Joe Rogan has heard plenty of wild fight stories on his podcast, but even he was left stunned by UFC legend Bas Rutten’s bizarre experience with fans. While autographs and selfies are the usual requests, some rare enthusiasts want something far stranger, pain.

Just ask Ilia Topuria. The former featherweight champion, who recently moved up to lightweight, learned this firsthand in 2023 when a fan in Spain asked him to demonstrate his power. The UFC star obliged, delivering a vicious body shot that crumpled the fan to the floor. But this phenomenon isn’t new. Fighters like Rutten have encountered it for years, and his jaw-dropping story had Rogan struggling to wrap his head around it.

Bas Rutten reveals bizarre fan interaction leaving Joe Rogan in disbelief

During a conversation on the Joe Rogan Experience (JRE MMA Show no. 139), Rutten shared his own encounters with fans who didn’t just want a handshake. They wanted to feel a strike from a man who most fighters feared inside the cage.

“People are yelling out of the bus and these kids, and they stop the whole bus and they come out and they want me (to take) pictures and they want me to hit them,” Rutten recalled, with Joe Rogan exclaiming, “Oh god!” at the demand.

The Dutch combat sports legend was initially baffled by the respect. But he went along with it and delivered a gentle punch as a way to not hurt the kid. However, what came next surprised him as he shared, “But they look at me like, a—- And I go, what is the look?”

At first, he didn’t understand. He had just given them what they asked for. But his wife had an insight. “‘I think you have to hit him harder” she suggested.

Rutten hesitated but decided to test the theory. “‘Come back,’” he called to the fan. The reaction was immediate as both he and Rogan began laughing at the move by the legend. “Bonk—and he’s going ‘Ahhhh,’” Rutten said, mimicking the fan’s pained expression. But this time, instead of looking disappointed, the kid was ecstatic!

Then things escalated even further as Rutten confessed, “And then I start kicking the crap out of people’s legs. It’s fun. They were much happier. That’s the weird thing. They want you to hurt them. I don’t get it. I don’t get it.”

Well, Joe Rogan tried to answer the same question in another episode of the JRE (Joe Rogan Experience) podcast recently and even the veteran commentator was left stunned at the lengths the fans would go to!

Rogan left stunned at a fan who ate Alex Pereira’s leg kicks like an “animal”  

Alex Pereira, the stone-faced knockout artist and current UFC light heavyweight champion, has become a magnet for these thrill-seekers. His stoic demeanor, brutal power, and lethal leg kicks have earned him a massive following. But not long ago, ‘Poatan’ had an encounter that left even Joe Rogan scratching his head.

During episode no. 2256 of the JRE, the UFC color commentator discussed Pereira’s devastating kicks with guests Shane Gillis, Ari Shaffir, and Mark Normand.

Rogan brought up a viral moment featuring ‘Poatan’ and social media personality Nina Marie-Daniele and stated, “Have you ever seen Alex Pereira, like, gently leg kick this lady? She asked him to. She’s like, ‘Just don’t hit me hard.’ He gently taps her leg, she falls to the ground and then she took a photo of it afterwards. Her whole leg was bruised.”

The entire room laughed, but the conversation quickly shifted to something even crazier, an unforgettable fan encounter in South Korea. Shane Gillis brought it up by stating, “How about that f—ing Asian guy that was swallowing those?”

When Alex Pereira arrived in South Korea earlier this year, fans welcomed him like a rockstar. But one man took things to a whole new level. Instead of a handshake or photo, he wanted leg kicks. Not just one or two but 26!

Joe Rogan, watching the footage unfold exclaimed, “He’s not hitting him full blast but he’s hitting him pretty hard man… Look at this guy. Just dancing. That’s crazy! That guy’s an animal”

From Ilia Topuria’s gut-wrenching body shots to Bas Rutten’s leg-kick gauntlet, the pattern is clear, some fans don’t just want a story, they want bruises to prove it. And as Alex Pereira’s South Korean superfan showed, there seems to be no limit to how far they’ll go.

So, what is it that drives fans to willingly absorb the kind of punishment that crumples seasoned fighters inside the Octagon?  What do you think? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below!