5 stupidest things UFC fighters have done while fighting

#1 Alistair ’ The Reem’ ’ Ubereem’ ’Horse-meat’ ‘The Running Man’ Overeem

Miocic finishes Overeem, but not before he chased him down the Octagon

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Alistair ‘The Reem’ Overeem (41-15-1 MMA; 10-4 Kick-boxing) is a Dutch kick-boxer and MMA fighter who has held world titles in notable organizations such as Strikeforce, DREAM and K-1. He is a veteran of several MMA and kick-boxing fights and although he started training in judo at a young age, he is widely known for his Dutch-style Muay Thai striking game.

Overeem is one of the most well-rounded Heavyweight (HW/265 pound) fighters in the world. He has excellent grappling and is known for his usage of the guillotine choke, or as his fans to refer to it- ‘The Guilloreem choke’. Stipe Miocic (16-2) is the current UFC HW champion with an MMA base of boxing and wrestling.

Miocic also holds the distinction of winning the Golden Gloves Championship as well as the NCAA Div-1 championship in Cleveland, whilst going on to win his UFC world title. Miocic is extremely well-rounded, carries knockout power in both hands and also possesses good BJJ and excellent wrestling skills.

Overeem faced Miocic at UFC 203 in Cleveland, Ohio in September of 2016 for Miocic’s UFC HW strap. The fight didn’t make it past the 1^st round and was one of the strangest fights not only in the UFC but in all of MMA. Overeem, who has a habit of freezing up after eating a few good shots to the dome, was wary of Miocic’s knockout power.

He came into the fight with a long-range striking strategy that involved constant switching of stances. However, Overeem added yet another maneuver to his unorthodox strategy and that involved breaking his fighting stance and running away from his opponent.

Now it’s essential to understand that disengaging from one’s opponent and re-setting is not uncommon in fights. However, what Overeem did was the complete opposite of what a decent striking coach would teach his students. Overeem literally ran around the Octagon in an attempt to avoid Miocic’s strikes.

And as if breaking his stance and running away wasn’t enough, Overeem doubled down on this ill-advised maneuver by completely turning his back to Miocic whilst running away. Overeem managed to catch Miocic with a big left hand in an early exchange and attempted an ill-fated guillotine. Miocic snuck out of the guillotine and Overeem was on his bike once again. Miocic would feint and Overeem would be off like a deer when it spots a tiger.

The strange and unintentionally funny cat-and-mouse chase sequences had Miocic’s hometown crowd on their feet. As Overeem’s jogging sequences became more and more predictable, Miocic started trapping him against the fence and timing him by doubling up on left hooks. Nevertheless, Overeem didn’t abandon his weird running-man game-plan, which in turn resulted in Miocic shoving him to the ground. A few ground-and-pound strikes later Overeem was left on the mat, taking a nap while Miocic climbed the cage and waved in acknowledgement to his hometown fans.

What makes Overeem’s strategy odd is that he is in fact one of the best kick-boxers of this era. His fights against Badr Hari, Tyrone Spong and several others are evidence of his excellent stand-up fighting skills. Even a halfway-decent striker would know that turning his back to his opponent and running away whilst breaking the fighting-stance, is flat-out insane.

Why a decorated striker like Overeem chose to practice his power-walking skills in a HW title fight is a mystery. He jogged around in front of an athletic monster like Miocic, as though he were out in the park on just another lazy morning walk.

‘Running Man Overeem’ would go down as one of the mythical creatures of UFC and MMA history alongside other UFC myths such as ‘Sea-level Cain’, ‘Motivated B.J. Penn’, ‘Chuck with that look in his eyes’ and several others.

From terrible fight strategies to unnecessary clowning and showboating, the Octagon has seen it all. Be it Paul Daley’s strike of doom or Overeem running away on his wizard broom, their decisions backfired real soon.

Neither do Tate’s unnecessary takedown attempts make sense, nor does Nick Diaz’s inability to lay off the dope. From talented fighters like Diaz smoking their careers away, to dirty fighters like Trigg embarrassing themselves on an international stage. No one is immune to stupidity.

Not even our favorite UFC fighters.

Our list included a few popular former and current UFC fighters pulling off unnecessary stunts and inexplicable antics, inside the Octagon. I’d like you the reader, to chime in with examples of fighters that you think should’ve made the list.