UFC colour commentator Joe Rogan has been a mainstay in the company’s commentary team for a long time now. However, fans have noticed a big change this year regarding Rogan, i.e. the comedian and mixed martial artist has stopped calling for all Fox Sports events. Rogan has now opened up about this and revealed the reasons why he quit from calling the UFC on Fox cards.
Rogan recently talked about the issue on his Fight Companion podcast for UFC Liverpool on Sunday. He revealed that he quit due to certain differences and conflicts that he had with the producers and the executives of Fox Sports. Here’s what he said:
My contract is with the UFC and I was never working for FOX. That was one of the stipulations of my newer contract (with the UFC), was I said I didn’t want to do the FOX events anymore. This year, I don’t do any of the FOX events. You’ll notice when there’s big fights on FOX, I don’t do any of them – none of them. Zero. Stopped doing it – didn’t want to do it anymore. Too much work, too much travel. (Wearing a) suit is not a big deal because they have the suit there for me, but my issue was FOX actually paid me less money – less money to do the events on FOX. I was like, ‘You guys are high.’
I didn’t like it. They want a sports guy. Look, MMA is what it is. It’s fighting. It is a very specific kind of sport. I’ve been doing it the way I’ve been doing it forever. If you don’t like the way I do it, that’s fine. Don’t hire me. But don’t try to get me to become some sports guy. I’m not interested in that at all.
They stopped doing it after the first event when I voiced my displeasure, I let them know really clearly, ‘Look, we’re not doing this. We’re not going to change how I do it to make you happy. If you don’t like the way I do it, it’s not an option for you to direct me and tell me to do it the way you like it, because you think that’s how.’ They were producers or executives. I don’t agree with them, and I’m not doing it that way.
This is what I do, I get amped up. If some (expletive) goes down and guys are trading blows and I’m screaming, it’s because I feel that way. It’s legitimate passion. I’m not faking it. They let it go after a while, but it’s not like they fought for me when I quit, either.
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