Fallon Fox is taking aim at UFC commentator Joe Rogan ahead of an upcoming biopic on her life and career in Mixed Martial Arts.
Fox retired from MMA in 2014 following stints with CFA and KOTC. She recorded a 5-1 record as a professional and is largely regarded as the main voice in the discussion surrounding transgenders competing in athletics.
Fox recently spoke with ET Canada in an interview previewing her upcoming film, and also discussed the social issues that arose from her career in combat sports.
“A lot of prominent people were talking about a bunch of horrible things. The Joe Rogans, the Ronda Rouseys, the Dana Whites of the world,” Fox said when asked about what the experience was like when she came out as transgender. “From what they said about me in the past, I could have just crawled up into a ball and given up. I could have just stopped competing, but I didn’t. I kept competing and I kept talking about this issue and I’m going to continue to do it.”
Fox went on to respond to Rogan specifically, over remarks he’s made on his podcast The Joe Rogan Experience over transgender athletes competing in weight lifting and MMA.
“No, he shouldn’t speak, especially on this issue that’s so important to transgender people and transgender people’s lives,” Fox said. “Just like coronavirus is important to people’s lives. He just brings up these things and just makes them up.”
“I think people should pay attention to what he said, that he’s not an expert. You know, he’s not an expert, so people should take what he says with a grain of salt.”
This isn’t the first time that Fox has taken issue with Rogan’s comments in the past. She recently called for Rogan’s podcast to be canceled by Spotify after he signed a multi-million dollar deal to stream on the platform.
During a podcast episode with comedian Tom Segura, Rogan elaborated on why he thinks male-to-female transgender athletes shouldn’t compete against women.
“This ideology is cult-like,” Rogan said. “The bone structure is so different and the people who deny that are fucking crazy. We want to save people’s feelings, and what’s fascinating in the process is that you go towards the most maligned section of society. Which are transgender people. But women get put into a less-protected part of society than a transgender.”
“”You don’t look at (Fallon Fox) and think she can compete like Claressa Shields and Cris Cyborg. She’s not good. She’s physically way different, she’s a fucking man.”
What are your opinions on Fallon Fox and Joe Rogan’s comments regarding transgender athletes?