UFC commentator Jon Anik explains thought process for infamous "custody battle" broadcast moment

UFC commentator Jon Anik is widely regarded as one of, if not the best in his business. However, even the best of us are not immune to committing mistakes.

Anik recently weighed in on a crucial moment in his career when he spoke about two fighters fighting custody battles for their children during a live UFC event. The otherwise acclaimed color commentator's words were viewed as distasteful by large sections of the UFC audience.

Catch Anik's commentary below:

Anik recently revealed that his comments were merely intended to show the driving force behind both fighters. Owning up to his wrong choice of words, the 44-year-old recently told Brendan Schaub:

"I'm sort off trying in the middle of a round to explain that this is why these guys fight. They are both heavy hearted right? And not a day of my life goes by where some UFC fan doesn't reach out to me on Twitter or Instagram and says something about the 'custody battle'. My intentions were clear and they were good, the phraseology wasn't good... I felt a little bit vindicated."

Catch Jon Anik's comments below:

Watch the full episode below:

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Jon Anik's comments were received differently by both fighters involved

Jon Anik made the 'custody battle' comments while announcing Chris Gutierrez and Andre Ewell's clash at the UFC 258 prelims.

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Gutierrez, who went on to earn a unanimous decision, wasn't happy with Anik for revealing details about his personal life. 'El Guapo' wrote in a below the belt dig which he later deleted:

"It's interesting how @Jon_Anik brings up my custody battle but doesn't discuss when he got caught cheating on his wife in 2017."

Image courtesy: Reddit.com

However, Gutierrez's opponent Ewell had the exact opposite reaction to Anik's comments. 'Mr. Highlight' claimed to be aware of Anik's good intentions and thanked the UFC color commentator for bringing his struggle to focus. Ewell wrote:

"Shoutout to @Jon_Anik for bringing light to my situation! I want everyone to know I’m fighting for my son and that fight is my biggest fight ever 🙏🏽So thank you #JonAnik I know where you heart is at 😊. #ufc258"