SUMMARY
- In a recent episode of his podcast, Rogan welcomed Bo Nickal, an up-and-coming prospect in the UFC.
- Notably, Joe made the comparison between PFL, Bellator, and the UFC, declaring his parent company to be the best promotion in the world.
Joe Rogan has been known for his immense wisdom and based takes. Although he does have his mistakes, Joe is mostly a very sound and reasonable person. However, this indirectly may have led to him disrespecting his friend and Hollywood personality, Dwayne Johnson.
In a recent episode of his podcast, Rogan welcomed Bo Nickal, an up-and-coming prospect in the UFC. Speaking to him about his career trajectory, he was happy that Nickal joined the UFC. According to Rogan, having the 27-year-old fight in some other organization would have been a waste, where he wouldn’t get the deserved attention.
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Notably, Joe made the comparison between PFL, Bellator, and the UFC, declaring his parent company to be the best promotion in the world. Similarly, he also made an analogy with the various football leagues in the country. “There’s the XFL, there’s the CFL and then there’s the f******g NFL. If you’re not in the f*****g NFL, are you really playing football?” Here, he indirectly threw shade at the XFL, which is owned by Dwayne Johnson.
Recently, Johnson also made an appearance on Joe’s podcast where the two discussed a variety of topics. Be it the recent Tyson Fury vs. Francis Ngannou fight or other things in the world of MMA, their passion for the sport was well visible. Moreover, the WWE and Hollywood superstar is also tied to the UFC, with his ‘Project Rock’ performance shoes.
Why did Dwayne Johnson buy the XFL?
For those unaware, Dwayne is the proud owner of the Xtreme Football League. Owing to his love and dedication to the game while growing up, Johnson always wished to be an athlete. Despite relative success and a full scholarship from the University of Miami, the Canadian-American was shunned by the NFL.
Thus, ‘The Rock’ embarked on an entirely different journey, finding a home in different fields. However, the pain of not being able to become a football athlete was something that seemingly lived on with him. Thus, in August 2020, Johnson acquired the XFL for $15 million along with partners and investors, including RedBird Capital Partners. Notably, the ownership also includes his ex-wife, Danny Garcia.
According to Johnson, the reason behind acquiring the franchise was to give unnoticed players a chance. Thus, understanding that there are hundreds of other players with a similar story to his, the 51-year-old took the initiative to do something special. As for the XFL itself, the professional football league boasts innovation, fan engagement, and fast-paced action at its core.
Unfortunately, things haven’t exactly gone according to plan since Dwayne’s takeover of the XFL. Over the years, the league has seen losses of $70 million as of 2023. Additionally, after hemorrhaging money for so long, Johnson has also had to make considerable layoffs. Currently, the XFL is on the verge of a merger with the USFL, which is set to bring its own new set of problems.
