As UFC 318 fast approaches on Saturday, the broadcast team is set—and Joe Rogan won’t be calling Dustin Poirier’s retirement fight against Max Holloway.
In a rare instance with a UFC pay-per-view happening in the United States, Rogan is sitting out the broadcast. There’s no word on why Rogan is missing the show, but he is replaced by retired UFC lightweight Paul Felder, who now serves as the third man in the broadcast booth for the card taking place at Smoothie King Center in New Orleans.
Jon Anik handles play-by-play duties as usual with UFC Hall of Famer Daniel Cormier providing color commentary alongside Felder for the event. Heidi Androl is on hand for in-arena reporting.
As far as analysts for the card, Brendan Fitzgerald serves as the host for the evening and is joined by Louisiana native Alan Jouban, recently retired light heavyweight veteran Anthony Smith, and Chael Sonnen.
UFC officials confirmed broadcast details to MMA Fighting on Monday.
Saturday’s event serves as the final appearance for Poirier following a legendary career as he plans to retire after his trilogy with Holloway on Saturday. Poirier has two past wins over Holloway from previous encounters, but the former featherweight champion looks to play spoiler for Poirier’s swan song while competing in his opponent’s backyard.
Also on the card, Paulo Costa makes his return to action against Roman Kopylov in the co-main event while former Bellator champion Patricio Pitbull makes his second appearance in the UFC when he faces Dan Ige.
The UFC 318 main card airs on ESPN+ pay-per-view with the event kicking off at 10 p.m. ET.
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