11 of The Most Shocking MMA Upsets Ever
The Most Shocking MMA Upsets Ever
When two men face off inside the steel cage, the odds can go right out the window. Here are five fights that, if you bet with the majority, you would have lost huge on.
11
Houston Alexander / Keith Jardine, UFC 71
Pretty much nobody knew who Houston Alexander was coming into UFC 71. Keith Jardine had just beaten the crap out of Forrest Griffin at UFC 66 and was the 5-1 favorite going into this fight. Alexander had never fought on the big stage, and at this point in the game was only training part-time, working as a DJ to pay the bills. But once the fight got started, it only took him 48 seconds to pound Jardine down, cramming him with a gigantic uppercut that sent his mouthpiece flying.
10
Rameau Thierry Sokoudjou / Antonio Rogerio Nogueira, Pride 33
Often times, the new kid on the block is responsible for the big upsets. Take this Pride fight - Sokoudjo came into Pride with a meager 2-1 record. Across the cage, "Little Nog" had already made a huge rep for himself, taking out fighters like Alistair Overeem and Dan Henderson. This was obviously an exhibition fight intended to show Pride viewers what Nogueira could do.
And what he could do was get his ass kicked. Sokoudjo nailed him with four kicks and a swift left hook and Nog was on the mat. Alas, Sokoudjo couldn't capitalize on the win, but for one crystal shining moment he was on top of the world.
9
Rashad Evans / Chuck Liddell, UFC 88
It's funny to think that an undefeated fighter could be the underdog, but Rashad Evans wasn't expected to do much against veteran Chuck Liddell at UFC 88. Even though Chuck had a decade on Rashad, the general consensus was that their fight at UFC 88 was going to see the Iceman put Evans's chin to the test.
The first round seemed to carry those predictions forward - Liddell was obviously in control of the fight, landing solid blows despite Evans' superior mobility. But in the middle of the second, the tides changed almost instantly. Chuck went for an uppercut and Rashad snuck in with a thudding right, knocking the Iceman to the mat and winning the match with one thundering punch.
Liddell actually considered retirement after this match, but came back in 2009 for a loss to Mauricio Rua and a loss to Rich Franklin before hanging up the gloves.
8
Fabricio Werdum / Fedor Emelianenko, Strikeforce
If there was one fighter in the word who was truly thought to be unbeatable, it was Fedor Emelianenko. After going a decade without a single loss (minus a hotly contested fight where he was split open with an illegal elbow strike), the Russian sambo master was widely considered the best in the world. Headlining a 2010 Strikeforce show, he faced Fabricio Werdum - an excellent Brazilian jiu-jitsu practitioner who nobody thought could go toe-to-toe with Fedor.
He didn't have to. After being rocked by a few hard punches early on, Werdum went to the mat. Fedor followed him there, making the mistake that led to his first loss in ten years as the superior BJJ of Werdum caught him in an armbar and a triangle choke barely a minute into the match. The audience was flabbergasted as Fedor could do nothing but tap.
7
Matt Serra / Georges St. Pierre, UFC 69
Call me crazy, but I don't think I would have liked to win the prize for the fourth season of The Ultimate Fighter - a match with the incredibly dominant welterweight champion, Georges St-Pierre. But Matt Serra, who had competed in the UFC previously, came out of the reality show with guns blazing for his title shot at UFC 69.
Serra was by far the underdog in this match - although he was certainly a gifted fighter, he also was being pushed as an 11-1 loser by the bookies, which shows how much confidence they had in his ability to overcome St-Pierre's quickness. But for whatever reason, he was able to, landing a powerful hook to the side of the champion's head before punishing him with additional blows on the ground and winning the belt.
6
Seth Petruzzelli / Kimbo Slice, EliteXC
Kimbo Slice - what an enigma. The hard-hitting street brawler was the closest thing the MMA world could get to a mainstream star for a while - people were just so captivated by his mystique that they couldn't wait to watch him kick somebody's ass. The honor was to go to Seth Petruzelli, who had to sub in at the very last minute for an injured Den Shamrock at EliteXC: Heat.
Kimbo was undefeated going into the fight, winning matches not with technique but with sheer power and aggression. Unfortunately, that didn't work against Petruzelli, who took Slice out with a brutal haymaker just fourteen seconds in. Petruzelli took home a cool half million dollars for decimating the promotion's only star, and they folded soon afterwards.
5
BJ Penn / Matt Hughes, UFC 46
Matt Hughes was the inaugural UFC welterweight champion, winning the belt in a dynamic match against Carlos Newton at UFC 34. He woud go on to successfully defend his belt against all comers until stepping in the ring with a Hawaiian BJJ practicioner with a spotty record, BJ Penn. Penn had shown some fire in previous fights - notably an exciting win against Caol Uno - but never seemed able to step up, and everybody thought the dominant Hughes would keep his streak alive.
Penn wasn't even used to fighting at welterweight - he needed to gain poundage to face Hughes, who had already defeated every other contender in the company. After four minutes of exciting action, Penn seized the champ's back with a rear naked choke and tapped him out, shocking the crowd and igniting one of the hottest rivalries in UFC history.
4
Jens Pulver / Joe Lauzon, UFC 63
Jens Pulver was virtually synonymous with the lightweight division in the UFC - he was the first champion, after all, and he defeated all comers with his "sprawl and brawl" technique before leaving the promotion to fight elsewhere. When the company reinstated the lightweight division, it was only right that they'd bring Pulver back to continue his dominance.
His first fight back saw him matched against Joe Lauzon, a first-timer who was considered a 7-1 underdog despite his perfect record and aggressive technique. The general consensus was that Pulver would outstrike Lauzon, who needed to take it to the mat and work for a submission to win. That... didn't happen. Lauzon dominated Pulver for 45 seconds before crumpling him with a wicked left hook and taking the fight.
3
Mirko Filipovic / Kevin Randleman, PRIDE TE 2004
Sometimes these upsets are historically significant - they mark the end of an era for a particular fighter or style. But sometimes, they're just insanely lucky. Kevin Randleman was a former UFC champion, but nobody thought he could stand up to the absolutely relentless assault of Mirko "Cro Cop" Filipovic, who had been just mowing down anybody who stepped to him in the promotion for months.
But one of the most awesome things about MMA is that anything can happen in the ring, and Randleman showed he still could throw fire by taking Filipovic down to the ground and pounding him until the ref stopped the match. The win shocked the audience, who couldn't believe that Cro Cop would go down so fast. Filipovic got the win back in a rematch and Randleman never climbed as high again.
2
Randy Couture / Tim Sylvia, UFC 68
Age isn't necessarily an advantage in the ring - the body can take less and less abuse as it decays, reflexes are slowed, power decreases. So when Randy Couture returned to the UFC after being inducted into the Hall of Fame and retiring, people had already counted the Natural out. Considering he was going to go toe-to-toe with the massive, powerful Tim Sylvia at UFC 68, most observers thought Couture had lost his mind.
But Randy showed the one advantage that age does give: experience. After rocking the 6'8" champion with a mighty punch just seconds into the first round, Couture dominated the entire fight for all five rounds, setting the pace, controlling the lockups and winning his third UFC title by unanimous decision.
1
Frankie Edgar / BJ Penn, UFC 112
BJ Penn was on the good side of the upset calendar earlier on this list, but the fickle finger of fate swings both ways. When Frankie "The Answer" Edgar got a shot at the dominant lightweight champion BJ Penn, people expected a good fight, but nobody thought Edgar would walk away with the belt. Penn was just too good, had too many tools in his arsenal, and was too fast. He'd take Edgar out.
Their fight at UFC 112 was a classic - the two men went head-to-head for all five rounds, with Edgar giving as good as he got. At the end of the match, he'd beaten Penn by unanimous decision. Edgar's strategy showed that a good startegy can win a match, and in his rematch with Penn at UFC 118 he did it again the exact same way, but it wasn't an upset that time.
