Joe Rogan Reminisces Career Gamble and UFC’s Tough Times After Successful Event at the White House

Joe Rogan reflects on a pivotal career decision and the UFC's early struggles following the success of the recent UFC Freedom 250 event.

Joe Rogan Reminisces Career Gamble and UFC’s Tough Times After Successful Event at the White House

Joe Rogan reminisces on the growth of the UFC following UFC Freedom 250 [via YouTube and TalkSPORT]

Joe Rogan is among the longest-serving employees of the UFC. The veteran commentator has been around for the company’s lowest of lows and last Sunday, he was there once again as the American MMA giant made history at the White House. As such, Rogan reminisced about the journey he has been on with the company.

When the former Fear Factor host joined the UFC, the promotion wasn’t the MMA giant it has become today. His first appearance with the company came nearly 30 years ago all the way back in February, 1997. However, back then, Rogan was not the iconic voice in the commentary booth that he is now. Instead, he started with the company as a backstage interviewer.

It wasn’t till UFC 37.5 five years later that the host of the Joe Rogan Experience joined the commentary booth as a color commentator. By then, the company had already been taken over by ZUFFA LLC, headed by Dana White and the Fertitta brothers. Even so, the UFC was nowhere close to being as popular in the mainstream as it is now, and Rogan revealed how working for them was a huge gamble.

Even back then, it was like you were doing something or snuff films or you were doing something that was damaging for your career. People would look at you like, ‘You’re working for a cage fighting organization? Why would you do that?’ Cut to 25 years later, it’s on the lawn of the White House and it is one of the most watched sporting events in the history of the world.

Joe Rogan via the Joe Rogan Experience

The UFC is indeed unrecognizable from the fledgling promotion it used to be back in the early 2000s. After The Ultimate Fighter was picked up by Spike TV, the company has been on a meteoric rise in the American and global sports landscape just recently having it’s rights sold to Paramount for billions. There is perhaps no better example of this than the UFC Freedom 250 event which Joe Rogan mentioned.

Last Sunday’s card was the first-ever sporting event to be held on the premises of the White House. But not only that, the show was incredibly successful as CEO Dana White expressed his elation at the spectacular crowd the event had pulled. While the exact viewership numbers for the card are yet to be released, Rogan has not shied away from dubbing it the greatest fight card ever.

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Joe Rogan believes UFC Freedom 250 was the ‘greatest night of fights’

Last Sunday’s UFC Freedom 250 event at the South Lawn was an incredible, one-off event for the UFC. The event itself was spectacular, but the atmosphere surrounding it was also incredible. Set against the iconic backdrop of the White House, even the events leading up to the fights like the weigh-ins were memorable with fighters like Derrick Lewis and Josh Hokit bringing their A-game with their antics.

Joe Rogan, Justin Gaethje
Joe Rogan interviews Justin Gaethje after his win at UFC Freedom 250 [via IBN UK]

However, as good as those events were, the 7-fight card ended up stealing the show. All 7 fights ended in a finish with the main and co-main event seeing two incredible fights.

In the co-main event, Ciryl Gane ended Alex Pereira‘s dreams of becoming the first-ever triple champion in UFC history. Then, Justin Gaethje shocked the world by handing Ilia Topuria his first MMA loss in the co-main.

Given all this, Joe Rogan has hailed the event as the greatest event ever, with him dubbing the Gaethje-Topuria fight as the greatest fight ever.

That was the wildest experience that I’ve ever had in my 20-whatever years of calling combat sports. There’s nothing even close. Nothing even close. It was the greatest night of fights of all time. The main event was the greatest fight of all time. It literally was the greatest fight of all time.

Joe Rogan via the Joe Rogan Experience

It is hard to argue with the veteran commentator given how top-notch everything surrounding the event was. Not only was the leadup to the fights and the event brilliant, the card’s production itself was elite. Veteran journalist Ariel Helwani even called Justin Gaethje’s walkout from the Oval Office the greatest walkout ever. All in all, it’s clear that the UFC has come a long way from Rogan’s first appearance in 1997.

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