The September 14 broadcast of UFC 306 featured a hugely hilarious identity crisis gaffe. Boxing champion Terence Crawford, sitting cageside at The Sphere in Las Vegas, was mistaken for Kendrick Lamar and publicly addressed on live TV as the “Grammy Award & Pulitzer Prize Winning Musician.”

Viewers were quick to jump on the meme bandwagon, posting comedic reactions to the incident on social media. Former UFC champion Aljamain Sterling also got in on the hilarious interaction chain, tweeting , “Terence Crawford evolved into Kendrick Lamar tonight.” Bellator Middleweight Champion Johnny Eblen burst into tears upon seeing the mix-up on TV, sharing the scene on X : “Yo they mistakenly thought Bud Crawford was Kendrick Lamar (crying emoji).”

Read also | Swiftie’s mom throws away Taylor Swift tickets after Harris endorsement; some Gen Z fans are still pro-Trump

Crawford also laughed off the misguided example on Instagram and showed the rapper some love by tagging him in the screenshot, which featured Lamar’s anti-Drake diss track, “Euphoria.” Ironically, the six-minute rap battle song also mentions Crawford, as Lamar says, “He’s Terrence Thornton, I’m Terence Crawford, yeah, I’m whoopin’ feat.”

UFC CEO Dana White Responds

When asked in a post-event interview if he expected a text message from Kendrick Lamar and Terence Crawford, UFC CEO Dana White bluntly said he had spoken to Crawford about the identity crisis gaffe.

“That was pretty bad… He kind of looked like Kendrick Lamar… let’s not mess around,” a frustrated White responded, cracking up. “So when I said we had a flawless production tonight, I take that back.”

C LeBron James’ retirement ‘timeline’: Lakers insider hints at ‘must-see TV’ farewell tour

Internet users react to the mix-up between Kendrick Lamar and Terence Crawford

As the TV screenshot spread like wildfire on X, formerly Twitter, Lamar quickly became a trending topic on the platform. Netizens erupted in laughter, suggesting that someone would definitely get fired after the big fumble. Some even joked that this “intentional trolling” was pre-planned, as Lamar referred to himself as Crawford in his Drake diss track earlier this year.

“UFC is forever goat Terrance Crawford pictured as Kendrick Lamar They weren’t confused about nothing y’all just not listening,” one user joked.

Another X user expressed the same sentiment: “Terence Crawford may not be Kendrick Lamar, but Kendrick Lamar is Terence Crawford

Several others agreed that the UFC’s gaffe was “definitely a reference” to Lamar’s “Euphoria.” Some, however, asked, “How could a company as big as the UFC get this wrong??”

Another person interjected: “Maybe someone thought Terence is his real name and Kendrick is his rap name.” Yet another netizen was furious at how people weren’t noticing the hilarity of the situation, insinuating that it was all part of the plan: “Y’all really gonna deny that grass is green because how can this be a mistake?”