UPDATE: UFC President Dana White has spoken out on the Mike Goldberg/UFC 207 rumors, confirming the upcoming departure of the longtime UFC announcer. Find out what the UFC boss man had to say by watching the following video: Dana White Confirms Mike Goldberg Done With UFC After Friday’s UFC 207 PPV
For years Mike Goldberg has been recognized as the voice of the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). He and his commentary partner Joe Rogan have been praised for their chemistry. While Golberg would run down the statistics, Rogan would give his knowledge and insight on what was happening inside the Octagon. Goldberg’s catchphrases have become iconic. From “Here we go!,” to “Just like that!,” and of course “It is all over!” Fans have grown to know “Goldie” and Rogan as the untouchable pay-per-view (PPV) commentary duo.
All things must come to an end.
ENT Imports reported that this Friday night (Dec. 30) will be Goldberg’s farewell at the commentary booth. When asked if the story of Goldberg leaving after UFC 207 was true, MMAFighting’s Luke Thomas confirmed.
it's true.
— Luke Thomas (@lthomasnews) December 28, 2016
Talk of Goldberg being replaced first surfaced when Dana White announced a “dream team” of announcers was coming. Shortly thereafter, Eddie Bravo asked Joe Rogan on his podcast who was replacing Goldberg (Rogan quickly deflected and changed the topic):
Goldberg has been with the UFC for almost 20 years. He began working with the world leader of mixed martial arts (MMA) in 1997. Goldberg has been loyal to the UFC during his tenure. Back in 2005, he was offered a contract by World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) to be the lead announcer on RAW. He turned it down and signed a new deal with the UFC.
Since WME-IMG took over the UFC, changes have been made. UFC Hall of Famers Chuck Liddell and Matt Hughes were booted from their office jobs earlier this month. The owners had also cut a little under 15 percent of the UFC staff as of mid October.