Joe Rogan, a lifelong martial artist, holds a black belt under Eddie Bravo’s 10th Planet system and another under Jean Jacques Machado in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu. He’s trained with some of the best in the world, rolling with elite grapplers and breaking down techniques with laser-sharp analysis. But despite his deep knowledge and love for the sport, there’s one move that terrifies him: the heel hook.
And he’s not exaggerating. Heel hooks are the grim reapers of leg locks. Unlike straight knee bars or ankle locks, which attack the joints in a more linear way, the heel hook violently twists the knee joint in ways it was never meant to move. By the time a fighter feels pain, it’s often too late—ligaments are already shredded.
So, it doesn’t come as a surprise that Rogan seems traumatized by it. Because those are the stuff of nightmares. “Ripping knees apart, where they’re not going to be repaired… I would imagine if there’s any technique that’s ruined an athlete’s career, the heel hook would probably be number one,” Rogan admitted on the JRE podcast.
The UFC has seen its fair share of gruesome heel hook finishes. In 2020, grappling phenom Garry Tonon took on Yoshihiro Akiyama in a submission grappling event and nearly torqued his knee out of place.
But in MMA, one of the most notorious examples came when Rousimar Palhares terrorized the welterweight division with his brutal leg locks. Known for holding submissions too long, Palhares ended multiple careers, including Mike Pierce’s, who was never the same after suffering catastrophic knee damage in 2013.
Another infamous heel hook moment came when Ryan Hall snatched B.J. Penn’s leg in 2018. Penn, a UFC Hall of Famer and former two-division champion, had never been submitted in his career—until Hall expertly trapped his leg and cranked a heel hook, leaving him writhing in pain and his knee permanently compromised.
So, Rogan’s claims that this could be one of the worst submissions in MMA history gets widely supported by fans and analysts alike. Unfortunately, not all of his statements have the same privilege.
Rogan will not travel to Canada for UFC 315
Rogan has made it clear that he will not travel for UFC events outside of America. However, the fervor with which he has asserted not wanting to travel to Montreal, Canada for UFC 315 might not sit well with a section of the audience.
“I won’t be there, I don’t go to Canada anymore. I’d rather go to Russia”, Rogan said.
“I don’t go to Canada anymore. I’d rather go to Russia.” — Joe Rogan pic.twitter.com/FjHcPlHFPY
— Ian Miles Cheong (@stillgray) March 24, 2025
The statement comes in light of a seemingly ongoing cold-tariff war between the USA and Canada. It also doesn’t help that President Donald Trump has been calling for turning the sovereign country into the 51st state of the United States – something neither Canadian leaders nor its people are really keen on.
This has been leading to the US national anthem being booed at events involving the Great White North. During NHL All-Star weekend last month, Canadian fans booed the US anthem in chorus. The same had been seen at the WWE Elimination Chamber in Toronto, Ontario earlier this month.
