Joe Rogan has been the voice of the UFC for two decades, so he didn't appreciate being told how to do his job by FOX Sports executives.

The 50-year-old commentator has reduced his role with the company in recent years, letting others fill in for international cards and events broadcast on FOX. Rogan explained in his Fight Companion podcast during UFC Liverpool on Sunday that he made it a stipulation in his latest contract to avoid FOX events - partly due to the money and travel demands, but also because of the network's management style.

"The very first events for FOX, they were like telling me what to do," Rogan said, according to MMAjunkie's Mike Bohn. "They were telling me to take it down a notch. 'Don't be so amped up about that guy.' I was like, 'What? What are you doing here?' I go, 'Listen, I do commentary. This is what I do. I've been doing it forever. This is how I do it. If you think you can change me, then we're not going to work together.' We had a real problem for the first event. It was a FOX production.

"I didn't like it. They want a sports guy. Look, MMA is what it is. It's fighting. It is a very specific kind of sport. I've been doing it the way I've been doing it forever. If you don't like the way I do it, that's fine. Don't hire me. But don't try to get me to become some sports guy. I'm not interested in that at all."

Rogan says the execs bugged him less after the first event when he made his displeasure known, but their relationship was already somewhat soured.

With the new ESPN deal starting in 2019, Rogan doesn't know if his role will change within the company or if he'll be limited to the pay-per-view cards that take place in North America. Whatever happens, he doesn't plan on changing his style.

"This is what I do," Rogan said. "I get amped up. If some (expletive) goes down and guys are trading blows and I'm screaming, it's because I feel that way. It's legitimate passion. I'm not faking it. They let it go after a while, but it's not like (FOX) fought for me when I quit, either."