Let’s just get this straight and blunt: is Joe Rogan tripping?
The veteran cageside commentator was at the UFC Apex for UFC 258 Saturday night to name his first event of 2021, and his return left us with a very awkward moment with Polyana Viana.
Viana had just taken an impressive first-round victory over Mallory Martin in their preliminary game on ESPN. With Rogan during a post-fight interview, this is how their conversation started:
Rogan: “Before we even talk about the fight, I want to know, what was it like to become famous by beating up that robber in Brazil?”
Viana, via translator Alex Davis: ‘Yes, that was two years ago. Everyone still remembers. I am very happy because that has inspired many women to take self-defense classes. “
Yes that’s right. Viana had just looked very well on winning her second straight fight, but for some odd reason Rogan was interested in talking about something that had happened in January 2019
It was a viral story at the time that was broken by then-MMA Junkie reporter Fernanda Prates. But did Rogan just read about it this week?
Uncomfortable as that was, Rogan rejoined fellow commentators Jon Anik and Daniel Cormier, and he wasn’t quite ready to stop talking about the heist story. Here’s what was said on the air before going to the commercial:
Rogan: ‘We talked about it during the break, but that fight, that thing she had in Brazil, we didn’t really talk about on the air, right? Here’s a viral image of a man with his face smashed into hell, and it’s because of this woman. He tried to rob her, and she knocked the snot out of him. He became part of several memes. “
Cormier: “He is known for being beaten …”
Rogan: ‘Also by a beautiful woman! What a horrible life! “
Oh, the shrinkage.
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