One might argue that combat sports are a way for people to fight legally. Some might say that some sports are just brutality, with mixed martial arts always carrying that burden. What can we say? Whilst some of us enjoy the elegance of golf, others enjoy the brutal fight that UFC brings to the table. Some people look away when a UFC fight is on and cannot wait to start betting on the league using gambling sites not on Gamban.
As the weekend drags in, we think about upcoming MMA fights that we just cannot miss with great bouts coming up, and some including championship fights. Of course, when a fight night comes on, we all make predictions, with the conversation always stemming to who is the most feared UFC fighter of all time?
4 Most Feared UFC Fighters
Now that the glory days of Khabib Nurmagomedov are over, we have some other feared MMA fighters to look forward to. The ones with the hands and feet of steel and the ones that we dub submission legends. Let’s break down some of the most celebrated, feared, and upcoming fighters.
Jon Hess
Jon Hess is an American Mixed martial arts (UFC) fighter that promotes San Soo Kung Fu in America. He has also founded Scientifically Aggressive Fighting Technology Of America, which teaches the foundations of the hardcore bloodsport.
Whilst many UFC fighters are known to be clean fighters and do not violate the rules of the games, Jon Hess is not one of them. The brutal fighter joined the ranks of UFC in 1996 with a clash against Andy Anderson. With the fight lasting a mere 1 minute and 23 seconds, Hess inflicted many blows to Anderson, gauging his eyes and other violent actions in the ring. Defending his actions after the violations, Hess stated that UFC has always promoted a no-rules platform, to which the latter advised that the sports do have a set of rules that if unfollowed, will be penalized with sanctions, violations, and potentially banning. Thankfully for all UFC fighters, Hess was stopped in his 2nd UFC fight and never returned to the octagon again.
Mauricio “Shogun” Rua
Some fighters are just feared due to the heavy knockouts they inflict on their opponents. Strength plays a massive factor in this, keeping in mind that MMA is almost deemed a bare-knuckle compared to boxing.
Mauricio Shogun Rua is one UFC fighter that bestowed some heavy KOs on his UFC opponents. The fighter is celebrated for his KOs by his fans yet massively feared by his counterparts and UFC peers.
https://twitter.com/TheCutManMMA/status/1483489343561949184
The vibe at a UFC fight night is always heavy yet cheery when Rua was due to take the octagon. Fans knew very well that the Rua is the one fighter that has it all, solid feet and stronger hands. Enough that allowed him to cause some heavy UFC upsets, including the fights against Quinton ‘Rampage’ Jackson, Hirosmitsu Kanehara, Akihiro Gono and Cyrille Diabate.
Always being a favourite with the bookmakers, Mauricia Shogun Rua was an easy winning bet if you like betting on the best UFC fights.
Anderson ‘The Spider’ Silva
Anderson Silva, dubbed “The Spider” is a retired MMA fighter that rose to fame with boxing and UFC. Adding to the Brazilian fighter’s prestigious record with a 16 consecutive fight reign, Silva was UFC’s middleweight champion and, of course, feared by many.
Entering the octagon with Silva was hard for any UFC fighter. Especially when UFC Dana Owner comes to sing Silva’s praises and dubs him the biggest UFC fighter of all time. Being a master in Boxing, Muay Thai, and taekwondo has helped Silva land some of the biggest KOs and upsets in UFC history. When Silva entered the octagon, there was no mercy for the opponent from start to finish, with Silva averaging a 60% landing hit rate upon his rivals. Apart from this, Silva was also known for his defence stances, and how he dodged strikes during MMA fights helped him counterattack and inflict serious damage to other fighters.
Luckily, all the UFC fighters during Silva’s tenure and UFC’s reign came to a halt when Silva retired from UFC and focused mainly on boxing.
Conor McGregor
Conor has a Notorious tattoo splashed across his chest, and he could not have gotten better ink to portray his character. He is an Irish fighter known for throwing in some drama antics both outside and inside the octagon.
To start, McGregor is known to have a bit of a loose mouth, and his pre-fight antics and comments even get him fined at times. His fight against Khabib at UFC 229 was just a media circus that erupted into total chaos. All thanks to McGregor’s mouthy comments.
The notorious bad press did not stop there, as McGregor continued on his rampage by punching an old man who refused to take a whiskey shot with him, attacking the bus carrying his opponent Khabib, throwing and broke and fan’s mobile phone when asked for a picture memento, and even entered the octagon to talk to the referee when he did not agree with a fight outcome and stoppage.
People might not fear Notorious much these days, following his massive foot injury that left him out of UFC; however, he is feared in other ways like for the unthinkable that he could do at any given time. He has no limits and acts upon instinct in many situations. His actions are a product of a “why not” attitude, and that is something that everyone fears.
Who knows if McGregor will return to UFC, and what tantrums or drama the Irishman will bring to the table?