This may be hard to believe, but comedian-turned-MMA-analyst Joe Rogan is one of the longest running analysts on a lead announcing team in sports. The comedian and former Fear Factor host began analyzing UFC fights all the way back in 2002. To put that perspective, Al Michaels and John Madden were still the commentary team for Monday Night Football on ABC!
Alas, after fourteen years in the broadcast booth, Rogan says he is considering walking away from commentary.
In an interview with Rolling Stone, Rogan touched on the recent Conor McGregor-Floyd Mayweather rumors and his future with the company. While Rogan says he’ll always be a fan of UFC, he thinks it might be time to try something new and move on from the broadcast booth… especially if the possible sale of UFC goes through.
I’m not working for anybody else. If the sale goes through I’m outta there. I’m already wondering whether or not I can continue doing this as it is. I will always be a fan, I’ll always love it, but shit, I’ve been working for the UFC on and off for almost 20 years. And that’s more than I’ve done anything in my life. I’d like to move on. The only other thing I’ve done longer than that is stand-up comedy, but you know, with stand-up comedy I’m constantly writing new material, I’m traveling, I do it out of my schedule, I do it whenever I want. You know, it’s a very different thing calling fights rather than just being a fan. I’ll always be a fan, for sure, but as far as calling fights…boy, I don’t see that going on very much longer.
Rogan is no stranger to speaking his mind, even when that crosses over into more controversial takes. It’s hard to imagine anyone besides Rogan providing color commentary for big UFC fights as he’s been the voice of the MMA organization as it has grown to become a global brand over the past two decades. We may find out about his future sooner rather than later, though, as Rogan has said that his contract with UFC expires this August.
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