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via Imago

via Imago

Joe Rogan has been sharing gems of wisdom way before he started his podcast. Today, The Joe Rogan Experience has a net worth that surpasses hundreds of millions of dollars. Rogan has been active on the UFC scene since around 1997, the color commentator hasn’t left the sport behind at all. In fact, Rogan was one of the first few to help in bringing the sport to a positive light when it first started. Now, one of his older interviews has surfaced again.

Back in 1998, Rogan sat down with the fan-favorite late-night host, Conan O’Brien. The podcaster discussed the very existence of UFC and gave it a foundation. You could say Rogan was an unofficial ambassador and promoter like no other. He spoke so articulately and expressively about the UFC that fans and fighters alike were attracted. The post caught the eye of a notable BJJ figure and he uploaded it on his story. Here’s the whole picture.

BJJ GOAT gives a shout-out to Joe Rogan

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In UFC’s stone-age days, nobody knew about it. When people did find out, it was considered a brutal and reckless sport not worthy of respect. The fights were seen as uncivilized and even considered to be on the same level as street fights. People then, were more attracted towards other battle sports like boxing. Rogan was the one who tried putting the UFC in a good light.

Gordon Ryan, the GOAT of BJJ was touched by Rogan’s display of loyalty to the organization. He uploaded the clip of Rogan’s interview to his Instagram story. Ryan has been interacting with UFC fighters like Jon Jones on the regular. While ‘King’ himself has never competed inside the cage, he still sees the same values as Rogan did back in the 90s.

“What Ultimate Fighting (Championship) is,” Rogan explained to a seemingly clueless audience. “It’s in a cage. It’s in an Octagon and it’s like a combination of boxing and wrestling,” Rogan then gets interrupted by O’Brien who makes a funny quip that makes the audience guffaw all over the place. “There’s great athletes, they’re olympic gold medalists and world Jiu-Jitsu champions and boxers . . . martial arts has always been like you know, there’s always been questions like what if a Karate guy fought a Judo guy,” Rogan continued. “And what the ultimate fighting championship did is say, ‘let’s find out.'”

Clearly, Rogan’s words struck a nerve with Gordon Ryan. Many fans appreciated Rogan for his clarity in his support for the UFC. Perhaps, if it wasn’t for him, the UFC may not have seen the great success it has today so quickly. While it still would have been very famous, it could have taken longer to rise to fame.

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Joe Rogan’s viral interview isn’t his first

Rogan’s clips are always floating around on the internet. MMA pages always have a reaction, an anecdote, or one or the other thing. It’s no wonder that millions of people tune into the Joe Rogan Experience every single episode. The podcaster has created an identity out of being an MMA and UFC enthusiast.

Also Read: $120 Million Worth Joe Rogan Reveals the Secret Behind His Success

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Rogan practically bettered the image of the UFC back when it first started. Being considered a brutal sport was not a great start for the cage fights. However, as fighters started signing up with Dana White and Co., and people started to see the reasoning behind Rogan’s arguments, things got better. Today, Rogan earns millions thanks to his experience. So, after this interaction with Ryan, do you think he’s next on the Rogan podcast? We’ll have to wait to find out.

Watch This Story: Watch: When Joe Rogan Showed Off 500 Years Old Samurai Sword To Elon Musk