Modern fighters. The best mma fighters
Mixed style fights are gaining more and more popularity, and ratings of fights between the best fighters attract a huge audience of viewers. There are many different promotional organizations, each with their own rules and their own stars. However, today most of the strongest athletes perform under the auspices of the UFC, which has absorbed its most serious competitors and has great financial resources.
Ukrainian kickboxer in MMA
Igor Vovchanchyn began his great sports career before the heyday of the UFC and made his mark with fights in the Pride promotion. As a child, he was involved in athletics and boxing, then he took up kickboxing seriously, becoming a world champion by the age of twenty. Short for this sport, Igor Vovchanchyn compensated for this deficiency with speed and sharpness, crushing his competitors. In 1995, he first began participating in mixed style fights.
In 1998, the Ukrainian signed a contract with Pride, and in two years of performances in the cage he became one of the best MMA fighters.
In 2000, he was invited to participate in the Grand Prix, where he managed to reach the final. Here the strongest American, Mark Coleman, was waiting for him. Vovchanchyn was exhausted after a tough semi-final match, while Coleman finished off his opponent in the first seconds of the fight, so he lost in a stubborn battle.
In the following years, the Ukrainian alternated successful fights with failed ones. The fight with the legendary Mirko Filipovich stands out. The meeting between two kickboxers ended with a powerful blow from the Croatian with his left leg, which knocked out Vovchanchyn. Having completed his career, Igor did not leave MMA and opened his own fight club.
People from completely different sports come to mixed style fights. For example, one of the best MMA fighters of the 2000s can easily be considered a former Greco-Roman wrestler.
Dan Henderson competed successfully as a classical wrestler and even represented the United States twice at the Olympic Games. Having improved his boxing training, he began to compete in mixed style fights.
The American was one of the UFC's first star fighters, winning the UFC 17 tournament in 1998, then performed extensively in other promotions. He achieved particular success in Pride and Strikeforce, repeatedly collecting world titles from these organizations.
However, Dan fought his main fight in 2011 at the age of 40, when he knocked out the previously unbeaten Fedor Emelianenko, becoming one of the best mixed style fighters of all time.
Few people are capable of becoming a world champion at the age of 43. Randy Couture was born back in 1963, and during his youth no one had heard of mixed style fighting. At this time he was engaged in Greco-Roman wrestling, achieving excellent results at international tournaments. In the mid-nineties, the already aged athlete made the daring decision to engage in fighting without rules and quickly broke into the ranks of the best fighters, becoming the champion of UFC 13 in 1997.
The star fighter repeatedly clashed with the management of the promotion, constantly moving to other organizations. Despite this, by the age of 43, he managed to win the UFC world title five times and entered the hall of fame as the oldest champion.
Randy Couture has victories over such powerful fighters as Kevin Randleman, Tito Ortiz, and Chuck Lidel. He fought his last fight at the age of 46 in 2009.
Connor McGregor
Among the best fighters in the world, the magnificent Irish athlete stands apart. Connor McGregor competes in the lightweight category, but many authoritative publications include him in the top five UFC fighters, regardless of weight.
The Irishman holds the world title, and another star athlete is eager to meet him - Khabib Nurmagomedov.
Connor McGregor has a very spectacular and unconventional style of fighting. A specialist in martial arts, he excels with his legs, crushing many opponents with his “twirls.” At the same time, his fighting range is very wide, he hits hard with both hands and works well in a boxing stance.
He works especially hard on wrestling and has already achieved the right to a brown belt in jiu-jitsu.
His spectacular style of fighting, as well as his eccentric behavior outside the cage, make McGregor one of the most popular fighters; his fights are sold out like hot cakes by viewers of pay cable channels.
Khabib Nurmagomedov
Dagestan is famous for its freestyle wrestling school and is becoming the homeland of the best mixed style fighters. These include Khabib Nurmagomedov, who ranks 13th in the UFC rankings, regardless of category. In his lightweight division, he is considered the best after the legendary McGregor, a fight with whom he is diligently seeking.
Unlike the Irishman, Khabib is a wrestling specialist; he twice became the world champion in combat sambo, grappling, and pankration. In 2012, he began competing in the UFC.
He was inactive for two years due to injury, but despite this, he managed to fight 30 fights, winning all of them.
Nevertheless, Khabib also has weaknesses. Apparently, he is not entirely comfortable with the light weight confines, which is why he has to work hard to cut weight before fights. Just after such preparation, he recently felt unwell before the fight with Tony Ferguson, and the fight was postponed.
Stipe Miocic
The American fighter of Croatian origin firmly holds the UFC world heavyweight title. Many analysts recognize him as the absolute best fighter, regardless of weight category. Before joining mixed martial arts, he successfully practiced boxing and wrestling, in particular winning the prestigious Golden Gloves tournament, and was also a Division I NCAA wrestler. This explains his invulnerability both in the standing position and on the ground. A fighter without weaknesses rarely gives his opponent a chance to show his strengths.
The formidable Croatian has victories over Fabio Maldonado, Andrei Orlovski, and Fabricio Werdum. In 2015, Stipe Miocic set a unique achievement in a fight against Mark Hunt, inflicting 361 blows on him. This fight was recognized as “Beating of the Year” by the UFC.
Miesha Tate
Another American beauty is one of the best female MMA fighters. For several years, fans watched with admiration the confrontation between Ronda Rousey and Miesha Tate in the bantamweight division. Just like her main rival, Misha was especially good at choking and painful techniques. At the youth level, she practiced freestyle wrestling, won regional competitions, after which she began to compete in mixed martial arts fights, immediately becoming one of the best fighters. Over and over again knocking over her opponents with her lightning-fast passes to the legs, the American even earned the nickname “Takedown” among fans and specialists.
Her confrontation with Ronda Rousey was especially epic. She met her twice in the fight for the championship belt and lost twice.
Finally, Miesha Tate fulfilled her cherished dream by defeating Collie Holm in the title fight, but did not hold the title for long, losing to the dangerous Brazilian Amanda Nunes.
Ronda Rousey
The list of the world's best MMA fighters would be incomplete without representatives of the fair sex. Former bantamweight world champion Ronda Rousey occupies a special place here. She practiced judo professionally and was already on the US Olympic team at the age of seventeen.
In 2008, Ronda Rousey won the Beijing Olympics in brilliant style. Having won everything she could in amateur sports, the strong girl decided to test herself in mixed style fighting. In the octagon, she made full use of her judo skills, and for many years none of her opponents could match her killer submission techniques.
In her twelve UFC victories, she used the elbow lever, which was her signature move, nine times. From 2012 to 2015, she held the world bantamweight title. A real sensation was her defeat in 2015 from Collie Holm, who managed to keep her dangerous opponent at a distance and knocked out Ronda in boxing style.
A year later, she tried to regain the title of world champion, but again ran into an unyielding opponent with strong striking training. Amanda Nunes managed to break the legendary American and won by technical knockout.
Modern mixed martial arts are increasingly taking on the form of an entertainment show, which is beginning to prevail over the sports component of MMA. The leadership of large organizations is increasingly paying attention to the bright image of a fighter and his charisma, rather than to his fighting qualities. If you know how to speak well, don't get flustered in front of the camera and can easily insult your opponent, then, all other things being equal, your chance of getting a big fight or getting to the title doubles.
It is not surprising that in these realities, one of the important factors for the promotion of a fighter and the development of his career is the number of subscribers on social networks, no matter how funny it may sound. If millions of people follow you on the same Instagram, they see you every day on the screens of their devices, scrolling through their feed in the morning, which means they will know when your next fight is and, at a minimum, they will be interested in the result of this fight. In fact, in the age of information technology, subscribers are the liveliest audience and its number directly affects the financial success of a fighter. As you may have guessed, today we will talk about the most popular fighters on the Internet.
10. Paige VanZant
Instagram: 1.9 million
Twitter: 300 thousand
Total reach: 2.2 million
Our ranking opens with the cutie from the UFC flyweight division, Paige VanZant. Not many people follow her on Twitter, but her Instagram audience is almost 2 million people, which makes sense: most people are more interested in VanZant's racy photos than her tweets. Two million is not bad for a girl with a 4-3 UFC record. The charismatic 24-year-old gained her greatest popularity when she was riding a three-fight winning streak in the UFC, but then lost to Rose Namajunas in a veritable bloodbath. However, Paige's popularity level has not dropped, quite the opposite. The reason for this is that after the first defeat, the athlete took part in the American television project “Dancing with the Stars”, and not only took part, but won the final of season 22. Some time later, VanZant released an autobiographical book in which she admitted that she was a victim of gang rape at school. Great PR. Since then, Paige's popularity on social media has increased, as has her breast size, following silicone implant surgery.
9. Daniel Cormier
Instagram: 1.8 million
Twitter: 700 thousand
Total reach: 2.5 million
In ninth place is the greatest UFC fighter regardless of weight categories, light heavyweight and heavyweight champion Daniel Cormier. DC has fewer Instagram followers than Paige VanZant, but has surpassed her in Twitter followers. The two-weight champion and his career, information about which often appears on Twitter, are followed by many people. Daniel Cormier's Instagram is all about belts, belts, training, training, and more training. Oh yes, and some family photos. It is worth noting that Cormier gained the lion's share of popularity after winning the heavyweight championship belt in a fight with Stipe Miocic. Until this moment, Cormier was not in the top ten.
8. Jose Aldo
Instagram: 2 million
Twitter: 900 thousand
Total reach: 2.9 million
Jose Aldo has an obscenely large following on Twitter. His tweets are read by more than 900 thousand people, most of whom are probably Brazilian. He gained a significant part of this audience in 2015, during a fierce confrontation with Conor McGregor, whom only the deaf had not heard of at that time. Hundreds of thousands of Brazilians subscribed to their compatriot out of patriotic convictions, in the hope that he would defend the honor of the country in a battle with the arrogant Irishman. Didn't defend it. Now the popularity of the Brazilian ex-champion in social media. networks has faded significantly, and in the UFC they no longer pay as much attention to him as before.
7. Nate Diaz
Instagram: 2.6 million
Twitter: 1.1 million
Total reach: 3.7 million
In seventh place is the infamous UFC fighter from Stockton, Nate Diaz. And again, not without the help of Conor McGregor. It's no secret that Diaz gained the lion's share of his current popularity (quite deservedly) by strangling Conor McGregor in 2016, inflicting his first defeat in the UFC. However, the Diaz brothers were already popular in the states. More than a million people read the younger Diaz's stoned tweets. Nate, every now and then, will say something that is then discussed by the whole MMA world. Show up at a press conference for an upcoming fight and then tweet "I will not fight on this show. Fuck the UFC!" - it's his style. In almost all the photos on Instagram, Diaz shows off with his training buddies, and Diaz has practically no eyes in these photos.
6. Georges St. Pierre
Instagram: 2 million
Twitter: 1.95 million
Total reach: 3.95 million
Georges St-Pierre is a true superstar in Canada. Even those who are not even close to the UFC know him there. St. Pierre is one of the greatest fighters in mixed martial arts history, so it would be surprising if he wasn't on this list. Despite being retired, the former UFC welterweight and middleweight champion remains one of the most popular fighters in the world. His kindness, respect and human simplicity appeal to many fans, so it is not surprising that two million people follow him on Instagram and almost the same number read his Twitter. On Instagram he has a lot of ordinary photos from training, but his legendary status also means that on his account you can find other, more interesting photos, with no less legendary people.
5. Jon Jones
Instagram: 3 million
Twitter: 2.05 million
Total reach: 5.05 million
Jon "Bones" Jones surpassed Daniel Cormier this time too. The former light heavyweight champion opens the top five. Jones' total follower count is twice that of Cormier. Jones is quite a controversial figure in the MMA world. On the one hand, he is a phenomenal fighter who destroyed all the opponents he faced in the cage and became the youngest champion in UFC history. The other side is marred by Jones' legal troubles, failed drug tests and a penchant for drinking and drinking. Jones' Instagram is full of cool workout videos and motivational quotes, from Gandhi to the Bible, while at the same time replete with "candid" messages to all his haters.
4. Anderson Silva
Instagram: 2.9 million
Twitter: 7.9 million
Total reach: 10.8 million
And in fourth place in the ranking is the first and only fighter whose Twitter audience exceeds the audience on Instagram, almost three times as much. It is not clear what is causing this gap. Last year, “The Spider” failed a doping test for the second time, which led to the cancellation of his fight against Kelvin Gastelum. Silva's suspension ends this November, so the legendary former middleweight champion is set to return to the Octagon this year and aims to fight Conor McGregor. Despite his problems with the anti-doping agency USADA, Anderson Silva remains one of the most exciting, outstanding and memorable fighters in the history of mixed martial arts. Judging by his Instagram, Spider simply loves to train and play airsoft.
The world of mixed martial arts is very extraordinary and is developing rapidly, attracting more and more new fans. There have been many fighters who quickly rose in the rankings, taking titles in record time, and there were also falls. Nobody knows what the rating will be in 5 years, but at the moment we can highlight the 10 best fighters in the entire history of MMA.
1 Fights: 42 / Wins: 37 / Losses: 5
The first line of the rating is occupied by the Russian hero – Fedor Emelianenko. A fighter who prefers a throwing style, as he is an international master of sports in judo and sambo. “The Last Emperor” has many awards and has competed in very famous MMA tournaments. In addition, he became the world champion in mixed martial arts four times and won the title of Russian champion in combat sambo nine times. Also recognized as the best heavyweight in the world of mixed martial arts. He had a fairly long series of fights without defeat lasting almost 10 years. During his MMA career he fought 42 fights. Came out as a winner 37 times, a loser 5 times.
2 Fights: 46 / Wins: 32 / Losses: 14
Dan Henderson, nicknamed “Hollywood,” takes honorable second place. A fighter who works very well on the ground prefers the style of Greco-Roman wrestling. He competed in heavy and light heavyweight. An athlete who has won a huge number of titles. Became MMA champion in Brazil, became a two-time champion of the Pride organization in the middle and welterweight divisions. He also became the Strikeforce champion three times. And one of his biggest awards is his UFC championship. “Hendo” is still continuing his career and has only had 46 fights so far. He won 32 and lost only 14.
3 Fights: 87 / Wins: 76 / Losses: 10 / Draws: 1
Professional fighter Igor Vovchanchyn took third place. Master of sports in boxing and kickboxing. He competed in heavy and light heavyweight. "Cold Blooded" won the world kickboxing title in 1993. He was also a finalist in many European tournaments and a winner of numerous Ukrainian combat tournaments. In addition, Vovchanichin performed in the famous Pride organization. Throughout his MMA career he had 87 fights. At 76 he left the octagon as a winner, but lost only 10 and one fight ended in a draw.
4 Fights: 42 / Wins: 34 / Losses: 8
Of course, this top could not do without the black Brazilian “Spider” – Anderson Silva. A virtually unbeatable UFC fighter who is incredibly good at both sides of the ball. He set a record for title defenses in the organization (10), as well as the longest series of fights without defeat (16). Became a middleweight champion and is considered one of the greatest fighters in MMA history. During his legendary career, he fought 42 fights and won 34 of them and lost 8. One fight did not take place due to failed doping tests.
5 Fights: 29 / Wins: 21 / Losses: 8
The brutal American kickboxer Chuck Liddell occupies sixth place in the ranking. A fairly strong fighter from the USA competed in the light heavyweight division, and quite successfully. He became the world champion in MMA and won the championship title in the Pride fighting organization. He had 29 fights throughout his career, of which he won 21 and lost 8.
6 Fights: 54 / Wins: 45 / Losses: 9
This rating could not remain without such a fighter as Matt Hughes. The American wrestler spent his career in MMA quite successfully, starting from his university years. And once he entered the professional world of MMA, he began performing in the welterweight division, where he won the championship title in the most famous fighting organization, twice. For his achievements he was inducted into the United Fighting Championship Hall of Fame. He left the octagon victorious in 45 fights and lost only 9.
7 Fights: 28 / Wins: 26 / Losses: 2
Seventh place is taken by the strong Georges Saint-Pierre. The Canadian fighter is considered one of the best fighters in the history of the UFC and MMA in general. He has been recognized more than once as the best Canadian athlete for his achievements. A very versatile fighter who works well both standing and on the ground (Black Belt in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu). He has the UFC welterweight title under his belt. He successfully carried out 28 fights in the octagon, of which he emerged victorious in 26 and lost only 2.
8 Fights: 30 / Wins: 19 / Losses: 11
In eighth place is the athlete Randy “Captain America” Couture. He was a master of sports in Greco-Roman wrestling, so he worked well on the ground. The American heavyweight won the championship title at the age of 33, defeating Maurice Smith in the title fight. He was also the light heavyweight champion. And throughout his fighting career he was a five-time UFC champion. He fought 30 fights in the octagon, winning 19 of them and losing 11.
9 Fights: 23 / Wins: 22 / Losses: 1
Black American fighter from the United Fighting Championship (UFC). He competes in the light heavyweight division, having a huge arsenal of techniques. A fighter ideal in almost all aspects of combat. Before his arrest, he headed the list of “pound-for-pound” fighters. And one of his biggest achievements: he became the youngest fighter in the UFC organization to receive the light heavyweight championship belt. At that time he was only 23 years old. But due to the arrest, the belt was taken away. In 2015, after serving his sentence, he returned to MMA, where he won his first fight after returning to the Octagon. During his young career, he fought 23 fights, won 22, and lost only one. He also won the world title in Muay Thai.
10 best MMA fighters in the world. Why is Cormier better than Khabib?
What is a p4p rating?
To put it simply, pound for pound ratings are perceived as rating fighters from different weight classes, who are compared as if they all weighed the same and were considered potential opponents. When comparing, current achievements, potential, subjective impression and anything else are taken into account - right down to charisma and integrity of the image. We studied the ratings of the top 10 fighters in the world from the sites Sherdog, Tapology, Fightmatrix, ESPN, MMAweekly and UFC (since the five previous ratings included only UFC fighters) and compiled a summary top ten.
10. Henry Cejudo (USA)
31 year; over 56.7 kg; 13 wins, 2 losses
What did you do: freestyle wrestling
Short: the first Olympic champion to become UFC champion. Cejudo had two attempts - against one of the most dominant UFC champions, Demetrious Johnson, and on the second, Cejudo defeated Johnson, who had previously defended the title 11 times.
9. Stipe Miocic (USA)
36 years; over 93 kg; 18 wins, 3 losses
What did you do: baseball, wrestling, boxing
Short: about everyone who comes next, by default you can write “he hits well, fights well.” Miocic gave the impression of a big, strong, smiling man who worked as a fireman, until it turned out that nature gave him such data with which he could beat perhaps the best kickboxer, grappler and boxer in the UFC in two years. Miocic became the most successful heavyweight in the promotion's history, defending the title three times and losing only to Daniel Cormier. You will meet him on the first line.
8. Georges St. Pierre (Canada)
37 years; up to 77.1 and up to 83.9 kg; 26 wins, 2 losses
What did you do: karate, wrestling
Short: obviously the most controversial position in the ranking. Georges St-Pierre returned to the UFC last November after a 47-month hiatus and promptly beat middleweight champion Michael Bisping. Given that St-Pierre's previous career has been outstanding - a welterweight championship and 9 title defenses - he could well be in the top 10, but at the moment St-Pierre is not saying anything about continuing his MMA career and, It’s possible that it will go away completely. It is important that he is not in three of the six rankings studied, but MMAWeekly, for example, puts the Canadian in second place, and if you consider him as an active fighter, this is very easy to accept.
7. Robert Whitaker (Australia)
27 years; up to 83.9 kg; 20 wins, 4 losses
What did you do: karate
Short: Whitaker remains one of the UFC's most enigmatic champions, but also one of the youngest men on the list of the best fighters on the planet. Probably one balances the other. He has an aggressive striking technique, an excellent ability to endure in the cage and carry out long fights, but so far his frequency of appearances is rather alarming: two fights each in 2015 and 2016, one each in 2017 and (most likely) 2018 .
5-6. Demetrius Johnson (USA)
32 years; up to 56.7 kg; 27 wins, 3 losses
What did you do: wrestling, pankration
Short: Johnson defended the UFC title 11 times, and no other champion has more defenses. Unfortunately, the flyweight division brought the fighter to the flyweight spotlight, and even two confrontations with Olympic champion Cejudo and a passion for computer games did not make Johnson more popular. He is now on the UFC's doorstep as part of a trade deal with One FC.
5-6. TJ Dillashaw (USA)
32 years; up to 61.2 kg; 16 wins, 3 losses
What did you do: struggle
Short: Usually, when talking about top fighters, they cite some amazing winning streaks, but Dillashaw was the one who broke such a streak. He once beat Renan Barao, who came into the fight against Dillashaw on a 32-fight win streak. Bookmakers multiplied their bet on Dillashaw by 10 if he won.
In the last two years, TJ has focused on facing off against heavily tattooed former teammate Cody Garbrandt, winning both times. Dillashaw also sparred with boxer Lomachenko, and he communicates well with Sergey Kovalev.
4. Tyron Woodley (USA)
36 years; up to 77.1 kg; 19 wins, 3 losses
What did you do: struggle
Short: Woodley won the title by confidently knocking out the reigning champion, but after that he began to upset him. His next three fights ended in judges' decisions. Just when it looked like the UFC could solve the problem with the help of a new champion, undefeated Liverpudlian big man Darren Till, Woodley confidently dealt with him, submitting Till in the second round. Woodley's mom personally reassured the young challenger after his defeat.
3. Khabib Nurmagomedov (Russia)
30 years; up to 70.3 kg; 27 wins, 0 losses
What did you do: wrestling, combat sambo
Mentioned but not included
The UFC's ranking includes Conor McGregor, and this can be interpreted as a political decision: if you have a fighter who brings in the maximum amount of money from fights, it is strange not to advertise him with your own resource.
MMAweekly.com is the only site that offered two girls to consider: Chris Justino and Rose Namajunas.
Tony Ferguson was also mentioned - his fight with Khabib has already failed four times, but we would be ready to wait for a fifth attempt.
About Khabib
It is difficult to assess Khabib’s third place; in the last two fights he was initially considered the obvious favorite, and this, on the one hand, is an indicator of class, on the other hand, it will generate distrust in his achievements. His competitors in this ranking more often won battles when bookmakers doubted their choice.
But if you imagine Khabib weighing 100 kg, you can break your head about their fight with Daniel Cormier: with an equal fight, Khabib’s endurance would be traded for Daniel’s ability to knock out, and then you can start arguing. At the same time, Cormier’s candidacy does not raise any questions among any of the publications: he is first in six out of six cases.
The fight between Cormier and Derrick Lewis will be the central event of UFC 230. It will take place on November 3 in New York (in the morning of November 4, Moscow time). You can watch the live broadcast of UFC 230 on the Match TV channel. The broadcast starts at 5:00 am (Moscow time) on November 4.
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Mixed martial arts (MMA) is arguably the fastest growing sport in the world, and it continues to attract new fans every day. Despite the fact that this sport is only 25 years old, during this time there have been many great champions who have become famous throughout the world. It's entirely possible that a list like this will look very different in another 25 years, but it's still quite interesting to look at and pay tribute to the 10 greatest fighters of the moment.
10. Georges St. Pierre
With the recent defeat of Anderson Silva, St-Pierre became the most undefeated MMA champion. Georges is still in his prime and it seems like no one will be able to stop him anytime soon. He is, without a doubt, the best fighter in the welterweight division and he fights his fights like no other - he overwhelms his opponents with excellent physical conditioning and fighting skills. He has been participating in the most difficult tournaments of the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) for many years and has 24 victories and only 2 defeats, and for those he subsequently took revenge. He has won the UFC welterweight tournament twice and currently holds the record for most decision wins with 11. He is also tied with Matt Hughes for the most wins in UFC history with 18.
Both of these records will most likely be broken by Georges himself soon, and most fans are eagerly awaiting this moment. Considering how strong Georges looks and his young age, it’s hard to even imagine what other records he will set.
Important victories: Sean Sherk, B.J. Penn (x2), Matt Hughes (x2), Josh Koscheck (x2), Matt Serra, Jon Fitch, Dan Hardy (Dan Hardy), Jake Shields, Carlos Condit, Nick Diaz.
9. Anderson Silva
“The Spider” recently lost his title to the younger and stronger Chris Weidman, but he remains one of the best fighters in the octagon. The Brazilian fighter holds the record for the number of fights in which he defended his championship - 10 fights in a row. For every fan that Silva has won, there will be someone who will remind you that the fighter lost in five fights to lesser-known opponents and will accuse Anderson of actually starving himself in order to remain in one of the weakest divisions in the UFC - middleweight. Despite all his opponents, the facts speak for themselves - he is a truly good fighter.
Important victories: Rich Franklin (x2), Dan Henderson, Forrest Griffin, Chael Sonnen (x2), Vitor Belfort.
8. Randy Couture
It’s not for nothing that Randy Couture is called “Captain America” and “The Natural.” If anyone can challenge Chuck Liddell for the title of the most popular fighter in UFC history, it's Randy. During his illustrious career, he became a three-time UFC heavyweight champion. Randy also became the first fighter to hold titles in two different divisions in the UFC when he won the light heavyweight division. He is also the most decorated fighter in UFC history - a five-time champion. Despite all his amazing achievements, he will always be remembered for his victory over boxer James Toney, who said he would show everyone that Couture and MMA in general were a sport for soft, untalented boys. If anyone looked mediocre and soft after their fight, it was James Toney.
Important victories: Vitor Belfort (x2), Maurice Smith, Kevin Randleman, Pedro Rizzo (x2), Chuck Liddell, Tito Ortiz, Tim Sylvia, Gabriel Gonzaga ( Gabriel Gonzaga), Mark Coleman, James Toney.
7. Chuck Liddell
Chuck was to MMA what Babe Ruth was to baseball, Michael Jordan was to basketball, Tom Brady was to American football and David Beckham was to football - a MEGA STAR. It is no exaggeration to say that he is currently the most popular UFC fighter of all time and, perhaps, one of the best fighters overall. He became the light heavyweight champion by defeating Tito Ortiz and defended his title four times in two years. Unfortunately, his prime was short-lived and he suffered several disappointing defeats towards the end of his career. However, Liddell's heyday was one of the most impressive periods for MMA. According to some, he was the most famous fighter in UFC history and helped bring MMA to the attention of the American public.
Important victories: Jeff Monson, Kevin Randleman, Guy Mezger, Vitor Belfort, Renato Sobral (x2), Alistair Overeem, Tito Ortiz (x2), Randy Couture (x2), Vernon White (Vernon White), Wanderlei Silva (Wanderlei Silva).
6. Bas Rutten
“Handsome” is another fighter who made an invaluable contribution to the development of the sport at the time of its inception. Dutchman Bas had a black belt in karate and was a professional kickboxer who successfully transitioned into the world of MMA. He had the right size, looks and style - all of which helped him become one of the most formidable champions of all time. He became the UFC heavyweight champion and finished his career with an impressive record of 22 fights without defeat. During his time in the UFC, he became widely known for his favorite tactic, the liver attack, which routinely paralyzed his opponents. Rutten's charisma both in and out of the ring helped him become one of the sport's first stars. Although he is still involved in sports (though now as a commentator), he has also appeared in several films and became a game character.
Important victories: Vernon White, Maurice Smith (x2), Frank Shamrock (x2), Guy Mezger, Tsuyoshi Kohsaka, Kevin Randleman.
5. Royce Gracie
Could “The King of Submissions” compete with modern UFC fighters? Most likely not, but that doesn't change the fact that Royce was a beast back in the day when MMA was just taking its first tentative steps towards the fans, and Gracie will forever remain one of the pioneers of the sport. Fans will never forget the endless hypothetical questions and dialogues in which Royce was always one of the possible options: "Royce Gracie vs. Mike Tyson" or "Royce Gracie vs. Alexander Karelin."
In fact, from the time when Royce was at the peak of his career, he would hardly have succeeded in anything, but this does not mean that his role in the history of sports should be belittled. Royce is the first inductee of the UFC Hall of Fame and winner of the first, second and fourth UFC tournaments and he was the one who popularized Brazilian jiu-jitsu in the United States and Europe. He will forever remain in the annals of sports history.
Important victories: Art Jimmerson, Ken Shamrock, Dan Severn, Kazushi Sakuraba.
4. Matt Hughes
Hughes was one of the sport's first superstars and the most dominant welterweight champion until Georges St-Pierre came along. He was inducted into the UFC Hall of Fame and won the UFC welterweight title twice. He successfully defended his title seven times, a then-record, and he still holds the record for the most wins in the UFC, tied with GSP.
At the peak of his career, Matt was considered the best pound-for-pound fighter, and he was literally unbeatable. Along with JSP and Anderson Silva, he is one of the best champions in UFC history.
Important victories: Carlos Newton (x2), Sean Sherk, Royce Gracie, BJ Penn, Georges St-Pierre
3. Dan Henderson
Words cannot describe the greatness of Dan Henderson. He is without a doubt one of the best and most durable fighters of all time and what's even more impressive is that he still fights today's younger fighters.
Henderson is one of the few men to become superstars in both the UFC and Pride Fighting Championships. The former Olympic wrestler spent most of his career fighting in the welterweight and middleweight divisions, but won titles in three different divisions. He won 17 UFC tournaments in the middleweight category, and became the first fighter to win the Pride championship in two weight categories (welterweight and middleweight). He also holds the Strikeforce Light Heavyweight Championship and the RINGS King of Kings 1999 title. He has won more organization titles than any other fighter in the world.
Important victories: Antônio Rodrigo Nogueira, Renato Sobral, Vitor Belfort, Wanderlei Silva, Maurício Rua and Fedor Emelianenko.
2. Igor Vovchanchyn
Igor is the best example of the word “underrated”. He is the man with the longest winning streak of all time (37) and at the peak of his career he was one of the best fighters of all time. Igor was also one of the shortest heavyweight champions (174 cm), which makes his records and achievements even more impressive.
Important victories: Kazushi Sakuraba, Mark Kerr, Valentijn Overeem, Adilson Lima (x2).
1. Fedor Emelianenko
The Last Emperor, The Terminator, The Russian Experiment: Simply put, Emelianenko is the best mixed martial artist of all time. The peak of Fedor Emelianenko's career cannot be compared with anyone else, and if anyone who participated in combat sports can compare with him, then it is only another Russian - Alexander Karelin.
Fedor remained undefeated for ten years and 32 fights, and suffered defeats only when he became relatively old and was not in the prime of his strength, and the opponents to whom he lost would probably have suffered crushing defeats if the fight had taken place a couple of years earlier. He was the heavyweight champion for an astonishing 10 years and nearly killed several Pride and UFC champions along the way. He has arguably defeated more champions than anyone in the world and is considered by most experts to be the king of MMA.
Important victories: Renato Sobral, Semmy Schilt, Heath Herring, Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira (x2), Gary Goodridge, Mark Coleman (x2), Kevin Randleman, Mirko Filipovic, Mark Hunt ( Mark Hunt), Matt Lindland, Tim Sylvia, Andrei Orlovsky, Choi Hong-man, Jeff Monson, Pedro Rizza.