For the second consecutive pay-per-view event, a familiar face will
be missing from the UFC broadcast team.
Longtime commentator Joe Rogan will miss
UFC 266 on Saturday night, and as a result, will be replaced by
retired lightweight contender Paul Felder
in the booth. Felder will join play-play voice Jon Anik and fellow
retired analyst Daniel
Cormier on the cageside broadcast team. Rogan will miss the
card to go on a hunting trip, according to a report from
MMAjunkie.com. Felder, who retired in 2020, has been calling
UFC events since 2017.
Rogan was also absent for UFC 265 in August due to scheduling
conflicts with his comedy tour. Rogan has been working with the Las
Vegas-based promotion since 1997 and has been a staple of the
organization’s pay-per-view broadcasts.
UFC 266 takes place at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas on Saturday
night and is headlined by a featherweight title clash between
Alexander
Volkanovski and Brian
Ortega, while Valentina
Shevchenko will defend her flyweight crown against Lauren
Murphy in the co-main event. The card will also see Nick Diaz
return from a six-year hiatus to square off against Robbie
Lawler. The main card airs on pay-per-view via ESPN+ at 10 p.m.
ET/7 p.m. PT, while prelims begin on ESPN+ at 6 p.m. ET/3 p.m. PT
and continue on ESPN/ESPN+ at 8 p.m. ET/5 p.m. PT.