Then-UFC heavyweight contender Brendan Schaub felt like he could outdo one of the greatest fighters of all time immediately after a lopsided defeat before Joe Rogan intervened.
Before launching his comedy and podcast career, Brendan Schaub was a rising heavyweight star on the UFC roster. After reaching the finals of The Ultimate Fighter 10, Schaub had a modest career in the Octagon, where he scored knockout victories over the legendary Mirko Cro Cop and Chris Tuchscherer.
Although Schaub showed glimpses of a potential title challenger early in his UFC stint, he never quite lived up to the immense hype he generated with TUF 10. He has lost four of his last six fights overall, including brutal knockout defeats to Ben Rothwell and Antônio. Rodrigo Nogueira.
After a stunning loss to Andrei Arlovski at UFC 174, Schaub took on Travis Browne at UFC 181 in a title eliminator matchup. Just minutes into the fight, Browne smothered Schaub with ground-and-pound strikes in response to some of Schaub's pre-fight taunts and trash talk.
Despite back-to-back losses, Schaub exuded a deep confidence in himself during an episode of The Fighter and the Kid with guest Joe Rogan. The episode aired just days after UFC 181 and quickly turned into an intervention as Rogan and co-host Bryan Callen encouraged Schaub to retire.
Not only did Schaub initially oppose Rogan and Callen, he also claimed he would “surprise” people in a wrestling match with then-UFC heavyweight champion Cain Velasquez. It took only seconds for Rogan to brutally shut down Schaub's story.
Photo by Josh Hedges/Zuffa LLC/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images
Brendan Schaub avoided a possible defeat of Cain Velasquez thanks to Joe Rogan
“If you had a wrestling match with Cain Velasquez, how well would you do? I think you would be surprised, I think he would kick your ass,” Rogan said to Schaub's face.
Rogan then explained to Schaub that he does not have the skills necessary to compete with the best heavyweights in the world, which at the time included Velasquez. It was an awkward moment for Schaub, Rogan, Callen and the viewing audience as Rogan dissected Schaub's career and encouraged him to quit fighting.
Towards the end of the episode, Schaub considered the possibility of moving up to light heavyweight for his next fight. But months later, he had announced his retirement from fighting during an appearance on The Joe Rogan Experience and hasn't looked back since.
Schaub finished his professional MMA career with a 10-5 record inside the cage. Before making his MMA debut, Schaub was a college football standout in Colorado and was briefly signed to an Arena Football League team.
Brendan Schaub and Joe Rogan are at the center of one of MMA YouTube's most infamous moments
Schaub was linked to a possible comeback in Jorge Masvidal's Gamebred Bareknuckle MMA promotion before fight talks stalled. After turning down the offer, Schaub feuded with Nate Diaz and took the opportunity to compete in a wrestling match.
Despite a short-lived comedy career, Schaub made himself a star in podcasting and still hosts TFATK with Callen to this day. He also has his own production company and hosts numerous shows, including an MMA analysis podcast.
Rogan and Schaub are old friends, and Schaub has appeared on Rogan's podcast numerous times over the past year. He is a frequent guest on Rogan's Fight Companion shows, providing live commentary on some of the UFC's biggest fight cards.
TFATK's awkward “intervention” episode with Rogan and Schaub is still hotly debated to this day. But Rogan prevented Schaub from potentially getting a brutal realization of Velasquez's greatness and wrestling ability.
Related posts
Comments