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JRE MMA Show #170 with Michael "Venom" Page

Joe sits down with Michael "Venom" Page, a professional mixed martial artist currently competing in the Welterweight and Middleweight divisions of the Ultimate Fighting Championship. www.ufc.com/athlete/michael-page Get a free welcome kit with your first subscription of AG1 at https://drinkag1.com/joerogan 50% off your first box at https://www.thefarmersdog.com/rogan!

Joe RoganhostMichael "Venom" Pageguest
Oct 3, 20252h 33mWatch on YouTube ↗

EVERY SPOKEN WORD

  1. 0:00 – 15:00

    (drumming music plays) Joe Rogan podcast.…

    1. NA

      (drumming music plays) Joe Rogan podcast. Check it out. The Joe Rogan Experience. Train by day, Joe Rogan podcast by night. All day. (rock music plays)

    2. JR

      We're up.

    3. MP

      All right.

    4. JR

      MVP in the house.

    5. MP

      Yes.

    6. JR

      The most enigmatic-

    7. MP

      (laughs)

    8. JR

      ... difficult dude to solve in all of MMA. That's you, man.

    9. MP

      Bro, you know what? I, I always ... I wanna start simply because you ... What you have done for me specifically, I get a lot of criticism, a lot of hate, and especially obviously jumping, when I first got into the, into the MMA world. New to me, you know, I'm just like, "Okay, let me just be myself, do my thing." First fight goes well. Land this crazy kick, goes viral, and I get nothing but hate, hate, hate, hate, hate, hate, hate, hate. But then having prominent figures like yourself that are constantly have been championing my style, uh, champion, championing the, like, the points element of things, I just appreciate you for that.

    10. JR

      Oh, my pleasure brother.

    11. MP

      I appreciate that.

    12. JR

      I appreciate you. It's almost like we called for you, because there was a time in the early days of MMA, like in the early 2000s, where I was like, "This is what's missing."

    13. MP

      Mm-hmm.

    14. JR

      "This ... What's missing is point fighters." And people would, like, mock me.

    15. MP

      (laughs)

    16. JR

      They, they'd be like, "No, no, no, no, no, like, I've sparred with these dudes. You can't hit them. It's a different thing." I'm like, "They have a very specific skill. That skill of closing distance-"

    17. MP

      Yeah.

    18. JR

      "... and being elusive."

    19. MP

      Yeah, yeah, yeah.

    20. JR

      It's not like any other sport.

    21. MP

      Yeah, yeah.

    22. JR

      It's almost like fencing and MMA combined, or, uh, and martial arts combined.

    23. MP

      Yeah, yeah. I always tell people that, like, most of the combat sports in terms of kickboxing, the full-contact side of things, is more to do with the ... There's a fixation on power, knocking people out.

    24. JR

      Yes.

    25. MP

      Whereas our element is just the speed element.

    26. JR

      Yes.

    27. MP

      Just getting in and getting out.

    28. JR

      Yeah.

    29. MP

      Not getting touched. Like you said, the tag, tag kind of feel, fencing.

    30. JR

      Mm-hmm.

  2. 15:00 – 30:00

    What year is this?…

    1. MP

      before, 'cause obviously I've got things to sort out before I can just make the full move. "So while you're doing that, let's have a look at a couple of gyms." And we did some research, we went to a couple of the Gracie gyms, went to a few other gyms that was around. Then I found London Shoot Fighters. I hadn't done any research, and at this time, I personally wasn't watching MMA at all. The only person I knew-

    2. JR

      What year is this?

    3. MP

      Uh, so I would've been... I'd have been what? 24? So what's that about? (clears throat) So over 12, 13 years back. And I was trying to think, the only guys in the UK would have been Brad Pickett was fighting, uh-

    4. JR

      Solid fighter.

    5. MP

      Solid fighter. Michael Bisping was fighting. But, and nobody had like achieved anything of big quality from there. Everything, everything was in America.

    6. JR

      Hm.

    7. MP

      Um...

    8. JR

      Was Bisping still living in England or had he moved to America yet?

    9. MP

      I think he was still in En- yeah, I think he was still in England. Yeah, yeah, yeah. Um, but again, I was only learning it as I got more into it. But initially I just thought... I made the decision without actually researching anything, which is very much like me. I'll just-

    10. JR

      (laughs)

    11. MP

      ... jump in headfirst. (laughs)

    12. JR

      Figure it out.

    13. MP

      I'll figure it out afterwards, right? (laughs)

    14. JR

      (laughs)

    15. MP

      So I literally, I said to myself, "Okay, cool. I've got to London Shoot Fighters." And the only person I knew was Chuck Liddell that's I've actually seen, and I just-

    16. JR

      Wow.

    17. MP

      ... was like, this guy was just knocking people out. I was like, that's... I could relate to that.

    18. JR

      Right.

    19. MP

      I was like, he's a striker, everything else I didn't really care for. I was typical fan. Like, when they got on the floor, I was like, "Oh." (laughs)

    20. JR

      (laughs)

    21. MP

      For fuck's sake. Get, stand up. Stand them up. So and never been to a show, anything, but these are... He's a guy that I like watching and then I wanna ma- I made a decision, I wanna do it. Cool. Uh, started in London Shoot Fighters, and for some reason, the guys there, I don't know what... 'Cause I've, I've had good coaching, um, so in, um, I bring this back, and I feel like I can hear sense. When I've gone to a place, I'm, I'm hearing how they're coaching and what they're saying and I'm like, it just makes sense to me. I was like, "Cool, I wanna start here. I still wanna go to America, but I'll start here for now and then just see where it goes." And then I just fell in love with the place.

    22. JR

      Was that the first time you did any grappling at all?

    23. MP

      Any grappling at all.

    24. JR

      Wow.

    25. MP

      Didn't do any, I, I... All I was doing every day was applauding people 'cause I was tapping every two seconds. (clapping rolls) I was just doing this. (laughs)

    26. JR

      (laughs)

    27. MP

      Every two seconds I was-

    28. JR

      It's frustrating, right?

    29. MP

      But I loved it though.

    30. JR

      Oh.

  3. 30:00 – 45:00

    Yeah. …

    1. MP

      these people now, I'm doing it with the style and flare of like, "What more can I do?"

    2. JR

      Yeah.

    3. MP

      You know what I mean?

    4. JR

      Yeah.

    5. MP

      So, yeah, yeah.

    6. JR

      But it's so perfect for martial arts for you, for MMA, because...... a lot of MMA is pattern recognition.

    7. MP

      Mm-hmm.

    8. JR

      You get, you get a- a- accustomed to certain types of movements. "I know this guy's gonna do this. The calf kick's gonna be available. I'm gonna feint with this, and then I'm gonna throw that. I'm gonna shoot that double here because I know he's gonna come with the overhand right."

    9. MP

      Mm-hmm.

    10. JR

      All these patterns.

    11. MP

      Mm-hmm.

    12. JR

      You don't have, you don't have normal patterns.

    13. MP

      At all.

    14. JR

      So, you're moving around, and your hands are down-

    15. MP

      Yeah, yeah, yeah.

    16. JR

      ... you're sideways. They're like... And they have to make up new patterns-

    17. MP

      Yeah.

    18. JR

      ... as they go along-

    19. MP

      Yeah, yeah.

    20. JR

      ... so they have to think.

    21. MP

      Yeah, yeah, yeah.

    22. JR

      And they have to rea- it's, it's such an advantage.

    23. MP

      Yeah, and I always tell people that, like, the first time they're actually really gonna ch- experience this style is on the night.

    24. JR

      Yeah.

    25. MP

      And it, you have to figure it out on the night.

    26. JR

      Because there's not enough guys-

    27. MP

      That's true.

    28. JR

      ... that have what you can do-

    29. MP

      Yeah, yeah.

    30. JR

      ... that also compete in MMA.

  4. 45:00 – 1:00:00

    Yeah. …

    1. JR

      a day.

    2. MP

      Yeah.

    3. JR

      In his caliber, he's eating three times a day.

    4. MP

      (exhales deeply)

    5. JR

      He's like, "So every day, every day, they coming for you. You have to be a machine."

    6. MP

      (laughs)

    7. JR

      And I was like, "Oh, my God." (laughs) And you get to look in his eyes, man.

    8. MP

      Bro, we are soft in the West, bro.

    9. JR

      That motherfucker is fierce. Oh, we're so soft in the West.

    10. MP

      (laughs)

    11. JR

      We're so soft in the West.

    12. MP

      What the hell is this?

    13. JR

      Look, I don't... I'm not a fan of communism.

    14. MP

      Yeah, yeah. (laughs)

    15. JR

      I don't believe in it, but damn, it creates a fucking beast.

    16. MP

      (laughs)

    17. JR

      Aleksandr Karelin.

    18. MP

      (inhales deeply)

    19. JR

      I mean, I don't know if you get... There's two things you don't get that with. Th- there's like substances-

    20. MP

      Yeah, yeah, yeah.

    21. JR

      ... there's a, the, with, for sure taking place.

    22. MP

      Yeah, yeah, yeah.

    23. JR

      And then there's also... There's a, a regiment that they have, both the Cuban system-

    24. MP

      Yeah.

    25. JR

      ... and the Russian system-

    26. MP

      Yeah, yeah, yeah.

    27. JR

      ... where they had figured out the balance between unbelievable hard work, but technical ability and recovery.

    28. MP

      Yeah, yeah. Yeah, yeah, yeah.

    29. JR

      They didn't go meathead style.

    30. MP

      Yeah, yeah, yeah.

  5. 1:00:00 – 1:06:13

    674. …

    1. MP

      "I just wanna be back out there. I don't ca- Just..." And this is why I'm happy to take-

    2. JR

      674.

    3. MP

      Wow! (exhales)

    4. JR

      674 fighters under contract, and they don't have fights every week.

    5. MP

      Yeah, yeah.

    6. JR

      They have fights almost every week, but not every week.

    7. MP

      Yeah, yeah.

    8. JR

      That, I mean, just think about that.

    9. MP

      Yeah.

    10. JR

      So you have 52 weeks. You have all these fighters.

    11. MP

      Mm-hmm.

    12. JR

      Fighters wanna fight multiple times in a year.

    13. MP

      Yeah, yeah. I appreciate that. But I'm MVP, man. Let's go (laughs) .

    14. JR

      I am with you. I'm with you.

    15. MP

      (laughs)

    16. JR

      I always say that I wish I was a matchmaker, but I don't.

    17. MP

      Yeah, yeah.

    18. JR

      'Cause it's the hardest job.

    19. MP

      Yeah, I'm sure. I'm sure, I'm sure.

    20. JR

      Yeah, oh... I used to talk to Joe Silva back in the day when he did it.

    21. MP

      Yeah.

    22. JR

      He fucking hated it.

    23. MP

      Is it? (laughs)

    24. JR

      Dealing with everybody and managers and, and people flake out.

    25. MP

      Yeah, yeah.

    26. JR

      There's been failed drug tests.

    27. MP

      Yeah, yeah, yeah.

    28. JR

      I'm like, "God damn it." And these guys, you know, what, uh, what they're doing right now is very difficult. 'Cause what-... what Mick Maynard and Sean Shelby are dealing with is the volume is so much greater.

    29. MP

      Yeah.

    30. JR

      There's so... And there's so many more really good guys. Like, in almost every division. Like, guys are coming in from the Contender Series-

Episode duration: 2:33:57

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