Joe Rogan may have helped Sean Strickland shave a significant amount of time off his recovery from a shoulder injury he suffered ahead of his Khamzat Chimaev fight. ‘Tarzan’ recently took to Instagram to share footage from his visit to Ways2Well, a clinic in Austin, which the UFC middleweight champion revealed was recommended to him by the longtime UFC commentator Joe Rogan.

“Fixing the muscle tear without going under a knife 🙏,” Strickland revealed in the caption. “Real small tear… Joe Rogan got me on this place; he swears by it,” he added in the video. “We’re gonna get back in the cage soon.”

Joe Rogan had initially noticed the 35-year-old was dealing with visible discomfort from his shoulder injury in the lead-up to the Khamzat Chimaev fight at UFC 328 earlier this month. Rogan later discussed the issue during an episode of his podcast following the fight. 

Despite entering the bout as the underdog and carrying the injury, Sean Strickland managed to pull off a split-decision victory over the Chechen fighter, handing Chimaev the first loss of his professional career. Following the fight, Strickland opened up about the severity of the injury, revealing that an ill-advised sparring session with Johnny Eblen led to the damage. 

He later detailed the diagnosis on X, disclosing that he suffered a Type II AC separation, an extended Type V SLAP tear, and partial rotator cuff tearing with tendinosis. While the full extent of the damage remains unconfirmed, injuries of that nature can sideline fighters for several months, or even more than a year in severe cases.

Recovery timelines for those injuries generally range from three to six months with conservative treatment, while surgical intervention can extend the process to anywhere between six and twelve months or longer. 

Although it remains unclear exactly what treatment Strickland is receiving at the Austin-based clinic recommended by Rogan, a non-surgical approach could potentially shorten the recovery window while also helping him avoid the physical toll and lengthy rehabilitation often associated with surgery.

In any case, though, Strickland wasn’t the only one who suffered before his fight. 

Khamzat Chimaev was on the verge of death before the Sean Strickland fight

Former UFC bantamweight champion TJ Dillashaw made alarming claims about Khamzat Chimaev’s condition before his middleweight title fight against Sean Strickland. According to Dillashaw, Chimaev endured a brutal weight cut that pushed his body to dangerous limits ahead of the five-round main event in New Jersey.

“I mean, if I could put it to one thing… like your body will shut down,” Dillashaw told MMA Fighting. “Like you can’t go and lose 10 pounds all at once and not drink enough water to tell your brain and your body, like, ‘Hey, let’s keep losing weight. Let’s keep pushing water.’ If you lose too much of it too fast in one sitting, your body will stop sweating.”

Dillashaw explained that Chimaev allegedly drank far less water than required while trying to lose an excessive amount of weight in a short period of time.

“He drank a quarter of the water he was supposed to drink and then lost four times the amount he was supposed to lose in one sitting, and his body just gave out.”

Dillashaw also revealed that Chimaev considered withdrawing from the fight entirely because of the physical toll.

“And I really believe he was on the verge of death making that weight cut.”

During the weigh-ins for the fight, Khamzat Chimaev did appear overly drained. However, whether this truly affected his performance against Strickland is anyone’s guess. In any case, he has been talking about a rematch with Strickland. But before that, ‘Borz’ has an RAF fight lined up against Dillon Danis on June 13, 2026. 

Joe Rogan appears to have transcended from his role as a commentator to that of a medical advisor. But whether this new treatment ends up helping Sean Strickland is yet to be seen.