Over the past years many people have posted on threads and forums stating guys that the UFC needs to bring in. Alot of the guys talked about have never fought in the UFC and may struggle inside the octagon (see Mirko Cro Cop, don't worry Kevin, I mention him on the list).
I've decided to make a list of popular fighters that have competed in the UFC before, not all of these guys may have been unstoppable in the UFC, but they are big moneymakers and some have made a name for themselves in other promotions.
1. Josh Barnett- You can't help but love this guy. "The Baby Face Assassin" is the only guy in MMA that uses "stare-down" time to have a conversation with his opponent. Who can forget this classic before his 3rd fight with Mirko Cro Cop, "You got a eyelash right here... no, I'm serious, right here... no, that eye". I would pay 60 dollars just to see this guy do this to Gabriel Gonzaga. Now to get to his fighting prowess, he has just 5 losses in his MMA career, 3 to Mirko, 1 to Nog, and one to Pedro Rizzo. He even has a tko victory over Randy Couture, and the best part is, he's only 30 years old.
2. Robbie Lawler- He is currently ranked as the 4th best middleweight in the world and has only lost once since his departure from the UFC. Since leaving the UFC he has gone on to win the ICON Sport middleweight title twice and the Elite XC middleweight title defeating Maurilo Rua and defending twice against Scott Smith (one being a draw). Another very young guy (26) that can boost the UFC roster and add more depth to the Anderson Silva division of the UFC.(at this point they should just rename the division after him)
- B/R Ticket Guide
3. Josh Thompson- Yes, for those that may not know "The Punk" has had 3 fights inside the octagon. He is 2-1 in the UFC with a KO and a decision. That decision was over former Lightweight title contender Hermes Franca. This guy lives by the Kenny Florian code, "I finish fights". Of his 17 total fights(15-2-1) only 4 have gone to the judges. He has won 8 by submission and 3 by KO/TKO.This guy is just 29 and could make the UFC lightweight division even more stacked and exciting, not to mention another top 10 fighter. Although that would only put the UFC in control of only 3 of the worlds top 10 lightweights, at least its a step in the right direction.
4. Mirko Cro Cop- Alright, before you shake your head no and comment on his stint in the UFC, there is a catch here. He won't be competing in the UFCs Heavyweight division. He is a somewhat small heavyweight as he only weighs 230. Randy Couture fought in the light-heavyweight division and he's fighting at 228 now. That's only 2 pounds short of Mirko, and if Mirko wants to win a UFC title, this is the only way I see it happening. The fans may not be too excited at first, but I'm sure they'll warm up to the idea of a possible Wand/Mirko clash of the titans.
5.Andrei Arlovski- Can somebody please explain to me why the french toast the UFC let "The Pitbull" go to Affliction? For that matter, why is his fighter bio still on UFC.com? I have seen the UFC let guys go who were losing too many fights, but Andrei went 3-0 on his way out the door. Makes sense to you right? Yea, me too. Arlovski was just a fun fighter to watch. Every time he walked into the cage you knew you were about to watch somebody either get knocked out or submitted. In his 9 year career Andrei has only had 2 fights go to the judges scorecards. Did I mention he fought with fangs in his mouth? That is just really cool.
I'm sick of seeing repeated articles and posts about "The UFC should go get Fedor?. Thank you to the captain obvious club. How about instead of working to bring in guys that we somehow CAN'T get, lets bring back guys that got a raw deal in their previous stints in the greatest MMA organization in the world.
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2 months ago
I believe that the UFC felt that AA had become a milk-toast in too many fights and only fought to get by and not to conquer. I miss him too.
2 months ago
Yeah man I agree especially Barnett and Alovski UFCs HW division is shallow and needs some serious editions to it. I mean after Mir vs Nog winner meets the winner of Couture Lesnar who is there to challenge for the title? Kongo? Werdum? then what?
2 months ago
I always got a kick out of Nick Diaz. He made some interesting fights. Thats my contribution.
2 months ago
Im suprised nobody mentioned Frank Shamrock..
he still remains the only UFC Champion to go undefeated while in the UFC,
he's not the same Frank Shamrock from those days, but it would still be interesting to see
Vitor Belfort would be a nice addition aswell, i was a big fan back when he was the "Phenom" of UFC
and his knockout of terry martin showed signs of the old Vitor
2 months ago
Arlovski, Barnett and Paul Buentello would all bolster the weak UFC Heavyweight division. Belfort is a good one, too. I think Lawler is overrated and will be lost in the deep UFC Middleweight division, although he fought as a welterweight in the octagon. Robby may have a better chance in the WW division but, of course, he wouldn't be able to beat the champ.
2 months ago
Jason "Mayhem" Miller would be another good one.
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