UFC News: Joe Rogan refuses to apologize for commentary during Cris Cyborg and Felicia Spencer fight
Joe Rogan has received a lot of flak over the years with fans commenting on his commentary sometimes being biased. During the recent UFC 240 fight between Cris Cyborg and Felicia Spencer, Rogan was criticized for his commentary of the fight.
Fans felt that he was far too biased against Cris Cyborg, something that is not wholly outside the realm of possibility, as Cyborg and the UFC were at odds with each other at the time. Rogan defended himself on the latest episode of his podcast, 'The Joe Rogan Experience', saying that he had not been biased after all and it was the misconception of the fans.
What happened at UFC 240?
UFC 240 was extremely pivotal for UFC as it saw Max Holloway defeated Frankie Edgar in the main event in the night. What we are talking about here, however, is what happened in the co-main event.
Cris Cyborg took on Felicia Spencer and absolutely decimated her for the better part of three rounds. She won the fight via Unanimous Decision. However, the fans felt that Joe Rogan was extremely critical of Cyborg, ignoring her dominance while praising Felicia Spencer.
Cris Cyborg and UFC's relationship has since come apart, with the fight being the last of Cybrog's for the company. With a number of disagreements with Dana White, and the President of UFC burying her in an interview post-UFC 240, Cyborg has had enough and is not going to have her contract renewed by the UFC (something that Dana White refused to do anyway).
Joe Rogan defends himself against criticism for his commentary at UFC 240
Joe Rogan defended himself on his podcast saying that he was far from biased. He said that he was amazed by the fact that Spencer was able to survive for all three rounds and even cut Cyborg's face open.
"That was the thing with the Spencer fight. Like, people were saying, ‘Oh, it was biased commentary.’ No, it wasn’t. That girl survived. She survived the onslaught. It was her eighth pro fight or ninth pro fight. It wasn’t close. And she cut Cyborg’s face wide open, too. But still, the idea was that she was going to run through that girl and she didn’t. That girl was tough as s***. There was no one that thought Spencer won that fight after it was over, but it was amazing that she was able to endure the f***Iing beating that Cyborg put on her. It was incredible." (Transcription via MMA Mania)
Rogan has been a commentator in the UFC for a while now, and while it may be possible that was the reason for his commentating style on the night, it may still have something to do with the fact that Cyborg was in a feud with the company.