Joe Rogan may have stepped away from his usual post at the commentary panel at this past weekendโs UFC 284: Islam Makhachev vs Alexander Volkanovski, but he still found time for whatโs already being hailed as the fight of the year between two MMA legends-in-the-making. And similar to many of us, the worldโs most prolific podcaster had some thoughts about the โcontroversialโ unanimous decision victory that awarded Makhachev his first successful lightweight title defence in addition to the UFCโs #1 pound-for-pound ranking, while ending the Aussie combat sports talentโs epic 22-bout win streak.
During Roganโs latest episode of Fight Companion wherein he was joined by former UFC fighter turned โcomedianโ Brendan Schaub, yet another comedian in Bryan Callen, as well as Brazilian jiu-jitsu innovator Eddie Bravo of 10th Planet fame, the general consensus was that Volkanovski had once again defied all expectations and pulled off what wouldโve been โthe biggest upset of MMA historyโ to become a two-division champion. With a minute left on the clock, The Great found his way in top position and went to work with ground and pound.
โOh my Godโฆ Oh my Godโฆ this is incredible, this is fucking incredible. Volkanovski is a fucking savage,โ said Joe Rogan, impressed by what he had just witnessed as everyone had been.
โ35 seconds to go. All he has to do is not get submitted and stay on top and heโs the motherfucking double champ. Heโs the GOAT, heโs the GOAT now. Look at this. Beating him up. Heโs got it. 15 seconds to goโฆ Oh look at this! Big shots! Hammer fists!โ
โYeah he won for sure,โ said Eddie Bravo.
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Rogan added: โVolkanovski is the fucking double champ. 100%. What a fucking fight. What a fucking fight. What a fucking fight. He beat him, he fucking beat him. In Australia.โ
โLook at Makhachev. He just realised he lost, 100%.โ
Of course, the judgesโ scorecards told a completely different story: 48-47 (Ben Cartlidge), 49-46 (Derek Clearly), 48-47 (David Lethaby), all in Islam Makhachevโs favour. When Bruce Buffer announced, โAnd stillโโฆ
โOh my Godโฆ Oh my Godโฆ Oh my Godโฆ we were convinced,โ said a stunned Joe Rogan.
โWe might have been biased, we might have to watch it again. Letโs see what the online people think. In my eyes, it was 3-2. Oh my God, this sucksโฆ One of those scorecards were crazy, maybe itโs Tall Poppy Syndromeโฆ It seemed to me he won three rounds.โ
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So what go it across the line for Makhachev in this insanely close fight?
While he was definitely outstruck, the Dagestani phenom and supposed second coming of Khabib Nurmagomedov landed four takedowns to Volkanovskiโs zero, which eventually yielded a considerable seven minutes and 37 seconds of control time to Volkanovskiโs two minutes and 55 seconds. Still, the justification is contentious given the lack of damage Makhachev inflicted, which has traditionally been the true measure of dominance:
| Fighter | Knockdowns | Significant Strikes | Significant Strike % | Total Strikes | Takedowns | Takedown % | Submission Attempts | Reversals | Control Time |
| Islam Makhachev | 0 | 57/95 | 60% | 95/135 | 4/9 | 44% | 0 | 0 | 7:37 |
| Alexander Volkanovski | 1 | 70/143 | 48% | 164/255 | 0/4 | 0% | 0 | 0 | 2:56 |
Source: UFC Stats
โJust watched the fight, I definitely think I won [Rounds] 2,3, and 5. Surprised I didnโt get my hand raised! Letโs do the rematch, anywhere, anytime!โ tweeted Alexander Volkanovski.
โJust watched the tape, and have to be fair, out of 25 minutes, Volk got last 1 minute!โ Islam Makhachev responded in time (although it was probably his reviled manager Ali Abdelaziz.
Check out the Joe Rogan Fight Companion episode for UFC 284: Islam Makhachev vs Alexander Volkanovski above.
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