Joe Rogan explains why he quit calling UFC on FOX cards after conflict with execs
There are multiple reasons Rogan stopped working FOX-televised fight cards, he said, starting with the financial side of things.
“My contract is with the UFC and I was never working for FOX,” Rogan said on his Fight Companion podcast for UFC Fight Night 130 on Sunday. “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.'”
The travel, workload and the level of compensation certainly bothered Rogan, he said. However, all those factors were outweighed by some differences of opinion with FOX Sports executives and producers.
He claims people on the production side of things tried to take some of his freedom away, and that didn’t sit well with him.
“They got in my ear,” Rogan said. “The very first events for FOX, they were like telling me what to do. They were telling me to take it down a notch. ‘Don’t be so amped up about that guy,’ I was like, ‘What? What are you doing here?’ I go, ‘Listen, I do commentary. This is what I do. I’ve been doing it forever. This is how I do it. If you think you can change me, then we’re not going to work together.’ We had a real problem for the first event. It was a FOX production.
“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.”
After FOX tried to push him in a certain direction, he said he was very vocal about his thoughts on the situation. He said the people trying to get in his ear quieted down after that, but Rogan said the early tension still resonated with him.
“They stopped doing it after the first event when I voiced my displeasure,” Rogan said. “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.”
Rogan said he’s not sure what the future holds in terms of his position as a commentator. He’s been signing one-year contracts over the past few years, which usually have expired in the summertime. He sounds content with calling roughly 12 UFC cards per year, but with the UFC switching broadcast partners for ESPN in January 2019, it’s possible the circumstances could change, he said.
One thing that won’t change, Rogan said, is the way he does his job.
“This is what I do,” Rogan said. “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.”
There are multiple reasons Rogan stopped working FOX-televised fight cards, he said, starting with the financial side of things.
“My contract is with the UFC and I was never working for FOX,” Rogan said on his Fight Companion podcast for UFC Fight Night 130 on Sunday. “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.'”
The travel, workload and the level of compensation certainly bothered Rogan, he said. However, all those factors were outweighed by some differences of opinion with FOX Sports executives and producers.
He claims people on the production side of things tried to take some of his freedom away, and that didn’t sit well with him.
“They got in my ear,” Rogan said. “The very first events for FOX, they were like telling me what to do. They were telling me to take it down a notch. ‘Don’t be so amped up about that guy,’ I was like, ‘What? What are you doing here?’ I go, ‘Listen, I do commentary. This is what I do. I’ve been doing it forever. This is how I do it. If you think you can change me, then we’re not going to work together.’ We had a real problem for the first event. It was a FOX production.
“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.”
After FOX tried to push him in a certain direction, he said he was very vocal about his thoughts on the situation. He said the people trying to get in his ear quieted down after that, but Rogan said the early tension still resonated with him.
“They stopped doing it after the first event when I voiced my displeasure,” Rogan said. “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.”
Rogan said he’s not sure what the future holds in terms of his position as a commentator. He’s been signing one-year contracts over the past few years, which usually have expired in the summertime. He sounds content with calling roughly 12 UFC cards per year, but with the UFC switching broadcast partners for ESPN in January 2019, it’s possible the circumstances could change, he said.
One thing that won’t change, Rogan said, is the way he does his job.
“This is what I do,” Rogan said. “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.”
