Over the last two weeks, Reebok has been getting plenty of publicity in the UFC… but it seems to be for all the wrong reasons.
Last week, perhaps the most beloved cutman in mixed martial arts (MMA), Jacob “Stitch” Duran spoke out about losing his sponsors due to the UFC’s apparel deal with Reebok. One day later, he no longer has a job with the UFC.
Adding to the bad publicity, the Reebok/UFC fight kits were put to the test this weekend. They were touted as “premium uniforms” and “workout gear designed for and tested by fighters”, however, it’s been less than a month since their unveiling and we’ve already had our first wardrobe malfunction.
During Saturday night’s UFC broadcast on FOX 16 in Chicago, bantamweight Elizabeth Phillips defeated teammate Jessamyn Duke by decision in the preliminaries. Phillips was able to hold off an armbar just seconds before the bell rang, but it came at a cost. The grappling exchange caused a wardrobe malfunction, leaving her exposed.
If that wasn’t embarrassing enough for Phillips, it was then replayed after the bout, showing the embarrassing exposure in super slow motion, while Joe Rogan narrated through the highlights.
This footage won’t be around for long, as the UFC Fight Pass team have reportedly edited the footage since the original broadcast. They have cut off the few seconds of exposure during the final bell, and changed the camera angle used for the slow motion replay of the sequence.