"This man drags people to hell like no other" - Joe Rogan rains praises on Artur Beterbiev after stunning victory over Callum Smith
After another impressive title defense, Joe Rogan had high praise for Artur Beterbiev.
Beterbiev, who defeated Callum Smith on Jan. 13 by TKO, improved his record to 20-0, each win by knockout. With the win, Beterbiev retained his WBC, WBO and IBF light heavyweight titles and set up a potential undisputed championship fight with Dmitry Bivol in the near future.
Hours after the win, Rogan posted his thoughts on Instagram, congratulating the champion and expressing his impressed reaction.
In the caption, Rogan wrote:
"This guy drags people to hell like no other. @arturbeterbiev goes 20-0 with 20 knockouts and becomes the first guy to floor @callumsmith23. I hope he gets the super fights he deserves before he retires, and I hope people appreciate how extraordinarily terrifying his style and skills are."
By Rogan's comments, Beterbiev finished Smith in the seventh round by corner stoppage just moments after dropping the former WBA super middleweight champion. Smith had never previously been dropped in his career, including high-profile title fights with Canelo Alvarez and George Groves.
Just one month before Beterbiev's 20th professional win, Bivol called out the Dagestani after defending his own belt against Lyndon Arthur. Bivol reportedly has already signed to fight Beterbiev before the latter's Jan. 13 matchup with Smith occurred.
Joe Rogan proposes super fight for Artur Beterbiev
In lockstep with Joe Rogan's comments, after defeating Callum Smith on Jan. 13, Artur Beterbiev is primed for a super fight with fellow light heavyweight champion Dmitry Bivol.
After Bivol reportedly signed to fight Beterbiev in December 2023 — two weeks before Beterbiev faced Smith — the 38-year-old was expected to make the matchup official after his next victory. However, as of Jan. 14, no reports have been made confirming Beterbiev adding his signature to the contract.
The two champions have already faced off and verbally agreed to an undisputed title fight, though Beterbiev will be the deciding factor on the official date. The terms in Bivol's signed contract reportedly state that the potential matchup would take place in Saudi Arabia.
ESPN currently has Bivol at no. 4 in their pound-for-pound rankings with Beterbiev behind him at no. 7.
Joe Rogan might get his desired super fight sooner rather than later.