'Not much weight' in Din Thomas' apology
UFC fighter Gillian Robertson has publicly criticized her coach Din Thomas for his unprofessional announcement of his retirement from cornering her immediately following her recent loss. Robertson described Thomas's subsequent apology as empty and insincere due to private comments he made to her team.
Why it matters
This highlights the complex and often volatile power dynamics between professional athletes and their coaching staff in high-stakes sports environments.
The enitre MMA world seems to have weighed in on the controversy surrounding Din Thomas' insensitive comments on Gillian Robertson's title loss at UFC 330, except for Robertson herself – until now.
Robertson (17-8 MMA, 14-6 UFC), who lost a unanimous decision to strawweight champion Mackenzie Dern in the co-main event of Saturday's card in Philadelphia, saw Thomas, her head coach, go on the official UFC 330 post-fight broadcast fresh off her defeat to announce he was done cornering fighters , citing that Robertson had gone "as far as she could go" in her MMA career.
The on-air moment, live streamed on Paramount+, went viral as many criticized Thomas for unnecessarily throwing Robertson under the bus shortly after a tough career moment. On Monday, Thomas issued a public apology to Robertson on "Deep Waters," a podcast he hosts along with UFC fighters Jorge Masvidal, Dustin Poirier, and Chris Weidman.
Get smarter about the news
Sign up free for a feed built around what you actually care about, Dive Deeper research on any story, and the full text of every article.
Create free accountAlready have an account? Sign in