Charles Radtke is on a mission when he heads into enemy territory this Saturday.
The Illinois native fights Mike Malott in a welterweight bout at UFC 315 in Montreal, the lone matchup on the card pitting an American against a Canadian. Given recent political tension between the neighboring countries in the wake of President Donald Trump’s tariff war, Radtke was asked about how he’s feeling about the current climate as he heads into his clash with Malott.
The question specifically put to Radtke at Wednesday’s media day concerned his thoughts on Team Canada’s win over Team U.S.A. in the NHL’s 4 Nations Face-Off final this past February (a tournament in which the teams met twice, with the first match preceded by an aggressive gesture wherein Canadians booed the U.S. national anthem) and whether that rivalry is of any significance to him.
“I don’t give a shit about hockey,” Radtke said. “That’s not my gig. But what I do hold dear is I grew up on a bison ranch with my grandfather, who’s a Sergeant Major in the Marine Corps, and when you all booed the national anthem, somebody’s going to have to pay for that. Somebody had said, ‘Oh, well you booed them the week after.’ Doesn’t make it right.
“So inevitably I take that to heart because every year I would change 50 flags going up our driveway, so you’re going to see the results of it.”
Radtke was prompted to issue a message to all the Canadians attending Bell Centre this Saturday and he kept it short.
“Basically, f*ck you,” Radtke said.
Radtke is no stranger to negative crowd reactions. Following his UFC debut win over Blood Diamond at UFC 293 in Sydney, Radtke was booed by the crowd who were mostly in support of New Zealand’s Diamond. “Chuck Buffalo” responded with a homophobic slur, an action that he later apologized for.
Given Malott’s popularity up north, it’s likely Radtke will receive an equally chilly reaction from the Montreal crowd. He welcomes it.
“I think I’m going to be real nervous,” Radtke said with mock nervousness. “I think I’m going to be real scared coming in there. I think that’s what it might be. Is that what you expect? That’s what you hope, right? That’s not going to happen.”
MMA Fighting – All Posts
