Joe Rogan Experience #1591 - Jordan Burroughs

1. 0:00 – 1:55

   Why Burroughs never jumped to MMA (and the role his wife played)

   1. JBJordan Burroughs0:00

      (drumbeats) Joe Rogan podcast, check it out. The Joe Rogan Experience.

   2. JRJoe Rogan0:06

      Train by day, Joe Rogan podcast by night. All day. (rock music) Jordan, pleasure to meet you, man.

   3. JBJordan Burroughs0:15

      Yeah, good to meet you, bro.

   4. JRJoe Rogan0:16

      Really, uh, really a pleasure to meet you.

   5. JBJordan Burroughs0:17

      It's good to be here.

   6. JRJoe Rogan0:17

      I'm a, I'm a big fan. I, I think what you're doing... First of all, I think it's amazing that no one's talked you into doing MMA. (smacks lips) It's incredible.

   7. JBJordan Burroughs0:24

      I've been close.

   8. JRJoe Rogan0:25

      (laughs) How close?

   9. JBJordan Burroughs0:25

      But, uh, mostly, the lady outside, my wife, Lauren-

   10. JRJoe Rogan0:28

       Really?

   11. JBJordan Burroughs0:28

       ... is the one that's talked me out of it.

   12. JRJoe Rogan0:30

       Really?

   13. JBJordan Burroughs0:30

       Yeah, bro. Like, when I graduated from college in 2011, University of Nebraska, wrestling was still on the brink of... It was in e- in its infancy of marketing and branding and really making it a professional career. So MMA was the new kid on the block, and it was growing and expanding, and we had a lot of our guys transitioning in, Henry Cejudo, Ben Askren, Daniel Cormier. And so I really thought about it. I was like, "Okay, I'm gonna wrestle in the Olympics in London 2012, win the gold, and then I'm gonna make the transition to MMA. I'll be 25 years old, I'll have plenty of time." And then I met Lauren.

   14. JRJoe Rogan1:05

       Aw. (laughs)

   15. JBJordan Burroughs1:05

       And she's like, "Listen, you're doing well in the sport. Stay here. You're comfortable." It's just a different... It's a different sport, MMA, in comparison to wrestling, but it's a good thing.

   16. JRJoe Rogan1:14

       It i- it is a different sport, and it a- also has a lot more head trauma, and there's a lot of things to consider.

   17. JBJordan Burroughs1:21

       100%.

   18. JRJoe Rogan1:22

       You know?

   19. JBJordan Burroughs1:22

       That's what I think about all the time. I s- why I s- (laughs) listen, I think about going to MMA until I see a guy like "Platinum" Mike Perry get his whole thing split-

   20. JRJoe Rogan1:32

       (clears throat)

   21. JBJordan Burroughs1:32

       ... nose crooked.

   22. JRJoe Rogan1:32

       Yeah.

   23. JBJordan Burroughs1:32

       I'm like, "Eh, I'm good." It's... Like, in wrestling, you lose, you get taken down, pushed out. You know, you get pinned. In fighting, you lose, you get something broken, choked out, tap. You know, it's unconscious. It's a very, very different sport. Wrestling, it's much ea-... It's a... You score as many points as possible wi- doing the least damage as possible.

   24. JRJoe Rogan1:53

       W-

   25. JBJordan Burroughs1:53

       And MMA, I feel like it's, it's different.

2. 1:55 – 3:50

   The marketing problem: why wrestling isn’t on TV like other sports

   1. JRJoe Rogan1:55

      It's a shame that there's not more attention put on the professional... Like,, eh, like, at one point in time, professional wrestling was actual wrestling.

   2. JBJordan Burroughs2:05

      Yeah, yeah.

   3. JRJoe Rogan2:06

      It wasn't like WWE Entertainment. It was professional wrestling, and it was done-

   4. JBJordan Burroughs2:11

      Yeah.

   5. JRJoe Rogan2:11

      ... for prom-... Why can't they do that? I know they tried to do that a few years back.

   6. JBJordan Burroughs2:15

      That's an good question.

   7. JRJoe Rogan2:15

      There was, uh, uh, an organization. I think, was it Kevin Jackson that was doing it?

   8. JBJordan Burroughs2:20

      Yeah, yeah.

   9. JRJoe Rogan2:20

      Yeah, he was doing something-

   10. JBJordan Burroughs2:21

       Uh-huh.

   11. JRJoe Rogan2:21

       ... where he was doing... a professional wrestling organization.

   12. JBJordan Burroughs2:24

       Yeah, yeah.

   13. JRJoe Rogan2:24

       But it just didn't catch on for some reason. But yet, golf is on TV.

   14. JBJordan Burroughs2:29

       For sure, so-

   15. JRJoe Rogan2:29

       Baseball and all these-

   16. JBJordan Burroughs2:31

       Crazy.

   17. JRJoe Rogan2:31

       ... things that are just-

   18. JBJordan Burroughs2:31

       Bags, bro. Cornhole.

   19. JRJoe Rogan2:33

       Yeah.

   20. JBJordan Burroughs2:33

       I was watching the Cornhole (laughs) Championships on ESPN-

   21. JRJoe Rogan2:36

       Really?

   22. JBJordan Burroughs2:36

       ... the other day. I'm like, "Bruh, this is wild." Like, Cornhole is on ESPN more often than wrestling.

   23. JRJoe Rogan2:43

       But isn't that just now because of there's no crowds and COVID and there's all the weirdness, and there's a lot of shit that's on... Like, if you follow-

   24. JBJordan Burroughs2:50

       (laughs)

   25. JRJoe Rogan2:50

       ... SportsCenter on-

   26. JBJordan Burroughs2:51

       Yeah.

   27. JRJoe Rogan2:51

       ... Instagram, like, 1/2 the shit they do is, like, people in their backyard, like, doing crazy-

   28. JBJordan Burroughs2:55

       Yeah.

   29. JRJoe Rogan2:55

       ... dunks and stuff.

   30. JBJordan Burroughs2:57

       Mm-hmm. I think the, the invention of the internet has definitely changed the game for our sport. We are in an epic time where anyone can be famous. All you need is an iPhone-
3. 3:50 – 7:31

   Real Pro Wrestling, Rulon Gardner stories, and wrestling’s confusing rule changes

   1. JBJordan Burroughs3:50

      That's the beauty of it, is it gives people an opportunity. There it is right there. Yeah, so it was, it was a professional wrestling league that they established and... You know, when people reference what we do, I call it Olympic wrestling. Honestly, I don't even call it professional wrestling 'cause that is kind of an ode to the WWE and old-time WWF. So it's a, it's a unique thing that we had at this time. This is Tommy Rollins, Daniel Cormier, both extremely competitive, both, uh, great wrestlers, Oklahoma State-

   2. JRJoe Rogan4:17

      What year is this?

   3. JBJordan Burroughs4:18

      ... Ohio State. This probably was around '04, '05-ish.

   4. JRJoe Rogan4:22

      Hmm.

   5. JBJordan Burroughs4:22

      Um, so I was still in high school. Real Pro Wrestling, that's right. So they had different cities across the country that had their own teams. It was almost like XFL-esque. It kinda had that vibe, and you had-

   6. JRJoe Rogan4:34

      So this is Rulon Gardner-

   7. JBJordan Burroughs4:35

      Yeah, Rulon Gardner.

   8. JRJoe Rogan4:36

      ... and, and who's the-

   9. JBJordan Burroughs4:37

      Tim Johnson in the middle. He works for the Big Ten Network and also for ESPN. He does commentary for the, uh, NCA Championships yearly. And then the last guy is Nate Carr, who was a NCA champ, world medalist.

   10. JRJoe Rogan4:51

       And Rulon is another guy that made the transition. He made the transition to MMA and-

   11. JBJordan Burroughs4:55

       Did he?

   12. JRJoe Rogan4:55

       Yeah.

   13. JBJordan Burroughs4:55

       I didn't know that.

   14. JRJoe Rogan4:56

       Yeah, yeah, he fought a bunch of times over in Japan, and actually-

   15. JBJordan Burroughs4:59

       That's crazy.

   16. JRJoe Rogan4:59

       ... I think what stopped him was he lost a toe in a frostbite-

   17. JBJordan Burroughs5:03

       That's right.

   18. JRJoe Rogan5:03

       ... accident.

   19. JBJordan Burroughs5:04

       He's a former Cornhusker.

   20. JRJoe Rogan5:05

       Is he?

   21. JBJordan Burroughs5:06

       So we went to the same university, and I got a chance to kinda spend some time with Rulon, but he was out when I was kinda transitioning in.

   22. JRJoe Rogan5:12

       Oh.

   23. JBJordan Burroughs5:13

       And so he's an interesting cat, and he is one of those guys that's like shrouded in this mystery, but there's so many, like, m- epic stories about who he was, what he's done, how much he's eaten. You know, it-

   24. JRJoe Rogan5:25

       He's a gorilla, dude.

   25. JBJordan Burroughs5:27

       Massive, massive man.

   26. JRJoe Rogan5:27

       In real life, you see the size of that guy-

   27. JBJordan Burroughs5:29

       Massive man. Um, and then, obviously, him beating Karelin, which is pretty-

   28. JRJoe Rogan5:33

       Yeah.

   29. JBJordan Burroughs5:33

       ... much considered the most legendary victory in wrestling history.

   30. JRJoe Rogan5:37

       D- s- that's a weird victory, right, because it's like Karelin, all he did was get Karelin to break his grip.
4. 7:31 – 12:39

   Combat jiu-jitsu, slaps, and early Japanese MMA (Pancrase & Bas Rutten)

   1. JRJoe Rogan7:31

      They've had a hard time getting people to watch any kind of grappling that don't grapple.

   2. JBJordan Burroughs7:35

      Yeah.

   3. JRJoe Rogan7:35

      I think that's, that's a part, that's a problem with jujitsu and one of the things they did with jujitsu, they've come up with this new thing called combat jujitsu.

   4. JBJordan Burroughs7:42

      Mm-hmm.

   5. JRJoe Rogan7:42

      Eddie Bravo came up with it.

   6. JBJordan Burroughs7:43

      Okay.

   7. JRJoe Rogan7:44

      And it's basically jujitsu with slapping. (laughs) It's kinda fucking crazy.

   8. JBJordan Burroughs7:47

      What?

   9. JRJoe Rogan7:48

      Yeah, man. It's cra-

   10. JBJordan Burroughs7:49

       I haven't seen it.

   11. JRJoe Rogan7:49

       You gotta watch, it's crazy.

   12. JBJordan Burroughs7:51

       Like, in the face?

   13. JRJoe Rogan7:51

       Yeah. Yeah.

   14. JBJordan Burroughs7:52

       (laughs)

   15. JRJoe Rogan7:52

       Like-

   16. JBJordan Burroughs7:53

       Or elsewhere?

   17. JRJoe Rogan7:53

       But the, the, the thing is, like, in, now, you can punch to the body and you slap to the face. The thing is, with jujitsu positions, there's a lot of unrealistic positions when it comes to MMA.

   18. JBJordan Burroughs8:04

       Yeah.

   19. JRJoe Rogan8:04

       Where, like, guys are hanging on to an ankle and the guy's right over him and he could just start blasting him in the face. It's the thing about s- like, leg lockers are much more sophisticated now than they were back in the day.

   20. JBJordan Burroughs8:14

       Sure.

   21. JRJoe Rogan8:15

       But early in the UFC, you saw some cases where guys would go for leg locks and see, this is, this is combat jujitsu. So you think it's, they could-

   22. JBJordan Burroughs8:21

       Is that the... (laughs) Come on, bro.

   23. JRJoe Rogan8:23

       Yeah. (laughs)

   24. JBJordan Burroughs8:25

       (laughs) Stop.

   25. JRJoe Rogan8:26

       But it works.

   26. JBJordan Burroughs8:26

       This is gonna look, uh, Two-

   27. JRJoe Rogan8:27

       It works.

   28. JBJordan Burroughs8:28

       ... two siblings fighting over the last Rice Krispie Treat. (laughs)

   29. JRJoe Rogan8:31

       That's kind of a crazy, th- well, that's Wagner Rocha who's, uh, fought MMA before and he's, he's a beast. He's a-

   30. JBJordan Burroughs8:37

       Is he tough?
5. 12:39 – 17:24

   Tokyo Olympics logistics: crowds, the Village, and the 24/7 McDonald’s ecosystem

   1. JBJordan Burroughs12:39

      And so that's what makes us excited for the postponed Olympic Games, right, this summer, Tokyo 2021, is wrestling is going to be one of the premier sports because of their love for combat sports there.

   2. JRJoe Rogan12:51

      Ah.

   3. JBJordan Burroughs12:51

      So whether it's MMA, kickboxing, boxing itself, wrestling, judo, sumo-

   4. JRJoe Rogan12:57

      Mm.

   5. JBJordan Burroughs12:57

      ... they love this sport. And so we're really excited about that opportunity this summer.

   6. JRJoe Rogan13:01

      So, that's gonna be this summer. They're do- gonna do it with crowds?

   7. JBJordan Burroughs13:04

      That's a good question. I don't know yet. So, the Japanese prime minister made an announcement, public statement saying, "Hey, listen, we're gonna host the Olympics this summer no matter what." One of the interesting things about it is although it's happening in '21, they're still calling it Tokyo 2020.

   8. JRJoe Rogan13:18

      Oh, wow.

   9. JBJordan Burroughs13:18

      I think they were saving face for all the marketing material that they already made-

   10. JRJoe Rogan13:22

       (laughs)

   11. JBJordan Burroughs13:22

       ... that cost them billions of dollars, right?

   12. JRJoe Rogan13:24

       T-shirts and shit, yeah.

   13. JBJordan Burroughs13:24

       To change the zero to a one. Is that really worth $5 billion, or whatever it-

   14. JRJoe Rogan13:29

       That's interesting.

   15. JBJordan Burroughs13:30

       ... will cost them? But it's going to be interesting how they figure it out, because the Olympic Village is like a town. There's 10,000 coaches and athletes from every country on the face of the planet, all put into a one-mile radius on this Olympic campus. And there's just so much interaction, engagement. I'm talking the f- the cafeteria at the Olympic Games is five football fields long.

   16. JRJoe Rogan13:56

       (laughs) What?

   17. JBJordan Burroughs13:56

       They've got a McDonald's, a, um, like a, a full-size McDonald's in the cafeteria in the Olympic Village. They've got foods from all different parts of the country. You've got an Italian station, a Japanese station, American station, you know, and a Pan-African station. They have... It's insane, and you have literally thousands of people swelling in at all times. It's 24 hours.

   18. JRJoe Rogan14:18

       How many people-

   19. JBJordan Burroughs14:19

       You can go get a Big Mac and a-

   20. JRJoe Rogan14:20

       ... are in line at the McDonald's station?

   21. JBJordan Burroughs14:21

       ... apple pie at all times. Bro, like, for, for if you're coming from America, you can go down the street. There's a McDonald's within, you know, a mile of anybody while you're here stateside. But if you're coming from one of these smaller countries, or you're coming from Guinea-Bissau, or you're coming from, I don't know, Qatar, like, you're like, "Damn, McDonald's sounds pretty good. I don't get this at the crib."

   22. JRJoe Rogan14:39

       (laughs)

   23. JBJordan Burroughs14:39

       "Let me go ahead, grab me a little quick couple McChickens, couple double cheeseburgers, put 'em in the room."

   24. JRJoe Rogan14:44

       Yeah, but you would think that-

   25. JBJordan Burroughs14:45

       But it's always available.

   26. JRJoe Rogan14:45

       ... someone competing in the Olympics would wanna fuel their body with the best possible food available.

   27. JBJordan Burroughs14:51

       Yeah, but there's... Some of 'em could... know they can't win.

   28. JRJoe Rogan14:53

       Oh, okay.

   29. JBJordan Burroughs14:53

       Like, you know, like everyone going to the Olympics isn't expecting to win a medal. Like, 90, I say 90%, large, very large percentage of the competitors at the Olympic Games, it's a long shot for them to get on the podium. They're going with the expectation like, "Hey, listen, I'm representing my home country with pride. I am going to a country that I've never been before. Hopefully I can be on TV. My family will be watching me back home." The opening ceremonies is the best experience for them, 'cause they get to be in a full packed arena around all the athletes that they've seen on TV, but they know that realistically they're not gonna win. So when that McDonald's is open 24 hours-

   30. JRJoe Rogan15:31

       (laughs)
6. 17:24 – 19:51

   Burroughs’ 2012 gold medal… and the legendary McDonald’s line-cut story

   1. JBJordan Burroughs17:24

      Yeah, crazy. I, that was my... When I won the gold in 2012, my first meal afterwards was McDonald's.

   2. JRJoe Rogan17:30

      (laughs)

   3. JBJordan Burroughs17:30

      Very first meal.

   4. JRJoe Rogan17:30

      Good job, good job.

   5. JBJordan Burroughs17:31

      I had double cheeseburger with a Hi-C orange to drink and a large fry. So crazy story. I'll tell you the story. So I win the Olympic gold, and, and right after you win, they take you back to what they have, like a media house. So it's got all of the publications from all over the world. You've got AP, Sports Illustrated, NBC, you know, just pretty much everything. And so you go back and you just bounce from room to room. It's like, "Okay, we got Al Michaels here. We got Bob Costas here. We got, you know, Joe Rogan here." And so you go, you show your medal, you tell them about your experience, where you're from, who you are, what you're gonna do with all this money and fame that you've just won. And then so, as soon as you're ushered out of there, you competed at 8:00 and you don't get out of there till close to midnight. So by the time it's midnight in London, really the only thing open is McDonald's, right? So I'm still in my podium outfit. Like, literally what I wore on the podium, I'm still in it at midnight.And so we go down to, like, Piccadilly in, in London and only thing's open is the McDonald's. And so we went to, like, a club for a little bit. One of my sponsors at the time had, like, bottle service, they wanted to celebrate me. So we leave there, we go to McDonald's. I get inside and packed. Club's just let out, everyone's, like, hungry, they're hungover. They just got done for the night, full of drinking. They're all in line, line's crazy. I go into the McDonald's I'm like, "Damn, I've been... It's long day. I wrestled all day long, I do not want to stand in line. I just wanna see if I can work my way to the front." So I go and ask the guy, I'm like, "Yo, bro, listen, I just wrestled all day-

   6. JRJoe Rogan19:01

      (laughs)

   7. JBJordan Burroughs19:01

      ... at the Excel Center. I just won an Olympic gold. Like, you think I can get in front of you?" And he's like, "You didn't win an Olymp- What? Stop." And I'm like, "Bro, I'm t- Like, I, I won the Olympics." He's like, "No you didn't."

   8. JRJoe Rogan19:12

      (laughs)

   9. JBJordan Burroughs19:12

      I'm tell- I had my medal in my pocket. I had my gold medal in my pocket, so I pull my gold medal out and show this guy. He's like, starts going nuts, "Oh, my God! This guy..." So he's yelling, everyone, he's pushing people out of the way-

   10. JRJoe Rogan19:25

       (laughs)

   11. JBJordan Burroughs19:25

       ... in this McDonald's. He's like, "This guy just won an Olympic gold medal. Let him to the front of the line. Let him to the front of the line."

   12. JRJoe Rogan19:31

       Wow.

   13. JBJordan Burroughs19:32

       And so he's pushing people in the w- out of the way, gets me, like, re- literally escorts me to the front of the line to get me my Quarter Pounder and my large fry. It was-

   14. JRJoe Rogan19:42

       Wow.

   15. JBJordan Burroughs19:42

       ... it was wild. Uh-

   16. JRJoe Rogan19:43

       That's the craziest cheeseburger-

   17. JBJordan Burroughs19:44

       But it was, it was-

   18. JRJoe Rogan19:44

       ... fry story ever.

   19. JBJordan Burroughs19:45

       ... cool. It was, it was dope. It was awesome.

   20. JRJoe Rogan19:47

       That had to be very memorable.

   21. JBJordan Burroughs19:49

       Yeah, it was fun, man.

   22. JRJoe Rogan19:49

       Wow.

   23. JBJordan Burroughs19:50

       It was fun.

7. 19:51 – 23:46

   Worlds vs Olympics, new weigh-in formats, and brutal same-day weight cutting

   1. JRJoe Rogan19:51

      That's... Winning the gold medal, what... I mean, uh, you, I know you've won the world championship, what, four times?

   2. JBJordan Burroughs19:56

      Four worlds, one Olympics, yeah.

   3. JRJoe Rogan19:58

      The... But how much difference?

   4. JBJordan Burroughs19:59

      Nothing like it. Olympics are the best. It's, it's rare. It only happens every four years. It's a single day event, so you have to be your best on that single day. You only get one cycle to prepare for. So we think of our careers, like, cyclically, where, like, in a... If, if you're an MMA fighter, you're like, "Okay, I can get an opportunity to fight for the belt as long as I continue to compete at a high level, like, keep my brand awareness, um, at a, at a good place." But in wrestling, the pinnacle is the Olympic Games. So no matter how many world championships you win, you want that Olympic gold. And the crazy thing is, the worlds are harder than the Olympics. So the Olympics are a little more-

   5. JRJoe Rogan20:39

      For real.

   6. JBJordan Burroughs20:39

      ... condensed in terms of the qualification process. So at worlds, it's much easier to qualify. So you have 42 guys in your weight class or in your bracket at worlds, you only have 16 at the Olympics. So in the world championships, I won in 2015, I wrestled six matches. The Olympics I won in 2012, I only had four matches. And so... And it's-

   7. JRJoe Rogan21:00

      Six matches.

   8. JBJordan Burroughs21:01

      ... it's a random draw too. So you could wrestle Russia first round, which would suck, or you could wrestle Puerto Rico first round, which would suck less. (laughs)

   9. JRJoe Rogan21:11

      (laughs)

   10. JBJordan Burroughs21:12

       Uh, and so it's a, it's a really interesting experience the way these brackets are drawn. And I think that the Olympic Games has become so special because of everything surrounding it. You get more money, more notoriety, uh, more recognition moving forward. Like, winning the gold in 2012 catapulted me to where I am right now. Like, when I'm recognized or announced at an event, it's always affiliated with that Olympic gold.

   11. JRJoe Rogan21:39

       Hmm.

   12. JBJordan Burroughs21:40

       "Olympic gold medalist Jordan Burroughs." Like, they always tell you, whenever you step off the podium, "You will forever be an Olympic gold medalist." You can't lose that. You can lose your belt.

   13. JRJoe Rogan21:48

       Right.

   14. JBJordan Burroughs21:48

       You can never lose your gold.

   15. JRJoe Rogan21:50

       Right.

   16. JBJordan Burroughs21:50

       It always comes home with me at the end of the day, no matter what I do moving forward. So that's pretty cool.

   17. JRJoe Rogan21:55

       That is an interesting perspective, right? Because if you're a fighter, you win the title and then you lose the title in your next fight, you're a former world champion.

   18. JBJordan Burroughs22:02

       Former world champion.

   19. JRJoe Rogan22:03

       But a, a Olympic gold medalist from 2012 is an Olympic-

   20. JBJordan Burroughs22:07

       They don't put the former before it.

   21. JRJoe Rogan22:07

       ... gold medalist.

   22. JBJordan Burroughs22:07

       They just say Olympic.

   23. JRJoe Rogan22:08

       Yeah. That's-

   24. JBJordan Burroughs22:09

       So that's... It's dope.

   25. JRJoe Rogan22:10

       Yeah. You made it through, you did it, and that's it.

   26. JBJordan Burroughs22:12

       But then there's another guy who (laughs) does it four years later, so-

   27. JRJoe Rogan22:15

       Yeah.

   28. JBJordan Burroughs22:15

       ... it's, uh, it's interesting.

   29. JRJoe Rogan22:17

       I- it's gotta be a crazy experience. But the world championships being more difficult... Is the world championships held in, uh, two day... Is it a two day event?

   30. JBJordan Burroughs22:26

       Yeah. So they changed the format in 2018. Wrestling used to be a single day. You weigh in the day before and then you'd wrestle all day. You start in the preliminaries and then you wrestle all the way through to the finals. By the end of the day, five, six matches, you knew if you were a world champion, Olympic champion or not.
8. 23:46 – 31:04

   Breakdancing in the Olympics, missing weight classes, and the MMA ‘what if’

   1. JBJordan Burroughs23:46

      It's a big gap. It's a big gap. And so there are only six Olympic weights at, at-

   2. JRJoe Rogan23:51

      Wow.

   3. JBJordan Burroughs23:51

      ... at the Olympic game. Only six, right?

   4. JRJoe Rogan23:53

      That's crazy.

   5. JBJordan Burroughs23:53

      So you've got 57 kilos or, like, one tw- So you got, let's... 125, 143, 163, 189, 213, and then heavyweight. And so only six weight classes. And then in the world championship year, you have 10 weights, so they give you a little more flexibility. But in the Olympic Games, they try to condense them. They're adding so many sports every single cycle. You got golf and break... They got... They're adding break dancing to the Olympic Games in Paris 2024.

   6. JRJoe Rogan24:23

      That's pretty crazy. But-

   7. JBJordan Burroughs24:24

      Break dancing.

   8. JRJoe Rogan24:24

      ... if they have rhythmic gymnastics-

   9. JBJordan Burroughs24:26

      That's true.

   10. JRJoe Rogan24:26

       ... I don't see why they shouldn't have break dancing.

   11. JBJordan Burroughs24:28

       That's true. But at the expense of-... other sports like wrestling, where you only have-

   12. JRJoe Rogan24:32

       Well, that's fucked up.

   13. JBJordan Burroughs24:33

       ... six weights.

   14. JRJoe Rogan24:33

       That's fucked up.

   15. JBJordan Burroughs24:34

       And a single, a single athlete or a single representative from each country per weight class.

   16. JRJoe Rogan24:38

       Do me a favor. Go to Stance Elements on Instagram. I wanna show you this dude that I just saw there yesterday. This dude-

   17. JBJordan Burroughs24:44

       Breakdancing?

   18. JRJoe Rogan24:46

       This is dude ... These-

   19. JBJordan Burroughs24:46

       Is he sick?

   20. JRJoe Rogan24:47

       They're on another level. They're-

   21. JBJordan Burroughs24:48

       It's, it's, it's pretty dope, bro.

   22. JRJoe Rogan24:50

       It's like elite gymnasts now.

   23. JBJordan Burroughs24:51

       I can't ... I'm just a, I'm just a hater because-

   24. JRJoe Rogan24:53

       (laughs)

   25. JBJordan Burroughs24:53

       ... it, it has kinda affected wrestling a little bit.

   26. JRJoe Rogan24:55

       Well, it shouldn't affect wrestling.

   27. JBJordan Burroughs24:56

       Um-

   28. JRJoe Rogan24:57

       But I, I do agree with it. Not, not this gentleman. There's a guy in a red, uh, sweatsuit. See if you can find him down there.

   29. JBJordan Burroughs25:03

       There he is.

   30. JRJoe Rogan25:04

       That's it. Watch this guy. I mean, watch this. This dude is crazy.
9. 31:04 – 35:05

   Why MMA champions skew older: specialization, skill integration, and wrestler advantages

   1. JBJordan Burroughs31:04

      Let me ask you this. Why do you think that MMA fighters have a much later prime than pretty much any other sport? If you look at the champions in MMA, it's very hard to find someone below the age of 30.

   2. JRJoe Rogan31:20

      Mm-hmm.

   3. JBJordan Burroughs31:20

      Why is that different?

   4. JRJoe Rogan31:21

      I think it's hard to put everything together. Because, uh, if you're a specialist in, in w- one aspect of MMA, someone... Generally, the person that's gonna figure out a way to beat you is a person who's a specialist-

   5. JBJordan Burroughs31:33

      Mm-hmm.

   6. JRJoe Rogan31:33

      ... to the thing you're not good at. Like say, if you're a wrestler and you're really good at wrestling, and then you'll come into a guy... You, you come in a, a fight with a guy who's a really good striker, who's got excellent take-down defense, and then you're kinda fucked.

   7. JBJordan Burroughs31:46

      Yeah,

   8. NANarrator31:46

      Yes.

   9. JRJoe Rogan31:46

      Like that happened when Brock Lesnar fought Alistair Overeem, 'cause Brock Lesnar couldn't get Alistair down and Alistair is a K-1 Grand Prix champion.

   10. JBJordan Burroughs31:53

       Sure.

   11. JRJoe Rogan31:53

       And just a fucking beast, and then also an enormous man too.

   12. JBJordan Burroughs31:56

       Of course.

   13. JRJoe Rogan31:56

       And Brock couldn't get him down and he was just getting torn apart standing up.

   14. JBJordan Burroughs32:00

       Yeah.

   15. JRJoe Rogan32:00

       So that was the guy who solved his, his puzzle-

   16. JBJordan Burroughs32:03

       Mm-hmm.

   17. JRJoe Rogan32:03

       ... was a guy who was much big... Or, as big as him, but much better striker.

   18. JBJordan Burroughs32:08

       It... Well, it's interesting because I think that's why wrestlers translate well, is because we... I started wrestling at six years old.

   19. JRJoe Rogan32:14

       Mm-hmm.

   20. JBJordan Burroughs32:14

       Most guys start the sport of wrestling from infancy.

   21. JRJoe Rogan32:17

       Yeah.

   22. JBJordan Burroughs32:18

       Like, if, if it's in your bloodline, you're on the mat three, four, five years old.

   23. JRJoe Rogan32:22

       Right.

   24. JBJordan Burroughs32:22

       Where a lot of the sports, you're not doing that, right? Whether it's judo, jujitsu, kickboxing, boxing. Like, you don't do that for the entirety of your life. Maybe eight, nine, 10, you'll start to dabble in a little bit. And i- i- I think wrestling... Actually, wrestling is... I'm sure. Wrestling is the only sanctioned sport, collegiately, of all combat sports.

   25. JRJoe Rogan32:43

       Mm-hmm.

   26. JBJordan Burroughs32:44

       So, we have a very high level of pedigree in comparison to other places.

   27. JRJoe Rogan32:48

       Yeah.

   28. JBJordan Burroughs32:48

       So, you know, I started wrestling at six years old, wrestled through middle school, high school, went to the University of Nebraska. Um, earned my degree there, training twice a day for five years. Took the re- medical red shirt to get better and then got to this place where I started to continue to sharpen my chops at the Olympic Training Center in Colorado Springs. If I made that transition, I would be so regimented in what I had done for such a long period of time, I don't think that any other sport can compare with that. And I don't really follow a ton, so I don't really know the dynamics of what it's like on a scholastic level in, let's say, jujitsu. But I have to imagine that wrestling has the strongest pedigree and the highest level of preparation for MMA because of its ability to, you know, be popular within the contents of an actual school, university, that type of thing.

   29. JRJoe Rogan33:42

       For sure. And wrestlers that dedicate themselves to jujitsu transition very easily.

   30. JBJordan Burroughs33:47

       Yeah, yeah.
10. 35:05 – 53:07

    Diet deep-dive: carnivore, sugar crashes, cereal confessions, and weight-cut routines

    1. JBJordan Burroughs35:05

       You gotta be dialed in for a long period of time. So, I've dabbled in a numerous... In a lot of diets, right? I see you're on the carnivore diet.

    2. JRJoe Rogan35:13

       Yeah.

    3. JBJordan Burroughs35:13

       Like, how is that going actually?

    4. JRJoe Rogan35:14

       It's great.

    5. JBJordan Burroughs35:15

       Is it good?

    6. JRJoe Rogan35:16

       The last time I did it, I did it last year-

    7. JBJordan Burroughs35:18

       Only meat?

    8. JRJoe Rogan35:18

       I had... Only meat, yeah. Only meat.

    9. JBJordan Burroughs35:19

       Like, only meat?

    10. JRJoe Rogan35:20

        Well, I eat eggs and fish. I could... Like last time, I had lobster. E- only animal products, yeah.

    11. JBJordan Burroughs35:25

        So, eggs, f- any type of meat?

    12. JRJoe Rogan35:27

        Yeah, any type of meat, yeah.

    13. JBJordan Burroughs35:28

        No ve- that's it?

    14. JRJoe Rogan35:29

        No vegetables.

    15. JBJordan Burroughs35:30

        No carbs?

    16. JRJoe Rogan35:30

        No.

    17. JBJordan Burroughs35:30

        No veggies, nothing?

    18. JRJoe Rogan35:31

        Some people l- eat like a little piece of fruit here and there.

    19. JBJordan Burroughs35:34

        Yeah.

    20. JRJoe Rogan35:34

        You know, if you feel, really feel like you need it-

    21. JBJordan Burroughs35:35

        That's insane.

    22. JRJoe Rogan35:36

        ... before a workout, but I'm telling you, man, it's crazy.

    23. JBJordan Burroughs35:39

        You feel good?

    24. JRJoe Rogan35:39

        You feel fucking great. Your energy level with no carbs is like this. It's flat all day. It stays the same.

    25. JBJordan Burroughs35:45

        So, it sh- it's essentially sugar-free?

    26. JRJoe Rogan35:46

        Yes, exactly, exactly.

    27. JBJordan Burroughs35:48

        So that's-

    28. JRJoe Rogan35:48

        Sugar-free.

    29. JBJordan Burroughs35:49

        ... why your energy-

    30. JRJoe Rogan35:49

        And-
11. 53:07 – 1:12:24

    Askren rivalry-friendship, crossover spectacles, and why wrestling struggles to sell to non-wrestlers

    1. JRJoe Rogan53:07

       What was it like doing that thing with Askren, that you guys, uh-

    2. JBJordan Burroughs53:10

       Yeah, it was interesting, bro.

    3. JRJoe Rogan53:11

       ... did that crazy wrestling match?

    4. JBJordan Burroughs53:12

       It was interesting. I, I, I, I respect Ben a ton. He's, uh-

    5. JRJoe Rogan53:16

       I do, too. Try this. You ever have a Killcliff?

    6. JBJordan Burroughs53:18

       No. It's good?

    7. JRJoe Rogan53:19

       CBD. It's my own drink.

    8. JBJordan Burroughs53:20

       Oh, I can't drink this, bro.

    9. JRJoe Rogan53:21

       It's got my face on it. You can't?

    10. JBJordan Burroughs53:22

        Nah.

    11. JRJoe Rogan53:22

        Bad for you?

    12. JBJordan Burroughs53:23

        No. I'm, I'm... USADA?

    13. JRJoe Rogan53:25

        This is CBD. It doesn't have any THC in it.

    14. JBJordan Burroughs53:27

        I, I'm good.

    15. JRJoe Rogan53:27

        I understand.

    16. JBJordan Burroughs53:28

        You know? Um, but thank you. I appreciate it. Hey, make sure you guys are drinking Killcliff (laughs) when you guys are out there.

    17. JRJoe Rogan53:33

        Dude, drink whatever you want. I don't give a fuck.

    18. JBJordan Burroughs53:34

        (laughs)

    19. JRJoe Rogan53:34

        I just wanted you to try-

    20. JBJordan Burroughs53:35

        No, you're good, bro. Um-

    21. JRJoe Rogan53:36

        ... uh, pineapple and jalapeno. It's the shit.

    22. JBJordan Burroughs53:37

        This looks good. Killcliff. You were with Killcliff?

    23. JRJoe Rogan53:39

        Mm-hmm.

    24. JBJordan Burroughs53:40

        I had a... It's crazy. I had... They sent me, like, a package of their stuff years ago. Wow.

    25. JRJoe Rogan53:45

        Great shit.

    26. JBJordan Burroughs53:45

        Were you in the, their inception?

    27. JRJoe Rogan53:47

        Nope.

    28. JBJordan Burroughs53:47

        Or did you just get recently on board?

    29. JRJoe Rogan53:48

        Within the last year or so.

    30. JBJordan Burroughs53:49

        That's dope, bro. Congratulations, man.

Episode duration: 3:02:48