When Joe Rogan cried on camera getting emotional ahead of Alex Pereira-headliner: "I've been here since UFC 12"
Last year during the UFC 300 broadcast, Joe Rogan was in tears while conversing with his commentary partners Daniel Cormier and Jon Anik. The date marked a long and continued journey for Rogan as one of the most prominent figures in the promotion's history despite never having been a fighter.
Rogan's astonished screams during thunderous knockouts have become part of MMA lore. So, as the 57-year-old spoke about his long UFC tenure on air, he couldn't help but be overcome with emotion.
"I couldn't sleep last night. I kept getting up in the middle of the night. I was like, 'It's happening!' It's just hours away. I'm so fired up. I mean, I've been here since UFC 12, so just the fact that it became the sport that it is today is beyond my wildest imagination, and to be here for this card with you guys for UFC 300, I'm just blown away."
Check out Joe Rogan's emotional moment at UFC 300 (via @SpinninBackfist on X):
UFC 300 was a celebration of a milestone for the promotion, just like UFC 200 and UFC 100 before it. It featured three championship fights, with then light heavyweight king Alex Pereira defending his throne against the division's former champion Jamahal Hill.
Despite all of Hill's trash talk and dismissal prior to the bout, Pereira made short work of him, flooring him with a left hook in round one to set up a TKO win via ground-and-pound.
Zhang Weili also defended her women's strawweight title against fellow Chinese countrywoman Yan Xiaonan. In a thrilling fight, Zhang defeated her foe via unanimous decision. Elsewhere, Justin Gaethje defended his 'BMF' title agaisnt Max Holloway, losing via last-second knockout to 'Blessed.'
Joe Rogan was a massive supporter of Alex Pereira
Before Alex Pereira's ascension to MMA stardom, he was one of the greatest kickboxers of all time and the first-ever two-division Glory Kickboxing champion. When Pereira made his UFC debut in 2021, he was not considered a future star, but longtime UFC commentator Joe Rogan was already a big fan.
During episode #130 of JRE MMA show, Rogan said:
"That dude is different. He's scary, he's scary. That dude has nuclear power. He's got crazy power. Even when he was over in Glory, I was a big fan of his over in kickboxing."
Check out Joe Rogan praising Alex Pereira (2:00:33):
He did everything in his power to generate hype for 'Poatan,' always praising him on his JRE podcast. In fact, when Pereira did eventually become a star, Rogan was the main push behind the desire to see him move up a division and challenge Jon Jones for the heavyweight title.