Over the last several years, fans and foes alike have shared their thoughts on Fedor Emelianenko’s reluctance to sign with the UFC. Long-time UFC commentator Joe Rogan has managed to pry himself away from his Twitter long enough to post a blog about Emelianenko on the Underground Forums.
“Guys do what they have to do to get attention and to build hype. The more attention they get, the more money they can make. In this sport it pays to make any comparisons with Fedor,” Rogan wrote. “You also have to factor in that these are very confident professional killers and that they really do believe that they can beat any man alive. I don’t really think I’ve seen any UFC fighter “trash” Fedor. It’s not that someone hasn’t, I just don’t recall seeing it anywhere.”
The reigning WAMMA heavyweight champ most recently shunned the UFC in favor of Strikeforce after the “Affliction: Trilogy” debacle last August. Emelianenko went on to headline “Strikeforce: Fedor vs. Rogers” and continued his dominant ways by knocking out Brett Rogers in the 2ndRound.
If you think the UFC doesn’t want some of that, think again.
“As for the UFC not wanting him, that’s absolutely not true,” Rogan stated. “They tried really hard to make a fair deal, but they couldn’t agree on terms. [But] that shit is NONE of my business. [All] I’m here for is to call the fights, and represent the participants as best I can.
“I would love to see Fedor, [Gegard] Mousasi, [Jake] Shields, etc. – I would love to see all the best guys in the world match up, regardless of what organization they represent, but unfortunately the business doesn’t work that way, and if companies aren’t making money (as we’ve seen over and over again) they go under.”
However, Rogan has been around the MMA block too many times to believe all of the world’s best fighters would compete under one roof anytime soon. If it happens, he will be the first to stand and applaud, if not, the show will go on.
“The UFC isn’t going to make any dumb moves, and they’re not going away,” Rogan said in closing. “They’re going to get bigger every year, and if Fedor comes aboard one day, awesome. If not, that’s cool too. It’s all good in the end. I just like watching great fights, and we’ve got a lot of them coming up in 2010.”
Emelianenko is rumored to be headlining Strikeforce’s second CBS primetime broadcast against Fabricio Werdum on April 17th.
Joe Rogan is smart in his communication and has a pretty balanced perspective on a lot of things. He is truly an asset to the sport of MMA.
Jon Huntley commented on February 3, 2010 @ 1:32 pm
yea Joe Rogan is right. to Dana Fuck you
Vladimir Kozyk commented on February 3, 2010 @ 2:17 pm
yeah, but it would be a LOT cooler to see him in the UFC joe!
David commented on February 3, 2010 @ 2:57 pm
Im a huge FEDOR fan and a mma fan, and i also respect people who speak their mind and not what sounds good from a buiseness point of view, and that’s what makes me a big Joe Rogan fan.
pridefc commented on February 3, 2010 @ 8:50 pm
Rogan never holds anything back, he’s a fan first and you can hear that when he does color commentary.
Tom Ngo commented on February 3, 2010 @ 9:28 pm
When I think about it, I think Joe has provided me more MMA education then anyone else. I am in his debt and respect his input on most MMA-related topics.
nablur commented on February 4, 2010 @ 7:44 am
I think a lot of people share your sentiment, Rogan is good for the UFC.
Tom Ngo commented on February 4, 2010 @ 3:29 pm
Fedor would be the best thing the UFC could do for the fans before they are washed-up.
michael c. commented on February 4, 2010 @ 9:31 pm
Thats one thing other organizations are missing, a Joe Rogan style commentator. I wanted to knock my self out after listening to the guys at strikeforce.
Ruski691 commented on February 5, 2010 @ 2:08 pm
I don’t see the UFC going away…but I do see them eventually losing a bunch of good fighters to Strikeforce. Strikeforce is live and free on CBS. I see Strikeforce getting bigger every year around the world. I think any heavyweight that wants a shot at Fedor should sign with Strikeforce – if they really want to fight the best.
woodape commented on February 5, 2010 @ 3:23 pm
WOW…all intelligent comments. Bravo.
FragilExistence commented on February 5, 2010 @ 5:04 pm
It’s nice to see that Rogen isn’t gagged by his superiors at UFC. During the heaveyweight only season of “Ultimate Fighter” you know those guys were yapping about Fedor and other talented non-UFC heaveywieghts. I’m sure that it was either edited out or they were told to hush. Bravo Joe for actually owning a pair and not just being Dana’s stooge.
Thekraut commented on February 10, 2010 @ 5:19 pm
But Rogan did hold the company line, he said what a muzzled UFC representative would, in a very wishy washy way. Fact is, the Fertitas and Dana are pocketing WAY more than they need to make the UFC sustainable, and plenty have done the math to show it…
I’ve seen a video clip on youtube where Rogan calls him “The Best”. He’s been muzzled, all right…
hawaiianape commented on June 27, 2010 @ 4:46 am