Everyone loves a good underdog story, and over the past 12 months we’ve seen plenty of memorable examples of fighters delivering major upsets inside the UFC’s Octagon. Truth be told, mixed martial arts is perfectly suited to breeding unexpected outcomes like this due to the sport’s inherently unpredictable and unforgiving nature, where just a single
Everyone loves a good underdog story, and over the past 12 months we’ve seen plenty of memorable examples of fighters delivering major upsets inside the UFC’s Octagon.
Truth be told, mixed martial arts is perfectly suited to breeding unexpected outcomes like this due to the sport’s inherently unpredictable and unforgiving nature, where just a single strike, a momentarily exposed neck or a split-second lapse in concentration can result in even the very best fighters in the world being finished in the blink of an eye.
In this article we’ll count down the 10 most jaw-dropping examples in 2016, shining a light on both up-and-coming fighters who made a mockery of the bookmaker’s odds, and underappreciated stars who confounded the critics to emerge victorious in some of the year’s highest profile fights.
No.10: Bryan Caraway vs. Aljamain Sterling
Aljamain Sterling was a hotly tipped rising star heading into his fight against Bryan Caraway at UFC Fight Night 88 in May, but things would not go according to plan for ‘The Funk Master’ that night.
Sterling had been on the fast-track to title contention after compiling a perfect 12-0 start to his MMA career, including four victories in a row inside the Octagon, leading to him being installed as a –400 favorite to win.
That being said, though he often gets more attention for being Miesha Tate’s long-time partner, Caraway is an experienced veteran who had a 5-2 UFC record at the time, and he’d prove that it was a mistake to overlook him by grinding out a split decision victory to bring and end to Sterling’s unbeaten run.
Although it has been nearly 10 months since reigning UFC middleweight champion Michael Bisping and former longtime titleholder Anderson Silva fought, “The Spider” still feels as if he should’ve won the fight. Bisping, however, was given the decision win. Seemingly not over the decision, Silva took to his official Instagram account today to post a
Although it has been nearly 10 months since reigning UFC middleweight champion Michael Bisping and former longtime titleholder Anderson Silva fought, “The Spider” still feels as if he should’ve won the fight. Bisping, however, was given the decision win.
Seemingly not over the decision, Silva took to his official Instagram account today to post a few pictures of his best shots landed against “The Count”:
A photo posted by Anderson Silva (@spiderandersonsilva) on
What Silva is referring to with his caption is a moment that came near the tail end of the third round when the Brazilian landed a brutal flying knee that dropped “The Count” as the buzzer sounded. “The Spider” celebrated as if he had won, although it was merely the end of the round.
After getting wind of Silva’s post, Bisping fired back, explaining why he felt as if he had won, while also taking the time to blast the ‘fake’ Silva:
Bisping most recently defended his title against Dan Henderson at UFC 204, while Silva is coming off of a loss to light heavyweight champion Daniel Cormier at UFC 200.
Something special went down in the main of last night’s (Sat., June 4, 2016) UFC 199 from The Forum in Inglewood, California. It came in the form of one of, and quite possibly the, biggest comeuppances in UFC history when left-for-the-vultures underdog Michael Bisping knocked out previously touted middleweight champion Luke Rockhold with a pair of
Something special went down in the main of last night’s (Sat., June 4, 2016) UFC 199 from The Forum in Inglewood, California.
It came in the form of one of, and quite possibly the, biggest comeuppances in UFC history when left-for-the-vultures underdog Michael Bisping knocked out previously touted middleweight champion Luke Rockhold with a pair of perfectly-placed left hooks and a flurry of ground shots in the first round.
Bisping was a late replacement for former champ Chris Weidman, whom Rockhold demolished to steal the belt their UFC 194 match-up, and it was clear that the champion was giving “The Count” little respect after battering and submitting him in their first fight in late 2014.
The always brash and cocksure Rockhold had even gone as far as to predict a “one-of-a-kind” knockout of Bisping, while stating that the last man “The Count” defeated, all-time great former champion Anderson Silva “isn’t on his level” and “never was” during an interview on “UFC Tonight”:
“So Bisping was winning, he was dominating the fight, I respect him, but he’s about to find out that Anderson is not on my level. He never was. And this is a completely different fight. He doesn’t know the jump that I’ve made. It’s a completely different fight.”
It was obviously a bold, lofty claim that was rather unsubstantiated considering Rockhold had yet to defend his 185-pound title while Silva had of course racked up a record-setting 10 straight title defenses in the Octagon. Regardless of if the aging Silva is currently on Rockhold’s level or not, however, the main direct parallel that can be drawn from both former champions’ careers right now is that they undoubtedly lost their titles in shockingly similar fashion.
Silva was knocked out in the second round of his first match against Weidman at UFC 162, a game-changing knockout that appeared to usher in a new era of UFC middleweights, and a fight that “The Spider” still hasn’t fully recovered from – and most likely won’t.
After Rockhold battered and bloodied Weidman to win the belt in the co-main event of December 2015’s UFC 194, many, if not most, thought he would be the UFC’s true heir apparent to the middleweight throne after he finished five straight opponents in dominant fashion.
Obviously he has a much different fighting style opposed to the flashy Silva, but overall the belief was that Rockhold would roll through Bisping and pretty much anyone else at 185 pounds, at least for the time being. Yet like Silva, Rockhold also became of victim of his own cockiness, and while it didn’t manifest in the same form of Silva’s nonstop clowning that lead to his loss against Weidman, you could indeed tell he was fighting overconfidently with his hands at his sides and his chin high up in the air against Bisping.
Like “The Spider,” Rockhold got far too sure of himself, and he paid for it in a big way at UFC 199. He’s already claimed that he’l “kill” Bisping in their seemingly inevitable third match-up, but ultimately his air of invincibility was obviously thrown to the ground and stomped on in Los Angeles last night.
What’s next for Rockhold is unknown, but there’s still little doubt that given his overbearing size and athleticism coupled with his technically refined skillset, he can rebound and once again reach the top of the UFC mountaintop. However, last night showed that Silva was indeed on Rockhold’s level quite a bit more than he thought, and it wasn’t for the reason he might have hoped for.
Michael Bisping scored by far his biggest win ever at 36 years old by outlasting former middleweight champion Anderson Silva in the main event of today’s (Sat., February 27, 2016) UFC Fight Night 84 from the O2 Arena in London, England. He may have also taken the most damage he’s ever sustained in a UFC fight
Michael Bisping scored by far his biggest win ever at 36 years old by outlasting former middleweight champion Anderson Silva in the main event of today’s (Sat., February 27, 2016) UFC Fight Night 84 from the O2 Arena in London, England.
He may have also taken the most damage he’s ever sustained in a UFC fight (especially without getting finished), as his face was a bloody mess by the time the controversial judges’ decision was read.
Regardless, he finally emerged victorious in a but against a signature opponent, and with three straight wins, he should be headed for a big fight next. Watch the full fight video highlights of Bisping’s greatest win courtesy of ESPN here:
Anderson Silva lost a unanimous decision to Michael Bisping in the main event of today’s (Sat., February 27, 2016) UFC Fight Night 84 from the O2 Arena in London, England, but it wasn’t without a huge dose of controversy in the bloody back-and-forth war. ‘The Spider’ appeared to have ‘The Count’ badly hurt in the later rounds
Anderson Silva lost a unanimous decision to Michael Bisping in the main event of today’s (Sat., February 27, 2016) UFC Fight Night 84 from the O2 Arena in London, England, but it wasn’t without a huge dose of controversy in the bloody back-and-forth war.
‘The Spider’ appeared to have ‘The Count’ badly hurt in the later rounds after Bisping held the edge in the first two, and many believed the Brit was knocked out by a massive flying knee when he was trying to alert Herb Dean that his mouthpiece had fallen out. But Dean allowed the fight to go on, and ‘The Count’ ended up edging the former champ 48-47 on all of the judges’ cards.
And there are still many people who feel that the fight should have been stopped after that fateful third round. Watch the controversial finish to the frame courtesy of the UFC and decide for yourself:
There was a mix of high-level action, controversy, and blood when Michael Bisping met longtime former middleweight champion Anderson Silva in the main event of today’s (Sat., February 27, 2016) UFC Fight Night 84 from ‘The Count’s’ backyard from London, England. Bisping scored a unanimous decision when the dust had settled, but he didn’t do
There was a mix of high-level action, controversy, and blood when Michael Bisping met longtime former middleweight champion Anderson Silva in the main event of today’s (Sat., February 27, 2016) UFC Fight Night 84 from ‘The Count’s’ backyard from London, England.
Bisping scored a unanimous decision when the dust had settled, but he didn’t do it without looking perhaps the most beaten and bruised he ever has in his long UFC career. Although the brash Brit clearly held the advantage in the first two rounds, ‘The Spider’ turned it on with a ton of huge strikes in the mid-to-late rounds, even seemingly knocking Bisping out with a pinpoint flying knee as the bell sounded on the third round.
But the hometown man won nonetheless, and much of the questionable score could have been up to the fact that Silva failed to engage for much o the fight as he looked for the perfect opportunity to counter. When he did land, however, the results were devastating, and many, including UFC President Dana White, thought he did enough to take the victory.
This one’s going to be talked about for a while. Who do you think should have won the bloody brawl?
