MMA News Roundup: UFC veteran announces shock retirement, Islam Makhachev trolls Charles Oliveira's English, Joe Rogan calls fellow comedians "narcissists"
Welcome to today's edition of Sportskeeda's daily MMA News Roundup, where we present the biggest UFC updates and other stories from the world of mixed martial arts.
In the latest issue, we talk about a surprise retirement, Joe Rogan on the mentalities of other comedians, and more.
#3. UFC middleweight Uriah Hall announces retirement from the sport
It seems like 'Primetime' is over.
In a beautifully penned message, veteran UFC middleweight Uriah Hall announced his retirement from the sport today. Making his way into the promotion through TUF 17 in 2013, Hall made a lasting impression despite never winning the title.
In his long Instagram post, Hall thanked the UFC staff, the fans, his team, his friends and family, and Dana White for everything he managed to achieve in mixed martial arts.
"Lastly, I want to specifically thank Dana White for giving me the opportunity to collide with modern day gladiators. Thank you for always supporting me through (sic) the good and the bad," Hall wrote.
Check out his post below:
Ali Abdelaziz, Eryk Anders, Adrian Yanez, Michael Chiesa, and Jessica Eye were among the MMA personalities who commented under the post and wished Hall a happy retirement.
#2. "English is important if you wanna make money" - Islam Makhachev to Charles Oliveira
Islam Makhachev believes Charles Oliveira's attempts to hype himself up in the media will go in vain since he does not speak English.
In a recent viral video, Oliveira sent a chilling warning to Islam Makhachev and his team, stating that their "arrogance" will be their downfall.
Addressing the comments in an appearance on ESPN MMA's DC & RC show, UFC lightweight contender Makhachev said that these statements are nothing but Oliveira "trying to make money" and failing because he speaks in Portuguese, something which is perhaps also a dig at Oliveira's pursuit of a money fight against Conor McGregor.
"I don't know, I don't understand this guy. He tried to always make [it about] money. But this guy doesn't speak English. Nobody understands this guy, he doesn't speak English. English is important if you wanna make money, you have to speak some language everybody understands. Nobody understands what he's saying."
Watch the video below:
Makhachev's opinion should ring ironic to fans of the sport, who will remember his mentor, teammate, and close friend Khabib Nurmagomedov speaking in nothing but Russian during his initial days in the UFC.
Khabib's coach and father, Abdulmanap Nurmagomedov, used to step in and translate many of his post-fight comments and other interviews in the UFC, just like 'The Eagle' now does for his teammates.
Of course, as Khabib reached stardom, his English significantly improved, which is a path that Makhachev clearly believes Oliveira should have followed.
#1. Narcissistic, self-centered ego-maniacs - Joe Rogan on fellow comedians
No one could have guessed, and Joe Rogan himself even less so, how huge his JRE podcast would grow to be when he started it. But it touched a chord with an unexpectedly large number of people, which eventually led to Joe Rogan signing a massive $200 million deal with audio streaming giant Spotify.
However, Rogan's ever-growing popularity did not sit well with his fellow comedians. Speaking during a recent appearance on Theo Von's This Past Weekend podcast, the UFC commentator spoke about the reaction he received from other comics during the transition:
"There's a lot of angry, jealous comedians unfortuantely. There's a lot of comedians that look at other people's success, and they feel bad, so they feel you're doing something bad, because they feel bad... A lot of comedians are narcissists and a lot of them are self-centered and egomaniacs. And so they think when you're doing something well and something's going well for you, that somehow might take something away from them."
Watch the video below: