Joe Rogan in awe of 'freak' UFC champ Merab Dvalishvili

USA Today

2 days ago

Joe Rogan in awe of 'freak' UFC champ Merab Dvalishvili
Joe Rogan is fascinated by UFC bantamweight champion Merab Dvalishvili's unparalleled conditioning.
No one has been able to keep up with Dvalishvili (20-4 MMA, 13-2 UFC) during his 13-fight unbeaten run, which includes wins over former champions Jose Aldo, Petr Yan, Henry Cejudo, and Sean O'Malley twice.
In his most recent title defense, Dvalishvili scored his first finish since September 2021 when he submitted O'Malley in the UFC 316 main event earlier this month.
"That guy is insane," Rogan said of Dvalishvili on a recent episode of his "Joe Rogan Experience" podcast. "He's insane. His cardio is like something that everyone, who has been involved in the sport for as long as I have, is blown away by it. The guy's a freak. Daniel Cormier went to visit him after he won the title. He won the title Saturday night at the Sphere in Vegas, beat Sean O'Malley, dominant five-round decision, just steamrolled him. The next day, Daniel Cormier goes to visit him, and he's out running. He doesn't stop. Doesn't stop.
"Just this guy from Georgia, from this war-torn country who just embraces that f*cking grind at a level that nobody else can compete with, and when he gets in the ring, no one can match his cardio. No one can match his pace. He melts the greatest of the greats."
Rogan was especially impressed when Dvalishvili bounced Umar Nurmagomedov out of the ranks of the unbeaten at UFC 311. Dvalishvili was down two rounds on two of the judges' scorecards before rallying to get the win.
"You see guys like Umar Nurmagomedov, who's elite, he's world class," Rogan said. "Like at any other time, he'd be a world champion, and Merab is just overwhelming him. You see him just getting overwhelmed by the pace, and Merab doesn't even get tired. He's a freak."