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A popular internet comedian stirred controversy this week when he dressed up as embattled former NFL star Mark Sanchez for Halloween.
Sanchez, 38, is continuing to recover from the stab wounds he sustained in a bloody brawl with a truck driver in Indianapolis in the early hours of October 4.
The NFL analyst faces a felony battery charge, along with several misdemeanor charges, for a violent dispute over parking that he is alleged to have instigated with delivery driver Perry Tole. Sanchez and Fox Sports also face a civil lawsuit filed by 69-year-old Tole.
While Sanchez awaits trial, the shocking altercation has already made it into the Halloween mainstream as Benedict Polizzi, a social media influencer with 3.7 million followers on TikTok, dressed up as the bloodied former quarterback for the holiday.
Ahead of the spooky festivities on Friday, Polizzi, who is best known for his appearance on reality show 'FBoy Island,' shared a photo on Instagram on Tuesday portraying a beaten and injured Sanchez.
He wore a New York Jets jersey, bearing Sanchez's old No 6, with fake blood splattered across his abdomen depicting the stab wound the former signal caller sustained in the brawl.
Social media star Benedict Polizzi dressed up as a bloodied Mark Sanchez for Halloween
Sanchez awaits trial for battery following his involvement in a brawl with a truck driver
Polizzi completed the look with shoulder pads, a football and black eye paint, and clutched a football in his hand.
While most social media users appeared to see the humorous side, others appeared to suggest that it was insensitive.
'AYE YOOOOO!!!!!!!! You gotta relax!!! Is this too soon?!?,' one asked. Other users chimed in to brand the costume 'wild,' 'brutal,' and 'awful.
The Indianapolis-based comedian, however, appeared unfazed at the criticism as he called for his followers to leave their 'meanest comment'.
Sanchez was hospitalized with stab wounds to his upper right torso, according to a police affidavit. A picture of Tole circulating online shows him in a neck brace on a hospital bed, covered in blood with a deep slash to the side of his face.
A police affidavit alleges that Sanchez, smelling of alcohol , accosted Tole, who had backed his truck into a hotel's loading docks in downtown Indianapolis on October 4.
Tole claims in a lawsuit that Sanchez entered the truck without permission, then physically blocked and shoved Tole, who then doused Sanchez with pepper spray.
When Sanchez advanced after being sprayed, Tole pulled a knife to defend himself, authorities said.
While most users saw the humorous side, others appeared to suggest that it was insensitive
Perry Tole, a grease truck driver, is seen lying in a hospital bed, covered in blood with a huge gash on his face and a brace around his neck
Sanchez, with wife Perry Mattfield, faces a felony battery charge and several misdemeanor charges
Sanchez was in Indianapolis for Fox's coverage of the October 5 game between the Colts and the Las Vegas Raiders.
Fox59 even reported - via a source - that Sanchez was doing 'wind sprints' in the alleyway shortly before the violent altercation occurred.
In a court hearing in Marion County, Indiana, last week, a judge set December 11 as the date for the battery trial. But Sanchez's attorney Tim Delaney warned his client may not be ready in time.
Sanchez had a ten-year NFL career before retiring in 2019. He spent four seasons with the New York Jets and also appeared in games with Philadelphia, Dallas and Washington.
He appeared on ABC and ESPN for two years before joining Fox Sports as a game analyst in 2021.
