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Joe Rogan is on the Sean Sharaf bandwagon after the underdog heavyweight knocked Olympic gold medalist Gable Steveson out in the first round of their UFC 331 fight.<\/p>\n
Steveson was a -3000 favorite against +1000 underdog Sharaf coming into Los Angeles, but Sharaf paid no mind to the odds. He came out hard and clocked the two-time NCAA Division I wrestling champion, knocking him out cold in 12 seconds. Now all the hype around Steveson has disappeared and boosters like Rogan are re-evaluating whether Gable will ever be great in MMA.<\/p>\n
In a new episode of the Joe Rogan podcast with Sharaf as a guest, Rogan pondered whether having Jon Jones in his corner had Steveson thinking he was invincible.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat\u2019s the problem, you\u2019re hanging out with a guy who\u2019s the GOAT and you start thinking you\u2019re the next guy,\u201d Rogan said. \u201cYou might be. You could be, if you do the right things. But if you believe it before it happens? You have to be cautious but also confident. There\u2019s this dance of the mind. There\u2019s so much going on to be an elite fighter.\u201d<\/p>\n
Rogan gave credit to Sharaf for reminding the world that anything can happen in MMA \u2026 not that this hasn\u2019t been a consistent thread through a 2026 marked by massive upsets.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat you did elevated the whole sport,\u201d Rogan told Sharaf. \u201cBecause when you see a guy that\u2019s a giant favorite, and I thought this guy had the potential to be an all-time great. He\u2019s an Olympic gold medalist, and we\u2019ve seen that before. Get a guy who\u2019s an elite wrestler like Daniel Cormier, there\u2019s a lot of examples of elite wrestlers who become all-time greats. You changed everything with one punch.\u201d<\/p>\n
Now people are questioning whether Steveson will rise to the challenge or slink off like he did in the NFL and WWE. One thing is for sure: opponents won\u2019t be distracted by the aura of his wrestling credentials any more, or having the MMA GOAT in his corner. Steveson will have to claw his way to the top on athletic ability and skill alone.<\/p>\n