“I have been close…” Olympic medalist Jordan Burroughs reveals to Joe Rogan how his wife was the reason behind not receiving potential offers from UFC

Olympic gold medallist Jordan Burroughs in a podcast with Joe Rogan, revealed the main reason behind not making a switch to MMA .

“I have been close…” Olympic medalist Jordan Burroughs reveals to Joe Rogan how his wife was the reason behind not receiving potential offers from UFC

Jordan Burroughs and Dana White(Image courtesy: IMAGO, Twitter)

Two-time NCAA wrestling champion Jordan Burroughs answered a question that many MMA fans wondered about in their lifetime. Burroughs is an elite-level wrestler. He has dominated the sport for a long time. However, Burroughs’ wrestling background makes him a fantastic candidate for an MMA career. In a recent interview with Joe Rogan, Burroughs revealed the prime reason for not pursuing an MMA career or fighting in the UFC.

On the podcast, Rogan started this conversation by asking Burroughs the reason for not making the transition to MMA. To this, Burroughs replied, ” I have been close. But, mostly the lady outside, my wife, Lauren, is the one that talked me out of it. When I graduated from college back in 2011, at the University of Nebraska, wrestling was still in its infancy of marketing and branding and really making it a professional career. MMA was the new kid on the block and it was growing and expanding and we had a lot of our guys transitioning in Henry Cejudo, Ben Askren, Daniel Cormier and so I really thought about it.“

YouTube video

Further, Burroughs revealed how his wife convinced him to cancel his plans to switch to MMA. The wrestling names from Burroughs’ list, like Daniel Cormier, Ben Askren, and Henry Cejudo, made their UFC appearances. Cejudo and Cormier made history in the sport by becoming a double champion in the UFC. In line with that, Burroughs was also set to follow the others to the UFC. However, Burroughs’ wife Lauren asked him to stay back in the sport (wrestling) where it was comfortable.

FS Video

Previously, UFC has approached many top wrestlers like Burroughs. On one such occasion, gold medallist Gable Steveson signed with WWE over the UFC. However, Steveson revealed that UFC was far off in the race to sign him when competing with WWE. Money might become an issue for superstar wrestlers to pursue an MMA career. However, wrestlers like Bo Nickal have transitioned to MMA and UFC. The success of Nickal could inspire more wrestlers to make the switch.

Related: Joe Rogan Height: How tall is the UFC commentator and podcaster?

Jordan Burroughs talks about his wrestling match with Ben Askren

Olympic gold medallist Jordan Burroughs spoke about his wrestling experience with Ben Askren on the Joe Rogan Experience. In 2019, Burroughs and Askren participated in a wrestling matchup at the Hulu Theatre in Times Square.

Ben Askren fought in the UFC and ONE
Ben Askren fought in the UFC and ONE (Image courtesy: Combat world)

In the podcast, Jordan said he had known Askren since 2008. During that year, Askren was on the Olympic team heading to Beijing, while Burroughs was part of a junior world team. Burroughs explained how he was star-struck after meeting Askren. He further revealed on the podcast that he idolized Askren for his illustrious wrestling career.

https://twitter.com/J_Marrero02/status/1125575866975756288

In MMA, Askren has achieved a certain amount of glory. His world championship titles in promotions like ONE and Bellator made him a huge name in the sport. However, his run in the UFC didn’t turn out to be successful. He came to the UFC in his mid-thirties. He could have passed his prime at that stage. Nevertheless, Askren is widely considered one of the best wrestlers who’ve graced the sport of MMA.

In case you missed it!