On a recent episode of JRE MMA Show #177, podcast host Joe Rogan sat down with John Rallo, Matt Serra, and Din Thomas for a conversation about mixed martial arts. During the conversation, one of the exchanges centered on a question Rogan found genuinely difficult to answer: who has the best jiu-jitsu in the UFC right now?
Rogan brought up the dilemma himself, explaining how the answer becomes complicated when you consider recent results at the highest level.
“Here’s what messes my head up,” Rogan said. “If you [put a ] g*n to my head said to me who do you think has the best jiu-jitsu in MMA right now? My head would go Charles Oliveira.”
Matt Serra immediately agreed, indicating he had been thinking along the same lines. However, Rogan was quick to acknowledge the contradiction that makes the debate so tricky.
“But Islam Makhachev finished him on the ground,” Rogan continued. “So how can I say that right? So it messes my head up because I’m like, if you think about like elite expressions of jiu-jitsu on the ground, like one of the most dangerous guys off his back, Oliveira.”
Rogan then expanded on why he still views Oliveira as one of the most dangerous submission threats in the sport.
“Oliveira is so dangerous everywhere,” he said. “If he gets on top of you, you’re done. I mean, it was just that Max Holloway‘s defense is so tight and he’s so tough that he didn’t get finished, right? A lot of dudes would have been out there in that first round.”
Later in the conversation, Rogan revisited the first meeting between Islam Makhachev and Arman Tsarukyan, suggesting that Oliveira’s style might have produced different results in a similar matchup.
“If the scoring was correct, I think Oliveira would have beat him in that match,” Rogan said, “because Oliveira threatened him with submissions. A couple times. Like that to me is more valuable than holding a guy down.”
