Brendan Schaub
Former UFC heavyweight turned comedian and podcaster who hosts The Fighter and the Kid and the MMA show The Big Brown Breakdown under his Thiccc Boy Studios banner.
Comedy · Instagram · Updated Oct 19, 2026
Brendan Schaub is a former UFC heavyweight from Aurora, Colorado, who left fighting for comedy and podcasting after a first-round loss to Travis Browne at UFC 181 on December 6, 2014, per the UFC’s athlete page. In January 2024 he said he was pulling back from touring stand-up but keeping his podcasts, per LowKick MMA, and in 2025 he moved from Los Angeles to Austin, per the Houston Chronicle. As of October 2026 he is still podcasting: The Fighter and the Kid released episode 1230 on October 15, 2026 with Bryan Callen co-hosting.
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Questions people ask
Who is Brendan Schaub?
Brendan Schaub is a comedian and podcaster who fought as a UFC heavyweight before that. He placed second on The Ultimate Fighter: Heavyweights, per Famous Birthdays, and the UFC lists him as retired under the nickname “Big Brown.” Today he hosts The Fighter and the Kid, a weekly comedy podcast, and The Big Brown Breakdown, a combat sports show, both published by Thiccc Boy Studios with PodcastOne.
What happened to Brendan Schaub? Is he still doing podcasts in 2026?
Yes. As of October 2026 he is still hosting. The Fighter and the Kid released episode 1229 on October 13 and episode 1230 on October 15, 2026, both with Bryan Callen co-hosting, and The Big Brown Breakdown (the feed formerly called Below the Belt and The Schaub Show) posted a UFC 333 preview as episode 545 in mid October 2026. The bigger changes came earlier: he stopped fighting after 2014, stepped back from touring stand-up in January 2024, and moved to Austin in 2025. Each is covered below.
Why did Brendan Schaub stop fighting? What was his UFC record?
His last fight was a first-round loss to Travis Browne at UFC 181 on December 6, 2014, and the UFC’s athlete page lists his record as 11-5-0 at heavyweight. Days after that loss, Joe Rogan and Bryan Callen used an episode of The Fighter and the Kid to urge him to stop, per Bloody Elbow. He pushed back at first, and months later announced his retirement on The Joe Rogan Experience, the same report says. He told Fighters Only in March 2015 that he did not sign up for that conversation but could see where Rogan was coming from.
What happened between Brendan Schaub and Joe Rogan?
On the record, a friendship that survived a hard conversation. Rogan is the friend who told him to quit fighting on The Fighter and the Kid in December 2014, per Bloody Elbow. Schaub told Fighters Only in March 2015 that Rogan “did take it too far” but that the episode “actually made us closer.” We found no reported falling out between them in major or trade press.
What happened between Brendan Schaub and Theo Von?
Theo Von co-hosted King and the Sting with Schaub. By November 4, 2022 the show had relaunched as The Golden Hour, and its premiere episode lists Schaub, Erik Griffin and Chris D’Elia as hosts, with Von no longer part of it. Neither of them has explained the change in anything we could source, and we found no report of a falling out in major or trade press.
What happened between Brendan Schaub and Bobby Lee and Khalyla?
Bobby Lee and Khalyla Kuhn host the TigerBelly podcast. Their disagreement with Schaub played out on podcast episodes, not in the press, and we found no major or trade press report on it, so we do not repeat either side’s claims. As of October 2026 we found no joint project between them.
Why did Brendan Schaub quit comedy?
He did not quit outright. On his podcast in January 2024 he said he was stepping back from touring stand-up after more than a decade, for a personal reason, per LowKick MMA. He ruled out national and international tours for the time being, left the door open to local sets, and said he was not going to stop doing the podcasts, which as of October 2026 he has not.
Why did Brendan Schaub move to Austin, Texas?
He moved from Los Angeles to Austin in 2025, per the Houston Chronicle, which grouped him with other comedians who followed Joe Rogan to Texas. He has not given a reason in anything we could source. What is on the record is that by June 2025 he said on The Fighter and the Kid that he missed Los Angeles: “I miss my community and my routine,” the Chronicle reported.
How old is Brendan Schaub, what is his real name and where is he from?
He is 43, born March 18, 1983 in Aurora, Colorado, per Famous Birthdays. He fought and performs under his own name, Brendan Schaub; the UFC lists his nickname as “Big Brown.” He has lived in Austin, Texas since 2025.
Where can I watch Brendan Schaub?
The Fighter and the Kid on audio platforms and YouTube, The Big Brown Breakdown on Apple Podcasts for UFC talk, and day to day posts on Instagram @brendanschaub, where he has about 1.1 million followers. His fight history is on the UFC’s athlete page.
What is Brendan Schaub’s net worth?
He does not publish a number and neither do we.
What about Brendan Schaub’s family, height, health or personal life?
Not something we cover.
Who represents Brendan Schaub?
We did not find an agency or management listing on any page of his that we could open. His podcasts are published by Thiccc Boy Studios with PodcastOne. Ames Create does not represent him; we cover him because people keep asking what happened to him after fighting and stand-up, and most of the answer is on the record. If that changes, this entry will say so.
Our read
Ames Create does not work with Brendan Schaub. This is our view, from a team that works on creator brands for a living.
The format. Long, loose podcast hangs built on one fixed pairing, Schaub and Bryan Callen, with a guest or co-host rotating in, plus a separate show for straight UFC talk. The fight background gives him a lane most comics do not have: he can break down a card with the credibility of someone who stood in the Octagon.
Why it travels. Volume and routine: The Fighter and the Kid is past episode 1230 and still drops more than once a week, and The Big Brown Breakdown posts several times a week around fight cards. Fight week gives him a built-in reason to post, and every UFC card is new material.
Brand fit. Combat sports, men’s grooming, betting-adjacent fan products and beverage brands fit the fight-talk side of the audience. His shows are unedited and the audience is vocal in both directions, so a brand that wants him should expect the comments to be about him, not the product. Family brands are a harder fit.
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Sources: UFC athlete page; Famous Birthdays; The Fighter and the Kid on Audible; The Big Brown Breakdown on Apple Podcasts; The Golden Hour premiere, November 4, 2022; Fighters Only, March 2015; Bloody Elbow, December 2024; LowKick MMA, January 2024; Houston Chronicle, 2025. Follower counts via Social Blade, October 2026.
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