MMA fighters love to joke around and have fun when not beating people for a living. However, sometimes they go too far with their humor, and it ends up backfiring. Something similar happened with UFC heavyweight fighter Sergei Pavlovich, who shared a problematic meme after his triumph over Derrick Lewis in 2022.
The particular meme showcased a picture of Pavlovich alongside a specially crafted ‘word cloud.’ The Russian sparked controversy on social media when he shared a now-deleted meme about himself that was widely deemed racially offensive.
Sergei Pavlovich posted this on twitter but has since taken it down, said he didn’t understand due to the language barrier.
byu/CyclonusDecept inufc
In addition to the racial insensitivity, Pavlovich’s meme exuded toxic masculinity by bragging about the size of his genitals. The post went so far as to depict the UFC heavyweight as someone who caused harm to African-American fighters, referencing his brutal TKO victory over Lewis.
However, fans must note that Pavlovich isn’t particularly fluent in English and typically has a translator with him during UFC media day responsibilities. It looked like the fighter was just pleased to be the subject of a meme and initially shared it, or someone from his team did.
Sergei Pavlovich apologized for his inappropriate meme
Sergei Pavlovich found himself compelled to publicly clarify his position after a controversial anti-Western and racist meme was shared on social media by the top UFC heavyweight contender. The fighter explained that he was not the one who made the meme. Moreover, the language barrier also did not help his case, according to him.
He further requested that his fans not subscribe to the things mentioned in the post and stated that it was a mistake on his side. Fortunately for him, the UFC is not that serious about the political correctness of their fighters. Nevertheless, many believe that Sergei Pavlovich did the right thing by apologizing for his mistake.
Due to the language barrier, I did not understand the weight of the things written about me. Posted by mistake and do not subscribe to the things said about me. The meme was not made by me. Peace for everyone 👊 #ufc pic.twitter.com/vFxbsJ5vFt
— Sergei Pavlovich (@SPavlovich13) January 22, 2023
Pavlovich’s formidable strength has positioned him close to achieving UFC glory. Presently undergoing training at the American Top Team, he suffered his only career defeat in his UFC debut against Alistair Overeem in 2018. However, he has since been on an impressive winning streak. He has gotten the better of veterans of the sport like Tai Tuivasa, Derrick Lewis, and Curtis Blaydes.
He is now set to take on top heavyweight prospect Tom Aspinall in the co-headlining bout of UFC 295 on November 11 at Madison Square Garden in New York, with the interim title on the line. Pavlovich will be looking to continue his undefeated streak here too, as the undisputed heavyweight belt will not be too far if he defeats Aspinall.
