Former UFC champion Cody Garbrandt addressed a series of old social media posts on Thursday, which have come to light in the days before his scheduled title fight.
Garbrandt will challenge T.J. Dillashaw for the bantamweight title at UFC 227 on Saturday in Los Angeles. On Wednesday, a screenshot of tweets from Garbrandt's account in 2012 and 2013 began circling around online. The tweets included a racial epithet.
Speaking to MMAJunkie.com, Garbrandt said the tweets were a product of his past.
"First and foremost, it shouldn't be embarrassing," Garbrandt said. "I'm going to be a man and address it once, and that's it.
"It's lyrics. I grew up hanging out with blacks, Puerto Ricans, Mexicans, selling drugs. That's a street word we would always say. It wasn't like I was using derogatory words toward anyone. That's how we grew up. It was kind of normal. That's it. It's a learning experience for a lot of people to not use that word in this day and age."
Garbrandt, 27, is from Uhrichsville, Ohio, and has openly discussed a rocky upbringing. His father and uncle were both incarcerated during his youth.
He joins a list of several professional athletes who have fallen under recent scrutiny for old social media posts, including MLB players Sean Newcomb, Josh Hader and Trea Turner. Garbrandt pointed out the tweets were from "almost a decade ago."
"Everyone's just trying to figure out some negativity," Garbrandt said. "I'm so positive, and I have great things going on this week. Nothing's deterring me from my focus. That's that. It's the last time I'll address this question."