Joe Rogan Hails Islam Makhachev as the Most Complete Fighter: “He could KO you with a head kick”

UFC commentator Joe Rogan has hailed Islam Makhachev as the most “complete” fighter in the promotion right now.

In recent years, Islam Makhachev has firmly cemented himself as one of the best fighters in mixed martial arts. He has been tearing through every opponent that has stepped in front of him, including the likes of Charles Oliveira, Dustin Poirier and Alexander Volkanovski.

At this point, it’s hard to argue against him being the #1 pound-for-pound fighter in the sport. Plus, at the age of 32, it still feels like he’s got a good few years left at the elite level.

Someone who has watched his progression is Joe Rogan. As a commentator who watches many of the elite fighters compete on a monthly basis in the UFC, he has a pretty good perspective on who the best truly is.

As such, this was a pretty big compliment that he gave Makhachev during a recent episode of his podcast.

Joe Rogan praises Islam Makhachev

“If you wanted to really think about who’s the most complete fighter, you gotta say like Max Holloway [or] Ilia Topuria, but Islam Makhachev you got to put at the top as the most complete. He could KO you with a head kick just like Jon Jones… The problem with Jon is unfortunately that shoulder injury and then the uncertainty about moving up to heavyweight.”

Quotes via Sportskeeda

The immediate future is uncertain for Islam Makhachev. On the one hand, he could continue to try and defend his belt at lightweight. On the other, there’s always a chance he vaults up to 170 pounds in an attempt to become a two-division world champion at lightweight.

He has plenty of options and that’s a great position to be in as champ. Alas, while some of his critics will never be on board, it’s getting harder and harder to ignore his accomplishments.