Being one of the best mixed martial artists on the face of the planet probably gets you a ticket into the UFC.
Being one of the best mixed martial artists on the face of the planet doesn’t make you an automatic qualifier as a fan favorite, though…
Being one of the best mixed martial artists on the face of the planet probably gets you a ticket into the UFC.
Being one of the best mixed martial artists on the face of the planet doesn’t make you an automatic qualifier as a fan favorite, though.
If Brock Lesnar and Tito Ortiz proved anything in their illustrious fighting careers, it was that no matter how dominant they could possibly be, they always managed to rub a good portion of the MMA community the wrong way. Lesnar was hated because of his confidence. Ortiz was hated for his refusal to face the best.
They were champions, and they were woefully disliked.
But if history tells us anything, even being respectful and willing to challenge the best available opponents still doesn’t grant you access into fans’ hearts.
Scroll on through the rest of the slideshow to see what top fighters fans love to hate. To limit the amount of fighters featured on the list, only those within the top five of their respective divisions will be considered.
It’s probably safe to say no one saw that coming.
Riding a win streak of a couple of fights (19 non-Anthony Pettis fights if you want to get crazy with it) and looking like he’d never be far beyond nipping at the champ’s heels, Benson Henderson walked …
It’s probably safe to say no one saw that coming.
Riding a win streak of a couple of fights (19 non-Anthony Pettis fights if you want to get crazy with it) and looking like he’d never be far beyond nipping at the champ’s heels, Benson Henderson walked into Tulsa, Oklahoma, and got himself knocked out.
The culprit, Rafael dos Anjos, is a grappling ace who has developed the type of technique that accentuates his physical tools nicely and just happened to peak in the biggest fight of his life.
Henderson was the victim for a change, falling to 21-4 in his career and finding himself rudderless in the crowded 155-pound waters of the UFC.
Here are three fights to consider for him going forward.
These two met earlier in the year and provided one of the more divisive results in recent history, as Thomson looked to get the better of Henderson for much of the bout, but Henderson’s focus on activity over damage was enough to sway the judges.
Now, the better part of a year later, they’re both in the same place in the UFC anyway: respected veteran contenders coming off surprising losses. Funny how this sport works, isn’t it?
With no obvious solution to the matchmaking problem for either man, why not put them together again and give them the chance to work out their issues one more time? After all, Thomson was so flustered by the loss that he openly pondered retirement, and it was the exact type of decision Henderson gets so often that fans were flustered by it too.
The UFC could do worse than booking these two again.
Michael Johnson
The man who was booked to face Thomson last month on Fox might also be an interesting fit for Henderson, as he pulled out of that bout due to injury but has otherwise been enjoying quite a resurgence in his career.
Finally capable of applying his athletic gifts to the fight game, Johnson matches up well with Henderson in every imaginable way. Every component of the bout would be a pick ’em on paper, the type of fight that could easily serve to create a new star or prove that an old one isn’t ready to burn out just yet.
KhabibNurmagomedov
No one has been itching to fight Nurmagomedov since he joined the UFC, and it’s hard to imagine the lineup to fight Henderson has ever been particularly long either. Though he’s presently out with a knee injury, there’s reason to be intrigued by Nurmagomedov meeting Henderson in a return bout.
Due to the UFC’s schedule, the urgency of booking winners against winners and losers against losers is much less compared to what it was a couple of years ago. There’s also the influence of lightweight champion Anthony Pettis and top contender Gilbert Melendez sitting around until December, when their season of The Ultimate Fighter ends and they can fight for the title.
With that in mind, there’s a good chance that, though he beat Dos Anjos himself and could easily hold claim to a title shot, the unbeaten Dagestan native may need to take another fight when he’s healthy, and that fight should be Henderson.
Almost everyone who’s relevant is either booked or hurt and, at least on paper, Nurmagomedov has never been tested by a name as well-known and dangerous as Henderson. Win that fight, and he proves beyond a shadow of a doubt that he should be next in line for a crack at gold.
Jordan Mein squared off Saturday night against Mike Pyle in the co-main event of UFC Fight Night 49. Pyle was ranked No. 13 going into the fight, while Mein was unranked. That didn’t matter in the end, as Mein scored a TKO in just 72 seconds and won Pe…
Jordan Mein squared off Saturday night against Mike Pyle in the co-main event of UFC Fight Night 49. Pyle was ranked No. 13 going into the fight, while Mein was unranked. That didn’t matter in the end, as Mein scored a TKO in just 72 seconds and won Performance of the Night.
Mein is now 3-1 in the UFC, with two victories by TKO and a Fight of the Night bonus. Back in Strikeforce, Mein went 2-1 with a TKO over Evangelista Santos and a split-decision loss to TyronWoodley. Woodley got a shot at the Strikeforce welterweight title in his next fight.
Mein will likely make the jump into the Top 15 rankings now, which opens up a whole wealth of potential fights for him. Let’s take a look at three possibilities.
Rick Story-Gunnar Nelson Winner
Rick Story is currently ranked No. 15 in the division, and Gunnar Nelson is ranked No. 12. These two are set to square off at UFC Fight Night 53 on October 4. Gunnar Nelson is 13-0-1 and is 4-0 in the UFC with three submission finishes.
Story has alternated wins and losses since June 2012 and is 4-3 in that time. He has scored two finishes and was only finished in one of his losses.
The winner of this fight will likely make a good matchup for Mein to test himself against, as both are established veterans.
Dong Hyun Kim
Dong Hyun Kim also fought on Saturday, although it was much earlier in the day. Kim faced off against TyronWoodley and was knocked out in just 61 seconds. Before that, Kim had been on a four-fight win streak, including two in a row by knockout. In those two fights, he also earned a Fight of the Night bonus and a Performance of the Night bonus.
Kim was ranked No. 10 before his loss, so he will likely be in the bottom five of the rankings along with Mein. Both fighters enjoy striking, so this one would definitely be entertaining with a high potential for a knockout finish.
Rory MacDonald-TarecSaffiedine Loser
In early October, top welterweights Rory MacDonald and TarecSaffiedine will be headlining UFC Fight Night 54. MacDonald has won two in a row and is ranked No. 2 in the division. Saffiedine is ranked No. 9 and is the former Strikeforce welterweight champion but has had only one fight in the UFC, which came back in January.
The winner of this fight will likely be in contention for the next title shot, but the loser will be looking for a solid win to get back on track.
Adding extra intrigue to this potential fight would be the fact that Mein lost his professional debut to Rory MacDonald.
Saturday was quite a day for UFC fans. In the morning, UFC Fight Night 48 went down in Macau with a headliner featuring Michael Bisping against Cung Le in a middleweight matchup.
The co-main event was a welterweight tilt between two young contenders in…
Saturday was quite a day for UFC fans. In the morning, UFC Fight Night 48 went down in Macau with a headliner featuring Michael Bisping against Cung Le in a middleweight matchup.
The co-main event was a welterweight tilt between two young contenders in the division, as former Strikeforce welterweight standout Tyron Woodley faced Dong Hyun Kim.
Then, on Saturday night, UFC Fight Night 49 happened in Tulsa, Oklahoma, with a lightweight matchup between former champ Benson Henderson and Rafael dos Anjos.
Read on to see grades for all 20 of Saturday’s main card fighters.
Rafael dos Anjos pulled off a huge upset Saturday night with his first-round TKO over former lightweight champion Benson Henderson.
Dos Anjos was ranked No. 5 in the division going into the fight, and Henderson was ranked No. 1. This win is sure to mov…
Rafael dos Anjos pulled off a huge upset Saturday night with his first-round TKO over former lightweight champion Benson Henderson.
Dos Anjos was ranked No. 5 in the division going into the fight, and Henderson was ranked No. 1. This win is sure to move dos Anjos up in the rankings, possibly into the top three.
Dos Anjos finds himself in a difficult position now, as there are few fighters ranked higher than him that he could fight next. He will likely have to face an opponent ranked lower in the division, but there are plenty of options that could make for great fights.
Brock Lesnar. Alberto del Rio. Bobby Lashley.
Those are just three professional wrestlers that have dabbled in the world of MMA. They are among the most famous men, due to their runs in WWE and the amount of fights they have actually taken.
There are a…
Those are just three professional wrestlers that have dabbled in the world of MMA. They are among the most famous men, due to their runs in WWE and the amount of fights they have actually taken.
There are a number of pro wrestlers who have tried the fastest growing combat sports, you just don’t know they did it. A lot of them have taken just one or a small number of fights, which is probably why you don’t know they did MMA.
So, here are five pro wrestlers you probably didn’t know that gave MMA a shot at one point.
It’s probably safe to say no one saw that coming.