Former UFC heavyweight Brendan Schaub is standing firm after receiving intense criticism for comments he made about Muslim champions in the UFC, particularly targeting Islam Makhachev.
The controversy erupted during an October 26th episode of Schaub’s “Thiccc Boy” podcast while discussing UFC 333. Schaub addressed Makhachev’s withdrawal from a scheduled January 30th match against Carlos Prates in Toronto, with the champion citing Ramadan observance as his reason for pulling out.
“Oh my number one problem. This why he’s not your goat. This is why,” Schaub said during the episode. “I know for a fact, kids, ladies and gentlemen, I know for a fact it was pretty much cemented, signed, done deal. Islam was supposed to compete against Carlos Prates in Toronto, January 30th.”
The podcast host then accused Makhachev of initially agreeing to the match before reversing course. “And then all of a sudden, Islam goes, ‘No, Ramadan. I’m not going to compete against him.’ Now you know Dana bends the knees. He bends the knee to Dagestans, right?”
What Schaub said next led to a huge controversy in the MMA community.
“This is why you got to be careful crowning your champs when they’re from that origin. This is why. They compete once a year. It’s not enough. It’s not good. It delays the division. We can’t move on. It’s tough to create other stars. This is a huge issue. It’s the elephant in the room,” Schaub continued.
He then stated, “You can’t have your champs of that religion. You just can’t. You can’t run a business on it. They compete once a year.”
The response was swift and severe. Makhachev’s manager issued a pointed rebuke, saying: “For many years, I’ve tried to help Brandon get a fair shot. But hearing him say that Islam Makhachev doesn’t want him as champion because he’s Muslim is disgusting and uncalled for. I’m deeply disappointed by his words.”
MMA journalist MMA Joey also criticized the remarks, writing: “Islamophobia, xenophobia, racism, and outright bigotry have become so normalized in the MMA community that people barely even bat an eye anymore. I know nobody gives a care what Brendan Schaub has to say about MMA, but apparently he’s so desperate to cling to whatever tiny audience he has left that he’s resorted to attacking Islam Makhachev and his Muslim faith.”
During the same podcast segment, Schaub praised the UFC’s decision to schedule an interim title match between Carlos Prates and Michael Morales, though he suggested the organization should have gone further. “They should have stripped his [ ], but they still bend the knee to them,” he remarked.
When the backlash intensified, Schaub attempted to explain his position in a tweet on social media.
Rather than issue an apology following the backlash, Schaub doubled down on his position while attempting to reframe his argument. According to the former UFC athlete, his comments were misinterpreted and taken out of their intended context.
“This is not apology. This is you don’t know what y’all are talking about,” Schaub stated in his defense. “My whole point in all this is Islam could be Christian, Islam could be Jewish, it does not matter. If you’re inactive, it’s an issue. It’s not a race thing. It’s not a gender thing. It’s not a political thing. It does not matter.”
Schaub attempted to support his argument by comparing the current UFC schedule to earlier eras of the sport. He pointed to former welterweight champion Georges St-Pierre as an example, noting that St-Pierre competed approximately once every ten months during a time when the UFC held far fewer events annually.
“Georges St-Pierre competed about once every 10 months,” Schaub explained. “When Georges St-Pierre was champ, when he was competing, there was 20 cards a year. 20, 25 a year max. 25 cards a year and he competed once every 10 months-ish.”
He then highlighted the increased frequency of UFC events in recent years. “Since he’s been champ, there’s been 46 cards a year, almost double. So that’s what I mean by being inactive.”
Attempting to clarify his position, Schaub insisted his concerns were purely about activity level rather than religious identity. “If Christians were taking long layoffs, I don’t care. I want guys to be active,” he said.
The podcast host concluded by expressing his frustration with the situation while claiming his words were misunderstood. “At the end of the day, I’m just frustrated Islam’s not competing because he told us he was competing. It has nothing with the Muslim brotherhood. This got taken way out of context.”
