Joe Rogan says he was never surprised that Sean Strickland could upset Khamzat Chimaev at UFC 328, pointing to Strickland’s unquantifiable durability and heart as the traits that always kept him dangerous.
Rogan discussed the fight on his podcast with Tom Segura, explaining why he gave Strickland a genuine chance despite the massive odds against him.
“I thought it could happen that way. Ari was arguing with me. He’s like, ‘you always say that when someone doesn’t have a chance, you always hype it up.’ Like, I think Strickland can win this fight because Strickland is insanely durable. He’s scary because he doesn’t go away. He’s not going to get tired. He doesn’t go away. He’s tough as s—. He was abused when he was young, so he’s angry. He is dangerous and he’s super skillful, very hard to hit. And he fought in one with a blown out shoulder. He f—ed his shoulder up like the week of the fight. Like did something bad. He f—ed it up and he doesn’t even know what it was, but he couldn’t use it right.”
Strickland dethroned Chimaev by split decision at UFC 328 in Newark to claim the middleweight title for the second time. He had previously been submitted by Chimaev and outpointed by Dricus Du Plessis twice during his reign.