By Jesse Holland
Special to UFCmania
What started as a freak occurrence has seemingly turned into a spiraling epidemic as the best of today’s UFC fighters are going down in a blaze of eight-sided glory. After the year we’ve had in this sport I must approach every pay-per-view with nervous anticipation. It really is true: Anything can happen.
With that in mind I present my list of the ten greatest UFC upsets:
10. Randy Couture vs. Vitor Belfort: UFC 15
At UFC 15, relative newcomer Randy Couture was set to face Vitor Belfort in a match that many experts compared to the ancient practice of feeding Christians to the lions. Couture had only two fights under his belt while Belfort was 4-0 in the Octagon. Not only was he undefeated, Belfort had four straight (T)KO’s and never had a match go longer than two minutes.
Randy was supposed to be a cakewalk for the invincible Brazilian but it was Couture who earned the TKO stopping Belfort with strikes shortly after eight minutes. They would face off two more times in 2004 but the match that will be remembered in my book is probably their first as it ranks as one of the UFC’s first big upsets.
9. Jason Lambert vs. Renato Sobral: UFC 68
Renato Sobral was widely considered one of the top light-heavyweights in the world and for good reason. Since July of 2002 he compiled an impressive 12-2 record including a ten-fight winning streak.
Like Minotauro Nogueira, who could have been on top for years if not for a certain Russian cyborg, Babalu was second only to Chuck Liddell. His bout against Lambert at UFC 68 was supposed to be a chance to get back to his winning ways.
Lambert wasn’t having it. Talented but unproven, Lambert was coming off a KO loss to Rashad Evans and had a history of falling short against popular fighters like Tim Sylvia and Cabbage Correira. He was expected to follow suit against Sobral but instead stunned the world with a lights-out KO at 3:26 of the second round.
8. Frank Mir vs. Marcio Cruz: UFC 57
Believe it or not there was a time when Frank Mir was the poster boy for UFC heavyweights. He was an 8-1 submission master and a fan favorite long before breaking Tim Sylvia’s arm. After a devastating motorcycle accident kept him out of action for nearly two years, the UFC welcomed him back by matching him against Brazilian cream puff Marcio Cruz.
What was planned as a homecoming quickly turned into a nightmare as the 1-0 rookie put Mir on his back and started raining down elbows until a blood soaked Mir could no longer defend. The fight was mercifully stopped at the end of the first round and Frank’s career would never be the same.
7. Mark Coleman vs. Maurice Smith: UFC 14
Mark Coleman was one of the first true heavyweight goliaths of the UFC using his superior wrestling and ground ‘n pound to lay waste to the entire division. At 6-0 he had already destroyed legends Gary Goodridge and Dan Severn by submission and Don Frye by TKO.
His next victim was UFC newcomer Maurice Smith who was 3-4 with submission losses to Ken Shamrock and Bas Rutten. It looked like an early night for the heavily favored Coleman but instead it became a very long one as Maurice put an end to the era of dominant wresting and scored a unanimous decision after twenty-one minutes of fighting.
The Pete Williams head kick may be the loss that fans remember, but to me the Smith fight was a more shocking upset (and what I consider the beginning of the end). Coleman would never see another victory in the UFC and eventually defected to PRIDE in 1999.
6. Jens Pulver vs. Joe Lauzon: UFC 63
Jens Pulver — like most lightweights — was unwelcome in the Octagon after the UFC decided they were better off without a 155-pound division. Fortunately good sense prevailed and Jens, like the division, was reinstated.
Little Evil was undefeated in the Octagon and his win over BJ Penn was a memorable battle. Now he looked to return to greatness and his ring entrance at UFC 63 looked more fitting for a war hero or a matador than a UFC combatant.
In his first UFC match, unknown Joe Lauzon admitted to taking Jens antics personally. He took out his anger on an unsuspecting Pulver with a brutal KO in the first round. Any thoughts of Jens walking to the title went out with the lights.
5. Chuck Liddell vs. Randy Couture: UFC 43
Appearing for the second time in my illustrious list is “The Natural” and this time it’s for upending the mighty Liddell at UFC 43. Chuck was 12-1 and on a torrid ten-fight winning streak looking as close to immortal as a fighter can get.
In contrast Randy was coming down from heavyweight after getting crushed by Josh Barnett and Ricco Rodriguez. Nearly 40, Randy was seen as not just a huge underdog, but also an aging combatant in a sport that long since passed him by (if they only knew).
For the second time Randy made the critics eat their words as he put an absolute clinic on the bewildered Liddell stopping him with strikes in the third round.
4. BJ Penn vs. Matt Hughes: UFC 46
Matt Hughes was a victory machine. Coming into the Penn fight Matt was 13-0 since 2001 and a staggering 34-3 overall. He was making it look easy and scoffed at the idea of BJ moving up in weight. After all, Penn was a mere pup compared to the welterweight workhorse and Hughes probably took things lightly.
He shouldn’t have. BJ tooled him from start to finish and choked Hughes into tapping in the first round. The look on Matt’s face perfectly summarized what we were all feeling: complete and utter disbelief. He didn’t even notice when the Hawaiian celebrated with a kiss. He was too busy trying to figure out what just happened.
3. Randy Couture vs. Tim Sylvia: UFC 68
After reading this list I wonder how I could have ever picked against Randy. But pick against him I did, as did most, when he came out of retirement to face the hulking menace from Camp Miletich.
Randy’s last dance in the Octagon was grotesquely one-sided, and his return to a weight class that chewed him up and spit him out in 2002 seemed ill-advised and money-driven. Few believed Randy when he claimed to have found a hole in Sylvia’s game and we quietly hoped he would get through the fight void of serious injury.
Once again we looked on in astonishment as Randy dropped The Maine-iac in the opening seconds of round one and continued to punish him throughout the fight. Tim summed it up best after dropping the decision: “He would strike when I thought he would shoot and shoot when I thought he would strike.”
Tim shouldn’t feel bad for having Randy make him look stupid. He’s been doing it to us for years.
2. Mirko Cro Cop vs. Gabriel Gonzaga: UFC 70
I’ll admit it. Part of what makes this upset come in at #2 is the way it ended. Aside from Randy Couture (who looks more and more like a genius with every move he makes) I don’t think anyone gave Gonzaga a real chance at winning.
People may have been open to a decision loss or a freak submission but if you wanted to lay odds on a head kick they would have laughed in your face. Well no one is laughing now as the artist formerly known as #2 in the world is back in Croatia licking his wounds.
Gonzaga was a talented fighter before the bout but his TKO loss to Croat associate Fabricio Werdum made it hard to believe he could withstand the strikes of Cro Cop. Mirko later admitted to having blurry vision courtesy of Gonzaga elbows and never saw it coming. Don’t worry Mr. Filipovic, neither did we.
1. Matt Serra vs. Georges St. Pierre: UFC 69
As if there was any doubt, I present the greatest upset in the UFC and perhaps all of mixed martial arts. Nobody in the world whose last name isn’t Serra gave Matt a chance against an opponent largely considered one of the best fighters in the world today.
With only a submission loss to Matt Hughes on his near-perfect record, GSP represented the new breed of MMA: Young, strong, and versed in all styles of combat fighting with very few weaknesses.
Of course a perfect skill set doesn’t do you any good if you get punched in the head. Serra did everything right, maintained composure, and finished off a rigid GSP in devastating fashion.
This is one win I don’t think even Randy could have predicted.
Here’s a video I made to go along with the post:
94 Comments »
Good stuff.
Great list.
I agree completely with your list UFCMania. A great job by you. If the list was longer than top ten; maybe at number eleven, twelve or thirteen we could put Arlovski losing to Tim Sylvia at UFC 59 and UFC 61.
how about a 170 lb Royce Gracie from brazil pounding on several large men in UFC 1? maybe just more of a surprise than an upset…
i definately agree with your top ten…just to throw a couple more out there that didnt make the list but are close calls…
Sylvia vs Ricco…Ricco was the best heavyweight and considerd unstoppable, then Sylvia in his 2nd fight in ufc Ko him in the first, after making Ricco look ametuer
Terrel vs. Lindland……lindland would have had a title shot, if he wasnt knocked out in 11 secs for terrel in his 1st ufc fight
This one is not an upset per say, but Matt Hughes vs Trigg 2, after Trigg had Hughes in trouble, everyone thought it was gonna be over…then hughes turned the tables…..No other win gave me goosebumps like that one….aside form all of randys
[quote post=”1956″]Terrel vs. Lindland……lindland would have had a title shot, if he wasnt knocked out in 11 secs for terrel in his 1st ufc fight[/quote]
This is a good one. I didn’t think of it.
Maniacs– if you like the story, help us out and digg it:
http://digg.com/extreme_sports/The_10_greatest_UFC_upsets
Sylvia vs Ricco…Ricco was the best heavyweight and considerd unstoppable, then Sylvia in his 2nd fight in ufc Ko him in the first, after making Ricco look ametuer
Terrel vs. Lindland……lindland would have had a title shot, if he wasnt knocked out in 11 secs for terrel in his 1st ufc fight
i agree with both of these lindland is the number 1 rated middleweight terrel is no where near
good list.i definately agree with st.pierre vs serra at no.1.
If I hadn’t myself felt as everyone else did about Couture’s chances against Sylvia then I would have argued that the fight couldn’t possibly have been an upset. How could someone who had proven that they can beat the best, time and time again, be incorrectly favored to lose so many times. But, like you said, for whatever reasons, he was. It doesnt seem rational he’s on the list three times, but somehow he definitely should be.
[quote post=”1956″]Terrel vs. Lindland……lindland would have had a title shot, if he wasnt knocked out in 11 secs for terrel in his 1st ufc fight[/quote]
That should have been 2 or 3. Ya’ll forget an unknown and heavily underdogged Pedro Rizzo v Tank at UFC Brazil. This was to be a showcase fight for Tank, uh-oh.
No one gave Fedor a chance against Nogueira in their first fight either. He was a heavy underdog.
Great list Jesse!
do you consider silva vs franklin an upset?
Great list with great descriptions. I would add one other from recent memory. Anderson Silva beating down Rich Franklin may not have been as huge of an upset since Silva was already an established top fighter, but the way he COMPLETELY DISMANTLED Franklin (who barely put up a fight) was jaw dropping. Franklin looked nearly unstoppable up to that point and the Spider just walked right through him. Keep up the great work!
Great article Jessie! I don’t know if I can ever bet against Couture again.
i consider silva and franklin an upset but the list is good
very good list i wouldnt put this in top ten but diaz KO overt lawler was surprising and definetly the terrel linland… you could even saw david “the crow” cant spell his last name over evan tanner that was crazy… and i would say silva vs franklin wasnt as much an upset but surprising dominance
[quote comment=”45846″]No one gave Fedor a chance against Nogueira in their first fight either. He was a heavy underdog.[/quote]
ufc upsets
Great list, but i disagree with #1 and 2. I think they should be reversed. Dont get me wrong, its a very difficult decision to make, but crocop isnt only #2 in the heavyweight division (at least he was), but probably the “the most feared striker in all of mma.” GSP burst onto the seen not too long ago and hast been a huge name for very long. Crocop has been a megastar for many years, he won the pride OWGP, and is already a legend (in my books).
[quote comment=”45825″]I agree completely with your list UFCMania. A great job by you. If the list was longer than top ten; maybe at number eleven, twelve or thirteen we could put Arlovski losing to Tim Sylvia at UFC 59 and UFC 61.[/quote]
Beating a guy once can be considered an upset, but not twice in three fights.
also i dont know about the babalu fight i thought hed win but i gave it about a 50/50 chance of either of them winning
[quote post=”1956″]GSP burst onto the seen not too long ago and hast been a huge name for very long[/quote]
*hasn’t* been a huge name, my mistake
The Franklin vs. Silva fight has to be a top ten upset. Good one kenpostarfighter; Franklin was considered nearly invincebale, especially after the beating that he handed “The Crow.” Franklin will be champ again, hopefully in October if Silva still has the belt, but it was a major upset considering he was ranked the number one middleweight in the world and one of the top pound for pound fighters, too.
[quote comment=”45853″]do you consider silva vs franklin an upset?[/quote]
NO WAY!
i hope and pray silva doesnt loose the belt at least till 2010. im a big anderson silva fan however i know competition is so tuff now hell lose someday, but i know for sure it wont be by rich franklin. franklin is terrified of silva and he hasnt even watched the tape yet of when he got his butt kicked according to joe rogan
Lindland did get his title shot in UFC 37 against Bustamante. He lost and then Bustamante vacated the title to fight in Pride. That’s why it was vacant for so long.
i dont consider silva over franklin an upset…if you are a huge fan of franklin, like me, you were worried about that fight……..i do think rich can beat him again…kenpostar, the reason he doesnt watch the tape is becuase it wont help him at all when fighting jmac or anyone else besides Silva…in which he will probably watch it
that’s an awsome list and everything was accurate…Silva over Franklin was no where near an upset
That ufc 15 was something special for sure. I admit I was soo shocked!!! That’s when Belfort was trully a phenom.
awesome job, Jesse. I completely agree and if me and you were doctors assessing a procedure I would say: I concur.
CONGRATS!
dont know if it deserves to be on the list but what randy did to tito was pretty shocking. takin him down at will and spankin him an all. oh and does anyone have a link to pulver getting knocked out by lauzon i cant find it
Good list, you could argue endlessly about other fights, that ended in a shocking manner. I don’t know about the order but 1 and 2 are definitely the top two, obviously. I really think being an underdog gives a fighter a psychological advantage especially if the favorite really buys into all the hype about his greatness. All the skills in the world are useless if you get stunned or ko’ed, which can happen when one doesn’t fully respect his opponents striking ability. Gsp could talk all he wanted about serra being such a dangerous opponent, which I think he was saying more out of respect, but doubt he really believed, how could he? Cro cop seemed to have contempt for gonzaga and probably believed he wasn’t worthy to be in the same octagon as him, and look what happened. Gsp and cro cop may be among the best fighters in the world as far as talent goes, but in my opinion are kind of immature mentally. Which is a shame because the mental part of it is extremely important, gsp is young though and experience will probably improve his mental prowess.
[quote comment=”45846″]No one gave Fedor a chance against Nogueira in their first fight either. He was a heavy underdog.[/quote]
its a ufc list dude.
Silva is a much better fighter than Rich.
I really didn’t see the franklin/silva fight as being such and upset, silva was ranked #2 in the world. Franklin losing wasn’t shocking to me, the surprising part was how it ended and riches lame performance.
[quote comment=”45843″][quote post=”1956″] Ya’ll forget an unknown and heavily underdogged Pedro Rizzo v Tank at UFC Brazil. This was to be a showcase fight for Tank, uh-oh.[/quote]
Yeah agree with this one def. And Im kinda surprised Couture vs. Liddell made it to number 5. I know he might have been an underdog, but by that time Couture had proven himself, and was coming down in wait. Pretty good list though, notice how all top 3 are this year. Crazy year for UFC.
good list
I think that Nick Diaz knocking out Robbie Lawler was a deacent upset.
[quote comment=”45892″]Lindland did get his title shot in UFC 37 against Bustamante. He lost and then Bustamante vacated the title to fight in Pride. That’s why it was vacant for so long.[/quote]
Is there anywhere where you can find a history of the belt holders. ON the official UFC site there are the current holders but I think there should be a tree diagram or some sort of history line for each belt.
Could you inform me on where this is? Or, if it does not exist could somebody make one. I think fans would really enjoy this feature
[quote comment=”46030″][quote comment=”45892″]Lindland did get his title shot in UFC 37 against Bustamante. He lost and then Bustamante vacated the title to fight in Pride. That’s why it was vacant for so long.[/quote]
Is there anywhere where you can find a history of the belt holders. ON the official UFC site there are the current holders but I think there should be a tree diagram or some sort of history line for each belt.
Could you inform me on where this is? Or, if it does not exist could somebody make one. I think fans would really enjoy this feature[/quote]
Dude, I TOTALLY AGREE WITH THAT. No organization seems to have anything on the website about the line of titleholders. Drives me crazy trying to do research. Mania, could you be the first to sort this out?
Yeah I agree with the list all the way. GSP/Serra deserves that top spot all the way
I think “The Secret Weapon” Pete Spratt defeating the invincible Robbie Lawler was a huge upset in the UFC. I mean at this time Robbie Lawler was considered to be untouchable and boy did he get shown up.
I agree with the Pulver fight, I honestly do not believe that anyone actually thought Joe La would have the slighest chance.. ever.
Serra vs. GSP is possibly the hughest upset ever I would have had that ranked number 1. Everyone (except myself and New Yorkers) thought Matt Serra was going to get completely dominated. He proved everyone wrong.
I think Matt Hughes vs. Royce Gracie was a huge upset as well, because the way Matt Hughes just dominated Gracie all over the ring and it made Royce just look really bad.
Ken Shamrock vs. Tito Ortiz could be considered an upset because Ken Shamrock back in that time was considered still one of the top notch UFC fighters and Tito manhandled him as well. I am talking about the first fight.
Randy Couture vs. Chuck Liddell 3- I believe that this was the first time that Randy Couture ever got knocked out.
Those are some other possible upsets, people named Franklin/Silva and I agree but you all have made a point about it so no point in repeating.
Shamrock/Ortiz are you kidding me. Not an upset at all, but you may have something with the Spratt fight
I kinda consider these two upsets
Couture vs. Rodriguez - UFC 39
Couture seem well on his way to victory winning most of the rounds, when middle in the last round Ricco finally switches the tide and finishes the legend 3:04 into the 5th round winning the vacant Heavyweight Championship Belt
and
(Frank)Shamrock vs. Ortiz - UFC 22
Ortiz seem to dictate the pace and controlling the fight for the most part, getting takedowns at will and much bigger than Shamrock it seems Frank was gonna lose possibly to a split decision. Then in the 4th round Ortiz begins to gas and is stopped 4:42 in the 4th round, tapping due to strikes to the head. Shamrock retains his (then)Middleweight Championship Belt
[quote post=”1956″]Randy Couture vs. Chuck Liddell 3- I believe that this was the first time that Randy Couture ever got knocked out.[/quote]
Do you mean KOed as in out cold? Cuz Randy’s been TKOed and KOed before.
Spratt v Lawler is a good one.
In other news, for you Herb Dean haters, he fights on the next Cage Rage card in July.
[quote comment=”46038″][quote comment=”46030″][quote comment=”45892″]Lindland did get his title shot in UFC 37 against Bustamante. He lost and then Bustamante vacated the title to fight in Pride. That’s why it was vacant for so long.[/quote]
Is there anywhere where you can find a history of the belt holders. ON the official UFC site there are the current holders but I think there should be a tree diagram or some sort of history line for each belt.
Could you inform me on where this is? Or, if it does not exist could somebody make one. I think fans would really enjoy this feature[/quote]
Dude, I TOTALLY AGREE WITH THAT. No organization seems to have anything on the website about the line of titleholders. Drives me crazy trying to do research. Mania, could you be the first to sort this out?[/quote]
Gentlemen I am pleased to inform you that I am undertaking this assignemnt. Because you demanded it!
YOU ARE THE MAN!!!!!!
[quote comment=”46056″][quote comment=”46038″][quote comment=”46030″][quote comment=”45892″]Lindland did get his title shot in UFC 37 against Bustamante. He lost and then Bustamante vacated the title to fight in Pride. That’s why it was vacant for so long.[/quote]
Is there anywhere where you can find a history of the belt holders. ON the official UFC site there are the current holders but I think there should be a tree diagram or some sort of history line for each belt.
Could you inform me on where this is? Or, if it does not exist could somebody make one. I think fans would really enjoy this feature[/quote]
Dude, I TOTALLY AGREE WITH THAT. No organization seems to have anything on the website about the line of titleholders. Drives me crazy trying to do research. Mania, could you be the first to sort this out?[/quote]
Gentlemen I am pleased to inform you that I am undertaking this assignemnt. Because you demanded it![/quote]
AWESOME!!!
I briefly tried to tie thing up using UFC’s official fight page but it became more & more unclear the further thing went back.
Please let me know when you finish this.
AWESOME
Tito Ortiz vs Randy cature
[quote comment=”46038″][quote comment=”46030″][quote comment=”45892″]Lindland did get his title shot in UFC 37 against Bustamante. He lost and then Bustamante vacated the title to fight in Pride. That’s why it was vacant for so long.[/quote]
Is there anywhere where you can find a history of the belt holders. ON the official UFC site there are the current holders but I think there should be a tree diagram or some sort of history line for each belt.
Could you inform me on where this is? Or, if it does not exist could somebody make one. I think fans would really enjoy this feature[/quote]
Dude, I TOTALLY AGREE WITH THAT. No organization seems to have anything on the website about the line of titleholders. Drives me crazy trying to do research. Mania, could you be the first to sort this out?[/quote]
Ufc Title History
http://www.100megsfree4.com/wiawrestling/pages/other/ufctit.htm
just look on wikipedia
Nick Diaz over gomy
WILL YOU PLEASE PUT SOME NEWS ON BISPING UFC DUDE
THAT BABALU V LAMBURT WAS DEF A BIG OLD SHOCK FOR ME BUT THE MOST SHOCKED I EVER BEEN WAS WEN MIRKO GOT KILLED BY HEAD KICK AND HIS LEG WAS FACING THE WRONG WAY ROUND(atleast thats what it looked like) I WOULD PUT GSP V MS 3,RANDY COTURE V TIM SILVA 2 AND MIRKO CRO COP VS GG 1.
MR UFC DUDE HASNT GOT A F IN CLUE
[quote comment=”46061″]YOU ARE THE MAN!!!!!![/quote]
I AM THE MAN!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Not as massive of some of the upsets but, who would thought Nick Diaz would ever KO Robbie Lawler??? Defo the biggest upset being St.Pierre vs Serra! Let me know your thoughts. Great list though.
What about Frank Mir over Tim Sylvia? Wasn’t Sylvia’s record super stacked at that point in his career? Plus the fact that an arm was snapped.
What about that Ninjitsu guy who was an alternate, who won the tournament at UFC 2 or 3? I’m still slightly annoyed about that.
Just my 2 cents
Nice List though, and an awesome video.
Pe De Pano over Mir was absolutely not an upset in any way shape or form. PDP is perhaps the greatest BJJ player since Rolls Gracie. It would have been an upset had the fight gone the other way.
Thanks jc.
[quote comment=”46250″]Nice List though, and an awesome video.[/quote]
Thanks, anyone who wanted to see the video I made as kind of an afterthought you can check it out at MySpace:
http://vids.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=vids.individual&videoid=2025608016
[quote comment=”46225″]Nick Diaz over gomy[/quote]
ITS A UFC LIST!!
Good list, sucks you had to remind me of the GSP-Serra fight!!! I don’t think I’ll ever get over that one, even if GSP ever fought and defeated Fedor
Here is the list of title holders
http://www.ufc.com/index.cfm?fa=fighter.PreviousTitleHolders
Here is another good source of info on the history of each of the UFC belts…
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_UFC_champions
the history of the belts is easy to find - sherdog and search
[quote comment=”46136″]Tito Ortiz vs Randy cature[/quote]
good one
[quote comment=”46055″][quote post=”1956″]Randy Couture vs. Chuck Liddell 3- I believe that this was the first time that Randy Couture ever got knocked out.[/quote]
Do you mean KOed as in out cold? Cuz Randy’s been TKOed and KOed before.
Spratt v Lawler is a good one.
In other news, for you Herb Dean haters, he fights on the next Cage Rage card in July.[/quote]
Herb fighting is like fat people getting laid - slow and sloppy!!!
ufc mania
why havnt you put any news about bisping on here yet its kind of puzzling,I demand to know what happened to his hand in that fight because there are rumors that he has a serious fracture in his hand and I dont find that hard to believe as you can see in that fight his ground and pound was not exactly pin point acurate and he punched the ground full belt about 100 times in that fight.
Silva walking thru Rich Franklin had to be top ten for sure.
[quote comment=”46639″]Silva walking thru Rich Franklin had to be top ten for sure.[/quote]
Silva was an established star. Most Pride fans figured he was gonna win against Ace. Not really an upset, unless you didnt know who he was.
[quote comment=”46643″][quote comment=”46639″]Silva walking thru Rich Franklin had to be top ten for sure.[/quote]
Silva was an established star. Most Pride fans figured he was gonna win against Ace. Not really an upset, unless you didnt know who he was.[/quote]
YEAH THEY MIGHT OF KNOWN SILVA WAS GONNA WIN BUT HE IS TRYING TO SAY IS THAT IT WAS A TOTAL BEATDOWN,I MEAN THAT WAS SOME BRUTAL SHIT,NO ONE PREDICTED THE FIGHT WOULD BE DECIDED IN THAT FASHION,I BET YOU HAVNT EVEN SEEN IT
NNNNNNNNNNNNOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTT
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kBvNjQMjrC4
The upset specialist getting KOed early in his career. ( Soko ).
http://www.dailymotion.com/relevance/search/herb+dean/video/xzurl_herb-dean-vs-timothy-mendoza
For you Herb Dean haters…
Wow, Herbs a pretty well rounded fighter! I dont think Mendoza had a dominate position once in that fight. NIce kicks too. These are the kind of articles I like.
Imagine Herb dean if he got his arm broke in an arm bar,did you see his face when CCs leg looked like a broken action figure and when the Maine-iac got his arm snapped by old Frank Mir(that shit was soooooooo funny I nearly pished meself)imagine him witnesing a compound fracture of his own arm,I think hed faint.
great list, nice video
great list man!
Great list, but i disagree with #1 and 2. I think they should be reversed. Dont get me wrong, its a very difficult decision to make, but crocop isnt only #2 in the heavyweight division (at least he was), but probably the “the most feared striker in all of mma.” GSP burst onto the seen not too long ago and hast been a huge name for very long. Crocop has been a megastar for many years, he won the pride OWGP, and is already a legend (in my books).
No, GSP should be first hands down. GSP ran through the top guys in his division and absolutly destroyed the champ who was dominate for years, so yes it was to be expected he would beat sera in similar fashion. Cro Cop didn’t run through all the best in his division and he didn’t dominate Fedor and he lost before to grapplers. I wouldn’t even consider it an upset, my money is always on a well rounded grappler vs a pure kick boxer. The only supprise was the way GG won.
what about Nick Diaz’s last fight, he took out the pride champ!
Def gsp losin is biggest upset
[quote comment=”46013″]I think that Nick Diaz knocking out Robbie Lawler was a deacent upset.[/quote]
Yeah, that was very big at the time.
Also, Nick Diaz, after a string of tough losses to Diego Sanchez, Joe Riggs and Sean Sherk was tossed in as fish bait against up-and-comer Josh Neer. But Diaz dominated and choked Neer out. No belt was on the line but that was a solid upset.
I’ll put CC vs. Gonzaga as Number 1 but thats just me.
No disrespectto Matt Serra, but CC was at that time considered to be the number 2 fighter in the wrold and the guy who would steamroll his way to the HW title. I think Dana White Brought him in to make him a champion to bring some prestige back to the UFC HW division.
Well, Dana White succeeded, just now the way he initially intended. CC while KTFOed, is still an elite fighter and Dana has another superstar in Gonzaga. Adding him to the mix, I’ll say the UFC HW division is very respectable and can rival Pride’s minus the Russian Cyborg.