Mackenzie Dern successfully defended her UFC strawweight title at UFC 330, defeating Gillian Robertson by unanimous decision after five competitive rounds. However, while Dern ultimately walked away with her belt, one moment from the opening round became a major talking point among fans.
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Dern entered the co-main event looking to showcase the improved striking that has helped transform her into a UFC champion.
From the opening bell, the Brazilian-American mixed martial artist scored well by landing a couple of straight punches mixed with leg kicks, all finding their mark. Soon after, the fight hit the mat, where the strawweight champion truly shined. Dern spent some time in top position, landing several shots before eventually taking the back and applying a tight rear-naked choke in the final minute of the first round, or at least it seemed that way.
Watching the submission attempt, Joe Rogan and Daniel Cormier both thought Mackenzie Dern was about to finish her opponent in the opening round. But the camera angle then provided a much clearer look at the sequence, revealing that Dern’s choke was actually under Robertson’s chin and not properly across her neck. Because of that, Robertson survived the opening round without tapping, and the fight stretched all the way to the final bell at the end of the fifth round, with Dern retaining her belt after winning four of the five rounds.
If we look at the stats by ESPN, the 33-year-old clearly dominated her opponent. Dern landed 65 significant strikes, controlled the fight for 10:48, and successfully completed 4 of 6 takedown attempts. On the other hand, Gillian Robertson trailed considerably, landing only 49 significant strikes, recording 6:47 of control time, and completing just 1 of 3 takedown attempts. Given that disparity, it makes perfect sense that the judges awarded the first four rounds to Dern, with Robertson only taking the final round.
But despite the champion’s victory, some fans remained focused on Joe Rogan’s incorrect call of her choke attempt in the first round. They didn’t mince their words while calling out the UFC’s longtime commentator for his mistake.
Fans Slam Joe Rogan for Misjudging Mackenzie Dern vs. Gillian Robertson at UFC 330
One fan wrote, “Joe Rogan horrible call, saying it’s over then she lasts the round and he says nothing after, smb please check his horrible calls.”
Following that, another fan shared their thoughts, commenting, “Joe Rogan just said it’s over, and it’s not 🤣 #UFC.”
Continuing the wave of backlash, another fan wrote, “Joe Rogan ‘that’s it, it’s a wrap it’s over’ Fighter survives and pops out of submission .. Every. Single. Time 😭”
Throughout his more than two-decade career, Joe Rogan has faced backlash from fans over his commentary on multiple occasions. However, that criticism has increased recently, especially when Rogan animatedly calls out a fight-ending sequence that ultimately turns out to be a misjudgment.
Last year, the 59-year-old wasn’t happy with how the referee stopped the fight between Tatsuro Taira and Brandon Moreno at UFC 323. At first, Daniel Cormier said the official didn’t give the Mexican former champion enough time to recover, a take Rogan agreed with. However, the replay showed Taira clearly dealing damage. As a result, fans also called out Rogan and Cormier for their commentary.
In fact, a more recent instance happened at UFC 329 when Rogan called out the referee for stopping Luke Riley’s vicious knockout against Kai Kamaka III. Again, the replay showed that Riley could have inflicted unnecessary damage had he continued landing shots, and the Englishman even responded to Rogan’s criticism of the stoppage, calling it “baffling.”
Frustrated with Rogan’s continued mistakes, one fan wrote that his fight calling is bad but still believes his comedy is worse, saying, “Joe Rogan is so bad at calling fights. Not as bad as his comedy but still a—.” Another user simply wanted the UFC color commentator to “stfu,” which might not be very possible since he earns a living through commentary and podcasting.
That said, even though fans getting livid over Rogan’s call is understandable, he can get some benefit of the doubt in this particular UFC 330 case. The initial camera angle made it appear that Dern had actually locked in a legitimate submission, only for a better view to reveal that wasn’t the case.
Still, that doesn’t completely rule out Rogan’s tendency to misjudge a fight-ending sequence.
