Din Thomas apologizes for despicable behavior after UFC 330

UFC coach and analyst Din Thomas has apologized for what he called his "despicable" decision to announce his retirement from cornering fighters immediately after Gillian Robertson lost her strawweight title bid at UFC 330. The apology, delivered on the Deep Waters podcast, came amid widespread criticism for the timing of the announcement, which many felt overshadowed Robertson’s moment in a main-card fight on August 15 in Philadelphia.

Robertson, whom Thomas has coached for seven years, suffered a unanimous decision loss to champion Mackenzie Dern in the event’s co-main event at Xfinity Mobile Arena. The defeat ended Robertson’s five-fight winning streak and her chance to claim the title. During the post-fight broadcast, Thomas, serving as an analyst, declared his immediate retirement from cornering. "I told myself I would continue to do this until I took Gillian as far as she could go," Thomas said on the live show. "I think that might be as far as she can go, and I am officially retiring from cornering fighters tonight."

The announcement drew sharp rebukes from within the MMA community. UFC middleweight champion Sean Strickland posted on social media, criticizing Thomas for...