"I froze on the buttons" - UFC translator Fabiano Buskei revisits the time Joe Rogan interacted with him inside the octagon

While speaking to ITP MMA, UFC translator Fabiano Buskei recently detailed his awkward encounter with Joe Rogan while attempting to translate for a fighter. Buskei explained that after messing with the audio in his earphones, he froze when Rogan asked the translator to relay what the fighter had said.

The UFC translator was clearly embarrassed by the incident at the time. However, he was able to laugh about it while speaking with ITP MMA on their YouTube channel.

During the interview, Buskei said this about the audio mishap:

"The first time someone ever interacted with me, with "me" the translator, Joe Rogan actually said something like 'well if the translator translates' or something like that because I and I froze on the buttons."

Watch the full interview with Fabiano Buskei here:

The UFC translator went on to say that he only froze in the octagon because he accidentally lowered the wrong audio via a button. It made it impossible for him to translate what the fighter was saying.

Buskei also explained that the incident happened during the Covid-19 pandemic, meaning he wasn't allowed to go near the fighter. This led to the translator having to hold-up a piece of paper to distinguish which fighters needed translation.

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Is translating in the UFC Fabiano Buskei's only job?

No. Fabiano Buskei has a lot of experience in the business world, mainly in the marketing and sales sectors.

The UFC translator is currently the senior sales manager at RateGain. He has worked remotely for the company for over a year since joining in August 2021.

Before joining RateGain, Buskei was the marketing manager for Hotelbeds in Las Vegas and worked there for nearly three years.

Since aiding the UFC fighters with translations, Buskei has quickly become a fan-favourite due to his passion in the octagon when translating. The translator has been nicknamed the 'Giga Chad Translator' by hardcore MMA fans.

Watch Buskei speak about RateGain here:

Buskei also attended Penn State University between 1996 and 2000, studying public relations and advertising and also minored in business and marketing.

It's clear that translating for the UFC is a big passion for Buskei. However, the role seemingly doesn't pay enough to leave his other business-related jobs right now.