The 411 MMA Top 5: The Top 5 UFC Fights Since UFC 100

The 411 MMA Top 5: Hello everyone and welcome to 411 MMA’s Top 5 List. We will take a topic and all the writers here on 411 wrestling will have the ability to participate and give us their Top 5 on said topic. So, onto this week’s topic…

The Top 5 UFC Fights Since UFC 100

Lorenzo Vasquez III
5. Ronda Rousey vs. Holly Holm, UFC 193 – Sure, there are amazing fights that would fit here perfectly, but I have to put this one in for the sheer shock of things. Some hardcore fans and some pundits knew Rousey was in potential trouble before the first bell rung, but still, the magnitude of the loss was tremendous and it didn’t matter who you picked because the queen of women’s MMA fall and she fall hard and it surprised you, regardless. Holy Holm was a world champion boxer and kickboxer and she could move smoothly around the octagon cutting counters, feinting in and out, circling, etc. Holm, ended the reign of the queen and it is quite possible this defeat is what heads Rousey’s exit from the sport.

4. Mark Hunt vs. Antonio Silva I, UFC FN 33 – Hardly, can two hard hitting heavyweights go for so long, knocking each other into near lapses of unconsciousness repeatedly, like Mark Hunt and Antonio “Bigfoot” Silva did at UFC Fight Night 33. This was a back and forth war with both competitors nearly finishing the other. It wasn’t a technical battle, nor the prettiest, but these two behemoths unleashed some heavy leather for 25-minutes and kept us on the edge of our seats.

3. Jon Jones vs. Alexander Gustafsson, UFC 165 – In light heavyweight title fights alone, this is the best. Jones’ had tasted very little adversity in his UFC career until he meet this tall and lanky Swede. This fight was a war of determination. Gustafsson matched Jones skill for skill—wrestling, takedown defense, striking, you name it. In the end, Jones’ heart and will prevailed but no one has ever seen him tested in the manner in which Gustafsson tested him. Both men left the octagon battered, bloody, and bruised and gave us one of the most memorable fights in UFC history. In fact, I’ll go as far as to say this; if there is one immediate rematch that the UFC should have quickly booked, it was Jones vs. Gustafsson.

2. Dan Henderson vs. Shogun Rua I, UFC 139 – This is one of those fights in which no one lost. It is unforgettable and in the top three best fights of all time. The bout was a gritty but meticulous fight, as meticulous as can be when both fighters are trying to land bombs. Even when things hit the mat the action was still intense and had you sitting on the edge of your seat, if not standing. This is another example of the few times both fighters will leave it all in the cage and run until their either one is unconscious or the final bell rings. It is hard to find words on how great this fight was, indeed, you are better off watching it for yourself.

1. Robbie Lawler vs. Rory MacDonald II, UFC 189 – This fight embodied everything both casual and hardcore fans love about professional mixed martial arts. This fight had it all! Yes, it was a total and brutal war between to warriors who would not stop until they could no longer stand and fire off another punch or kick, but it was technical, brilliant, and filled with grit and heart. Lawler and MacDonald absolutely left it all in the cage and undeniably left a piece of their spirit inside the octagon. Lawler and MacDonald stirring down into each other’s eyes at the end of round four tells the story. It’s just not often you see fighters give so much from the first bell to the last.

Jeffrey Harris
5. Robbie Lawler vs. Rory MacDonald, UFC 189 – It wouldn’t surprise if this makes the list for a lot of fans. Both men gave everything they had here. This fight is the definition of leaving everything in the cage. It was a brutal, bloody battle. It was everything you wanted their first fight to be but just wasn’t. It was close until Lawler was finally able to stop MacDonald in what turned out to be an absolute classic.

4. Jon Jones vs. Alexander Gustafsson, UFC 165 – This was really the most vulnerable Jon Jones ever looked in his career. A lot of analysts and fans were sleeping on Gustafsson, but he showed up ready for war. They fought to a razor close decision. Some fans had it for Gustafsson, and some had it for Jones. The judges ultimately scored the fight for Jones, but it turned out to be a great fight. It’s more proof that no matter how dominant a champion is, you can never sleep on his opponent, whether they are the underdog or not, or whether you think they aren’t as good or on the same level or not.

3. Brock Lesnar vs. Shane Carwin, UFC 116 – I really thought that was all she wrote for Brock Lesnar early into the first round. But somehow Brock Lesnar survived. Shane Carwin ran into a bad gas tank. In his history, Carwin had always gotten by after ending his fights quickly with his heavy hands. He gave Lesnar a beating, but he wasn’t able to finish the job. Lesnar eventually made a dramatic comeback and scored the win. Maybe not the most technically great fight, but man, Lesnar in the UFC was some fun times while it lasted.

2. Benson Henderson vs. Brandon Thatch, UFC Fight Night 60 – I love it when Benson Henderson comes in and just over-performs. Henderson was the former champion and more experienced veteran in this fight. But he opted to come in as the late-notice replacement and face a young prospect in the UFC who was undefeated in the Octagon. Thatch is a tall glass of water, and big welterweight. Was Henderson really making the right decision. Despite having a slow start, the fight started favoring Bendo as it went longer. While Thatch had a size and strength advantage, Bendo had the advantage with speed, cardio and stamina. After having quite a few flat performances, Henderson really showed up for this one. It was such a fun, inspiring fight, and it reminded me of the Henderson who blew me away when he pulled off the upset against Donald Cerrone.

1. Dan Henderson vs. Mauricio “Shogun” Rua, UFC 139 – This is still my favorite UFC fight of all time. This fight holds a special place in my heart as it features two of my favorite fighters of all time who came from the Pride FC era finally hooking it up in the Octagon. Another reason its special is because I covered the fight live and cage side. It was pretty hard to sit still and watch this epic contest unfold over the course of 25 minutes, but it’s an experience I will never forget.

Jonathan Solomon
5. Korean Zombie vs. Dustin Poirier – May 2012

4. Anderson Silva vs. Chael Sonnen – UFC 117 – August 2010 – Had Chael Sonnen not failed his drug test that weekend in 2010, this fight would be held in much higher regard. Had Chael Sonnen not submitted in the closing minutes of the final round and not failed his drug test, this fight could very well be considered the best in UFC history. However, none of that actually happened. If you look at this fight in a bubble, it’s an amazing five-round war between one of the best fighters in his prime and his biggest challenger. This came at a time when Silva was rolling over everyone, and no onlooker could have predicted that Chael would bully him for five rounds with little danger coming his way. This was not Anderson blasting Forrest Griffin. This was not Anderson mocking Demian Maia or Thales Leites or Patrick Cote. This was Chael taking the fight to Anderson, but having the same issues that plagued him for years, finding ways to lose fights he ought to have won.

3. Frankie Edgar vs. Gray Maynard – UFC 125 – January 2011
– Edgar had just come off dispatching B.J. Penn for the second time and had the opportunity to avenge his only loss, to Gray Maynard on New Year’s Day in 2011. This fight is famous because of the beating Frankie took in round one, only for him to persevere and cause the fight to end in a judge’s draw. Unfortunately and amazingly, Maynard was never the same fighter. Counting UFC 125, he was 1-5-1 from 2011 to 2015. Meanwhile, Edgar emerged as a legitimate UFC legend as far as lighter weight fighters are concerned.

2. Robbie Lawler vs. Rory MacDonald – UFC 189 – July 2015 – A war with both men giving everything they had for five rounds and the line in the sand at which point Rory MacDonald physically had nothing left to give was visible. It’s not often you see that in fights at that level, where you can clearly see when one fighter’s heart allows him to win a fight while the opponent just cannot continue at that pace. Rory earned a lifetime of respect for his competitiveness while Lawler cemented his place as the most entertaining fighter of the modern UFC era.

1. Dan Henderson vs. Shogun Rua – UFC 139 – November 2011 – This fight was ridiculous with Henderson controlling the initial three rounds. Shogun mounted his comeback in the final two rounds but Henderson was able to secure the decision win. That sounds like plenty of fights but watch the highlight reel to get a sense of why this fight is arguably the best in company history.

Dan Plunkett
5. Cheick Kongo vs. Pat Barry, UFC on Versus 4 – Clocking in at under three minutes, this fight was short and sweet. Barry, a middling heavyweight that for a time looked like he could make some noise in the division, had the much taller Kongo on the ropes. Only by uncannily remaining conscious and the generosity of Dan Miragliotta did Kongo survive. His brain still boggled and with Barry coming forward, Kongo threw a desperation right hand that that stopped his opponent in his tracks. Then, a right uppercut put Barry down and out, completing one of the most thrilling one-round bouts in MMA history.

4. Anderson Silva vs. Chael Sonnen, UFC 117 – I can’t think of a better example in which the build to the fight and the fight itself told one beautifully cohesive story as this one did. Chael Sonnen talked all of the shit heading into this fight, but he was a dead man walking. After all, Anderson Silva was the greatest, while Chael Sonnen usually found ways to lose in big fights. Still, Sonnen talked the people into the building in Oakland, California and into living rooms worldwide. He proceeded to back up everything he had said in the preceding months, staggering the middleweight champion with an early left hand and taking him to the mat. For four-and-a-half rounds, he beat down the greatest middleweight of all-time as if he was a middling fighter lucky to get a chance to fight Sonnen. Then, the greatness of “The Spider” reared its head as he wrapped his legs around Sonnen’s head and arm. Once again, Silva found a way to win and Sonnen found a way to lose.

3. Jon Jones vs. Alexander Gustafsson, UFC 165 – Speaking of unlikely challengers taking it to the best in their class, Alexander Gustafsson wasn’t expected to bring much of a threat to Jon Jones. Gutsafsson had talent and had shown it, but he hadn’t yet indicated he was in Jones’ league. His first round takedown of Jones, although it didn’t lead to anything significant, signaled he was much more of a threat than previously realized. The two went back-and-forth over five rounds, with Jones getting the upper hand as the fight entered the championship rounds. Jones won a contested decision, but Gustafsson proved himself as a legitimate title threat that day.

2. Dan Henderson vs. Shogun Rua, UFC 139 – Somehow, Shogun Rua survived five rounds in this fight, despite being bombarded with “H” bombs and whatever Henderson calls left-handed punches. Somehow, Dan Henderson fought for four rounds and after the dust and Rua’s blood were cleared, named the victory. Henderson and Rua engaged in five rounds of knockdown-drag out war, the kind fight fans dream about but seldom see. By all rights, it should have been a draw, with Henderson taking three rounds to Rua’s two, with Rua winning a clear 10-8 final round. In the end, Henderson won on the cards. Henderson earned the victory with his gutsy performance, but so too did Rua.

1. Robbie Lawler vs. Rory MacDonald, UFC 189 – What can I say about this fight that the staredown these two had at the end of round four didn’t? This was vicious and brutal, as any picture of Rory MacDonald’s face from the fifth round will tell you. MacDonald had hurt Lawler and not come far from finishing him. After the fourth round, he was ahead on the scorecards, needing just five solid minutes to become the champion. However, by that point the momentum was firmly in favor of Lawler, who fights like a lunatic when the chips are down in the fifth round. The final blow didn’t seem particularly noteworthy, but as MacDonald collapsed, his nose turned to something that would have been served a school cafeteria thirty years ago, the toll of the fight was clear.

Robert Winfree
5. Mark Hunt vs. Antonio “Bigfoot” Silva, UFC Fight Night 33 – This fight is personally divisive. Half of me hates it, half of me loves it. It took me a long time to come to grips with this fight and my partial enjoyment, because I am generally more a fan of technical battles or fights that involve multiple aspects of MMA and in cage adjustments. This fight had very little of that, it had a lot of these two men hitting each other in the face and both refusing to stay down. This is probably the best UFC heavyweight fight, most of them end either too quickly to make it onto the list or simply aren’t worth mentioning. The fight has a tremendous crowd, two hard hitting fighters, several near finishes, and a final result that despite being a draw seems the perfect conclusion.

4. Jon Jones vs. Alexander Gustafsson, UFC 165 – To date the only fight that Jon Jones legitimately almost lost. Alexander Gustafsson was largely over looked coming into this fight, I know at least that I was, yet stepped in for the fight of his life. Jones has essentially admitted to not training hard enough for this fight and Gustafsson made him regret those decisions. These two battered each other with punches, kicks, knees, and elbows for a full five rounds. Jones struggled through the first couple of rounds before coming on strong down the stretch as Gustafsson faded but Gustafsson brought the fight to Jones in a way no one had before or since. The decision went to Jones but many fans still dispute that decision, Gustafsson gained a tremendous amount of star power even in defeat, and Jones finally had to overcome some prolonged adversity.

3. Dominick Cruz vs. TJ Dillashaw, UFC Fight Night 81 – Dominick Cruz absolutely fascinates me. I love watching him fight, I love the technique he uses, the movement, the ability to adjust on the fly, the way he integrates all of the aspects of MMA together, as a fight fan I am enthralled watching him fight. TJ Dillashaw isn’t exactly a slouch either, he fights ambidextrously and is able to string together long effective combinations especially at intermediate distance. This fight was such a wonderful clash of two great fighters, both men adjusting and adapting as the fight went on, both displaying the full arsenal of skills at their disposal. In the end the decision went to Cruz, who reclaimed a title he never actually lost, and a new and wholly unrealistic expectation of fighters coming back from injury was established. I find this find endlessly watchable and very nearly the pinnacle of two skilled technical fighters engaged in combat.

2. Dan Henderson vs. Mauricio “Shogun” Rua, UFC 139 – I’m not entirely sure there are enough words to describe just how awesome this fight was. When 411mania counted down the best MMA fights of all time a few years ago this was voted the second best fight ever. Both Henderson and Rua were legends when this fight happened, at the time both had nigh unbreakable chins, and their collision made the entire MMA world grateful the UFC had recently implemented the new rule that even non-title fights in the main event position would be five rounds. The early fight was all Henderson, he badly hurt Rua more than once and won the first three rounds but then started to fade. Rua came on strong in the fourth and fifth rounds, taking Henderson down and dominating him on the mat. The final decision went to Henderson but this fight helped cement the legend of both men. This fight had momentum swings, violence, decision making from both men in real time, and one of the most invested and raucous crowds possible. This fight misses the top spot on my list by the thinnest of margins for a single, and admittedly personal, reason: this fight should have been a draw. Not giving Rua a 10-8 final round baffles me. And given the quality of these fights some of those minor nit picks make the difference on what is a largely personal list.

1. Robbie Lawler vs. Rory MacDonald, UFC 189 – This fight. This freaking fight. I absolutely love this fight. Robbie Lawler had just become UFC welterweight champion in a somewhat shocking Cinderella story to his career and across the cage was the heir apparent to the welterweight division Rory MacDonald who’d been undeniably impressive during his UFC tenure. What happened in the cage was a glorious violent thrill ride. Lawler had a good opening round but rounds 2 through 4 went to MacDonald, both men battered and bloodied each other, both men had moments of vulnerability, to this day perhaps my favorite moment in MMA is the bloody stare down after the close of the fourth round those two had. Down three rounds with a viciously split upper lip Robbie Lawler came out for the last round and exploited the broken nose of MacDonald with a series of hard punches that finally saw the Canadian’s body unable to respond through the shattered bones in his face. I spent nearly an hour talking about just this fight on the episode of the 411 Ground and Pound radio show that reviewed UFC 189, that’s how interesting this fight was and how much I got invested in it. This fight was remarkable to watch, has been a thrill upon every subsequent viewing, and by the narrowest of margins takes the top spot on this list.

Evan Zivin
5. Mark Hunt vs. Antonio Silva, Fight Night 33 – I usually enjoy fights that tell a story, either in the lead up to the fight or within the fight itself. Sometimes I like fights where the dudes just punch the shit out of each other for the duration of the fight. That’s why I like this one. Maybe’s it’s a little tainted now because of Bigfoot’s drug test failure, but that doesn’t take away how much fun this one was. One of the few instances where everyone was okay with a draw because both fighters displayed the “kill or be killed” attitude he wish all fighters shared because we are a bloodthirsty group of people. Don’t deny it. You watch people give each other brain damage for a living.

4. Robbie Lawler vs. Rory MacDonald, UFC 189 – This is a fight that has really grown on me over time, not that I wasn’t impressed with it as it was happening. Robbie demonstrated how to properly utilize a five round fight as, heading into the fifth round, he was losing on every scorecard. However, the damage was accumulating on the challenger, as Robbie connected on one punch after another to Rory’s face and body until one hard left hand to Rory’s already broken nose caused him to crumple, cementing Robbie’s status as one dude you do not want to mess with. It’s a legendary fight, one that shows you can never count a true champion out, especially when he knows more than we do. Never doubt Robbie Lawler again. Don’t do it.

3. Brock Lesnar vs. Shane Carwin, UFC 116 – BROCK! LESNAR! Seriously, how can you not love Brock Lesnar as an MMA fighter? Sure, he received opportunities out of the gate that he didn’t deserve but he proved pretty quickly that he belonged. It’s entirely possible that he could have reigned over the UFC Heavyweight Division for years if he hadn’t been fighting diverticulitis during his peak physical years. The fight with Carwin was special as it was his return from battling the illness the first time and he was coming back to face the most powerful striker in the company. Carwin knew how to finish fights and finish them quickly and he looked to do that in the first round, battering Brock with one punch after another, but Brock weathered the storm, taking advantage of a gassed Carwin to choke him out with an arm triangle in the second round. It was an incredible performance that really showed Brock’s intestinal fortitude, pun fully intended. Also, Josh Rosenthal reffed this fight. Remember when everyone loved him? Is he still in jail? That was a lot of marijuana…

2. Anderson Silva vs. Chael Sonnen, UFC 117 – The fight that created the legend of the OG from West Linn. We always remember the fights that show a seemingly invincible champion as human and, before Chris Weidman knocked him out, this was that fight for Anderson Silva. Chael took Anderson down and controlled him for four-and-a-half rounds. This came at a time when, not only was Anderson at his best, but he was also annoying the hell out of everybody because of his bizarre fight with Demian Maia at UFC 112. We were hoping for someone to rush into the cage and put Anderson on his ass and Chael did that for 23 minutes. Then, he got caught in the MMA equivalent of a Hail Mary and tapped to a triangle choke. It was quite the emotional ride, as Chael gave the audience 20 minutes to settle into the idea that he could actually beat Anderson and become the UFC Middleweight Champion to seeing it all fall apart right before the end. What a fight. And to think that Chael could have been light heavyweight champion too if Herb Dean had looked at Jon Jones’ toe sooner. What a wild career that man has had…

1. Mauricio Rua vs. Dan Henderson, UFC 139 – Another fight where one fighter rocked the other only for the other fighter to come back and win the fight, but these weren’t just any fighters. This was Mauricio Rua and Dan Henderson, two of the most popular fighters of all time. Two of a very small pool of fighters who found success in Pride and were able to transfer some of that success to the UFC. There are a lot of fights that we don’t expect to be good but end up being good or fights we think have the potential to be good that exceed those expectations. This was a fight we expected to be great and turned out being legendary. We wanted these two men to give us a show and they did exactly that. Both of these men are at their best when they have someone to punch the crap out of, which is what Shogun did to Dan. Unfortunately for Shogun, though, Hendo has one of the best chins the sport has ever seen and survived to control the rest of the fight and win one of the hardest fought 5 round fights in the UFC. This fight was booked right after UFC made the decision to make all main events 5 rounds regardless of whether a title was on the line and this fight proved that to be a genius move, as Rua would have won after 3 rounds but the extra 2 made the difference and turned a great fight into an instant classic. Seriously, can these guys fight again? I mean, only if Henderson isn’t getting the title shot against Michael Bisping, which he totally should? Please?

YOUR TURN KNOW IT ALLS

List your Top Five for this week’s topic in the comment section using the following format:

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