Paul Felder replaces Joe Rogan in UFC 333 commentary booth as Abu Dhabi broadcast team is set

Joe Rogan will not be in the commentary booth for UFC 333 on Saturday, October 24, at Etihad Arena on Yas Island, Abu Dhabi. According to MMA Junkie, which obtained the broadcast plans through a person with knowledge of them, retired UFC lightweight Paul Felder will fill the third seat cageside alongside Jon Anik and Daniel Cormier.

The card is headlined by two title fights: featherweight champion Alexander Volkanovski defends against unbeaten Movsar Evloev, and Petr Yan meets Merab Dvalishvili for the bantamweight title in their trilogy bout.

Why Rogan is missing

Rogan's absence is not a surprise. As Bloody Elbow noted, the long-time color commentator decided years ago not to travel to international cards, so his seat at numbered events held outside the United States usually goes to another analyst. Felder, a 15-fight UFC veteran nicknamed 'The Irish Dragon', steps into that open spot.

Full UFC 333 broadcast team

Per MMA Junkie's report, the team for Saturday is:

• Play-by-play: Jon Anik
• Color commentators: Daniel Cormier and Paul Felder
• Analyst desk host: Brendan Fitzgerald
• Desk analysts: Robert Whittaker and Din Thomas
• Roving reporter: John Gooden
• Octagon announcer: Bruce Buffer

Former UFC middleweight champion Robert Whittaker returns to a familiar venue: Bloody Elbow points out that two of his last three fights took place at Etihad Arena. Whittaker and Din Thomas will work the desk throughout the event and on the post-fight show, while Gooden handles backstage interviews before and after the fights.

The line-up comes from MMA Junkie's report, which was based on a person with knowledge of the plans, and was repeated by Bloody Elbow.

How to watch UFC 333

In the United States the whole card streams on Paramount+. According to MMA Junkie, the preliminary card starts at 10 a.m. ET (18:00 Moscow time) and the main card at 2 p.m. ET (22:00 Moscow time).

The main card, per MMA Junkie's line-up:

• Alexander Volkanovski vs Movsar Evloev (featherweight title)
• Petr Yan vs Merab Dvalishvili (bantamweight title)
• Lone'er Kavanagh vs Ramazan Temirov
• Rizvan Kuniev vs Alexander Volkov
• Losene Keita vs Aaron Pico

The prelims include Azamat Murzakanov vs Dominick Reyes, Nikita Krylov vs Abdul Rakhman Yakhyaev and Nurullo Aliev vs Grant Dawson.

As MMA Junkie put it, UFC 333 kicks off the final stretch of numbered events in 2026.