5 surprising UFC title challengers

#4 Justin Eilers (2005)

Justin Eilers was a surprising title challenger against Andrei Arlovski in 2005

Back in 2005, the UFC Heavyweight division wasn’t exactly what it is today. Frank Mir was the reigning champion, but late 2004 saw him shatter his leg in a motorcycle accident, and so the UFC decided – justifiably so in this case – to crown an interim champion. And so Andrei Arlovski defeated Tim Sylvia to claim the title at UFC 51 in February 2005.

The problem then was that Mir simply wasn’t ready to return to action, and unfortunately for the UFC, the division was largely devoid of contenders after Sylvia had been beaten. Initially, the UFC was rumoured to be considering Paul Buentello for a shot at Arlovski’s title, but instead the matchmakers decided with just one UFC win to his name, Buentello would be better served to wait for a later title shot.

Instead, they turned to former Heavyweight champ Ricco Rodriguez, who hadn’t fought in the UFC since 2003 but was on a four-fight win streak outside the promotion.

Supposedly, artwork and posters were produced for the show – UFC 53 – featuring Arlovski vs. Rodriguez, but the fight fell through when Rodriguez refused to sign, citing financial disagreements.

And so the UFC turned to Justin Eilers – a mid-level Heavyweight who’d lost his last fight by knockout to Buentello – who was matched on the undercard with a different opponent, Kevin Jordan. The whole situation just didn’t make sense as Eilers clearly hadn’t earned a title shot.

Thankfully, waters weren’t muddied as Arlovski dispatched of Eilers in brutal fashion within a round – Eilers actually broke both of his hands attempting to block Arlovski’s punches. And Buentello won his fight on the undercard, setting up a title fight for later in 2005. As for Rodriguez? He never fought in the UFC again.