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In the UFC, barring a few exceptions, the most successful fighters tend to be the highest-level mixed martial artists. While two-time UFC title challenger Chael Sonnen has achieved enormous success due to the strength of his trash talk, he never reached the heights that Conor McGregor has.
This is partly due to the disparity in fighting skills between the two men. The greatest fighters are renowned for a reason. They occupy a space that most MMA fighters never touch. But as hard as it is to believe, elite-level mixed martial artists aren't infallible. Not everyone retired undefeated like Khabib Nurmagomedov.
Several UFC greats suffered losses in their earlier days. Some of them even tasted defeat against fairly low-level fighters of no renown that most fans wouldn't be able to identify in a lineup. With that in mind, this list honors the low-level fighters who once troubled some of the greatest fighters in UFC history.
#5. Jose Caceres, MMA welterweight
Standing at six feet and two inches in height, Jose Caceres is one of the biggest welterweights in the world. Unfortunately, he never managed to use his size to his advantage. Success has been hard to come by for 'The Fresh Prince of Kendall'. His record of 15 wins and 12 losses is, for lack of a better term, abysmal.
He never quite broke into the UFC. But one of his 15 wins is against one of the greatest fighters the promotion has ever seen. Before Leon Edwards' pair of victories against former UFC welterweight champion Kamaru Usman, only one other man was known to have defeated 'The Nigerian Nightmare'.
A decade ago, Usman had his sophomore MMA fight at CFA 11. His opponent was Caceres. Despite scoring a takedown, Usman was quickly reminded of the difference between wrestling and Brazilian jiu-jitsu by a more experienced fighter who choked him out with a rear-naked choke in the first round.
#4. Daiju Takase, former PRIDE middleweight/welterweight
Daiju Takase is better known for his stint in PRIDE than his sporadic appearances in the UFC. It was during his PRIDE career that he scored the two biggest wins of his career. During a career that has spanned 17 years, the former Japanese kickboxer amassed 12 wins and suffered 15 losses.
Despite his extremely poor record, he somehow managed to defeat two UFC legends. At PRIDE 26, he faced future UFC middleweight champion Anderson Silva. He won in a stunning upset after trapping 'The Spider' in a first-round triangle choke to capture a submission victory.
A year later, he faced former UFC welterweight titleholder and Canadian MMA pioneer Carlos Newton. Daiju Takase won via split decision in PRIDE after two rounds.
#3. Sarah D'Alelio, former Invicta women's bantamweight
It is almost impossible to think that a fighter who lost to the likes of Julie Kedzie could somehow find a way to defeat a fighter that all-time greats like Ronda Rousey couldn't. But it isn't impossible because Sarah D'Alelio exists.
Back in 2013, she locked horns with future women's MMA GOAT Amanda Nunes. Despite logic dictating otherwise, 'The Monster'—who is now 11-7—slew 'The Lioness'. However, she didn't win due to a flash knockout or surprise submission against a lackadaisical or overconfident opponent.
Instead, reliably won rounds in a three-round bout to earn a unanimous decision against the future double champion. It wasn't luck, she simply won by outwrestling and outgrappling 'The Lioness' in dominant fashion.
#2. Sam Alvey, former UFC middleweight/light heavyweight
After an absurdly long stretch, Sam Alvey has finally been released by the UFC. He hasn't won a fight in five years and is currently on a 9-fight winless streak with eight losses and one draw. His overall record consists of 33 wins, 18 losses, one draw, and one no-contest.
His record isn't the envy of any fighter, past or present, but 'Smile'n' somehow managed to score an upset win against a fighter far above his mettle. Back in 2017, he faced former light heavyweight titleholder Rashad Evans on a Fight Night card. At that point, 'Sugar' was well past his prime and on a losing streak.
That night, he became Alvey's most high-profile win as 'Smile'n' outworked Evans en route to a close split-decision win. Back in 2008, Evans was an undefeated champion, but nine years later, he was losing to Alvey out of all fighters.
#1. Artemij Sitenkov, featherweight/bantamweight
At least some of the fighters that Anderson Silva and Carlos Newton lost to were skilled enough to find some measure of success in high-profile promotions like PRIDE. Unfortunately, this isn't the case with every low-level fighter who has defeated a great fighter.
Artemij Sitenkov currently has 15 wins and 17 losses on his record. He has never come close to the UFC, and the most successful promotion he has ever fought in was Cage Warriors. To his misfortune, it was only one bout. He has lost 10 of his last 11 fights, but the Lithuanian does have one notable win.
Back in 2008, he was a fighter with five wins and four losses, so he was exactly the kind of fighter that Conor McGregor should have defeated in his third-ever fight. Instead, the future double champion suffered a lightning-quick submission loss in just one minute of the first round.
