"I was watching his stomach... flat" - Joe Rogan blown away by Sean Strickland's cardio and calm demeanor during Israel Adesanya fight
Joe Rogan appeared in awe of Sean Strickland's endurance and composure throughout his fight against Israel Adesanya.
At UFC 293 earlier this month, Strickland secured a significant upset against Adesanya and claimed the middleweight championship. Although 'The Last Stylebender' was widely expected to dominate Strickland, he received a reality check in the first round.
The 32-year-old American remained competitive throughout the entire fight, but what truly caught everyone's attention was when he knocked down Adesanya with a powerful right hand.
'Tarzan,' armed with an unconventional fighting style, continuously pressed and outperformed the defending champion for nearly 25 full minutes, ultimately earning a unanimous decision win.
During a recent episode of The Joe Rogan Experience (JRE) podcast, the UFC commentator credited Sean Strickland's achievement to his cardio and his ability to maintain composure under pressure. He stated:
"That motherf***er spars like that so often that he's composed. He doesn't get tired in the fifth f***ing round, I was watching his stomach in between rounds... flat, just standing there drinking water, flat, like 50-60 beats a minute. I'm like, this is crazy, this guy's calm and relaxed in the fifth f***ing round of his first world title fight against one of the greatest of all time."
Check out Rogan's comments below (from 2:24):
Joe Rogan applauds Sean Strickland's leg kick defense
Joe Rogan commended Sean Strickland's fight strategy against Israel Adesanya.
During the aforementioned episode of the JRE podcast, Rogan discussed Strickland's tactical approach and suggested that Adesanya might have underestimated Strickland as a competitive force:
"Sean Strickland looked so f***ing good, I don't know if that's Izzy being flat. It might be he underestimated him. I think he's also got that front kick to the body off the left leg that people aren't talking about. That was so important because he's standing like this straight up and you don't know when it's coming and every now and then he's stabbing you in the gut. He doesn't throw a lot of kicks but he throws a very effective left front kick and his f***ing checks are on the money."
Check out Rogan's comments below (from 1:35):