Daniel Cormier’s Exciting Comparison: UFC PPV Trio vs. Classic Monday Night Football Teams

When Daniel Cormier announced his retirement, he already had grand plans to become a color commentator in the UFC broadcast booth.

Since his inaugural night calling fights, the former UFC two-division champion has skyrocketed to becoming one of the most formidable and recognizable voices in MMA. Cormier now stands as a key part of the main broadcast team for the biggest UFC cards of the year on pay-per-view, alongside Joe Rogan and play-by-play man Jon Anik.

The lineup may change at times, usually due to Rogan’s schedule, but Cormier acknowledges that when there’s a major fight happening, they make up the best broadcast team in combat sports.

“We have become a trio — me, Jon, and Joe — when it comes to pay-per-views, where when you want to feel like it’s a big night, you hear those voices and you see us on the screen,” Cormier told MMA Fighting. “It’s me, Jon, and Joe, and Megan [Olivi] on the reports.

“Megan’s good, she does football and she does the NFL and does all these things, so you know when you’ve got that team that it’s a pay-per-view and it’s a big night. That’s the best.”

The consistency in the broadcast team, especially on pay-per-views, has cultivated an understanding that something special will likely occur when it’s Cormier, Rogan, and Anik calling the action.

Cormier likens the lineup to the classic broadcast teams on Monday Night Football over the years, comparing it to the attention those NFL games received on network television.

“When Jon Madden and Al Michaels and those guys were on Monday Night Football, you knew you were watching Monday Night Football, and now you get that with the UFC,” Cormier said.

“When you see Jon, Joe, Megan, and me, you go, ‘OK, it’s going to be a big night.’ That’s great for the UFC.”

Of course, Cormier calls fights outside of pay-per-view broadcasts, often teaming up with a wide variety of retired or active fighters and analysts.

The newest addition to the team is Laura Sanko, who has transitioned from backstage interviews and reports to calling fights on the Contender Series and eventually joining the commentary team for the UFC. She called her first pay-per-view back in August when Sean Strickland pulled off a massive upset to defeat Israel Adesanya in the main event.

Cormier was extremely impressed with Sanko’s work and had high praise for his other colleagues who consistently raise the bar for the broadcast team.

“She’s done a good job,” Cormier said about Sanko. “I think Laura is honestly one of the hardest working people, because at times, all of us, we go to the fight and you might know this guy so well that I’m going to watch one of his fights before he fights because I know what this guy does.

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