What are Joe Rogan's MMA expert credentials?

[IntentionalButt]

I know he's been part of UFC for a while now, but before that...was it just the fact that he was a fan of the sport and a somewhat well known TV personality already?

I mean, people give Max Kellerman no end of shit for being "underqualified" as an on-air boxing analyst and "not paying his dues" before jumping from sporadic ESPN gigs to supplanting Larry Merchant - and he's been watching and obsessing over fights probably his entire life (and had already at least wet his feet in sports broadcasting).

I've heard Joe's trained some, but never competed in any martial art professionally, right?

[sugarngold]

IIRC, Rogan used to teach martial arts for a living and was editor of Black Belt magazine for a time. I believe he has trained extensively in tae kwon do and later Brazilian jiujutsu.

[cdnboxing]

IIRC, Rogan used to teach martial arts for a living and was editor of Black Belt magazine for a time. I believe he has trained extensively in tae kwon do and later Brazilian jiujutsu.

Yep, so his background is essentially nothing.

He is a dedicated and self-admitted drug user though.

[chimba]

Rogan had a comedy spot Dana gave him on spike. 1 fuckin hour of unfunny

Sometimes you try to like a guy, but Rogans very arrogant and seems to be the type with false humility and would bait someone to be somewhat antagonistic so he can choke him out and show off his JJ

[TheBradyHawkes]

Rogan had a comedy spot Dana gave him on spike. 1 fuckin hour of unfunny

Eh? DW controls spike programming now?

[IntentionalButt]

Eh? DW controls spike programming now?

Wouldn't be shocking...they've never been a huge budget network and he's probably got the scratch (given what a tight stingy SOB he is).

[jimmie]

Hes a Brown Belt in BJJ, Blackbelt in Tae-Kwan-Doe and I know he trains a bit in Muay Thai. Obviously hes never competed in MMA and im not sure if hes competed in anything but he trains in various martial arts and has a great understanding of the techniques. Rogan is a good commentator he knows what hes talking about.

[cdnboxing]

Hes a Brown Belt in BJJ, Blackbelt in Tae-Kwan-Doe and I know he trains a bit in Muay Thai. Obviously hes never competed in MMA and im not sure if hes competed in anything but he trains in various martial arts and has a great understanding of the techniques. Rogan is a good commentator he knows what hes talking about.

No he doesnt. He understands BJJ quite well but he still has an unhealthy obsession with BJJ and Eddie Bravo which rubs alot of people the wrong way.

He on the otherhand, has no knowledge towards the sport of boxing and his analysis on wrestling goes as far as saying "wrestlers are great conditioned athletes" thats pretty much it.

Remember that debate with Dibella? Rogan was literally wrong about everything he said and the problem is we still have MMA fans regurgitating that same Rogan BS.

[ufoalf]

No he doesnt. He understands BJJ quite well but he still has an unhealthy obsession with BJJ and Eddie Bravo which rubs alot of people the wrong way.

He on the otherhand, has no knowledge towards the sport of boxing and his analysis on wrestling goes as far as saying "wrestlers are great conditioned athletes" thats pretty much it.

Remember that debate with Dibella? Rogan was literally wrong about everything he said and the problem is we still have MMA fans regurgitating that same Rogan BS.

He verbally raped Dibella buddy.

[evalistinho]

I heard he does BJJ and is a pothead. One of the most annoying guys to hear commentating.

[sugarngold]

Joe Rogan > cdnboxing

[lolspud]

Well I like him, and Shiny Happy Jihad was hilarious. Plus I enjoy him commentary, can't say much about his credentials but I do know he was willing to fight Wesley Snipes in the Octagon and he definitely has some form of MMA training.

[Dantes]

Bypassing people's personal opinions of him as a person- he's a great commentator who has a good knowledge and insight into the fights and the fighters themselves which is interesting.

[rydersonthestorm]

He's ok but shit compared to bas, mauro or quadros.

[IntentionalButt]

TtKx41UdCj0

[kel]

I've had over 20 am fights as a young adult in boxing and still very new in respect to a spectator to MMA, but i find him very helpful in his commentating as a newbie to the sport.

[jimmie]

No he doesnt. He understands BJJ quite well but he still has an unhealthy obsession with BJJ and Eddie Bravo which rubs alot of people the wrong way.

He on the otherhand, has no knowledge towards the sport of boxing and his analysis on wrestling goes as far as saying "wrestlers are great conditioned athletes" thats pretty much it.

Remember that debate with Dibella? Rogan was literally wrong about everything he said and the problem is we still have MMA fans regurgitating that same Rogan BS.

Boxing is the smallest aspect of MMA so who cares if he isnt exactly an expert of that. Whats wrong with being obsessed with BJJ thats usually how you become really good at something. Do you think great boxers became great because they didnt give a fuck about boxing ? Obviously Joe isnt an elite BJJ guy but he is a Brown Belt which is top stuff before long he will earn his Black Belt and he breaks things down on the ground. Everytime a fight hits the ground he gives a great analysis of going on and what the guy in bad postions needs to do or what the guy whos working for something is trying to do. Why do you come on this forum ? You have no clue what your talking about 99 percent of the time and all you do is complain.

[BITCH ASS]

When it comes down to it, why would you wrestle when you can punch?

Wrestling should always be secondary unless of course, you're ascared to get hit.

[nfc90210]

He used to compete in Tae Kown Do at a high level.

From…

[Only registered and activated users can see links]

…Joe began practicing martial arts at the age of 13. Within two years, the Boston native earned a black belt and soon became the Massachusetts full contact Tae Kwon Do champion four consecutive years. By the age of 19, Rogan won the US Open Tae Kwon Do Championship, and in true Joe Rogan fashion, the lightweight champion went on to beat both the middle and heavyweight title-holders to obtain the Grand Championship. Joe credits Tae Kwon Do for his discipline and focus, two characteristics which have enabled him to accomplish many things….

There was a thread over on his forum a while back where he motioned that he used to teach TKD for a living.

From….

[Only registered and activated users can see links]

It wasn't just a sport for me, it was my whole life. I was training basically every single day, and I competed from the time I was 15 until I was 21.

I was teaching it at Boston University, and I had my own school in Revere, MA, and it was the source of my identity. Without it I felt like a loser, and I didn't see any future in it where I could be happy and make a living.

I started kickboxing, but that was having me seriously worried about brain damage, and there was no money in that either.

When I started to make the transition to stand up I realized I had to go for broke. It was an all or nothing move, and to get it right I had to abandon my old life.

From some of his comments in the past I think he actually had some pro-kickboxing bouts as well.

As far BJJ goes I believe he’s a purple belt under the Machdos and a brown under Eddie Bravo.

He’s supposed to have legit skills. Both standing and on the ground he’s supposed to be a difficult guy to handle.

Eddie Bravo went as far as to say…

[Only registered and activated users can see links]

…Joe Rogan is a bad motherfucker and I’m not just saying that. He’s one of my best students. He is a brown belt and he is just a nightmare in the gym. He’s gotta work on his guard a little bit, but his half game is amazing. He’s so strong; so explosive.

You can’t tell from Fear Factor, but he looks like Frank Shamrock or Ken Shamrock. He’s a giant man. He’s swole and very athletic and very flexible. He did Taekwondo his whole life, Kickboxing and Muay Thai and he hits really hard. All of the trainers that have trained him…like Rob Kaman trained him and he was just amazed how hard Rogan hits. He hits really hard. He hits harder than anybody I’ve ever held mitts for.

If he wanted to do MMA, Joe Rogan could go straight to 170 and fuck up a lot of dudes. He can for sure…

[QuestionKid7]

On that video rogan killed dibella in a screaming match....

He made better points but dibella was much more composed and professional

[jimmie]

On that video rogan killed dibella in a screaming match....

He made better points but dibella was much more composed and professional

Being composed doesnt win you any debates. Making valid points does and Rogan totally destroyed Dibella.

[codeman99998]

I'm pretty sure he was something significant in TKD as a middleweight way back in the day.

[SouthpawSlayer]

Rogan is one annoying motjherfucker i dont know of anyone that actually likes that guy even if he does know everything (sarcasm)

[Wilhelm]

No he doesnt. He understands BJJ quite well but he still has an unhealthy obsession with BJJ and Eddie Bravo which rubs alot of people the wrong way.

He on the otherhand, has no knowledge towards the sport of boxing and his analysis on wrestling goes as far as saying "wrestlers are great conditioned athletes" thats pretty much it.

Remember that debate with Dibella? Rogan was literally wrong about everything he said and the problem is we still have MMA fans regurgitating that same Rogan BS.

He knows enough about boxing to do his job and knows more about kickboxing which is more relevant for mma. Who exactly would you like to do mma commentating? Lampley and Merchant? In the future I think it'll be Florian or Mir, but while they're still fighting Rogan is the only one so far worth listening to. Goldie sucks and so does pretty much everyone from strikeforce or especially elitexc. Bas was cool, but he doesn't do it anymore. Apart from just being an play by play guy (which someone like Florian or Mir would have better credentials for) he's someone who's interested in all the behind the scenes stuff and is honest enough not to be such a lame company man homer like Goldie.

By the way, I've bumped the "MT vs boxing" thread twice now trying to get you to respond to the question of which boxer would actually "count" for you to believe that a boxer vs kickboxer fight means anything.
[Only registered and activated users can see links]

[Beebs]

His credentials are he is a damn good announcer. He has technical proficiency in Jiu Jitsu and explaining it, which is more important than having great knowledge of striking because the results of that are more obvious to the watcher, guy gets hit and gets hurt. Not that its any simpler to perform, just that its more visually obvious.

He is good at breaking down strange kicks because of his jr national championship TKD background.

So basically you have a guy who is a natural on the mike as a stand up comedian, highly skilled at grappling, and willing to defer to fighters when they are commentating with him.

I personally will miss Frank Mir from the WEC shows, although that apparently puts me in the minority; glad Pulver has a job, great guy, great excitement, but I liked Franks technical breakdown.

[AJAX]

I actually think he does a decent job, he get's a little over exited everytime somebody does a leg kick but no big deal. He works well with Goldberg considering Goldberg has been doing this many years and still seems very clueless he tries to educate people as he announces.

[nfc90210]

About seven years ago Rogan posted this on his forum in response to a thread where someone asked about their son training martial arts.



It contains some more information on his background...

[Only registered and activated users can see links]

You've got lots of good answers on this thread, and I agree with most of them, especially Rancid Turtle, crescentwrench and velt1.

The real benefits of martial arts are overcoming your insecurities and learning about your human potential. In my opinion, most traditional martial arts schools are full of shit.

They're hypocrites, and they dish out a phoney psudo-spiritual half assed eastern philosophy to their kids which is both unnecessary and useless.

A REAL martial arts program, whether it's brazillian jiu jitsu, or a local wrestling or kickboxing / boxing program will teach a kid stuff that will actually allow him to have

REAL confidence in REAL skills.

I think that's far more important for developing confidence and discipline. The benefits are far more tangible.

I learned quite a lot from tae kwon do, but I trained at a really hard core gym. We fought in full contact tournaments that were flat out brutal and scary as shit. Lots of knockouts. However, I think I learned more about REAL fighting and my REAL capabilities after I quit traditional martial arts, and started kick boxing and muay thai. Most traditional martial arts give you a false sense of security about your ability to defend yourself, and when that false sense of security is exposed it can be quite devestating.

If I had entered a kickboxing program, or jiu jitsu program as a kid instead of tae kwon do, I think I would have benefitted from it more. However, when I was young, that stuff really wasn't around.

Get your kid into something that allows him to compete if he so chooses. That will teach him things he could never possibly learn in a goofy kung fu class.

[ufoalf]

Boxing is the smallest aspect of MMA so who cares if he isnt exactly an expert of that. Whats wrong with being obsessed with BJJ thats usually how you become really good at something. Do you think great boxers became great because they didnt give a fuck about boxing ? Obviously Joe isnt an elite BJJ guy but he is a Brown Belt which is top stuff before long he will earn his Black Belt and he breaks things down on the ground. Everytime a fight hits the ground he gives a great analysis of going on and what the guy in bad postions needs to do or what the guy whos working for something is trying to do. Why do you come on this forum ? You have no clue what your talking about 99 percent of the time and all you do is complain.

cdnboxing just got Dibella'd :lol:

[sugarngold]

Get your kid into something that allows him to compete if he so chooses. That will teach him things he could never possibly learn in a goofy kung fu class.

[Only registered and activated users can see links]

"Goofy kung fu class?"

lol

Did Beebs write that? He could have at least given a shout out to wing chun if nothing else.

[IntentionalButt]

What a dink. How is Muay Thai not a "traditional" martial art? It doesn't fit his arbitrary definition that includes the ones he doesn't like or get? :lol: Fucking dipshit.

[TheStraightLeft]

What a dink. How is Muay Thai not a "traditional" martial art? It doesn't fit his arbitrary definition that includes the ones he doesn't like or get? :lol: Fucking dipshit.

Well, if you want to really get technical, muay thai is actually the modern version of the much older and traditional 'muay boran' ([Only registered and activated users can see links])style. The muay thai style as we know it today is a less brutal sport designed for the modern style boxing ring, complete with boxing gloves, minus a few of the more esoteric techniques found in muay boran.

[Only registered and activated users can see links]

[Beebs]

What a dink. How is Muay Thai not a "traditional" martial art? It doesn't fit his arbitrary definition that includes the ones he doesn't like or get? :lol: Fucking dipshit.

Do you have a better way of differentiating between what he means as TMA and combat sports?

Wrestling is about the most traditional martial art in the world, but clearly the meaning of traditional martial art is not meant in that way.

[IntentionalButt]

Do you have a better way of differentiating between what he means as TMA and combat sports?

Wrestling is about the most traditional martial art in the world, but clearly the meaning of traditional martial art is not meant in that way.

Why does distinction need to be made? It's just an excuse for him to bash on kung-fu, TKD and karate to comparatively aggrandize the disciplines that are actually contributing factors in modern MMA (which, lo and behold, he has a direct financial interest in hyping). Pure salesman sleaze. Cheap shots. Every discipline has charlatans practicing it, that goes without saying. There are probably rip-off BJJ schools popping up in most major cities now, just as soccer moms have been dropping the kids off at "karate classes" that are total BS for generations. There are tons of incompetent crooks running boxing gyms out in the suburbs where people don't know any better. Wrestling is probably the safest and most "pure" of all, mainly because it's been institutionalized in the academic system so that there is uniformity in standards. In just about everything else, you have to dig through a haystack to find a good, honest needle. It's a byproduct of the average rube being completely ignorant about combat techniques - a little smoke and mirrors and you can sell them anything.

I just feel writing off what he seems to narrowly define as "TMA" en masse is foolish - he can't possibly know enough about them all. Especially considering kung fu itself is a very broad term applied to multitudes of different regional fighting arts.

[Dagger]

Why does distinction need to be made? It's just an excuse for him to bash on kung-fu, TKD and karate to comparatively aggrandize the disciplines that are actually contributing factors in modern MMA (which, lo and behold, he has a direct financial interest in hyping). Pure salesman sleaze. Cheap shots. Every discipline has charlatans practicing it, that goes without saying. There are probably rip-off BJJ schools popping up in most major cities now, just as soccer moms have been dropping the kids off at "karate classes" that are total BS for generations. There are tons of incompetent crooks running boxing gyms out in the suburbs where people don't know any better. Wrestling is probably the safest and most "pure" of all, mainly because it's been institutionalized in the academic system so that there is uniformity in standards. In just about everything else, you have to dig through a haystack to find a good, honest needle. It's a byproduct of the average rube being completely ignorant about combat techniques - a little smoke and mirrors and you can sell them anything.

I just feel writing off what he seems to narrowly define as "TMA" en masse is foolish - he can't possibly know enough about them all. Especially considering kung fu itself is a very broad term applied to multitudes of different regional fighting arts.

great post

[nfc90210]

Why does distinction need to be made? It's just an excuse for him to bash on kung-fu, TKD and karate to comparatively aggrandize the disciplines that are actually contributing factors in modern MMA (which, lo and behold, he has a direct financial interest in hyping). Pure salesman sleaze.

The post from Rogan's forum that you are referring to was made in March 2002. When he posted it he hadn't done any UFC commentating. He wasn’t employed by the UFC. His first gig as a UFC commentator, if I recall correctly, was at UFC 37.5 later in the year.

He had done some backstage interviews at some of the earlier UFCs, actually losing money on the gig, but that had fallen by the wayside.

[Predicto]

He seems to know what he's talking about,,, but that "yell-talking" he does all the f---ing time is like nails on a chalkboard. STFU already Joe!