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The UFC is chock-full of fighters who one could do well with should they find themselves in the midst of a bust-up on the street. However, some fighters share an especially intimate relationship with the unsanctioned fight game.
The UFC, as a promotion, has become synonymous with excellence in the field of combat sports across the globe. So any fighter from the UFC's roster will only work to tilt the tide in your favor should push come to shove.
There have been multiple instances where combat sports athletes have been forced to rely on their ability to fight outside the octagon. Be it regular street bust-ups or fending off car thieves, fighters have seemingly done it all.
While it may seem like fighters have taken on the role of superheroes in some cases, that does not stand true in all instances. The likes of former UFC fighter Alistair Overeem and Urijah Faber have seen their fair share of physical altercations outside the octagon.
However, UFC fighters sending Dutch club bouncers to the hospital or winding up in a clinic nursing multiple injuries after getting jumped by Balinese locals, respectively, is hardly as noble as foiling robbers in broad daylight.
#5. UFC middleweight Chris Weidman
The Long Island born-and-bred Chris Weidman has been quite open about his war stories from his childhood and early adult life in New York. Having lived in the Big Apple during a time when the city was rife with crime, it was only natural for Weidman to have run into trouble at some point.
'The All-American' recounted a similar story while in conversation with Denis Shkuratov and Kacper Rosolowski. In a sit-down with the co-hosts of Submission Radio, the UFC middleweight harked back to the time he and his friends got into a bar-brawl with three men.
This fight, Weidman recalled, took place when he was younger. He claimed that one of his friends was getting picked on by three people. The verbal altercation soon turned physical after a bit of shoving. Here's how Weidman described their clash:
"He went to go push me again I just dropped him with a punch. And as I did that, one of his boys came behind me and tried to throw me in a rear-naked choke. And when he did that I took his arm and I arm threw him. And when I arm threw him over my back, he tried to keep his head up. His head literally scraped across the concrete and his face literally like, his skin just fell off his face."
#4. UFC welterweight Nate Diaz
Stockton's own Nate Diaz is often regarded as one of the hardest fighters on the UFC's roster. With a seemingly never-ending gas tank, Nate Diaz is someone you would want in your ranks in a street fight.
Such is his determination and grit that he was lauded by Georges St-Pierre's coach, Firas Zahabi, as one of the scariest street fighters in the MMA scene. And if a former middleweight champion's coach offers an opinion like that, one would do well to accept it.
In fact, a similar opinion was echoed by his brother Nick Diaz, who, ahead of his fight against Robbie Lawler at UFC 266, revealed that Nate used to get into gang fights as a youngster.
Nick Diaz revealed that they had to adapt to such an adverse condition to survive in their hometown that was rife with violence.
#3. UFC lightweight Conor McGregor
The name Conor McGregor is synonymous with fame, money and controversy. The MMA and UFC news circuit is riddled with stories of 'The Notorious' getting into scuffles outside the octagon.
However, it is his fearlessness that one would want in a partner should they find themselves faced with a physical altercation on the street.
Having picked brawls with people affiliated with the notorious Kinahan cartel in Ireland and bragging about it in a cryptic post on social media, it is all but certain that Conor McGregor fears no one.
The fact that there were reports of threats to his life after his punch-up with Graham 'The Wig' Whelan's father only makes this instance all the more shocking. Multiple reports suggested that the cartel had called for a bounty on the southpaw's head; however, it was soon dismissed by his father.
The former UFC double champ displays little to no regard for his surroundings as was evident from his clash against Khabib Nurmagomedov and his team while they were traveling on their bus.
#2. UFC welterweight Jorge Masvidal
Jorge Masvidal is probably the only fighter in the UFC who has embraced his roots in the street fighting circuit of Miami as much as he has. Masvidal truly flourished under the guidance of the street-fighting legend Kimbo Slice.
A video that offers Jorge Masvidal legitimacy as a street fighter was shot by Kimbo Slice back in the day. The video saw a young and lighter Jorge Masvidal butting heads with a visibly larger fighter in Ray, who was Kimbo Slice's protege.
However, what's impressive is the fact that Masvidal managed to make short work of his opponent in a street fight by continuously pressing him. The fight came long before Masvidal earned the moniker of 'Gamebred'.
Jorge Masvidal has been quite candid about his history with the fight game. He has frequently admitted that he had been fighting well before the days in Kimbo Slice's backyard.
It is this dauntless and unwavering courage that would make Jorge Masvidal a great fighter to have at one's back.
#1. UFC lightweight Khabib Nurmagomedov
Hailing from the cold and unforgiving slopes of Dagestan, the former UFC lightweight kingpin always shared a strong connection with combat. Before he laid waste to the UFC lightweight division to claim the title, Khabib Numagomedov's history of wrestling bears and opponents twice his size were dismissed as nothing but rumors.
However, he was never one to shy away from his roots and addressed these claims with a certain degree of candor.
“I have been fighting in the street and various tournaments since childhood and this experience and confidence helps me quite a bit. Perhaps it's in my genes because my father is an accomplished athlete as well,” said Khabib Nurmagomedov previously.
Choosing a reason to justify his position at the top of such a list is much harder than it would seem; for he has exhibited multiple signs of brilliance. Be it his tendency to wrestle bears, the fact that he is yet to be bested in a fight or his experience of fighting on the streets, Khabib Nurmagomedov would most certainly make for a great partner in a street fight.
