UFC icon Joe Rogan has warned Robbie Lawler that Nick Diaz possess an 'unstoppable will' and a 'chin made of iron' - not that he probably doesn't know that already, that is.
Lawler is all too aware of the danger Diaz poses, having suffered a knockout loss to his fellow American in their first fight in 2004, and will be out for revenge when they meet in a rematch at UFC 266 in Las Vegas.
While Rogan won't be in the commentary booth on Saturday night, he will be sat at home watching with keen interest when Diaz returns against Lawler this weekend.
“Nick Diaz changed the game in terms of his elite cardio,” Rogan told 'The Joe Rogan Experience' podcast.
“He did something that was a new thing and that new thing was, he’s not gonna hit you with a hundred percent power, he’s gonna hit you with 50 percent.
"But he’s gonna hit you twice as much, and you’re never going to get to breathe, and he’s gonna stay on top of you, and he’s gonna talk to you the whole time.
"Psychologically he’s going to disrupt your breathing by constantly hitting you and once he realizes you’re hurt, then he’s digging to the body, then he’s putting it on you.
"On top of that, black belt jiu-jitsu skills, really good wrestling takedown defense, chin made of iron, and unstoppable will.”
'They don’t get tired like everybody else gets tired'
Diaz, 26-9-2 (13 KOs), is a 38-year-old American who stopped Lithuanian MMA fighter Marius Žaromskis in the first round to win the Strikeforce welterweight title in January 2010.
His long-term success, according to Rogan, is down to the fact that he has kept himself in 'insane shape' by competing in triathlons with his brother Nate Diaz.
"Those guys do a lot of triathlons," he added.
"That’s one of the reasons why they’re so durable. That’s why they’re always in insane shape.
"They don’t get tired like everybody else gets tired. They have insane endurance.”
Rogan also has fond memories of Diaz's first fight with Lawler, which took place at UFC 47 back in April 2004.
“The first thing he does when he gets into the octagon, he looks over at Robbie and goes, ‘Stockton, m-----------! Stockton!'” he recalled.
“And then he starts walking around and Robbie was like, ‘What is he talking about?'”
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