MMA Fans Aren't Happy That Stephen A. Smith Has Been Named On The UFC 264 Broadcast Team

Just when mixed martial arts fans thought they'd seen the last of him, Stephen A. Smith has been named on ESPN's broadcast team for UFC 264 this weekend.

And, as you can probably imagine, MMA die-hards aren't exactly over the moon about it.

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ESPN veteran Michael Eaves will be joined by former UFC champions Michael Bisping and Dominick Cruz on the main panel for the monster card featuring the trilogy bout between Conor McGregor and Dustin Poirier.

That panel will also feature ESPN talking head and First Take star Stephen A.

Elsewhere, popular presenter Karyn Bryant will anchor another desk alongside Stephen A's First Take co-host Max Kellerman.

While the overall line-up of our usual UFC fan favourites is great, the addition of a few select characters probably wont please the majority of mixed martial arts fans - and they have flocked to social media to have their say on the matter.

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The outspoken Stephen A. was virtually black listed by supporters after his infamous incident during the UFC 246 live broadcast which saw him butt heads with respected commentator Joe Rogan.

During his analysis of the main event bout between McGregor and Donald 'Cowboy' Cerrone, Stephen A left viewers fuming when he had the audacity to question Cowboy's toughness, accusing the 38-year-old of "not wanting to be there" with the Irishman.

"I'm quite disgusted," he told Rogan during the post-fight coverage.

"Let me be very, very clear: I'm honoured to be up here with you guys. I'm a spectator watching the sport. I expected to see more than 40 seconds. I predicted McGregor was going to win this fight inside of two rounds. I thought he would take him out.

"Here's the deal: 15 seconds in, 'Cowboy' Cerrone was done. He got hit with those shoulders in the clinch and he was done. It looked like he gave up. It was just an atrocious performance on his part."

These remarks didn't sit well with the MMA community, who immediately jumped to the defence of Cerrone - one of those figures being Joe Rogan.

UFC commentator and popular podcaster Rogan lead the chorus of calls for Stephen A. to not analyse future UFC events.

Since then, he has barely featured on any major UFC cards - until now, it seems.

Topics: Donald Cerrone, Conor Mcgregor, joe rogan, Stephen A. Smith, UFC, Australia, MMA

Max Sherry

Max Sherry is a journalist for SPORTbible Australia. After migrating Down Under from London as a teenager, he instantly fell in love with Aussie sport and its culture. From NRL to AFL, cricket to rugby — you name it, Max watches it (with a beer in hand, of course). During his time at Fox Sports, he worked in the football department covering the Premier League, A-League, Socceroos and Matildas. Born a stone's throw away from West Ham's training ground, Max is obviously a die-hard Liverpool fan.

@maxysherry