Trash talking in mixed martial arts is an extremely risky game, because one second you could find yourself on top of the world and the next you could be staring up at the lights. It's a dramatic fall for a lot of top level fighters and that's why a lot of them keep their opinions to themselves in the build up to a big bout. Unfortunately, not everyone takes that idea on board.
Over the years there have been so many instances of a fighter getting cocky, talking some trash and then winding up with a big fat "L" in the stats column. However, every so often, you get a case where the fighter has been so disrespectful one way or another that you go into the fight expecting them to pick up the win just because of how confident they were.
So, when they don’t follow through on that, it can be quite rewarding and satisfying for the viewing audience. Naturally, the person who knocked them off their perch enjoys celebrating the win a bit more than usual, but as fans, it draws comparisons back to the old school days of professional wrestling when a good guy would triumph over the evil bad guy, more often than not.
With that in mind, let's take a look at five fighters who disrespected their opponents only for it to backfire.
#1 Conor McGregor vs. Nate Diaz
When Conor McGregor stepped up to the plate and went to Welterweight for a fight with Nate Diaz, the response was mixed. Some felt that it was a ridiculous move while others believed that the Irishman knew exactly what he was doing.
Either way, it was set to be an intriguing fight and Conor decided to ramp up the excitement by constantly talking down to his opponent Nate who he was facing on short notice.
But oh, what a mistake that was. The Irishman showed Diaz an unbelievable amount of disrespect and in turn, Diaz proved what a tough fighter he was by taking endless amounts of punishment during their first contest at UFC 196.
McGregor began to get quite tired during the second round, with Diaz choking him out and proving that stepping up in weight classes wasn't as easy as McGregor originally anticipated.
Moving on to one of the greatest knockouts in UFC history.
#2 Michael Bisping vs. Dan Henderson
Michael Bisping has always had a big mouth, but leading up to his UFC 100 contest against Dan Henderson, he really ramped things up. Bisping went after Hendo's past, his ability as a fighter as well as Dan in general as a person. Henderson chose not to take the bait and focus on the fight instead, which is something that Bisping should have done.
In the second round, Henderson connected with an overhand right, and as Bisping flopped to the canvas, the American came in with another shot just for good measure – really shutting Bisping up once and for all.
To this day it’s probably one of the most humiliating moments of the Englishman's career, and it proves that anything can happen inside of the octagon.
We jump over to the women's division for this next entry.
#3 Bethe Correia vs. Ronda Rousey
Ronda Rousey has always had a target on her back, which is natural given her overwhelming success throughout her mixed martial arts career. However, nobody had quite pushed her buttons like Bethe Correia did in the build up to their fight at UFC 190.
Correia made comments about how she was going to destroy Ronda, even stating that she hoped Rousey wouldn’t commit suicide following the fight because it was going to be that devastating for her.
The Brazilian laughed while making the comments, and it seems bizarre that she thought this was a good idea when heading into a fight with a woman who had literally been unstoppable for years. Naturally, Ronda came out with the victory courtesy a devastating knockout, and the fight was brought to a close after just 34 seconds of the first round. Devastating.
Back over to the men now for a heavyweight classic.
#4 Frank Mir vs. Brock Lesnar
After Frank Mir defeated Brock Lesnar in the Beast's first UFC fight, many people thought that Brock didn't belong inside of the octagon - including Frank Mir. However, Lesnar would go on to win the UFC Heavyweight Championship and defend it against Mir himself in a rematch at UFC 100, which, to this day, is one of the biggest events in the company’s history.
Mir verbally destroyed Lesnar during the build-up, stating that he didn't even remotely deserve to hold the title and that the UFC essentially handed him the championship. Of course, Lesnar didn't take too kindly to this, battering Mir in the second round of the main event to ensure that he would be forever known as the undisputed Heavyweight Champion of the world. Not a bad way to make a statement.
We conclude with a victory that was a little more calculated.
#5 Josh Koscheck vs Georges St-Pierre
During Ultimate Fighter 12, Georges St. Pierre had to endure constant disrespect from his fellow coach Josh Koscheck. It seemed like a case of man against boy for the majority of the season, simply due to the fact that GSP was so calm and collected while Koscheck was doing everything he could to get under the skin of the man who was, at the time, the greatest Welterweight on the planet.
Josh would continually call GSP names and taunt him to the point where GSP admitted how frustrated he was getting with the whole situation. Hell, Koscheck even boxed his car in so that he wouldn’t be able to get out.
However, when the two eventually met in their rematch for the title, GSP put on a clinic by picking Koscheck apart and breaking his orbital bone in the process. Nasty.
