UFC commentator Joe Rogan calls for major rule change after accusing fighter of ‘clearly cheating’ at UFC 314

Joe Rogan

Rogan spoke his mind while on commentary during the event over the weekend

Yan Xiaonan took on Virna Jandiroba in the women’s strawweight division

The former was accused of cheating by Rogan as she grabbed fence during fight

UFC commentator Joe Rogan has called for a major rule change in the company after suggesting there was ‘blatant cheating’ at UFC 314.

The event, which took place over the weekend, saw Paddy Pimblett secure the biggest win of his career as he stopped Michael Chandler in the lightweight division, while Alexander Volkanovski beat Diego Lopes for the UFC featherweight championship in the co-main event.

Though the night was generally received as a successful evening, there was an earlier bout on the card which raised eyebrows – particularly from Rogan.

The preliminary card saw Yan Xiaonan take on Virna Jandiroba in the women’s strawweight division, with the latter dominating to secure a unanimous decision win, with all three judges ruling the bout 30-27 in the Brazilian’s favour.

But part of the fight didn’t go down well with Rogan. The broadcaster tore into Jandiroba for her showing, suggesting she was ‘clearly cheating’ on her way to victory.

That caused Rogan to shout for UFC to change their rules in a move that would have seen the event less likely to happen.

Joe Rogan has called for a major rule change in UFC after accusing a fighter of ‘clearly cheating’ at UFC 314

Yan Xiaonan was defeated by Virna Jandiroba and warned over grabbing the fence in bout

Conor McGregor has also used the tactic before, and Rogan called for immediate points deductions for those who do so

When she was issued a warning in the final round, Xiaonan was told that she was not to grab the fence in a bid to avoid a takedown with the fight clearly already lost on points.

On commentary, Rogan said the 36-year-old had been ‘blatant, long-holding, [and] clearly cheating’.

It is an act that infuriated fans during Conor McGregor’s iconic feud with Khabib Nurmagomedov, and Rogan is often vocal with his displeasure of the move.

Rogan’s solution, ultimately, is to enforce immediate points deductions.

On commentary, he said: ‘If it was just an immediate, automatic point deduction every time you grabbed the fence, there would be no more fence grabs.

‘And eye pokes. It would all stop. They would close the hand every time they reach out to try and create space.’

It’s not the first time the MMA legend has come up with a potential rule change, having previously encouraged Endeavour to get rid of weight cuts.

‘I said this to Ari Emanuel when they first bought the UFC,’ he said. ‘I said, “Listen man, you know what you should do? Get rid of weight-cutting, just stop it. Look, If you can randomly test people for drugs, you can randomly test their weight. Show up with a scale, say, ‘Hey, buddy. Step on the scale, you’re 190 pounds, how the f*** are you making 145?’” Do something like that.

‘And come up with more weight classes. There should be a weight class every 10 pounds.’