UFC 304 had one of the weirdest timings for a pay-per-view given it took place in Manchester, UK. The event started at 1 AM and stretched all the way to over 5 AM in the United Kingdom, which the promotion did to cater to the American audience timings. The fans were certainly not happy about it, and now, even Joe Rogan has opened up to claim that it was a bad idea.

UFC 304 had two title fights, taking place at the new Co-Op Live Arena, packing over 20,000 fans. But the timing was such an issue that even some American fans sided with the UK fans, suggesting that if the event was broadcasted earlier in the day, it wouldn’t have been much of a big deal. Joe Rogan may not have been on the commentary team for that PPV, given that he’d stopped traveling for international events, but he did not hesitate to sound off on Dana White about it.

Moving UFC 304 timings to noon wouldn’t have been a big deal, claims Joe Rogan

The longtime UFC commentator may have had a perfect seat back home to watch UFC 304 in the evening, but he felt sorry for the fighters, who put in the real work inside the Octagon for having to fight past midnight. On the recent ‘JRE MMA Show’, the 57-year-old came unglued, as he said, “First fight of the night, 1 AM, undercard, UFC Fight Pass, first fight of the night. That’s crazy. That’s so crazy,” while in conversation with the newly crowned 170-pound king, Belal Muhammad.

The thing that’s bugging Joe Rogan the most is that several sporting events take place during the afternoon in the US. Fans have never expressed any problems with it. NFL games are known to take place in the afternoon time. Despite being one of the biggest sporting leagues in the world, that timing has never affected their viewership as much as the UFC thought when it came to their UK PPV. Hence, Rogan can’t wrap his head around the fact that Dana White and UFC’s top brass didn’t take these things into account.

“As if we can’t watch it earlier in the day, as if UFC fans on a f—ing Saturday are going to say, ‘Oh, the PPV starts at noon. Okay! We watch football games at noon. We wouldn’t watch world title fights at noon?’ Making you guys fight at 5 in the morning to me was bananas,” Joe Rogan further stated. Moreover, the fact that UFC 304 went on during a time when most people take naps, the JRE host also believes that it might have affected fighters’ performances.

“That is so contrary to anything you want from optimum physical performance,” Joe Rogan added. Belal Muhammad, on the other hand, revealed that he took some steps to keep his mind awake and zoned in. That’s when the UFC PI came in handy, as they gave him some apparatus for help, but it still didn’t work out.

Belal Muhammad’s attempt to stay awake at night fails

The people at the UFC PI tried to make things easier for Belal Muhammad and others by providing a specific kind of sunglasses that helped him stay awake. Well, the problem is that it became increasingly hard to stay awake and energized because of the timings. ‘Remember the Name’, along with the fighters on the UFC 304, even had media obligations that made things even harder.

“The PI is really good because they gave us some jet lag-like glasses that shine light in your eyes… it still was hard. We would still [feel sleepy],” said Belal Muhammad. All those attempts from the Chicago native would pay off as he clinched victory, meaning his first UFC world championship at the age of 36. Now, that must have been a night worth staying awake for.

So far, the kind of timing UFC 304 has been rare, and fans and MMA pundits are hoping it stays that way. But what do you think? Would you like to watch UFC fights in the afternoon? Let us know in the comments down below.