Joe Rogan is in awe of Russian athletes and their combat sports dominance.
Khabib Nurmagomedov led the way before retiring in 2020 and passing the mantle to Islam Makhachev, who has since become the UFC lightweight champion and pound-for-pound number one.
Umar Nurmagomedov will look to keep Russian MMA’s winning run going when he takes on Merab Dvalishvili for the bantamweight title at UFC 311 on January 11.
Away from his favorite sport, Joe Rogan has also been blown away by several Russian boxers, with undisputed light heavyweight champion Artur Beterbiev leaving a particularly lasting impression.
Joe Rogan dissects Russia’s combat sports dominance
In June, Joe Rogan sat down for a conversation with former UFC lightweight contender Paul Felder.
Somehow, they got talking about Rugball, also known as Wrestleball or Regball, which is a Russian full-contact sport that combines elements of basketball, wrestling, and rugby.
Rogan and Felder then moved on to Russian fighters, who have become dominant in recent years.
“They are some tough-ass f***ing people,” the legendary UFC commentator said.
“If you think right now about the amount of top-flight talent that comes from Eastern Europe with Russia, Dagestan, and Chechnya, f***ing A, man.
“I mean, even in boxing. Oh my, God! Beterbiev is so f***ing tough. 19-0, 19 knockouts.
“What the f***, man? He’s such a f***ing animal, he’s from Chechnya. I mean, he’s 38 years old so he’s gotta get the big fights [soon]. He was one of the guys they were talking about Canelo [Alvarez] fighting at light heavyweight, and I would’ve loved to have seen that!
“That f***ing world over there. Hard people. You think of war-torn Chechnya, that’s where Khamzat Chimaev comes from, and that’s where Bertebiev comes from.
“If you think about some of our greatest fighters in America growing up in poor neighborhoods, these guys grow up in war-torn poor neighborhoods.”
Beterbiev has since beaten fellow Russian phenom Dmitry Bivol, who boasts a win over Canelo, to establish himself as the best 175lb boxer on the planet. They’ll rematch on a mega-card in Saudi Arabia on February 22.
Meanwhile, Chimaev has become a top middleweight contender. The 14-0 UFC star sent shockwaves through the MMA world when he caved Robert Whittaker’s teeth in with a nasty submission at UFC 308 in October.
It appears that the Russians will continue to dominate MMA and boxing in 2025.
Dan Hardy says Russian fighters exposed flaw in MMA training
At the PFL World Championships this past November, there were six divisional titles on the line, with Russian athletes winning four of those finales to become world champions and take home a $1million prize.
Former UFC fighter Dan Hardy, who is now PFL’s Head of Fighter Operations in Europe, has a unique take on the current state of play in MMA.
In an exclusive conversation with Bloody Elbow, ‘The Outlaw’ explained why he believes Russian athletes are finding more success than anyone else.
“MMA goes in waves, and I think when you’ve been watching it for a long time, you see the cycles come and go,” Hardy said.
“The current cycle right now, which is really nice, and it’s been exposed by a lot of the Russian fighters is that most people don’t see MMA as one system.
“They showed a comprehensive game, and I think what they’re doing is they’re influencing the rest of MMA to catch up with us; we’re leading the way right now because our games are seamless. And that’s going to challenge all of the other gyms around the world to bring that level.
“The other thing I will say is that a lot of those guys are exporting that style of fighting. You talk to Brendan Loughnane, and he’s spent time training with those Russian guys in Thailand, they’re in AKA in the US, and American Top Team.”
“The style that is dominating all of MMA right now is starting to get into all the gyms and it’s going to make for a very interesting few years [in the sport].”