How long has Joe Rogan been with the UFC?

Joe Rogan has been a UFC staple for a long time

Commentator Joe Rogan has been with the UFC for almost two decades. Rogan first commentated on the fight promotion during the UFC 37.5 event in 2002. The fight card was headlined by a light heavyweight clash between Chuck Liddell and Vitor Belfort.

Rogan has recently covered only UFC pay-per-view events happening in North America. Saturday's UFC 276 card marks Rogan's latest return to the commentary booth.

In an episode of the JRE podcast, the comedian explained how he got involved with the organization. Rogan said that Dana White had initially talked him into commentating on one UFC event, but he enjoyed it so much he started doing more:

"He [Dana White] was like 'do you want to do commentary?' and I was like 'I don't want to do commentary, man. I here to get drunk and watch watch people kick the sh** out of each other, I'm not here to work'. And he talked me into it for one show UFC 37 and a half, it was a show that was on one of those Fox Sports networks... I think it was the best danm sport show period... I did that and rest is history."

Watch Joe Rogan speak about how he got into the UFC below:

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Dana White praises Joe Rogan for UFC's growth

In a 2021 interview with American boxing trainer Teddy Atlas, UFC president Dana White said that Joe Rogan was one of the most instrumental people behind the success of the fight promotion.

White highlighted Rogan's unbridled passion for the sport. The UFC president stated that the commentator was highly adept at walking viewers through the nuances of ground fighting:

"When we got into this [UFC], you know, everybody understood stand up fighting no matter what happened. Punching, kicking, elbows, we all get that. The big thing for us is it when it goes to the ground. How many people are going to understand what's going on and what they are seeing?

Joe Rogan was so first of all passionate about the sport...number two, so good at walking you through what was going on before it even started to happen. You know, to have a guy like him behind the mic was very instrumental in helping build the sport."

Rogan is a long-time practitioner of BJJ and holds a black belt under Eddie Bravo's 10th Planet Jiu Jitsu.

During the interview with Atlas, White also gave the Gracies due credit as one of the pioneers who propelled the organization during its early days. Brazilian jiu-jitsu practitioner Rorion Gracie was one of the founding members of the UFC.

Watch the full interview below:

Find out: Complete list of the UFC Commentators