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#2. Former UFC women's bantamweight champion Ronda Rousey
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‘The Baddest Woman on the Planet’ was a colossal UFC box office draw and mainstream crossover star. Winning fans over with her brazen trash talk and elite level grappling, Rousey was the face of women’s MMA for several years.
Cracks began to show, however, during her UFC 168 victory over Miesha Tate. After extracting the tap from ‘Cupcake’ in round three with her signature armbar, Rousey refused a handshake offer from her foe. Some jeers were audible in the aftermath and numerous fighting figures criticized her behavior as disrespectful.
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However, the complete fall from grace for Rousey with UFC fans came after Holly Holm’s UFC 193 KO victory over her. Visibly devastated, Rousey found herself on the receiving end of heavy duty criticism for her boxing style. Even Joe Rogan, once an ardent supporter who believed she could defeat male fighters, admitted the hype train was over.
After a long lay-off to recover mentally from her first defeat, Rousey returned at UFC 207 to face Amanda Nunes. The boxing criticism returned after Rousey sustained a grim TKO defeat less than a minute into round one.
Once one of the biggest stars in the sport, Rousey bowed out after her second loss and later moved to WWE. Interestingly, while WWE fans initially treated her as a superstar babyface, they too began to turn on her in the latter months of her run there. The former UFC women’s bantamweight champ has more than once criticized the fan culture in the years since.
#1. Former UFC featherweight and lightweight champion Conor McGregor
Conor McGregor has gone from being almost universally loved to splitting UFC fans right down the middle. The UFC’s most famous fighter is in an odd situation right now where he’s never been richer and yet, has never been more unlucky in the octagon.
Since UFC 205, McGregor has won just once more in the UFC, a KO victory over Donald Cerrone at UFC 246. At lightweight, McGregor ate a brutal loss against Khabib Nurmagomedov and two painful defeats against Dustin Poirier.
However, it’s not his slump that has incurred the wrath of fans - it’s his antics.
Following his round-ten TKO loss to Floyd Mayweather in August 2017, McGregor has been in the headlines for a series of bust-ups. Most infamous of all was his trolley-throwing assault on a tour bus housing Khabib Nurmagomedov in April 2018.
McGregor also punched a man who did not want to try his Proper No. 12 whiskey in a Dublin pub in April 2019. A series of other allegations and arrests have come McGregor’s way in recent years. Furthermore, his incredibly personal insults to ‘The Eagle’ leading up to UFC 229 and Dustin Poirier this year have netted him detractors.
McGregor’s once very witty trash talk with opponents has become increasingly harsh in recent years. The Irishman has mocked foes’ religions, relationships, families and nationalities in a bid to get under their skin. While the increasingly personal nature of his rivalries has helped pay-per-view buy rates, it has done him no favors come bell time.
Whether McGregor goes back to playing nice or doubles down on his extreme antics when he returns in 2022 is anyone’s guess.
