Joe Rogan has a huge MMA concern as the UFC commentator says the current scoring ‘system sucks,’ offering his own solution to a system he believes is flawed after watching Jose Aldo’s fight
Joe Rogan had criticism on the officiating ahead of UFC 327 in Miami(Image: Photo by Carmen Mandato/Getty Images)
Joe Rogan shared his thoughts on how fights are scored in the UFC.
Rogan, the podcast mogul and UFC commentator, is not shy about sharing his opinions on the sport or politics, including Donald Trump’s decision to start a war with Iran. In the days leading up to UFC 327, which Trump attended, the 58-year-old explained how he believes UFC’s scoring system is flawed and needs to change.
His comments came before an awkward exchange with the president in Miami, which led fans to speculate that trouble might be brewing between the popular podcaster and Trump.
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“I think they’re not being generous enough with the 10-8’s and the 10-7’s,” Rogan said to Din Thomas, Matt Serra, and John Rallo of the scoring on his podcast [h/t Bloody Elbow]. “Not enough. When a guy just tunes you up for a minute and a half of a round, that means a lot.”
Rogan added that the scoring system has room to grow and that MMA needs to implement its own system, not based on other combat sports, that rewards how fighters attack their opponents. “The scoring system sucks because we stole it from boxing,” the 58-year-old continued.
“You should get a certain amount of points for different things. You should be counting in submission attempts. You should be counting in takedown attempts. Who was more aggressive? Who was more defensive? Who implemented their strategy better? You should have like 100 points to work with.”
Joe Rogan had an interesting UFC 327 in Miami(Image: Photo by Jeff Bottari/Zuffa LLC)
The conversation began when the foursome started discussing Jose Aldo’s retirement fight in May 2025. Despite Aldo inflicting massive damage on Aiemann Zahabi, the latter was declared the victor by unanimous decision, which led Rogan to share his grievances about how fights are scored.
Rogan has never been one to hold his tongue regarding topics he cares about, as evidenced by his criticism of one of the marquee fights of UFC 327. Specifically, the UFC commentator did not hold back on what he thought of Johnny Walker and Dominick Reyes’ light heavyweight fight.
Though Reyes was declared the winner, the fight itself was not entertaining, with the two using a cautious approach throughout the first handful of rounds. Fans began chanting “This is boring” midway through the second round to show their dissatisfaction with the bout.
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By the third round, both men had thrown 49 combined strikes, leading the fans to boo in the final round. Jon Anik was left to utter “Not much to commentate here,” leading Rogan to butt in and reply: “It’s just so cautious, so cautious.”
He also added: “This fight sucks… A lot of calf kicks.”
What’s more, Rogan seemingly had a tense exchange with Trump before the event began in earnest. As Trump spoke with each commentator, the 79-year-old was spotted pointing at Rogan’s chest before whispering something in his ear, erasing Rogan’s smile.
After speaking with MMA legend Daniel Cormier, Trump then once again spoke with the 58-year-old, leaning in to whisper something more into his ear before heading to his seat to take in the event.