Fans attending UFC 326 in Las Vegas on Saturday were heard booing Charles Oliveira’s dominant victory over Max Holloway in the main event.
But that was nothing compared to the fan abuse UFC announcer and popular podcaster Joe Rogan faced online.
‘Listen to these casuals booing,’ Joe Rogan said during the UFC 326 broadcast. ‘How do you not appreciate this complete domination by a master?’
The ‘master,’ Oliveira, was avenging a 2015 loss to Holloway by absolutely dominating his opponent for the largely ceremonial ‘BMF’ title. All five judges scored the fight 50-45, in favor of Oliveira (37-11), as the third-ranked lightweight controlled the bout with his Brazilian jiu-jitsu style.
But fans were apparently displeased with the heavy grappling on Saturday night in Las Vegas, where boos were heard throughout the main event.
And when Rogan responded to the boos by calling fans ‘casuals,’ the UFC’s devoted base only grew angrier.
Fans weren’t thrilled to see a grappling-heavy match on Saturday at UFC 326
Joe Rogan called booing fans ‘casuals’ on Saturday night at UFC 326 in Las Vegas
‘Good way to get fans into your sport is to insult them for not being interested in an aspect of said sport that is often considered boring,’ one critic wrote on X, adding a sarcastic ‘thumbs up’ emoji to underscore their point.
‘Completely respect Oliveira, one of the best grapplers of all time,’ another added. ‘That just was not entertaining at all.’
‘Casuals’ is such a stupid insult too,’ one fan wrote. ‘99% of fans are casual. Casuals keep the lights on.’
And as several pointed out online: ‘Rogan didn’t pay for his tickets.’
The match did give Oliveira some sorely needed revenge.
Holloway (27-9), who closed a -235 favorite at BetMGM Sportsbook, won the first meeting on August 23, 2015, after Oliveira sustained an esophageal injury less than two minutes after the fight began.
Holloway, 34, who is ranked fourth in the lightweight division, was never able to get into his own rhythm with Oliveira´s relentless approach. He landed more strikes while working his way into superior positions on the ground.
Nevertheless, the new BMF champion was respectful of one of the most respected fighters in the sport.
‘Max is the toughest guy I´ve ever fought against,’ said Oliveira, 36, holding his son tight with his wife standing next to him during the post-fight interview. ‘I had to come here and dominate.’
Joe Rogan interviews Charles Oliveira of Brazil following the BMF Championship fight
Oliveira, whose family was in attendance for the first time to see him fight in the United States, needed only 30 seconds into the bout to go on the attack before slamming Holloway on his back. Oliveira would control much of the first round while looking to apply a rear-naked choke, but Holloway continued to break free, much to the delight of the sold-out crowd, which erupted when he looked into the camera and smiled with 30 seconds left in the round.
The second, third and fourth rounds were much of the same once they hit the canvas, as Oliveira controlled the action and Holloway weathered shots to his head and legs, and subsequent attempts to apply a submission chokehold.
After the two embraced momentarily at the start of the fifth round, Oliveira came out swinging, and it was Holloway who ended up on top as the two hit the ground, for the first two minutes. Oliveira ended up in Holloway´s guard for the final stretch.
The long stretches of little to no action brought out the boo-birds for the Holloway-favored crowd.
‘I respect you so much,’ Oliveira said, directing his comments toward Holloway. ‘We´re different than other people. These dudes come here and talk a lot of crap. We come here and do a lot of beautiful things.
‘If this division has two BMF´s, those BMF´s are Charles Oliveira and Max Holloway.’
The UFC introduced the BMF belt on Nov. 2, 2019. While it´s not identified by a weight class, and its name is unprintable by the standards of The Associated Press and most media outlets, it´s held by the fighter who most exemplifies the ferocity and electricity that define the sport.
Charles Oliveira of Brazil and Max Holloway speak following the BMF Championship fight during the UFC 326 event at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada
Billed as the co-main event, albeit only a three-round middleweight bout, seventh-ranked Caio Borralho (18-2-0) beat No. 8 Reinier de Ridder (21-4-0). After surviving a knee to the groin in the first round, Borralho fought his fight, avoiding the ground for the most part while standing toe-to-toe for most of the match. All three judges scored the fight 30-27.
From the rest of the undercard, unranked Raul Rosas Jr. (12-1) outpointed 13th-ranked bantamweight Rob Font (22-10) in what was a rather one-sided, uneventful fight. All three judges scored the bout 30-27 for a unanimous decision.
In a scheduled three-round lightweight bout, Drew Dober delivered consecutive left-handed blows to the face of Michael Johnson to end the fight at the 1:53 mark of the second round. Setting up the first blow with a right-handed feint, Dober (29-15) followed with a powerful left that dropped Johnson (25-20) on his back. Dober immediately pounced by coming straight down with another left to end the bout with a knockout.
With one thunderous right to the jaw, 13th-ranked middleweight Gregory Rodrigues (19-6) scored a first-round knockout of No. 15 Brunno Ferreira (15-3) at the 1:47 mark of their scheduled three-round bout. As Ferrieira made the switch to southpaw, Rodrigues didn´t hesitate with a counter right that dropped his opponent and sent an instant glaze over his face.
