You never get a second chance to make a first impression.
Maybe that’s why the big entrance is such an interesting part of fight night. Though obviously secondary to, you know, the fight, a good entrance energizes the fighter and his team, whips the crowd into a frenzy and maybe even psyches out the enemy.
And the biggest part of that entrance is the song. The guy up in row double-Z can’t see your menacing scowl (and neither can your opponent, for that matter), but they can darn sure hear your anthem.
What makes a great entrance song? Clearly, music is completely subjective at the end of the day. In general, a great walkout song pumps you up, but that doesn’t mean that loudest is always best.
Great UFC entrance songs do intimidate, though, as well as offer some kind of a window into a fighter’s personality or style. And, of course, a great entrance song should really be original, because then it’s a signature song, and not just some regurgitation of the leftovers from an old halftime show.
So with all those criteria in mind, here are my submissions for the 50 best entrance songs in UFC history. Lots of weight classes and music genres represented.
Remember that the rankings aren’t directly related to a fighter’s ability or accomplishments, so save the questions about why DeMarques Johnson is ranked above Rich Franklin, and so on.
In some cases, I listed multiple fighters under one entrance song, though in others I only listed the fighter with whom the song is most closely associated.
I attempted to include walkout videos whenever possible, but failing that, I included a YouTube clip of a performance of the song.
Once again, this list is largely opinion-based. So if you’re looking for some kind of definitive formula for ranking walkout songs, then…well, good luck in your continued search. That said, if your favorite isn’t on here, let me know in the comments. And please enjoy.