Joe Rogan is staying put, for the time-being at least.
Having previously stated that he would “100 per cent” leave if the Fertitta brothers were to sell their stake in the UFC, which was confirmed earlier this month, Rogan has seemingly had a change of heart.
Joe Rogan will "100%" leave if the Fertitta brothers sell the UFC https://t.co/iWe9u25kMe
— SportsJOE (@SportsJOEdotie) May 21, 2016
Speaking to top UFC featherweight Jeremy Stephens on his podcast The Joe Rogan Experience, Rogan explained (as transcribed by MMA Fighting) that he had decided to continue in his position as the promotion’s first-choice colour commentator for “at least one more year.”
“I was on the fence, man,” Rogan said. “I just do too much shit. I’m too fucking busy. After a while I’m like, I don’t know if I’m doing myself or all the different things I do a disservice. I was real close. It was like, either I’m just gonna completely bail off of this or I’m gonna figure it out.”
Rogan admitted that he would reduce his schedule with the UFC, explaining how he planned to stick primarily to pay-per-view coverage which means his presence on FOX cards would be non-existent. He also revealed that he didn’t want to travel abroad for events any longer.
The stand-up comedian claimed that the enthralling nature of the UFC 196 card in March was a significant factor in his decision to re-sign.
“That night was so crazy and so chaotic,” he said. “I walked out of there going, ‘How could I not do this?’ I’m sitting right there cageside for the craziest shit in the sporting world ever. It was real recent. It was touch and go. I just didn’t know what I was going to do.”
The UFC is not short of options for events that Rogan will no longer be attending as the likes of Brian Stann, Kenny Florian and Dan Hardy have all come on leaps and bounds on the microphone since retiring from MMA.
But Rogan, who started working with the UFC in 1997, remains one of the characters that pervades the organisation and fans will be heartbroken if he ever opts to hang the headset up for good.
But as for now, he’s going nowhere, and he wants everyone to know that he doesn’t take his position for granted.
“I don’t want anybody to think that I don’t appreciate it or I don’t know how lucky I am or I don’t think it’s an amazing job,” he said. “I definitely do. But I’m almost too lucky. I have too many amazing jobs.”
