“If This Is a Mistake…” – Before Helping Protect UFC’s Million-Dollar Baby, Joe Rogan Saved a Petrified Herb Dean’s Career at Frank Mir’s UFC 48 Fight

Joe Rogan has one of the best IQs in the sport. The Taekwondo and BJJ black belt holder understands the sport like no one else and is at the helm of the UFC commentary team for ages. The UFC commentator has called many important matches live and also witnesses some memorable instances up close. Moreover, the podcaster also has a habit of catching vital moments during the fight as they occur.

For example, during UFC 285, Rogan caught Shavkat Rakhmonov‘s mouthguard flying out of his mouth during his fight against Geoff Neal. This caught the 55-year-old’s eye as he informed the referee, Herb Dean, about this mid-fight. Recently, a past clip of the UFC commentator catching an important moment in a Herb Dean has resurfaced.

Herb Dean thanks Joe Rogan for UFC 48

The resurfaced clip from JRE shows Rogan speaking with Herb Dean over the incident that occurred at UFC 48 in 2004. The clip shows Dean speaking with the JRE host about what happened during the fight between Frank Mir and Tim Sylvia, which the former won by breaking Sylvia‘s arm in the first round.

Moreover, during the event, there was confusion as to why the fight was stopped in the first round. Herb Dean, at the time, reasoned it that he saw Sylvia‘s arm break and called the doctor for the same. Dean said during UFC 48, “Stop Stop Stop!… Fight is over”.

Joe Rogan was in the commentary team for the night and said, “He said it’s broken. He said his arm is broken. If this is a mistake, it’s a colossal one… Right here, watch this. Pop! What’s that? What is that? Is that a broken arm? What is that?”

A lot was at stake as Dean didn’t have much experience as a referee coming into the fight, and this was one of the defining moments of his career. Had the UFC commentator not seen the arm break in the replay, Dean would have been in some trouble. However, the UFC commentator came to his aid and screamed that Sylvia‘s arm was broken.

Furthermore, the viral resurfaced clip also showed Tim Sylvia‘s comments at UFC Fight Pass in 2017. The fighter said about the incident, “I knew my arm was broken. I just had a really good poker face. I’m glad they stopped the fight. To be honest with you. They probably saved my career. “

What did Herb Dean say during the podcast?

The MMA referee added that he is thankful for Rogan because of the things he said during UFC 48. Dean said he owed his career to the UFC commentator. He also jokingly added that he would have to look for an alternative career had things gone differently during the fight.

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During the podcast, the UFC referee added, “I learned a lot about my job right then because what I did was backed off and let the doctor come in. She doesn’t know what she saw. So he misguides her and says, ‘I think he is worried about this.’ And then she’s like ‘Hey, no. nothing’s wrong’. And I was lik ‘Aw man!’ In my mind I was thinking it was great being here but I’m not gonna be doing this anymore… So I’m gonna thank you for that right here because I think my career path would have been different.”

What do you think of the incident? Let us know in the comments.

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