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Chris Barnett is finally set to make his UFC debut this weekend. Standing at 5'9, Barnett looks to be quite possibly the shortest UFC heavyweight to have stepped into the world-renowned octagon. Whilst there is no official record to definitively state this, he is certainly one of the shortest to grace the UFC, if not the smallest.
Barnett made his name fighting for a series of promotions outside of the UFC, namely Island Fights, XFC and Road FC. However, his last outing at UAE Warriors 13, which resulted in a round one TKO victory for Barnett, was his final ticket to the big leagues.
Barnett vs Rothwell
Barnett is stepping in on short notice to face a true UFC heavyweight veteran, Ben Rothwell. At the age of 39, Rothwell is undeniably in the twilight of his career. However, he is still a tricky customer, with a huge amount of experience against a variety of high level opponents.
Rothwell is coming off a unanimous decision loss to Marcin Tybura. However, prior to that, he was able to pick up wins against Ovince St Preux and Stefan Struve. He has also faced and defeated high-level opposition such as Alistar Overeem and Matt Mitrione in the past.
Rothwell was initially scheduled to face Phillipe Lins at UFC Vegas 21. However, Lins withdrew after suffering an undisclosed injury. The fight was rescheduled, but fell apart multiple times. Askar Mozharov was brought in as a replacement, but later dropped out. This led to Barnett's UFC debut opportunity.
Small but mighty
Whilst Barnett may be especially small for a heavyweight, it is not completely unheard of for short heavyweights to have great success. Daniel Cormier, standing at only two inches taller than Barnett, had one of the greatest UFC careers of all time.
He was able to secure both the heavyweight and lightweight belts, and took part in some of the greatest UFC fights of all time. Mark Hunt is another fighter of a similar height to Barnett. The 'Super Samoan's kickboxing was legendary within the UFC octagon.
In the current UFC roster, Roque Martinez stands at 5'10, only one inch taller than Barnett does.
Whilst Barnett is short in stature, he uses his smaller frame to great effect. Barnett utilizes a variety of spinning techniques more commonly seen in the lower weight divisions. He is also known for a variety of street dance-inspired post-fight celebrations, showing off his athleticism.
