Auston Matthews, Jumbo Joe hit UFC 264 with Biebs, party with Kendall Jenner
Article content
Reviews and recommendations are unbiased and products are independently selected. Postmedia may earn an affiliate commission from purchases made through links on this page.
It was a Maple Leafs reunion Saturday night as Auston Matthews and Joe Thornton joined pop star Justin Bieber for UFC 264 in Las Vegas.
The Toronto teammates were part of Bieber’s entourage heading into T-Mobile Arena to watch the headline bout between Conor McGregor and Dustin Poirier.
tap here to see other videos from our team.
Auston Matthews, Jumbo Joe hit UFC 264 with Biebs, party with Kendall Jenner Back to video
tap here to see other videos from our team.
The pair were also all smiles as they posed for a snap together in a photo shared by the UFC’s Canadian social media team.
But the good times didn’t stop after McGregor suffered a brutal ankle injury in the closing seconds of the first round. The Leafs twosome found themselves trending on Twitter after they made a cameo appearance on Kendall Jenner’s Instagram Story as Bieber danced to BIA’s WHOLE LOTTA MONEY on a party bus following the fight.
“Did not expect to see Joe Thornton in Kendall Jenner’s IG Story, but here we are,” one person commented, with another adding, “I did NOT have Joe Thornton hanging out with Kendall Jenner on my 2021 bingo card.”
Another fan wondered, “Joe Thornton hanging out in Vegas with both Bieber and Kendall Jenner … does that make him an influencer now?”
Matthews and Bieber have been friends for years, with the pair spotted out at UFC 263 last month along with Leafs netminder Frederik Andersen. Matthews also regularly sports clothing from Bieber’s Drew brand and even hit the ice with the Grammy winner in 2019 for a little Boxing Day skate at Stratford, Ont.’s Allman Arena. Last year, a video of the two sharing a hug went viral after Biebs was videoed patiently waiting for Matthews post-game.
tap here to see other videos from our team.
The Baby singer’s allegiance to the blue and white is no secret. Bieber regularly cheers on the Buds — both virtually and in person — and tried to will the Stanley Cup back to Toronto when he predicted way back in January, “This is the year” (make that next year, Justin).
His song, Hold On, became the club’s official anthem when the “love letter” was released in March. The Buds called it, “The collab you didn’t know you needed.”
In a 2020 interview with NHL.com, Matthews assessed Bieber’s on-ice skills declaring him, “a good player.”
“He’s small, but he’s pretty pretty fast and he’s got good hands. He loves to score goals — loves to score goals. He doesn’t believe in assists.”
In 2019, Matthews said seeing Bieber at Leafs home games was “pretty sweet.”
“It’s cool having guys like that be big fans of the team and support our team and, obviously, him being from here and him being who he is, it’s pretty awesome to see,” the 2021 Rocket Richard Trophy winner told TSN.
Although Matthews will be back with the team next season, Thornton’s tenure with the Leafs is still up in the air. The winger’s one-year deal in Hogtown came to an end after Toronto’s first-round playoff exit at the hands of the Montreal Canadiens.
Postmedia is committed to maintaining a lively but civil forum for discussion. Please keep comments relevant and respectful. Comments may take up to an hour to appear on the site. You will receive an email if there is a reply to your comment, an update to a thread you follow or if a user you follow comments. Visit our Community Guidelines for more information.