SUMMARY
- At the age of nine, Robelis Despaigne started his training in Taekwondo.
- Robelis Despaigne has an impressive Taekwondo record that even Joe Rogan couldn't match.
Robelis Despaigne is a Cuban professional MMA fighter and Taekwondo practitioner who competes in the UFC. “The Big Boy,” aka Despaigne, hails from Santiago de Cuba, where he spent his younger days. Robelis has been associated with combat sports since the very young age of nine. That was when the young Cuban started training for Taekwondo.
Known for his astronomical wingspan, he is hailed as one of the most decorated Cuban athletes in the sport. During the COVID-19 pandemic, Robelis had a change of heart and decided to pursue a career in MMA. Since taking that decision, the Cuban Taekwondo practitioner has not looked back.
He was encouraged by his coach to pursue MMA. After slight hesitation due to the reputation of the sport as a sport where many athletes get knocked out, he eventually made up his mind to give his best in MMA. He started undertaking MMA-based training in 2019, and finally, he made his professional MMA debut in June 2022.
After knocking out Katuma Mulumba at Titan FC 77 on his debut, Despaigne has gone on to fight three more times in MMA. In his subsequent three fights, he has only spent a total of 19 seconds inside the cage as he knocked out his opponents in 12, 3, and 4 seconds, respectively.
He signed a multi-fight contract with the UFC in December 2023, following his 4-second KO against Miles Banks. The Big Boy is all set to make his UFC promotional debut at UFC 299 on March 9, 2024. The 35-year-old fighter will be going up against Josh Parisian in the heavyweight bout in the early prelims. Let’s take a deeper look at his Taekwondo record.
Robelis Despaigne set to make his UFC debut after making his mark in Taekwondo
“The Big Boy” Robelis Despaigne’s greatest achievement is undoubtedly winning the bronze medal for Cuba in the 2012 London Olympics in the 80+kg category. But his Taekwondo journey started many years before that. Robelis started training in Taekwondo at the age of 9, and after just 7 years of practice, he was offered a coveted spot on the national team.
Cuban Heavyweight phenom Robelis Despaigne will make his UFC debut at #UFC299 in Miami vs Josh Parisian
his last three fights have gone a TOTAL of 19 SECONDS pic.twitter.com/Qbt5En5Z0x
— Spinnin Backfist (@SpinninBackfist) January 9, 2024
He held his place on the team for an impressive 15 years. He also bagged bronze medals at the 2013 and 2015 World Championships. Apart from the several other medals that he bagged for his country, his impressive record in the combat sport. According to taekwondodata.com, Robelis Despaigne has a record of 37 wins out of 49 registered fights, with a win percentage of 75.5%.
Furthermore, he has participated in 19 international tournaments while distributing 250 hit points while only collecting 128. In his career, he has won a total of 15 medals in international tournaments. This list includes 7 gold, 2 silver, and 6 bronze medals. Now, after making his mark in the world of Taekwondo, Despaigne is looking to take the world of MMA by storm, especially the UFC.
How does Robelis Despaigne’s Taekwondo record fare against Joe Rogan’s
One name that many UFC fans would relate to the sport of Taekwondo, apart from Despaigne, is Joe Rogan. The famous American UFC color commentator and podcaster was closely associated with the sport growing up. Rogan started taking Taekwondo lessons at the age of 15. He currently holds a black belt in Taekwondo.
Joe Rogan went on to win the Taekwondo State Championships for the State of Massachusetts not once or twice, but four times. It is important to note that he won these four State Championships in a row. Apart from being a State Champion, which is often very challenging, he reportedly also won a US Open Taekwondo Championship at the age of 19 in 1986.
Joe Rogan, though, did not pursue Taekwondo further due to financial limitations and a lack of a potential future in the sport. While these achievements in themselves are quite impressive for someone who did not take up the sport going forward. They are nowhere near comparable to what Robelis Despaigne has achieved in the sport, especially on the international level.