Jimmy Smith explains departure from longtime Bellator commentary role

Longtime Bellator announcer Jimmy Smith surprisingly parted ways with the company this past week, and it left many questions about what exactly happened.

Bellator has featured a number of different broadcasters in its commentary booth over the years, but Smith was the one constant in the color-commentary position. Bellator’s announcement of his departure was rather vague, as was the statement included from Smith.

The relationship lasted for nearly the entire existence of the Bellator brand. Smith appeared on Tuesday’s edition of Joe Rogan’s “JRE MMA Show” podcast and provided some insight on the situation, and ultimately, he said it was as simple as not being able to reach an agreeable contract extension.

Smith said an option year for 2018 was part of his contract. Extension negotiations took place, but he admitted the offer wasn’t satisfactory.

“They were great to work with,” Smith said during his conversation with UFC color man Rogan. “What happened was I had a deal with an option year, and 2018 was an option year. When I was doing the (Bellator 182) show in Verona, N.Y., my boss sat me down and said, ‘We’re not going to renew for 2018. We want a different deal.’

“When your girlfriend comes to you and says, ‘We need to talk.’ It’s never to say, ‘I don’t give you enough blowjobs.’ They never say that. It’s always bad.

“They said, ‘We want to change the deal around,'” he continued. “They did make an honest effort to keep me. They really tried, they just – they didn’t make me an offer that was worth me coming back. That was the deal.”

Smith didn’t expand much further on the topic, but throughout the podcast, he was consistently positive about his experience with Bellator and the treatment he received from the company during his tenure.

What the future holds remains to be seen, but longtime UFC commentator Rogan said he would like to see the organization add Smith to its staple of broadcasting talent. In fact, Rogan revealed that he previously encouraged UFC officials to sign Smith and hopes it will happen now.

“I tried to get Jimmy Smith hired by the UFC four years ago,” Rogan said. “I was like, ‘Dude, you want better people? You want more people? Hire that (expletive) guy. He knows what he’s doing, he’s excited, and he loves the sport. I was telling him you’re a great guy, he’s genuine, he’s a real fan, and he’s (expletive) good at it. Go get him.’

“You (expletive) up, Bellator,” Rogan continued. “I’ve been telling everybody Jimmy Smith’s the best out there, and you let him go. That’s a huge error on their part. I would be thrilled if somehow or another they were able to work it out where Jimmy Smith was at the UFC. That would be what I would like to see.”

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