Joe Rogan Still in Awe of Late UFC Legend Who Put Alex Pereira’s 50-Lb Weight Cut to Shame

UFC light heavyweight champion Alex Pereira left the middleweight division without completing a trilogy against Israel Adesanya largely because the weight cut to 185 pounds became too punishing on his body. To put that into real numbers, Pereira admitted on Ariel Helwani’s show that during his light heavyweight debut, he walked into the arena weighing around 103 kg (approximately 224–225 lb), and even at middleweight he reportedly entered the cage closer to 210 lb. Joe Rogan once described weight cutting as a form of “cheating that everybody agrees to,” and while nearly every fighter does it, the toll can be brutal.

Although his exact walk-around weight isn’t officially known, Alex Pereira is reportedly around 230 pounds. That meant cutting more than 50 pounds to make middleweight and still trimming close to 30 pounds at light heavyweight. It’s a staggering number by any standard. But according to Joe Rogan, there’s an even crazier example out there. So, what is it?

Alex Pereira’s weight cut looks tame compared to this UFC legend

During a recent episode of the PowerfulJRE podcast, as Joe Rogan and his guests sat down to watch the UFC Paris card, they reflected on some of the most extreme weight cuts in MMA history. The discussion began with Gordon Ryan, who was stunned by Alex Pereira’s ability to make the middleweight limit. “The craziest thing to me is Pereira making 85,” Ryan said. “He’s taller, longer, and bigger than me in every way, and I thought, ‘how the f–k does this guy make 185?’”

Joe Rogan agreed but quickly shifted the spotlight to another name, Anthony “Rumble” Johnson. Calling him “the craziest one,” Rogan reminded his guests that Johnson once fought at welterweight despite walking around as a heavyweight-sized athlete. Bryan Callen backed this up with his own story from filming Warrior with Johnson, saying, “He was 235 and he fought at 170… it was the craziest sh-t ever.” And crazy? You bet it was.

Johnson himself had admitted how dangerous that cut was. At one point, he revealed that his walking weight was around 210 lbs while fighting at 170, and before facing Dan Hardy, back in 2011, he entered camp at 230 lbs. “Back in the 170 lbs days… Thank God that’s over with! I’m surprised I didn’t hurt myself trying to make that weight,” Johnson once said, adding that he felt “extremely blessed” no lasting damage occurred.

The conversation then turned somber as Rogan and his co-hosts remembered Johnson’s passing in 2022. Rogan asked about the cause of death, with Callen recalling it might have been related to his liver. Rogan later clarified, “Organ failure due to complications from non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma, a rare immune disorder.”

That weight-cutting narrative underscores how exceptional Pereira’s own regimen is—yet also how dangerous it can be to push the body to such extremes. In a sport where every pound matters, the physiological and long-term health trade-offs often go unseen by casual fans—but echo throughout the locker room.

Bryan Callen added that Johnson had known about his illness for some time. Brendan Schaub also paid tribute, recalling how gifted Johnson was in training: “He came into our gym in his prime… we asked if he was right or left handed, and he said, ‘literally, whatever you want to do.’” Rogan summed it up with sadness: “Yeah. Terrible. And then he died like shortly after. Crazy.” Anyway, with his setback against Magomed Ankalaev at UFC 313 still fresh, will he be able to chase redemption in a UFC 320 rematch?

Alex Pereira claps back at ‘Too Rich’ criticism

On The Ariel Helwani Show, the veteran journalist asked Alex Pereira, “There have been people that sort of implied that, ‘Oh, you’re too rich now, you don’t have the hunger, you don’t have the drive, you’re too successful! You see this stuff? What is your response to them?” Pereira fired back with a savage reply: “So, if that was like that, I should’ve lost before, because I was already rich before that fight.”

Pereira’s story is well-known. He rose from the Brazilian favelas, endured a troubled life, and eventually earned the status of UFC champion while building an estimated net worth of $4 million. Naturally, some feared his career might drift into inactivity like McGregor’s. But the truth is, Alex Pereira had already become both wealthy and a superstar even before stepping in to fight Magomed Ankalaev. Now, after a well-deserved break, he returns to action in Abu Dhabi. However, it hasn’t only been fans raising questions about his motivation.

Fellow fighters have weighed in too, suggesting ‘Poatan’ may have lost his edge after earning too much money.  Pereira recounted, “Someone joked that since I’m rich, I must’ve lost my fire. That guy—you know who—lost to Johnny Walker. So I said, ‘He’s rich!’” His wit—sharp as his left hook—served as a reminder that money isn’t the measure of a warrior’s will.

Now, as Pereira rematches Magomed Ankalaev at UFC 320, the pressure mounts once more. A Poatan with renewed physical alignment and unrelenting desire? That’s a recipe for storytelling gold.