The war of words continues between UFC color commentator Joe Rogan and Nevada State Athletic Commission (NSAC) Executive Director Keith Kizer.

Kizer originally had a problem with some of Rogan’s on-air comments that criticized the judging of the Nam Phan vs. Leonard Garcia fight at the TUF 12 Finale, which was held at The Palms in Las Vegas and aired live on Spike TV this past Saturday.

And although Kizer himself did not agree with the judges’ decision of the Phan-Garcia fight, he took exception with the way Rogan handled the situation:

“Obviously there are people who want to feel superior than others, trash others. Maybe they are full of some self-hate, some self-pity… maybe that’s Rogan’s piece as well. … There are ways to criticize professionally, ethically, effectively and legitimately. But then there are ways where you are just trying to make yourself look better.”

Rogan has always been known as one to speak his mind. He responded to Kizer’s comments in a post on The Underground Monday evening:

“Kizer is a politician, and one of the biggest issues with him is that he’s not willing to admit that he’s not done the best job possible with the best intentions of the sport and it’s participants in mind. This calculated denial of a problem is the reason why these same judges are turning in bad decisions over and over again. In order for him to correct the problem he’s going to have to admit that he’s been wrong in employing these people, and he’s not willing to do that.”

“Mixed Martial Arts is a far more complicated sport than boxing, and in order for someone to be educated in the subtle details that are playing out in a fight they have to have some martial arts experience themselves. There are PLENTY of fans out there that would do a far better job than these people that he’s got working for him that have been grandfathered in from the boxing community. To judge MMA on the highest level is a huge honor and responsibility, and should be bestowed upon people that appreciate that honor and appreciate and understand every single aspect of the sport. Anything less than that is an insult to these great athletes that are dedicating their lives to compete in the toughest sport in the world, and an insult to the fans that have to be disappointed with one terrible decision after the next.”

Rogan’s statements about the knowledge MMA judges need to have is spot on. It would be an awesome day for the sport when all the judges have MMA experience themselves.

Rogan also encourages the fans to keep getting involved as hopefully all this will be a catalyst for change:

“Thankfully we live in a time where the fans have an option to get their opinions out there. I’ve seen all the positive support online, and I urge you guys to keep it up. Please keep up the emails, and keep up the blog posts. The only way this thing is going to change is if the people in charge feel like they have to do something about it to keep their jobs intact.”

Read Keith Kizer’s original statement at MMAFA.tv and read Rogan’s complete statement at MMA.tv.

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