Valerie Letourneau: Wardrobe malfunction, not strikes, caused odd reaction vs. Joanne Calderwood

Valerie Letourneau's Reebok sports bra might have contributed to her loss over the weekend.

The UFC women's fighter wrote on social media that her odd reactions to body kicks from Joanne Calderwood at UFC Fight Night: MacDonald vs. Thompson last Saturday were not due to pain. Letourneau said they were out of embarrassment due to a major wardrobe malfunction.

"I have been practicing martial arts for 17 years, so I have no problem taking hits to the chest," Letourneau wrote on Instagram. "It is the rule, and it isn't worse than a low kick! My only problem during the fight is that my bra litterally [sic] slipped under my breasts. This is why I stared, embarrassed, at the referee, and I have no idea what Jojo told me, but I had to keep fighting."

I want to clarify something, my daughter told me what the commentators were saying during the fight, and I felt insulted. I have been practicing martial arts for 17 years, so I have no problem taking hits to the chest. It is the rule, and it isn't worse than a low kick! My only problem during the fight is that my bra litterally slipped under my breasts. This is why I stared, embarrassed, at the referee, and I have no idea what Jojo told me, but I had to keep fighting. It seems that I was being mocked because I seemed to be complaining of blows to the breast. I think that I have nothing to prove regarding the numbers of hits I can take without complaining. Guys, would you be able to keep fighting without being distracted if one of your nuts was slipping out of your shorts? Anyway, it does not excuse my defeat, but I wanted to clarify this part of the fight!

A photo posted by Valerie Letourneau (@valerietroubleletourneau) on Jun 22, 2016 at 9:55am PDT

Letourneau (8-5) ended up losing to Calderwood via third-round TKO after one such incident where she grabbed her body and turned around, running toward the cage. It's unclear if that particular body kick caused a wardrobe malfunction or just fight-finishing pain.

The Canadian fighter said she "felt insulted" after learning what the FOX commentators were saying about her during the fight, which is why she took her issues to social media.

"It seems that I was being mocked because I seemed to be complaining of blows to the breast," Letourneau said. "I think that I have nothing to prove regarding the numbers of hits I can take without complaining. Guys, would you be able to keep fighting without being distracted if one of your nuts was slipping out of your shorts?"

Letourneau, who trains out of American Top Team, said she does not excuse the loss to Calderwood, but wanted to clarify her behavior during the bout.

Reebok began providing UFC fighters with uniforms back in July 2015. The relationship has been hit with criticism, first regarding a drop in sponsor pay for UFC fighters, then a comedy of errors (typos, etc.) Reebok made in its fight kits and clothes being sold to the public.

Letourneau is not the first fighter to have a wardrobe malfunction during a fight. UFC women's bantamweight Elizabeth Phillips had one in full view of the camera during a fight with Jessamyn Duke last July. Urijah Faber's shorts fell down during a bantamweight title fight with Dominick Cruz at UFC 199 earlier this month.

An e-mail sent to Reebok for comment was not immediately returned Wednesday.

Letourneau, 33, was coming off a women's strawweight title fight loss to Joanna Jedrzejczyk via unanimous decision at UFC 193 back in November. The bout with Calderwood was the first women's fight in the UFC to be contested at 125 pounds.