JRE MMA Show #110 with Craig Jones & Alex Volkanovski

1. 0:00 – 15:00

   (drum music) Joe Rogan podcast,…

   1. JRJoe Rogan0:00

      (drum music) Joe Rogan podcast, check it out.

   2. NANarrator0:04

      The Joe Rogan Experience.

   3. JRJoe Rogan0:06

      Train by day, Joe Rogan podcast by night, all day. (rock music plays) And we're up with, uh, the baddest motherfucker in the 145-pound division on the planet Earth, Alexander The Great Volkanovski.

   4. AVAlex Volkanovski0:21

      Yeah.

   5. JRJoe Rogan0:22

      And, uh, by default, the number one grappler on the planet because he-

   6. AVAlex Volkanovski0:25

      (laughs)

   7. JRJoe Rogan0:25

      ... poisoned his teammate.

   8. AVAlex Volkanovski0:26

      Yeah, but you're breaking secrets there.

   9. JRJoe Rogan0:27

      Oh, it's a, it's a lie.

   10. AVAlex Volkanovski0:28

       (laughs)

   11. JRJoe Rogan0:28

       It's not true. Craig Jones, you bad motherfucker. Um-

   12. AVAlex Volkanovski0:32

       (laughs)

   13. JRJoe Rogan0:32

       ... what were you about to say?

   14. AVAlex Volkanovski0:33

       I'm just glad to be present right now because last time we had, uh, our, our podcast, I don't even remember it. Uh-

   15. JRJoe Rogan0:38

       How do you not remember it?

   16. AVAlex Volkanovski0:39

       Well, Vegas, Vegas got me.

   17. JRJoe Rogan0:42

       Oh.

   18. AVAlex Volkanovski0:42

       I remember coming in, I'm like, yeah, man. And I was, like, in a weird bubble. Maybe nerves and that included in it. I don't know what it was, but I literally don't even remember it 'cause I was, I had big nights over there, you know.

   19. JRJoe Rogan0:52

       Oh, okay.

   20. AVAlex Volkanovski0:53

       So yeah.

   21. JRJoe Rogan0:53

       Nights.

   22. AVAlex Volkanovski0:54

       Big, big nights. And then I un- like I barely remember it, so I'm like, "Man-

   23. JRJoe Rogan0:56

       Huh.

   24. AVAlex Volkanovski0:57

       ... what did, what did I say?" I, I literally thought, like, the boys, uh, they're in the green room and they're like, "Oh, no, you talked about this." I go, "I talked about that?" Like, I honestly couldn't remember nothing, but-

   25. JRJoe Rogan1:05

       Welcome to my life.

   26. AVAlex Volkanovski1:06

       Yes.

   27. JRJoe Rogan1:07

       I leave here and people are mad at me. And I'm like, "What the fuck did I say?" And they're like, "You said that thing about the guy." And I'm like, "Did I?"

   28. AVAlex Volkanovski1:13

       (laughs)

   29. JRJoe Rogan1:13

       I don't remember what the fuck I said. Yeah, 'cause if you're in a good conversation, it just goes down the hole.

   30. AVAlex Volkanovski1:19

       That's it.
2. 15:00 – 30:00

   Look at the caption.…

   1. JRJoe Rogan15:00

      just nuts that this, that a weird design that's been around for thousands of years has become, uh, uh, oh- you know, like, connected so horribly to this one point in history with the Nazis that all these people that had it forever can't use it anymore. Manji symbol. "Japan has decided to update the ma- manji symbol as well as a number of, a number of others to be more tourist-friendly with the upcoming Tokyo Olympics." Wow.

   2. AVAlex Volkanovski15:26

      Look at the caption.

   3. JRJoe Rogan15:27

      "Buddhist temples will be re- will be represented by a tiered pagoda." Huh.

   4. AVAlex Volkanovski15:32

      So they changed it.

   5. JRJoe Rogan15:33

      Yeah.

   6. AVAlex Volkanovski15:34

      They gave into him.

   7. JRJoe Rogan15:36

      Yeah, I guess. It's just, it's problematic-

   8. AVAlex Volkanovski15:39

      (laughs)

   9. JRJoe Rogan15:39

      ... as they say.

   10. AVAlex Volkanovski15:40

       Mm-hmm.

   11. JRJoe Rogan15:42

       So, uh, you filmed this for five weeks? You were d- you were filming it for five weeks?

   12. AVAlex Volkanovski15:47

       Just under five weeks, yeah.

   13. JRJoe Rogan15:47

       And how many e- episodes will air?

   14. AVAlex Volkanovski15:49

       Uh, I think there will be, uh, f- 13 or 12, 12 or 13, uh, episodes, I think.

   15. JRJoe Rogan15:54

       And they'll all be on ESPN?

   16. AVAlex Volkanovski15:56

       Uh, yeah, yep.

   17. JRJoe Rogan15:57

       Nice.

   18. AVAlex Volkanovski15:58

       ESPN. This is the first time they're, yeah, they've aired on ESPN. So, uh, like, The- The Return of the Ultimate Fighter will be on ESPN. I don't think they're, yeah, they have, yeah, never had The Ultimate Fighter on it.

   19. JRJoe Rogan16:07

       How was it, uh, working with Brian Ortega?

   20. AVAlex Volkanovski16:09

       Uh, to be honest, mate, he, he doesn't say much.

   21. JRJoe Rogan16:13

       Yeah.

   22. AVAlex Volkanovski16:13

       He doesn't say much. Look, yeah, I don't know, like, yeah, we're, we're, we're ... I'm, I'm, I'm a bit over him to be honest. (laughs)

   23. JRJoe Rogan16:19

       A bit over him?

   24. AVAlex Volkanovski16:19

       I just ... Yeah, just, uh, ah, a couple of things, you know what I mean? Like, uh, I just think he's fake. I think he's a, he's fake, and I don't believe his shit, so that's just sort of how, how it is with me.

   25. JRJoe Rogan16:29

       When-

   26. AVAlex Volkanovski16:29

       That's what I think.

   27. JRJoe Rogan16:30

       When you say fake, like, in what way is he fake?

   28. AVAlex Volkanovski16:32

       Oh, man, just, uh... Yeah. Well, I just think, you know, he plays, plays a, a nice guy, and some of the shit he says, like, I just think it's all bullshit. But, uh, yeah, I guess users can watch the show and, like, sort of see, like, with little things. But, I don't know, just, uh, even with a couple of things, like, no, I don't think he's that bad of a guy. Maybe I'm just looking for things to hate on him for.

   29. JRJoe Rogan16:49

       I'm sure you are. (laughs)

   30. AVAlex Volkanovski16:49

       Maybe, yeah, probably. You know what I mean? So I'm just sitting there being like, "Nah, fuck Brian Ortega," you know what I mean? I'm gonna find something to hate him for, but, uh, you know, maybe that's what it was. But, I mean, like, still, yeah. Uh, little things I was just like, "Yeah." But, I mean, like I said, it's, it's not hard to get under his skin. Even me just saying that, I guarantee you he's boiling up, so maybe that's gonna be strategy for my next fight 'cause I know how easily he's triggered, so I'm just gonna be like, "Hey, Brian, fuck you." And wham.
3. 30:00 – 45:00

   For sure. He's like…

   1. JRJoe Rogan30:00

      himself, and decides to dedicate his life to training, uh, the best grapplers on earth and has had these insane results. I mean, it's, it's a really wild story. If you looked at the, the Jon Danaher origin story as like a Marvel Comics, you know, like uh, some sort of a mentor and Doctor Strange or something like that. You know what I mean? Like he doesn't seem like a real guy.

   2. CJCraig Jones30:22

      For sure. He's like some sort of mythical sort of being, like 'cause most people like, uh, you've shot the shit with him, you know what I mean?

   3. JRJoe Rogan30:27

      Yeah.

   4. CJCraig Jones30:27

      But most people never see that side of him.

   5. JRJoe Rogan30:30

      Yeah.

   6. CJCraig Jones30:30

      They just see his instructionals or his interviews and stuff where he's-... very, very serious. But, uh, yeah, he's... It's crazy how knowledgeable he is in jujitsu. And what's funny is, I sort of taught myself leg locks in Australia watching his guys compete on EBI and stuff. Like, I had no idea what I was doing but I would be like... I'd watch the- them using these moves. 'Cause they didn't teach it in instructionals back then. So we were just left trying to figure it out. I'm sure like Eddie's guys were trying to figure it out as well.

   7. JRJoe Rogan30:56

      Yeah.

   8. CJCraig Jones30:56

      But that was how I learned leg locks and then it was just funny to ultimately one day join the team that I'd been stealing their moves from for years.

   9. JRJoe Rogan31:03

      (laughs)

   10. AVAlex Volkanovski31:04

       (laughs)

   11. CJCraig Jones31:04

       I couldn't beat Gordon so I was like, "Fuck it. I'll jump in as well."

   12. JRJoe Rogan31:06

       Well, it's so interesting. When I was, uh, training a lot, there was very little leg locks. Like, I remember Dean Lister in 2003 in Abu Dhabi, you know, he was leg locking a lot of guys and Dean was like one of the few guys... There, there was like a few other guys, but he was one of the, the real top level guys who was winning by heel hook and even ankle locks and stuff like... Knee bars. And then John and him have this one conversation, one time, where he says to John, "Why would you ignore 50% of the body?" And John's like, "Ding." And then he just develops this entire system based on leg locks and then you guys start dominating. Garry Tonon, Gordon, Nicky, you, all these guys d- start dominating. Eddie. Start dominating with leg locks. And then everybody else is trying to dissect your system and put it together. It's really tr- it's crazy because that's not that long. Like if you think about like how long arm bars have been around, rear naked chokes, how much standard jujitsu techniques, then all of a sudden somewhere around like... What year was it? 2015 or something like that? Like what year did leg locks just start taking over?

   13. CJCraig Jones32:15

       Yeah, definitely. I would say around 2015. I mean, I mean indirectly I guess Eddie Bravo's sort of responsible for this in a way because he gave the guys the platform to demonstrate this.

   14. JRJoe Rogan32:24

       Mm-hmm.

   15. CJCraig Jones32:24

       'Cause in jujitsu at the time, apart from ADCC, you couldn't really do heel hooks in any tournaments.

   16. JRJoe Rogan32:30

       Right.

   17. CJCraig Jones32:30

       So a lot of people didn't put any energy into it because they were like, "Why am I gonna become a master in this skillset when there's no platform for me to use them on?" So you know.

   18. JRJoe Rogan32:39

       Yeah. We had Usmar Palhares.

   19. CJCraig Jones32:41

       Terrifying guy.

   20. JRJoe Rogan32:41

       Yeah, terrifying guy, in the UFC. And he would heel hook you and hold onto it.

   21. CJCraig Jones32:46

       Yeah. (laughs)

   22. JRJoe Rogan32:46

       Yeah. And just not let it go which was terrible, you know. I mean, he ruined guys' knees and they... He's the only guy that I know that's been kicked out of two organizations. The PFL kicked him out and then the U- the UFC kicked him out first, then the PFL kicked him out too.

   23. CJCraig Jones32:59

       Yeah, yeah. Thank God he disappeared from grappling and everything.

   24. JRJoe Rogan33:02

       (laughs)

   25. CJCraig Jones33:02

       He was actually one of the catalysts for me to learn leg locks 'cause I qualified for ADCC and I was in the same weight division as him. And I was like, "W- I gotta learn this shit-"

   26. JRJoe Rogan33:12

       Yeah.

   27. CJCraig Jones33:12

       "... or this guy's gonna potentially injure me forever." You know what I mean?

   28. JRJoe Rogan33:15

       Right, right. That is what you had to think too because when... Do you ever see the match with David Avalon where they w- rolled out of bounds?

   29. AVAlex Volkanovski33:21

       Oh, yeah.

   30. JRJoe Rogan33:21

       So they... Have you seen it?
4. 45:00 – 1:00:00

   If it was Steve,…

   1. JRJoe Rogan45:00

      Whoops. Is that Steve Mazzagati? No, it's not.

   2. CJCraig Jones45:04

      If it was Steve, the fight would still be going.

   3. JRJoe Rogan45:06

      Yeah, he'd be like, "Get up."

   4. CJCraig Jones45:07

      (laughs)

   5. JRJoe Rogan45:07

      "Don't be a pussy."

   6. CJCraig Jones45:08

      (laughs)

   7. AVAlex Volkanovski45:08

      (laughs)

   8. JRJoe Rogan45:12

      Sorry, Steve. Just joking. That was a horrible one.

   9. CJCraig Jones45:15

      Mm.

   10. JRJoe Rogan45:15

       But I mean, that, that particular style of leg break is just so hard to watch when someone checks, you know, with a shin kick. Have you done much, uh, kickboxing sparring other than what you did with those guys and your friends? Y- you haven't-

   11. CJCraig Jones45:29

       None really. To be honest, nothing.

   12. JRJoe Rogan45:31

       Did it make you think while you were sparring with these guys? When you were sparring with Alexandre, like maybe?

   13. CJCraig Jones45:37

       I mean, this, that turned me off completely. You know what I mean?

   14. JRJoe Rogan45:39

       Really?

   15. CJCraig Jones45:39

       Like, starting at the top there. (laughs) Yeah.

   16. AVAlex Volkanovski45:43

       I wasn't even turned on. I mean, like, next time I'm gonna-

   17. CJCraig Jones45:45

       I know, but it was like just so out of, you know what I mean?

   18. JRJoe Rogan45:47

       Yeah.

   19. CJCraig Jones45:47

       Like, it just felt so out of my depth there. I was just like, "Fuck, this is too hard."

   20. JRJoe Rogan45:51

       Does it make you want to learn something? Like when ... I know that, uh, Garry ... Which is real, real crazy is that John Danaher actually is the striking coach for Garry too, which is just to me so bananas. 'Cause I was like, "Who's been training Garry striking? 'Cause his striking looks pretty sharp." I'm like, "Did you guys fly someone out to Puerto Rico?" They're like, "No, it's John."

   21. CJCraig Jones46:10

       John does it all. John runs MMA class followed by jiu-jitsu class. They just do a lot of like-

   22. AVAlex Volkanovski46:14

       Oh, shit. I didn't even know that.

   23. JRJoe Rogan46:15

       Yeah.

   24. CJCraig Jones46:15

       ... yeah, MMA drills.

   25. AVAlex Volkanovski46:16

       Oh, wow.

   26. JRJoe Rogan46:16

       He's an MMA coach.

   27. CJCraig Jones46:18

       Oh, shit.

   28. JRJoe Rogan46:19

       Bro.

   29. AVAlex Volkanovski46:20

       Right.

   30. JRJoe Rogan46:20

       He's a real wizard.
5. 1:00:00 – 1:00:10

   (laughs) You fucking stretch,…

   1. JRJoe Rogan1:00:00

   2. AVAlex Volkanovski1:00:00

      (laughs) You fucking stretch, right?

   3. JRJoe Rogan1:00:00

      Motherfucker's got everything dialed in.

   4. CJCraig Jones1:00:02

      (laughs)

   5. JRJoe Rogan1:00:03

      Listen to him, he's your friend.

   6. CJCraig Jones1:00:04

      (laughs)

   7. JRJoe Rogan1:00:05

      You know, because you don't wanna get injured, man. You know, and then get injured because you didn't stretch. That would be-

Episode duration: 2:58:49