Joe Rogan touts 'f*cking terrifying' Ateba Gautier as UFC's future

Story byFarah Hannoun, MMA JunkieWed, December 31, 2025 at 2:30 AM UTC·1 min readJoe Rogan sees big things for a UFC middleweight prospect. Ateba Gautier, a 23-year-old Cameroonian powerhouse, burst onto the UFC scene with a finish of Yura Naito on Dana White's Contender Series in September 2024. He followed that up with three-straight first-round knockouts over Jose Medina, Robert Valentin, and most recently Treston Vines in the span of seven months. AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementRogan told guest Shane Gillis about former UFC welterweight champion Jack Della Maddalena when he was on the rise, and now he's very high on Gautier (9-1 MMA, 3-0 UFC)."Ateba Gautier, this guy is from Cameroon," Rogan said in a recent episode of his "Joe Rogan Experience." "Oh, he’s f*cking terrifying. He's 185 pounds, 6'4,' built like a Greek God, smokes everybody.