Long-time UFC color commentator Joe Rogan has stated in no uncertain terms his belief that fighters who compete outside of the UFC in promotions like PFL, Bellator and ONE FC are wasting important years of their careers because nobody is watching.
“No disrespect to the other organizations, there’s very good fighters in the other organizations, but I often feel like they’re wasting their career,” Rogan claimed on his JRE podcast during a chat with Bo Nickal. “Because I see these elite fighters that are fighting in Bellator and PFL and I’m like, ‘Hey guys, no one’s watching.’
“I mean, some people are watching, you’re getting a little bit of a fan base. I don’t want to disrespect, but there’s a reality… There’s the XFL, there’s the CFL, and then there’s the f***ing NFL. If you’re not in the f***ing NFL, are you really playing football? That’s just how it is.”
Rogan went on to single out 32-year-old undefeated Bellator middleweight champion Johnny Eblen as one fighter who would be wise to make the move to the UFC.
“If you’re the UFC champ, you’re the f***ing man. If you’re the Bellator champ, I respect the sh*t out of those guys. I love them. Guys like Johnny Eblen, same thing. He’s a freaking animal. I really wish that guy would come to the UFC.
“If you’re a UFC champion, the promotion is just unparalleled. There’s nothing like it. I mean, everybody knows who you are when you’re the UFC champion.”
“There’s this feeling of being in the UFC that everybody who wants to be a fighter dreams of. You want to be there when Bruce Buffer is right in front of you going, ‘It’s time!’ You’re like, ‘Holy sh*t.'”
