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The rise of Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) from its dark ages in the late 90's to early 2000's to becoming a multi-billion empire has been unprecedented. No other company in the history of combat sports has been able to achieve the amount of success that the UFC has in such a short period of time. The UFC has become synonymous with the sports of Mixed Martial Arts.
While companies such as Bellator and Pancrase are still drawing decent crowds for their events, they aren't even close to matching the UFC's popularity and its stranglehold over the MMA world. UFC is the undisputed king of the sport and will continue to be so as there isn't any viable competition.
A lot of the current crop of UFC fighters are trained in various disciplines, particularly in Wrestling. A lot of UFC stars have a background in amateur Wrestling. Daniel Cormier, Henry Cejudo and Yeol Romero who have won numerous laurels and accolades in their Carrer as an amateur wrestler.
In addition to that, a lot of fighters from the UFC have successfully transitioned into the world of professional wrestling. Names like Josh Barnett, Dan Severn, and Ken Shamrock have achieved success inside the squared circle as well.
With that in mind, here are 5 UFC fighters who could make the jump to professional wrestling:
#5 Cris Cyborg
Let's start this list with the Baddest Woman on the planet, the UFC Women's Featherweight Champion, Cris Cyborg. She is the most dominant Woman in the world of MMA with a record of 20-1-1. Her last loss was almost 13 years ago and she has been undefeated ever since. She is scheduled to face the UFC Women's Bantamweight Champion, Amanda Nunes at UFC 232 later this year (H/T - MMA junkie)
Cyborg has expressed her desire to compete inside the squared circle on multiple occasions. She has also said that she is willing to fight Ronda Rousey inside a WWE ring. She also took potshots at Becky Lynch and challenged her to a match at SummerSlam last year.
Cyborg is one of the best female athletes in the world right now and getting her will be a big catch for the WWE. Cyborg has stated numerous times that she is in the tail end of her MMA career and wrestling might just be the career path the Brazilian American powerhouse is looking for.
#4 Cain Valasquez
Cain Valasquez is one of the greatest heavyweights in UFC history. With victories over the likes of Junior Dos Santos, Antonio Silva, and Brock Lesnar, Valasquez has dominated UFC's heavyweight class for over five years before falling to Fabricio Werdum at UFC 188.
Valasquez's last fight in the UFC was at UFC 200 more than two years ago, where he defeated Travis Browne via TKO in the first round. Injuries have kept the Hispanic Superstar out of the Octagon and it is highly unlikely that he will be returning to the octagon anytime soon. He has already ruled out the possibility of fighting his best friend-cum- teammate and the current UFC Heavyweight Champion, Daniel Cormier.
A lifelong fan of Professional wrestling, Valasquez was in attendance at WWE's Elimination Chamber pay-per-view earlier this year and also trained at WWE's Performance center a few months ago. With his MMA Carrer seemingly winding up, Valasquez could shift his focus to Wrestling. Who knows, maybe a rematch with Lesnar, this time in the squared circle, might be in the works??
#3 Henry Cejudo
Henry Cejudo shocked the world last month by defeating one of the greatest pound-for-pound fighters in UFC history, Demetrious 'Mighty Mouse' Johnson at UFC 227. The former Olympian defeated DJ by split decision in what was one of the biggest upsets in the company's history. The Current Flyweight Champion immediately challenged the Bantamweight Champion, TJ Dillashaw to a fight at a later date.
Cejudo is one of the best wrestlers in the UFC today. He is one of the only three Olympic Gold Medallist to compete in the UFC. His win against DJ at UFC 227 has made him an overnight sensation and the WWE will most certainly be looking to sign the Los Angeles native, should he decide to step away from the octagon.
Cejudo will be a perfect fit for the WWE with his stellar amateur wrestling background. He is the closest the company will ever come to replacing Kurt Angle, who is also an Olympic Gold Medallist. A programme against Angle in his debut could do wonders for the LA-native and will be a passing of the torch from one Olympic hero to another.
#2 Chael Sonnen
Widely considered to be one of the greatest trash-talkers in UFC history, Chael Sonnen is one of the most sought-after analysts in the world of Mixed Martial Arts. He is currently signed to Bellator MMA and is scheduled to face MMA legend, Fedor Emelianenko at Bellator 208 in the semi-final of Bellator's Heavyweight Grand Prix to crown the next Bellator Heavyweight Champion.
In spite of not winning any major Championship in his MMA career, the American Gangster has always managed to stay in the limelight courtesy of his trash talk and multiple drug test failures, the last one costing him his UFC career. Sonnen has a way with words and has the ability to get under the skin of his opponents by his words. He is a regular on many MMA shows with his ' Ariel and the bad guy' Show with MMA Journalist, Ariel Helwani being a favorite among fans.
Sonnen is everything one would expect in a WWE Superstar. He is a great taker and has the ability to back up his trash talk inside the octagon. He is a valuable asset to any promotion he is associated with. Sonnen is in his early 40's and now is the perfect time for MMA's bad guy to make the transition to WWE.
#1 Daniel Cormier
This one is a no-brainer, actually. Daniel Cormier is one of the greatest Mixed Martial Arts of all time. He has achieved all there is to achieve in the sports by becoming only the second fighter to hold two Championships simultaneously. The current UFC Light Heavyweight and Heavyweight Champion, Cormier has openly stated that he has only a few fights left and hopes to bid adieu to the sport when turns 40 on next year's March.
He is scheduled to defend his Light Heavyweight Championship later this year and is penciled for a fight against Brock Lesnar, where he will be putting his newly won Heavyweight Championship on the line. This fight will most likely be taking place early next year as Lesnar still has a few months left on his USADA suspension. Cormier will most likely announce his retirement after the Lesnar fight.
Cormier is the biggest Pro Wrestling fan in the UFC and has attended many major WWE events. He was in attendance when Seth Rollins cashed-in his MITB Contract to become the WWE World Heavyweight Championship at WrestleMania 31 in San Jose. The video of DC celebrating his friend Rollins win went viral on social media. DC will be the biggest catch for the WWE considering the kind of legacy he has left on the octagon.
