If you didn’t already know from the internet before watching UFC 207, you probably didn’t realize that the event marked the last time announcer Mike Goldberg would be sitting in the play by play seat next to Joe Rogan. Leading up to the event, UFC president Dana White confirmed it would be the last show for Goldberg as the company began to make long rumored changes to the ‘hype master’ approach to their commentary booth.
During the event, neither Mike nor Joe made mention of the departure. The UFC also didn’t prepare any kind of special broadcast thank you for the man whose voice has been synonymous with the organization for over 15 years, prompting anger from Goldberg’s son on Twitter.
my dad did so much for the UFC over the past 13 years and they can't even give him a proper goodbye. what a joke @ufc
— kole (@kolegoldberg) December 31, 2016
But now Mike has taken to Twitter himself with a message thanking the UFC and the fans for the love they’ve shown him since the announcement of his dismissal.
What an incredible ride! I’ll forever be grateful for being on this journey with all of you for the last 19 years! pic.twitter.com/reg3APxk9X
— Mike Goldberg (@GoldieOnTV) January 7, 2017
The always affable Goldberg seems pretty at peace with how things ended, and even spends a good amount of his farewell tweet laughing at some of his more famous verbal gaffes. And while there was no send-off by the UFC, he seems more than happy with the one he got from MMA comedian Tommy Toe Hold, whose satirical video runs the gamut of classic Mike Goldberg catchphrases and screw ups:
There’s still a lot of speculation floating around regarding who will replace Goldberg alongside Joe Rogan for future pay-per-view events. There’s a lot of smoke surrounding rumors that the UFC is aiming to get sports radio personality Jim Rome into Mike’s old spot. They’ve also just hired former ESPN and WWE anchor Todd Grisham as a commentator, but he’ll be starting things off on next week’s UFC Fight Night headlined by BJ Penn. That might mean current Fight Night play by play man Jon Anik could see himself upgraded to Rogan’s sidekick for UFC 208 in February.
Whoever it is, they’ll have some pretty big shoes to fill. Mike Goldberg may have gained a reputation amongst fans as a bit of a goofball, but after 15 years he was our goofball and it’s going to feel strange for a while no longer hearing him scream “And it’s all over!” every time a fight is stopped.
