Aussie knockout artist Lucas Browne has sparred with Tyson Fury and gone toe-to-toe with Dillian Whyte, but nobody hit him harder than one former UFC interim title challenger.
Competing in the sweet science for 15 years, Browne amassed an impressive 30-6 record with 26 of his wins coming by way of KO. Along the way, he claimed the WBA Oceania and IBF Australasian heavyweight titles and famously traveled to Chechnya where he defeated Ruslan Chagaev to claim the WBA regular world heavyweight championship.
In May, Browne announced his retirement from the sport following a first-round TKO loss against Hemi Ahio in Perth.
During an interview on the David ‘White Rhino’ Allen YouTube channel, Browne recounted an incident where he found himself sparring against former UFC heavyweight sensation Mark Hunt. According to Brown, ‘The Super Samoan’ walloped him harder than any other boxer or kickboxer he’s ever shared the ring with.
“I sparred with Mark Hunt. I hit him with everything, and he just smiled at me. Then he went, ‘Bang.’ He hit me the hardest I’ve ever been hit in my life,” Brown said. “Without a doubt. He hit me in the forehead, and I went, ‘Wow.’”
Mark Hunt’s UFC Career came crashing down following his fight against Brock Lesnar
After making a name for himself in PRIDE with wins over the likes of Wanderlei Silva and Mirko Cro Cop, Hunt made his way to the UFC in September 2010. Though he came up short in his promotional debut against Sean McCorkle, the New Zealand native quickly bounced back with four straight wins against Chris Tuchscherer, ‘Big’ Ben Rothwell, Cheick Kongo, and Stefan Struve.
Adding a win over Roy ‘Big Country’ Nelson and a majority draw against Antonio ‘Bigfoot’ Silva, ‘The Super Samoan’ scored himself an interim heavyweight title opportunity against Fabricio Werdum at UFC 180. Hunt failed to claim the crown, succumbing to a TKO in the second round. Hunt found the win column two more times before an ill-fated clash with Brock Lesnar brought his UFC career to a crashing halt.
Hunt was properly pummeled by the former heavyweight titleholder at UFC 200, though the fight was later overturned to a no-contest after Lesnar tested positive for a banned substance. Hunt would later sue the UFC, claiming that the promotion knew Lesnar had failed the test ahead of their fight and kept it under wraps until the event had ended.
Unable to make his case, Hunt’s lawsuit was thrown out and he was ordered to pay the UFC $388,235 in legal fees.
Hunt still competed five more times for the UFC, losing four of those bouts before being shown the door. He last competed in May 2022, scoring a fourth-round TKO against Sonny Bill Williams in a boxing bout in Sydney, Australia.