"It’s a bullsh*t thing" - When Joe Rogan was astonished by Alex Pereira's "sanctioned cheating"
UFC commentator Joe Rogan has been appreciative of UFC light heavyweight champion Alex Pereira on several occasions. But there was one instance when Rogan used Pereira as an example to criticize the weight-cutting process.
Rogan once had Steve-O on his podcast, The Joe Rogan Experience, where they discussed the topic of weight-cutting. Steve-O mentioned the rumors of 'Poatan' possibly weighing 220 pounds on the night of his fight against Israel Adesanya at UFC 281. The contest saw 'Poatan' defeat Adesanya via fifth-round TKO to capture the middleweight throne.
The UFC commentator shared that Pereira could have weighed that much as he struggled to make 185 pounds on the scale. Rogan then went on to slam weight-cutting and labeled it as 'sanctioned cheating'.
The 57-year-old then mentioned how Israel Adesanya was an exception as he did not cut much weight in his light heavyweight clash against Jan Blachowicz.
"He [Alex Pereira] could have been [220 pounds], he could have been. I mean, he certainly, he gets above that in between fights and he has a hard time making 185 [pounds]. It's a bulls*it thing. It's [weight-cutting] basically sanctioned cheating. It really is, but everybody does it. But Izzy [Israel Adesanya] barely does it. When Izzy went up to fight Jan Blachowicz at light heavyweight, he weighed 194 [pounds], which is crazy because Blachowicz is a giant light heavyweight."
Check out Joe Rogan's comments below (11:00):
How has Alex Pereira's UFC journey been as a light heavyweight?
Alex Pereira and Israel Adesanya locked horns in a rematch at UFC 287. This time, 'The Last Stylebender' got his revenge as he scored a brutal knockout in the second round of the fight.
After that encounter, 'Poatan' made a move to light heavyweight and the decision gave him fruitful dividends. The Brazilian has been a part of four UFC fights at 205 pounds and has been victorious in all of them.
During this run, 'Poatan' defeated Jan Blachowicz, Jiri Prochazka (twice) and Jamahal Hill and also captured the light heavyweight belt. Pereira is now set to defend his belt for the third time against Khalil Rountree Jr. at UFC 307.