UFC heavyweight pioneer Mark Coleman has finally revisited one of his most iconic moments with Joe Rogan.
As a former heavyweight champion, multiple-time tournament winner, and Hall of Famer for the UFC, there is a lot that can be said about “The Hammer” and his time as a pioneer for the sport of MMA. In particular, most people associate him with being the godfather of ground and pound, being one of the first to properly utilize the technique in the sport.
Another, less serious moment that stands out when looking back at the history of Mark Coleman involves his relationship with Joe Rogan. The two have been friends for a long time, but there is one particular video that resurfaces every so often, which shows the two getting into a playful wrestling match that quickly gets blown out of proportion, resulting in a possibly intoxicated Coleman shoving Rogan hard across the room by his throat.
Mark Coleman Left Joe Rogan Shocked
While this video is something that has been around for a while now, Mark Coleman has rarely discussed the interaction with Joe Rogan. However, he was recently asked about it while speaking in an interview with Hannibal TV.
According to his recollection of events, and in spite of the video footage, he says it was Rogan who started roughhousing an apparently sober Coleman, prompting the response of a shove. Moreover, he says that he knows he could have shoved Rogan harder but did not need to because he already shocked the UFC commentator with his strength.
“I met him after the comedy show. Went up and honestly, people say I was drinking, was not drinking, just gave him a hug. You know, Joe Rogan hit me with a real slick arm drag and took my back. All of a sudden, out of instinct, I had no choice but to turn around and face him, and I would say I gave him a gentle push because I could’ve given him a hundred times more,” Coleman said.
“I like having Joe Rogan as a friend. I think he’s cool as hell, I think he’s funny as shit, I think he’s awesome. I heard he was pissed, but no, he makes it very clear no, he just can’t believe how freaking strong I was.”
This is certainly an interesting telling events from Mark Coleman, about the time he almost shoved Joe Rogan to another zip code. It seems pretty clear that it was all in good fun, and even if it got more intense than initially planned, it did not impact their relationship.
This story originally appeared on MMANews.com. Please provide transcription credit with a link to this article if you use any of these quotes.