The UFC fighter who called former first lady Michelle Obama “a man” during the organization’s Freedom 250 fight on the White House lawn said his comment was meant as a compliment.

“I thought I was giving her a compliment,” fighter Josh Hokit said in an interview with podcaster Ariel Helwani. “Michelle Obama being a man, that’s like — she knows how to deal with adversity. She knows how to work hard like a man when the times get tough.”