Joe Rogan Insists Fighters are ‘Wasting their careers’ by competing outside of the UFC: ‘No One’s Watching’
Joe Rogan hates to see fighters wasting their careers competing anywhere other than the UFC.
There’s no denying that Ultimate Fighting Championship is the biggest show in town. Over the last 30 years, the promotion has built itself into the biggest combat sports organization on the planet. Much of that can be credited to the incredibly deep talent pool that has introduced legends like Chuck Liddell, Georges St-Pierre, Anderson Silva, and Conor McGregor.
Attempting to take a piece of the pie for themselves, rival mixed martial arts organizations have popped up, including Bellator MMA and the PFL. And while those promotions have seen their fair share of homegrown stars, Rogan knows that if any of them want to achieve greatness on a financial and professional level, there’s only one place to do it.
“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 said on his podcast, The Joe Rogan Experience. “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*cking NFL. If you’re not in the f*cking NFL, are you really playing football? That’s just how it is” (h/t MMA Fighting).
Joe Rogan wants to see fighters like Johnny eblen jump to the UFC
When it comes to live ticket sales and pay-per-view revenue, nobody is bigger than the UFC. The Professional Fighters League will attempt to change that next year after a series of blockbuster moves that include signing both former UFC heavyweight champion Francis Ngannou and social media star Jake Paul.
Not to mention the PFL’s acquisition of Bellator, a promotion that despite giving birth to some notable names in the world of MMA, failed to turn a profit after more than 15 years in business.
“If you’re the UFC champ, you’re the f*cking man,” Rogan said. “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.”
Aside from the talent on display, fight fans are often drawn to the incredible production values and the pageantry that the UFC brings to each event. It’s something Rogan believes every aspiring fighter wants and needs to experience in their career.
“There’s this feeling of being in the UFC that everybody who wants to be a fighter dreams of,” Rogan said. “You want to be there when Bruce Buffer is right in front of you going, ‘It’s time!’ You’re like, holy sh*t!”
