The ESPYs brought the biggest stars in sports together Wednesday night, and for the most part, things ran smoothly.
But an awards show wouldn’t be complete without someone making things awkward, and Lindsey Vonn happily filled that role.
The Olympic skier joined Houston Texans defensive end J.J. Watt for a red carpet interview with ESPN’s Hannah Storm before the show. Vonn and Watt engaged in some good-natured ribbing, but things got awkward in a hurry when Vonn dropped a line about Watt getting “lots of groin massages.”
https://youtu.be/sxlMajnVYLo
Context is important here, as Watt did in fact sustain a significant groin injury last year that required offseason surgery. But Vonn’s joke clearly caught Watt off-guard, and the interview quickly went off the rails as Storm tried to reel the pair back in.
To her credit, Vonn stuck by her comments, and the two apparently diffused any awkwardness by making an appearance in ESPN’s photo booth.
Actually he had groin surgery and I'm sober. Thanks though 😘 https://t.co/lCk6PAo2wQ
— lindsey vonn (@lindseyvonn) July 14, 2016
Lindsey Vonn and J.J. Watt are having a blast backstage at the #ESPYS in the @OldSpice photo booth. pic.twitter.com/lCbgPmuqfP
— ESPN (@espn) July 14, 2016
