Before MMA exploded into a billion-dollar global industry, before the UFC was valued at over $12 billion, and long before the TKO merger with WWE, Joe Rogan saw it coming.
It was 2007, and the UFC was still fighting for respect. That year, stars like Anderson Silva, Quinton Jackson, and Randy Couture were leading the charge. But inside an ESPN studio, it wasn’t fists flying, it was words. And Rogan was in the middle of it.
The clip of the UFC color commentator’s debate with boxing promoter Lou DiBella was recently shared by Red Corner MMA on Instagram with the caption, “Boxing will be swallowed by MMA”: Back in 2007 Joe Rogan got into a heated debate with boxing promoter Lou DiBella during a live broadcast on @SportsCenter. 2007 was a pivotal year for mixed martial arts, as the UFC was transitioning from a cult favorite to a mainstream sport, and the boxing versus MMA debate was at its peak.”
The interview is a testament to Rogan’s passion for the sport as he had entered the promotion in 1997, initially working as a backstage and post-fight interviewer, and after Zuffa took over the company in 2001, he joined as a color commentator, even reportedly covering 15 events for free.
In the clips shared on Instagram, Rogan begins by stating, “I certainly think it’s a permanent part of the sports culture. It’s a much more exciting sport than any of the other combat sports that are out there right now. And that’s why it’s here and that’s why it’s the fastest growing sport in the world.”
DiBella, seemingly unimpressed, acknowledged the UFC had a fan base, but added a jab with, “My guess is as long as they can continue to get young, white guys to watch, they’re going to be there for a long time.” Then he dismissed MMA entirely, calling it “a different form of entertainment” and comparing it to “human c**kfighting”, the same term used by then Senator John McCain, who had been vehemently opposed to the sport.
That’s when Rogan came swinging as he fired back with, “You know what that is, that’s actual fighting. You know what boxing is? Boxing is a very limited form of fighting. It’s kind of a silly agreement to say like, ‘we hate each other, we gonna fight, we’re gonna duke it out man to man but we’re only gonna use our hands. What Ultimate Fighting is, it’s the actual sport of fighting.”
DiBella tried to defend boxing’s presentation, noting that if they advertised matches with “blood splats” like the UFC did on Spike TV, the athletic commissions wouldn’t allow them to hold events. But Joe Rogan didn’t flinch. He clarified that he had nothing to do with how it was marketed and even confessed that the most important aspect of the UFC or MMA is the actual encompassing of the entire sport of fighting.
As the debate heated up, DiBella got personal and even claimed Rogan wasn’t a real boxing fan, naming legends like Willie Pep, Pernell Whittaker, but Rogan fired back by displaying his own love for boxing and the history that comes along with.
Then came the knockout, as Joe Rogan stated, “What you guys don’t understand is that you guys are a dying breed. You boxing guys, ‘Oh, [MMA] is human c*ck fighting. What you don’t understand is your sport is getting swallowed. It’s getting swallowed by a greater, more efficient, more spectacular sport.”
Fast forward to 2025, and the UFC stands as one of the biggest sports properties in the world, valued at $12.3 billion in 2025. Now part of TKO Group Holdings, the UFC merged with WWE in a $21.4 billion move back in 2023 that changed the combat sports landscape forever. And earlier this year, UFC boss Dana White made another move that has now added more weight to Joe Rogan’s claims!
Joe Rogan’s prediction about boxing comes true as Dana White sets his eyes on the squared circle
Dana White, who once called the sport of boxing out for its multitude of issues, is now stepping into the ring but not as a promoter in the traditional sense. Under the TKO Group Holdings umbrella, and in partnership with Saudi Arabia’s Turki Alalshikh, a brand-new boxing promotion has been launched. And this time, White isn’t just watching from the sidelines; he’s using the UFC’s model to bring the same energy to the pugilistic space.
According to the UFC boss’s interview with Ring magazine, “Everybody knows the format — the best fight the best, you work your way up the rankings, and once somebody breaks into the top five [and] there is no question [about] who the best five guys are in each weight class, they fight it out. And once somebody holds that belt, you don’t need three letters in front of the belt. Whoever has that belt is the best in the world in that weight class. It’s a very simple model.”
It’s a sharp contrast to the current landscape in boxing, where politics and numerous belts often cloud who’s truly the best. The new league aims to fix all that. Fighters will have access to world-class UFC Performance Institutes in Las Vegas, Mexico City, and Shanghai. TKO will oversee the structure, media, promotion, and daily operations, offering a level of organization boxing has rarely seen. White will lead the charge, alongside WWE president Nick Khan.
UFC CEO DANA WHITE with post event media during the UFC 304 event at Co-op Etihad Campus, SportCity, Manchester, England on the 27 July 2024. Copyright: xAndyxRowlandx PMI-6350-0002
Critics have long slammed boxing for failing to make the right fights at the right time. Mayweather vs. Pacquiao came too late. Rankings are unclear. Belts are fragmented. But Alalshikh’s Riyadh Season cards have helped change that narrative, delivering big fights like Fury vs. Ngannou and Joshua vs. Ngannou. Now, with this new league, the goal is to make that standard.
The UFC isn’t just thriving; it’s reshaping combat sports on a global scale. With Dana White now stepping into boxing, using the UFC’s proven model to fix a fractured system, Joe Rogan’s words echo louder than ever. What once seemed like a passionate rant now reads like a blueprint. MMA didn’t just survive, it evolved, dominated, and now, it may very well be leading boxing into its next era!
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