting Ukraine.
The question of who represents Europe is an old one. Europe itself is loosely defined. Is it the 27-nation EU, the 32-nation NATO military alliance made up mostly of European countries, the 29-nation Schengen zone, or the 47-nation European Political Community?
That has long frustrated Washington.
After this week's U.S.-brokered talks between Ukraine and Russia in the United Arab Emirates, Kushner said that “if Europe could identify one person to speak on their behalf, that would be a bigger achievement than getting the Russians to include them in the negotiation.”
That echoes the famous question often misattributed to former U.S. Secretary of State Henry Kissinger: “Who do I call if I want to call Europe?”
The decision to send a team, rather than an individual, allows for participation by members of the “coalition of the willing,” a group of nations that have pledged to underpin a future ceasefire with military support. That includes the U.K., which left the EU in 2020.
Poland is a voice for nations on the EU's eastern flank that face constant hybrid threats from Russia, including influence campaigns and disruptive drones.
It was not immediately clear who would represent the EU's institutions. Speculation had centered on Costa and the EU's top diplomat, Kaja Kallas.
Earlier this year, Costa faced criticism within the EU after his office set up a hush-hush back-channel with Moscow.
Kallas, a former prime minister of Estonia, laid claim to the envoy role Friday, saying, “I’m the one who is representing Europe in the foreign and security policy.”
“I know that the Russians don’t want me, but, you know, do we have a say, who is representing Russia?” she said. “We can’t send any person that has no institutional role like the Americans are sending.”
Some leaders deeply distrust the U.S.-brokered talks.
“In my opinion, calling them negotiations is an exaggeration,” Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk said Thursday. “We will not build a new security architecture simply because the Russian president, or someone in the United States, wishes it.”
With Trump due to head to Beijing next week to meet Putin, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz said European leaders feared another “Anchorage moment,” a reference to the Alaska summit where they were stunned by Trump's overtures to the Russian leader in the absence of Ukrainian or European envoys.
“Please, no surprises,” Merz said. “Continue to play in team Europe and in the team with Ukraine.”
Latvian Prime Minister Andris Kulbergs noted that Europe is larger than Russia in population, economy and military might.
“We as Europe have to grow some bigger balls," he said.
Associated Press writers Geir Moulson in Berlin, Lorne Cook in Brussels and Colleen Barry in Milan contributed to this report.
Italy's Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, left, and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, right, gesture ahead of the group photo during the EU Summit in Dublin, Friday, Nov. 13, 2026.(AP Photo/Virginia Mayo)
French President Emmanuel Macron stands next to European Council President Antonio Costa during the EU Summit in Dublin, Friday, Nov. 13, 2026.(AP Photo/Virginia Mayo)
Germany's Chancellor Friedrich Merz, from left, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and French President Emmanuel Macron chat during the EU Summit in Dublin, Friday, Nov. 13, 2026.(AP Photo/Peter Morrison)
Ireland's Prime Minister Micheál Martin welcomes European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen to the EU Summit in Dublin, Friday, Nov. 13, 2026.(AP Photo/Virginia Mayo)
U.S. special envoys Steve Witkoff, right, Jared Kushner, U.S. President Donald Trump's son-in-law, left, and Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy speak to the media at the airport in Dublin, Thursday, Nov. 12, 2026.(AP Photo/Peter Morrison)
Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, left, speaks with European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen during a meeting of the European Political Community (EPC), in Dublin, Thursday, Nov. 12, 2026. (AP Photo/Virginia Mayo)
Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, right, speaks with Germany's Chancellor Friedrich Merz during a round table meeting of the European Political Community (EPC), in Dublin, Thursday, Nov. 12, 2026. (AP Photo/Virginia Mayo)
Britain's Prime Minister Andy Burnham, left, sits next to the President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy, with other European leaders in attendance, during the Ukraine security meeting as part of the European Political Community (EPC) summit in Dublin, Ireland, Thursday, Nov. 12, 2026. (Stefan Rousseau/PA via AP, Pool)
Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and French President Emmanuel Macron meet during the European Political Community (EPC) Summit in Dublin, Thursday, Nov. 12, 2026.(AP Photo/Virginia Mayo)
Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy stands next to French President Emmanuel Macron, right, and Ireland's Prime Minister Micheál Martin as they pose for a family photo of all participants during the European Political Community (EPC) Summit in Dublin, Thursday, Nov. 12, 2026.(AP Photo/Peter Morrison)
