Joe Rogan believes Petr Yan beat Sean O’Malley at UFC 280 last weekend, as the respected pundit questioned the scoring system used in the elite MMA promotion.
Russian Yan fell to a second consecutive defeat in on Saturday in Abu Dhabi when rising bantamweight prospect O’Malley was handed a controversial split decision, winning 29-28 on two of the three scorecards, while Yan was given the fight 29-28 on the other.
Some immediately questioned the scoring, with former two-weight champion Henry Cejudo claiming it was the “biggest robbery in UFC history.”
A viral clip of 29-0 lightweight king Khabib Nurmagomedov expressing his dismay with the development backstage at the Etihad Arena has been seen over 2 million times.
Others, however, have argued that the fight was a close contest and O’Malley did enough to edge it by landing consistent strikes, also opening up a gash near Yan’s right eye with a vicious knee shot.
During the latest episode of The Joe Rogan Experience podcast, Rogan joined the throngs of respected figures in the UFC by backing ex-bantamweight champion Yan, after first evaluating O’Malley’s showing in the biggest test of his 16-1 career.
“He was certainly in it against Petr Yan, who was a former champion, the best in the division, the number one contender,” said Rogan.
“It was a very close fight, and he definitely hurt Petr on multiple occasions. He caught him with that big knee, rocked him. But the question is: How much is the takedown worth? How much is control worth?”
Yan landed some heavy shots on O’Malley and showed off some of the quality which has led to him being described as among the best strikers in the UFC. The Russian also enjoyed significant ground superiority against his American rival.
Rogan, however, questioned the impact of takedowns across the fight while asserting that he still thought Yan did enough to win.
“Takedowns without damage, what is the [value]?” asked Rogan.
“I’m not denying that I thought Petr Yan won, because I did think he won at the end of it, but [it’s] takedowns without damage versus standup with damage, because ‘Sugar’ landed more strikes standing and had big moments.
“Yan had some big moments, too, one big left hand that rocked him. The question is how valuable are those takedowns and how valuable is that top game, that control?
“We’re limited by this 10-point must system,” Rogan said.
“One guy can win a round 10-9 and it can be a very close round, and someone can win a round clearly and it can be 10-9. That doesn’t make any sense to me.”
Yan’s camp has already dismissed rumors that the 29-year-old will terminate his four-fight contract with the promotion early due to perceived poor treatment.
Rogan’s fellow commentator and former two-division champion Daniel Cormier this week suggested that Yan could walk away from the UFC.
Following his win, O’Malley has risen 10 spots up the bantamweight rankings and has replaced Yan as the division’s number one contender.
Yan, who won the bantamweight title in 2020, has now lost three of his last four fights in the UFC and is 16-4 overall in his career.
The Siberian may have to wait for another shot at current 135lbs champion Aljamain Sterling, who won the belt off Yan via disqualification in 2021 and then beat him in a rematch in April of this year in another contentious judging decision.
Reports have claimed that Jamaican-American Sterling will next face former two-weight champion Cejudo at UFC 284 in February.