The former tennis star hosted the event on Thursday night and made several jokes, one of which was about Clark’s white fans.
“Caitlin Clark had an amazing year and is nominated for three awards,” she said. “Caitlin, you are the Larry Bird in that you are an amazing player, you have ties to Indiana and white people are really crazy about you.”
As expected, not everyone found it funny, with some considering it divisive.
Caitlin Clark Wondered Out Loud How Serena Williams Wasn’t The First Woman To Win The Best Record-Breaking Performance Award At The ESPYs
Clark also claimed to be of the view that Williams should have been the first female to win the ESPY for Best Record-Breaking Performance.
“Yea I didn’t know that until my little brother sent it to me this morning. I think it’s pretty cool,” she added. “It probably shouldn’t have been the first woman to win that award, in my eyes. I grew up supporting so many different female athletes who I idolized and I loved. The amount of records I’ve seen broken, like how did Serena Williams never win that award? It’s crazy.”
Clark won said accolade on the night, the first female ever to do so, as well as the Best Women’s College Athlete Award. She was also nominated for the Best Women’s Athlete Award, but that one went to Las Vegas Aces star A’ja Wilson.
