Rashad Evans used Penn State child abuse in trash talk
CHICAGO -- At Wednesday's UFC on Fox 2 press conference, light heavyweight contender got into a war of words with his opponent, Phil Davis. When a fan asked if Evans would be more likely to grind out a war or get the knockout, Evans answered:
"I prefer to bring the knockout because Phil, he needs to get knocked out."
"Glad you mention that cause one of your buddies, Jon Jones, said you don't have much of a chin," Davis, an alumnus of Penn State University, replied.
"I guarantee you'll be the first one to take a shot cause I'm going to put my hands on you worse than that dude did them other kids at Penn State," Evans said.
It's not even worth debating if this was funny or not, or over the line or not. Funny or not funny is not the point. It was shocking, and too often people mistake shock and offense for humor, but that's not the point.
Because it doesn't matter if I'm offended, or if Fox executives are offended, or if MMA fans are offended. This isn't about us. It's about victims who are reminded of their trauma every time someone brings it up. It's about parents of victims trying to shield their children from the avalanche of news about a high profile alleged abuser, and not being able to even take refuge in a sport that has nothing to do with Penn State football.
Those victims deserve better than being the the punch line in pre-fight trash talk.
