Dana White shares incredible story of how he hired Joe Rogan for the UFC but couldn't pay for the first 12-13 shows

Dana White recently opened up about hiring Joe Rogan as a commentator for the UFC and recalled how The Joe Rogan Experience podcast host worked for free for several events in the beginning due to their poor financial condition back then.

Rogan has been an integral part of the UFC's broadcast team for over two decades and is among the most well-known personalities associated with mixed martial arts. He made his commentary debut at the UFC 37.5 event in 2002, which was headlined by a Chuck Liddell vs. Vitor Belfort light heavyweight clash.

Over the past few years, Rogan has stuck to commentating at pay-per-view events that take place in North America. Nevertheless, fight fans are always eager to see him behind the cage-side desk, and he's undeniably a fan-favorite entity at events.

During a recent appearance on the Games With Names show, White broke down how he managed to hire Rogan and said:

"He literally was doing 'Fear Factor' when I hired him. When we bought the UFC, the company was based in New York, so I hopped on a plane, flew out to New York and started cleaning out the old offices... I had a VCR... There was this talk show... They had Joe Rogan on there... He was talking about how bada** UFC fighters were."

He continued:

"I was like, "Man this guy knows what he's talking about. He's smart, he's funny and he's articulate. So I reached out to Rogan... We started talking and I asked him if he's like to work for us as a commentator... Joe Rogan did the first 12 or 13 shows for free."

Catch Dana White's comments below (59:05):

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When Joe Rogan explained how his UFC contract is linked to Dana White

As mentioned, Joe Rogan is undoubtedly among the most iconic personalities in the UFC and has made his mark on mixed martial arts over the past two decades.

While Rogan holds a UFC contract that legally binds him to the promotion, he once revealed that his agreement is also linked to Dana White's tenure. The stand-up comic has also previously stated that he wouldn't want to work under anyone else.

During an episode of the JRE MMA Show (#142), he spoke about White's work ethic and how their tenures are linked:

"He's an animal. He's just, like, always doing stuff. He's always involved, he's always got deals, he's always working on fights, he's always... he f*****g loves this s**t. It's in my contract that if he ever leaves, I leave. I'm like, 'I don't wanna do this for anybody else."

Catch Joe Rogan's comments below ( 0:05):

Watch the full episode below: