UFC color commentator Joe Rogan proposes that Khabib Nurmagomedov’s pulling out of UFC 209’s co-main headliner should have been met with a harsh penalty.
Rogan spoke with ex-UFC heavyweight Brendan Schaub and 10th Planet Jiu-Jitsu (and Tony Ferguson’s BJJ trainer) Eddie Bravo on the most recent episode of the Fight Companion episode broadcast simultaneously to UFC Fight Night Fortaleza on Saturday night.
Upon hearing the news that Nurmagomedov would miss the much-anticipated bout with Ferguson at UFC 209, Rogan took to Twitter to tackle what he called “the biggest problem in MMA”:
Weight cutting is the biggest problem in MMA. We need a solution where we transition towards fighters competing at their actual weight.
— Joe Rogan (@joerogan) March 3, 2017
Rogan feels that Nurmagomedov should have received a blemish on his record for failing to make weight. This is not the first time which the Russian has been forced to pull out of a fight, and his reputation has taken a severe blow considering the sheer magnitude of the bout, and what was at stake. Furthermore, news that “The Eagle” was eating the calory-heavy Italian dessert Tiramisu prior to the fight seemed to have offended the funnyman:
“I FEEL LIKE WE NEED TO DO SOMETHING. I FEEL LIKE YOU NEED TO MAKE THE PERSON WHO DOES NOT MAKE THE WEIGHT GET A LOSS, THAT’S WHAT I THINK. I FEEL LIKE IT’S A LOSS, AND THERE’S NO FIGHT. THERE’S ONLY ONE WAY TO STOP IT – YOU GOTTA PUNISH PEOPLE. YOU GOT TO MAKE IT A LOSS BECAUSE THE FIGHTER DIDN’T MAKE WEIGHT”.
With news recently emerging of the UFC trying but failing to reschedule the bout between Nurmagomedov and Ferguson, fans may never get to see the bout which has been scheduled and cancelled on three separate occasions.
