UFC 142: Joe Rogan Explains His Confrontation With Mario Yamasaki

Never let it be said that Joe Rogan isn't passionate about what he does.

After Mario Yamasaki's stunning disqualification of Erick Silva at UFC 142, Rogan stormed the Octagon and grilled the offending referee at length about his decision. It was a strange sight to say the least, and one that even fellow fighters questioned the necessity of. Afterward, Rogan took to The Underground to explain the logic behind his interview.

(Yamasaki's) a great guy, and I'm always happy to see him. When I step into the octagon however, I represent the people watching at home that might have obvious questions, and when something is controversial I'm forced to confront it honestly because that's what I would want to hear from a person in my position if I was a fan watching it at home.

I think Mario Yamasaki is one of the best in the world at refereeing MMA. No doubt about it. He's got great insight to the sport, he's a life long martial artist, and he's a really smart guy. What I was acting from, is that I saw an incredible young talent get denied a KO victory for a questionable call. When I entered into the Octagon and was told of the official ruling that Silva was going to be disqualified for illegal blows to the back of the head everyone that I was around who heard the news opened their mouths in shock. Everyone said, "what?"

The people in the truck couldn't believe it. I had to read it back to them because I thought it was a mistake, and when I leaned over to explain it to Goldie he couldn't believe it either. I had to ask Mario about it. I didn't know how he was going to respond, but I had to ask him.

Erick Silva is a very promising fighter and I felt like I had a responsibility to address the issue. No disrespect intended.

HT: MMA Mania