Joe Rogan once notably said he was done interviewing fighters in the octagon after knockout losses.

But he broke his rule again Saturday when he spoke to Daniel Cormier following the UFC 241 main event at Honda Center in Anaheim, Calif.

Just moments after he lost the heavyweight title to Stipe Miocic (19-3 MMA, 13-3 UFC) by fourth-round knockout in their anticipated rematch, Cormier (22-2 MMA, 11-2 UFC) spoke to Rogan about the result and what the future holds for him. “DC” held it together well, but the longtime UFC commentator received some online blowback for speaking to a potentially concussed athlete at a low moment.

Rogan made his rule following UFC 203 in September 2016 when Alistair Overeem, who had just been knocked out by Miocic, said he thought the champion tapped out to a choke attempt, when that clearly was false. Rogan thinks the circumstances this time were different, though, and he felt comfortable proceeding. He explained his post-fight rationale on social media (via Instagram):

Some people were confused as to why I interviewed DC after the fight because I’ve publicly stated that I don’t think it’s a good idea to interview fighters after they’ve been KO’ed. I think most of what happened to DC was those brutal body shots, and although Stipe dropped him with head shots he was never out cold, and seemed clear headed after he stood up and the results were announced to the crowd and Stipe got the belt given to him. The UFC asked for an interview, and I asked DC if he was ok with it, and he said, Yes. I think interviewing fighters after a brutal loss is kinda sketchy, but I was also thinking that it’s possible that this may be the last time we see DC in the octagon. I love DC, and I would never want to put him in a bad position, but I made a judgment call and felt this would be alright. Whatever he decides to do from here on out the man is a future hall of famer and one of the best to ever do it. It will be very interesting to see what he decides to do from here out.

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What a crazy night! The @yoelromeromma vs @borrachinhamma lived up to the hype! Just an absolutely insane fight! The shots @yoelromeromma is able to endure seriously defy logic. The man is made out of some other worldly material. It was a crazy close fight that could have gone either way. Many people I spoke to thought Yoel won. I will have to watch it again and try to score it myself. Amazing fight either way. I’m glad @natediaz209 is getting the love and respect he deserves. I’ve been saying for years he’s the most under appreciated super star in the UFC roster. The roar when that man walked into the arena was second to none, and the fight was excellent. Congrats to the GOAT heavyweight @stipemiocic for regaining his crown and cementing his legacy as a legend! Some people were confused as to why I interviewed DC after the fight because I’ve publicly stated that I don’t think it’s a good idea to interview fighters after they’ve been KO’ed. I think most of what happened to DC was those brutal body shots, and although Stipe dropped him with head shots he was never out cold, and seemed clear headed after he stood up and the results were announced to the crowd and Stipe got the belt given to him. The UFC asked for an interview, and I asked DC if he was ok with it, and he said, Yes. I think interviewing fighters after a brutal loss is kinda sketchy, but I was also thinking that it’s possible that this may be the last time we see DC in the octagon. I love DC, and I would never want to put him in a bad position, but I made a judgment call and felt this would be alright. Whatever he decides to do from here on out the man is a future hall of famer and one of the best to ever do it. It will be very interesting to see what he decides to do from here out. The undercard has some amazing fights too. Just a great fight night overall! I hope you all enjoyed it as much as I did.

A post shared by Joe Rogan (@joerogan) on Aug 18, 2019 at 12:43pm PDT

Cormier handled himself with class in the post-fight interview with Rogan, and again when he came backstage to speak with the media at the UFC 241 post-event news conference.

Rogan mentioned how he felt somewhat compelled to speak with Cormier, who is also his commentary partner at some UFC events, because it could be the final time he steps in the octagon to compete.

Cormier was noncommittal about retirement and his future in the immediate aftermath of his defeat to Miocic.