Jimmy Smith Praises Cris Cyborg, Calls Her Best Female Fighter of All Time

Jimmy Smith thinks highly of Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) women’s featherweight title holder Cris Cyborg. Tonight (March 3), Cyborg will defend her gold against Yana Kunitskaya. The title bout is set to headline UFC 222. The action takes …

Jimmy Smith thinks highly of Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) women’s featherweight title holder Cris Cyborg. Tonight (March 3), Cyborg will defend her gold against Yana Kunitskaya. The title bout is set to headline UFC 222. The action takes place inside the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada. UFC color commentator Jimmy Smith spoke to MMA […]

Jimmy Smith Reveals Date Of First UFC Color Commentary

Former voice of Bellator and current UFC commentator Jimmy Smith is set for his UFC debut. After Bellator recently chose not to agree to terms and renew his contract, the UFC was quick to hop on the longtime color commentator, signing him rapidly to join their ever-growing commentating team. Smith will be making his live […]

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Former voice of Bellator and current UFC commentator Jimmy Smith is set for his UFC debut.

After Bellator recently chose not to agree to terms and renew his contract, the UFC was quick to hop on the longtime color commentator, signing him rapidly to join their ever-growing commentating team.

Smith will be making his live color commentary debut at UFC 221 in Perth, Australia, according to Smith himself via Twitter:

Smith’s debut happens to coincide with Joe Rogan’s new UFC contract, which precludes him from covering international events. Many fight fans and pundits alike have suggested that Smith will eventually take over Rogan’s commentary duties once he finally bows out from the promotion.

Smith made his official UFC broadcasting debut at UFC 220, where he worked the FOX Sports 1 desk in Los Angeles while the card took place in Boston, Massachusetts. The longtime voice of Bellator formally signed with the UFC after failing to reach an agreement with his former employer.

UFC 221 takes place on February 10, 2018, and will feature former UFC middleweight champion Luke Rockhold taking on Yoel Romero for the interim middleweight title with Mark Hunt taking on Curtis Blaydes.

Interim champ Robert Whittaker was originally sent to fight in the headlining fight but came down with an extremely serious case of staph infection that forced him off the card.

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Jimmy Smith Declares He’s ‘Not Here To Replace Rogan’

Former Bellator commentator and newly acquired voice of the UFC, Jimmy Smith says he’s not looking to be another Joe Rogan. Smith has often been compared to Rogan, both are bald, muscular and have a similar sounding voice and approach to MMA commentating. Rogan recently praised Smith and excoriated Bellator for letting him go, and […]

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Former Bellator commentator and newly acquired voice of the UFC, Jimmy Smith says he’s not looking to be another Joe Rogan.

Smith has often been compared to Rogan, both are bald, muscular and have a similar sounding voice and approach to MMA commentating. Rogan recently praised Smith and excoriated Bellator for letting him go, and with Rogan looking for an out from the UFC in the near future, Smith would be a perfect replacement.

Smith revealed on The Three Amigos Podcast how smoothly things went when signing with the UFC and how Rogan played a hand in his employment:

“People know that Joe [Rogan] has been trying to bring me over to the UFC for more than four years now. He’s been talking me up to them for a long time and there had been negotiations before when I was in between contracts, so it’s no surprise. Now, they have the best opportunity to have my whole career. I was a free agent with no contract for the first time, but they were very friendly and things went really well.”

Both Bellator and the UFC have been shuffling the deck in terms of commentary; Mike Goldberg left the UFC for Bellator just a few months back, and now Smith leaving Bellator for the UFC. Brian Stann is no longer providing his voice for commentary either.

But for Jimmy Smith, he’s right where he wants to be following a short period of unemployment:

“I’m thrilled to be here. It’s been a long time coming and I’m actually getting jittery because I’m looking forward to it so much. It’s a whole new world of fights and fighters, a whole new team—everybody over there has told me how excited they are that I’m coming over—it’s like I’m starting over again. I’m the new kid at a brand new school and I’m really excited about everything coming up. I get to be a part of the best promotion in the world and that’s huge for me. It’s the pinnacle of my career.”

But don’t expect Smith to replicate or replace Joe Rogan’s style, despite the comparisons over the years.

“There are two things I want to make really clear. I’m not replacing Joe Rogan. Joe is still active with the UFC this year, so it’s not like I’m coming in and he’s leaving. The other thing I want to address is that people have some idea that I was somehow pushed out by Mauro [Ranallo] and Goldie [Mike Goldberg], that signing them kind of pushed me out. They were looking forward to working with me for years. They were easy to work with (and) fun to work with…”

How do you think Smith will fit in as UFC commentator?

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Jimmy Smith Joins UFC Broadcast Team as Color Commentator

Jimmy Smith has signed with the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). For years, Smith served as the color commentator for Bellator. While he wasn’t the play-by-play announcer, Smith was considered to be the voice of the promotion. After parting …

Jimmy Smith has signed with the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). For years, Smith served as the color commentator for Bellator. While he wasn’t the play-by-play announcer, Smith was considered to be the voice of the promotion. After parting ways with Bellator, many felt it was only a matter of time before the UFC would come […]

Jimmy Smith Signs With UFC Broadcast Team

Two weeks after Bellator parted ways with longtime announcer Jimmy Smith, the popular voice has found a home with MMA’s foremost promotion. It didn’t take long for Smith to find a new home, especially with longtime octagon commentator Joe Rogan lobbying for the UFC to sign Smith, and apparently, that has come to fruition. Word […]

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Two weeks after Bellator parted ways with longtime announcer Jimmy Smith, the popular voice has found a home with MMA’s foremost promotion.

It didn’t take long for Smith to find a new home, especially with longtime octagon commentator Joe Rogan lobbying for the UFC to sign Smith, and apparently, that has come to fruition.

Word just broke via MMA Junkie’s Mike Bohn that Smith has signed with the UFC to be part of their color broadcast team:

It’s unclear which team Smith will join for his broadcast future with the UFC, but a plethora of options await the announcer. He could join Rogan on pay-per-view, or he could be a supplement/guiding force for more fighter-based commentating teams including Daniel Cormier, Dominick Cruz, and/or Paul Felder.

Either way, however, it’s clear the UFC just got one of the best in the business after letting longtime employee Mike Goldberg go. Goldberg signed with Bellator shortly thereafter, and Smith signing with the UFC has made the commentator switch go full-circle.

Who would you like to see Smith paired up with?

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Joe Rogan Claims he Tried to Get Jimmy Smith Into the UFC

Former Bellator chief color commentator Jimmy Smith surprisingly parted ways with the promotion last week, discussing his departure as recent guest on the Joe Rogan Experience Smith insists that him leaving his role was a mutual agreement and that ther…

Former Bellator chief color commentator Jimmy Smith surprisingly parted ways with the promotion last week, discussing his departure as recent guest on the Joe Rogan Experience Smith insists that him leaving his role was a mutual agreement and that there was no ‘acrimony’ involved in him leaving the position he occupied for nine years: “It’s […]