Andrew Tate has been making headlines regularly on mainstream platforms since his arrest last December by the Romanian authorities. We sat down with Andrew Tate’s close friend and former business partner Daniel Knight to discuss the allegations against the Tate brothers, their early life in Luton, and the evolution of Andrew Tate’s Internet persona from a relatively unknown kickboxer in the UK.
Andrew Tate gained notoriety at the start of 2022 after his short-form videos took over the Internet; YouTube, TikTok and Instagram, in particular. These video clips advertised opinions that were widely construed to be sexist, misogynistic, and extremely vulgar. Tate supposedly utilized affiliate marketing strategies to break the algorithm and promote his videos on every online platform, to the point where he became one of the most googled personalities in the world last year. The 36-year-old’s controversial views on men, women, and masculinity, soon earned him widespread media attention and a ban on platforms like Twitter, Instagram and Facebook. However, Tate’s regular appearances on several popular podcasts kept him relevant, till his incarceration in December made global headlines.
Daniel Knight founded his Kickboxing equipment company, Sidekick Boxing in 2010 and met Andrew Tate through the contemporary Kickboxing scene in the UK. Knight decided to sponsor Tate because of his Kickboxing skills and charismatic personality. Their business relationship slowly turned into a close friendship as both of them dived deeper into the world of combat sports.
Andrew Tate’s Internet persona vs his real self back in the day
Knight claims to have know Tate since his early twenties. Apparently, both the Tate brothers always dreamt of becoming rich one day and figured that they could market themselves on the Internet to gain attention. Knight described Andrew to be very “clever” and someone who’s never reluctant to put himself out there and go the extra mile to get what he wanted.
“Andrew and his brother were always one step ahead really. I think they saw playing a character and being controversial sort of grabs people’s attention, you know…Gave them what they wanted – [they] became famous. I think that’s what they wanted, bringing the revenue with it,” Knight told The Sportsrush.
He added that the Tates dramatized their personalities a bit to go viral on the Internet. But they were always very resourceful and driven individuals. In fact, Knight completely dismissed the prevalent allegations that Andrew Tate’s four Kickboxing World Championship titles are overrated because of his promotion ISKA’s reputation as one of the less competitive circuits. In fact, Tate’s former sponsor emphasized that anyone who doubts Andrew’s kickboxing titles hasn’t fought a single day in their lives.
Andrew Tate’s controversial views on masculinity and his impact on today’s young men
Many teachers, guardians, and educators have expressed their concerns regarding the impact of Tate’s ‘misogyny’ on young boys in schools. The topic was even brought up in the British Parliament by a Labor MP. However, Knight believes that there’s nothing wrong with telling young men to wake up early, get a job, work hard, take care of their family and live an honorable life.
“What’s wrong with people speaking about masculinity!” the 40-year-old said. Knight believes that coddling young men is turning them into snowflakes and leading to a surge in suicide rates and mental health issues in men. On the contrary, Tate’s message is helping young men take ownership of their lives, go to the gym, and get better everyday.
Knight doesn’t believe in Andrew Tate’s concept of the matrix(which according to Tate, controls every aspect of a ‘broke’ man’s life and the only way to get out of it is by getting rich through his online courses) per se. But he does believe that the Government and its rigid taxation procedures are intended to keep poor people poor for perpetuity. Therefore, he is optimistic about Tate’s message to the world.
Knight is also grateful for Tate’s impact on his company, even though he sees the controversial influencer’s involvement as a risky bet. “Working with Andrew Tate is probably the best thing I’ve ever done,” he declared. Friendship with Tate has provided Knight with opportunities to appear on several podcasts and documentaries, including the new Channel 4 documentary on the Tate brothers. He has also been interviewed by many publications, like The Sun. Knight is still in touch with Tate on WhatsApp, but the two don’t usually talk shop while texting nowadays.
Tate’s early life in Luton and his move to Romania
Andrew Tate gained some notoriety in 2016 after he was kicked out of the UK reality TV show Big Brother for a viral clip, where he was allegedly seen hitting a woman(which Tate would later claim to be consensual). Following this, the Tate brothers would start a webcam business to earn money quickly. Knight remembers Andrew and Tristan setting up the business in their mom’s house in Luton with a couple of girls they knew.
Later on, they’d realize the scope of the industry and migrate to Romania to expand their business, admittedly to take advantage of laxer laws and regulations. Knight claimed that his company parted ways with the Tates at this juncture, considering the disparate nature of the two industries. Therefore, he couldn’t provide anything definitive about the series of allegations brought against Andrew Tate by the Romanian authorities.
Daniel Knight on Andrew Tate’s controversial views on women
Knight seemed to have a very neutral stance on Andrew Tate’s sexist and misogynistic comments. He claimed that he agrees with some of Andrew’s positions, while rejects others. Tate’s former business partner and friend also revealed that Andrew was never rude or disrespectful to women back in the day.
On the contrary, he was “nice…polite…charming.” Women liked the Tate brothers because of their good looks and charming personalities. “The media’s trying to make him[Andrew Tate] into something he’s not,” Knight added.
The former kickboxer believes Andrew’s message is more geared towards uplifting young men, rather than undermining women’s contributions to society. “I don’t think he[Andrew Tate] wants women to be looked down at. And I don’t think anyone would want that….I don’t think he’s ever put women down[before going viral online]. I think he’s speaking for pro masculinity,” Knight said.
Knight doesn’t seem to agree that Tate’s ‘jokes’ on women being bad drivers and a risky bet as airline pilots, among other things, could in any way negatively impact women’s rights in the workplace. However, Tate’s propensity to highlight men and women’s physical differences to drive home his controversial ideas has been widely criticized. Many women’s rights advocates believe that this kind of primitive fixation on physiology, whether satirical or not, could potentially increase violence against women.
The actual impact of Andrew Tate’s viral videos is yet to be seen on society. The Tate brothers have been indicted on human trafficking charges by Romanian authorities and they remain in house arrest in their mansion in Bucharest. However, they continue to spread their message through interviews and podcasts with prominent figures, like former Fox News host Tucker Carlson and popular entrepreneur Patrick Bet-David.
