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Sometimes, a UFC fighter has an off night where they perform well below their standards. The reason varies from fighter to fighter, but they all say the same thing. That ahead of their bout, their training camp was perfect, they felt they were in tremendous shape and had a good grasp on their opponent's tendencies.
Yet, come fight night, they lose, either due to a mental lapse or adrenaline dump. But sometimes, the opposite is true, a fighter will have a night where they look as good as they've ever looked, a complete 180-degree turn from their previous bouts. However, in even rarer occasions, the improbable happens.
A fighter, who while skilled, somehow briefly transcends their limits for one night to look like the best fighter in the world, or at least the best fighter in their division. Unfortunately, they rarely, if ever reach those heights afterwards, and this list takes a look at five such fighters.
#5. Johny Hendricks at UFC 167
At UFC 167, Johny Hendricks had the performance of a lifetime when he faced Georges St-Pierre. At the time, 'GSP' was on an 11-fight win streak, with 8 consecutive title defenses to his name. He had effortlessly outstruck and outwrestled everyone he had faced to enthrone himself as an all-time great.
Enter Johny Hendricks, who was on a win streak of his own, but always had issues with fitness and commitment. Regardless, he faced St-Pierre for the welterweight strap and the two had one of the closest fights in UFC title history, with Hendricks looking like a world-beater, like the world's best fighter.
Why? He scored two takedowns to St-Pierre's four, but racked up far more control time. He landed the more damaging blows and edged out the Canadian on total strikes. Many in the MMA world scored the fight in Hendricks' favor, but in the end, he lost a razor-thin split-decision in a bout where 'GSP' was made to look mortal.
The reason for his loss? He coasted. After his success in the early rounds, he was convinced he had the fight won, meanwhile 'GSP' showed more urgency. Still, in the eyes of everyone but the judges, Hendricks was the victim of a robbery.
#4. Chael Sonnen at UFC 117
Chael Sonnen is Anderson Silva's greatest-ever rival, and with good reason. Not only did he promote both of their bouts with a wave of trash talk previously unseen in the UFC, he also shattered the legendary Brazilian's aura of invincibility in the most shocking way possible.
Ahead of UFC 117, 'The Spider' was well into his lengthy win streak, with no clear challengers. After he had embarrassed fellow Brazilian Demian Maia and downright humiliated former light heavyweight champion Forrest Griffin with one of the most one-sided beatdowns in MMA history, his legend was solidified.
Silva became the most feared fighter on the roster, but the UFC had found someone willing to face him in Chael Sonnen. And at UFC 117, 'The American Gangster' made the previously unbeatable Silva look like he simply didn't belong in the cage with him. He rocked him several times, even nearly dropping him.
And of course, he outwrestled him, scoring takedowns and ground-and-pound against a helpless Silva. Sonnen was dominant and it was the finest performance of his career, made bittersweet by the fact that he still lost. After doing the impossible for nearly 25 minutes, he was tapped by a triangle armbar.
#3. Petr Yan at UFC 259
Few fighters have had declines as sudden as Petr Yan. At one point, he was a 15-1 fighter, who had just defeated Brazilian legend José Aldo to claim the vacant bantamweight title. That win, however, was heavily scrutinized by Aljamain Sterling, who was ultimately critical of his Russian rival's record.
According to 'Funk Master,' Petr Yan hadn't faced any real contenders on his way to the title. Ahead of their UFC 259 matchup, his previous two wins were against José Aldo, an ageing fighter on a two-fight losing streak and Urijah Faber, a fighter from two generations ago who had previously been gone for three years.
Prior to that, he'd beaten Jimmie Rivera, who was 1-2 at the time, on a loss to Aljamain Sterling himself, before facing 'No Mercy.' Before that, he had faced not only another 1-2 fighter on a losing streak, but a flyweight in John Dodson. But come UFC 259, Yan was determined to make Sterling eat his words.
The Russian dominated the fight, outstriking his foe en route to scoring a knockdown, before he took to mocking his opponent's wrestling credentials by repeatedly taking him down. Yan looked unstoppable. No one had ever made Sterling look so helpless and feeble.
In round four, Yan had him on his knees, exhausted and just trying to survive. It was then that Yan made a decision that still haunts him. He landed a knee on Sterling's head when he was a downed opponent. It led to him losing his title by DQ, and he hasn't been the same since, going 1-3 in his next four fights.
#2. Cody Garbrandt at UFC 207
In 2016, Dominick Cruz was the unquestioned GOAT of the bantamweight division. He was the ruling champion and hadn't lost in nearly a decade prior, with his last defeat coming against Urijah Faber back in 2007. He spent the next years building a 13-fight win streak across the WEC and UFC.
Along the way, he defeated several fighters from Team Alpha Male, including Urijah Faber in two rematches, with each win more dominant than the last. But, 'The Dominator' had yet to face Cody Garbrandt, an undefeated knockout artist that marked Team Alpha Male's last ditch effort at dethroning him.
Come UFC 207, the world watched in shock as 'No Love' rose to the occasion with the performance of a lifetime by doing to Cruz what Cruz had done to so many: he made him miss, a lot. Garbrandt was in an effortless state of flow, making Cruz swing and miss like a wild man, outwrestling him and knocking him down twice.
No one had ever made Dominick Cruz look so lost on ideas and so slow. Cody Garbrandt was declared the bout's winner and crowned the new bantamweight champion. Alas, it was not the start of the Garbrandt era, as he went on a 2-5 run over his next seven bouts to find himself in unranked obscurity.
#1. Holly Holm at UFC 193
Holly Holm was never meant to be the UFC women's bantamweight champion in the promotion's eyes, at least not back in 2015. Instead, she was just another sacrificial lamb brought in for Ronda Rousey to slaughter in a showcase in front of the largest crowd in UFC history at the time.
Rousey was an unbeaten phenom who had finished everyone she'd ever faced in spectacular fashion. She was a global superstar, with movie deals and modeling gigs aplenty. Meanwhile, Holm was a complete unknown set for her third-ever UFC bout. But when the two women crossed swords, it left everyone jaw-dropped.
Holm circled around the cage, making Rousey look sloppy as the Olympic judoka desparately rushed face-first into her foe's counterpunches. She stunned her repeatedly, denied all of Rousey's takedowns, while scoring one of her own, from the clinch no less.
In round two, the writing was on the wall, and a well-placed head kick after rocking Rousey sent 'Rowdy' crashing into the mat. Holm looked like a world-beater. She was the new bantamweight champion of the world, but after conquering the unconquerable, lost three in a row, and more, never looked the same since.
