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If there is anything we have learned in the short history of this sport, it's that anything can happen in a fight. No favorite is ever safe and no bet is ever truly a lock.
So many champions have lost their titles in fights that were supposed to be easy wins.
At the same time, there are a list of fighters that were figured to have no shot at the top of the sport, but are remembered forever because of one signature victory.
It is one of the reasons this sport is so great. Everything can change in the blink of an eye. Sometimes a favorite just has an off night, and sometimes a dog is just motivated enough to fight off the common logic.
Bla, bla, bla... nobody reads intros, so onto the list of the 45 greatest MMA upsets of all time.
DISCLAIMER: You will see Sergey Golyaev's win over Takanori Gomi and more noticeably Frankie Edgar's win over B.J. Penn missing from the list. The reason is because I don't believe those results were correct. Just because the judges were clueless about those fights, doesn't mean that we have to be. I do mention them though because the people that did bet on the underdogs in those fights were paid.
*Okay this should be a pretty long read, but enjoy.
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46. K.J. Noons Def. Nick Diaz Via First-Round TKO at EliteXC: Renegade
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Upstart promotion EliteXC created a 160-pound division and pitted Nick Diaz against K.J. Noons to fight for the newly created title. Most figured Noons was just an opponent for Diaz to beat so that Diaz could become one of the faces of the new promotion.
At the start of the fight, Noons landed a series of straight right hands that rocked Diaz. Diaz shook off the punches but still continued to receive them throughout the round. Diaz is a notoriously slow starter, but his eyebrows were notorious for opening up as well.
By the end of the first round, Diaz had massive gashes above both of his eyes and the fight was called off. Diaz was furious with the call and left the cage, flipping off everyone in the arena in the process.
Diaz was the new champion and never lost the title as long as EliteXC lasted. Diaz is now the Strikeforce welterweight champ and to this day still hopes for a rematch with Noons.
45. Josh Thomson Def. Gilbert Melendez Via Unanimous Decision at Strikeforce: Melendez vs. Thomson
In a much anticipated battle of Bay Area lightweights, Melendez was set to defend his Strikeforce title against San Jose's Josh Thomson. Melendez was a heavy favorite, as he had only lost once in a very competitive fight with Mitsuhiro Ishida in the previous year.
In June of 2008, the two met in a five-round classic that surprisingly saw Thomson use his leg kicks, wrestling, and boxing to win all five rounds. Much to the dismay of the crowd, Thomson kept his distance in the final few minutes of the fight, knowing he had won the rest of the rounds. Melendez never stopped coming forward til the end of the fight, but it was not enough.
The two would rematch later in another five-round war, this time with Melendez reclaiming his title.
44. Pete Spratt Def. Robbie Lawler Via Second-Round TKO at UFC 42
In 2003, Pete Spratt was journeyman with a checkered resume and a 1-1 UFC record. Coming off a loss to Carlos Newton just five months earlier, Spratt was expected to be another opportunity for the UFC to showcase their new rising star, Robbie Lawler.
Lawler was 7-0 and trained at the same camp as Matt Hughes, the current UFC welterweight champ.
At UFC 42, Spratt came out determined and sharp, using heavy leg kicks and superior athleticism to outwork the less experienced Lawler. In the middle of the second round, Lawler was forced to quit with his legs barely holding him up.
Spratt was offered a shot at the welterweight champ after this win, but turned it down, stating he wasn't ready for Hughes just yet. This bothered the UFC and they booted him from the organization until a few years later when they invited past UFC fighters to compete in the fourth season of The Ultimate Fighter.
43. Kevin Burns Def. Roan Carneiro Via Second-Round Submission at UFC 85
At UFC 85, Kevin Burns was an unknown fighter making his UFC debut against experienced jiu-jitsu black belt Roan Carneiro. Burns was 5-1 and figured to have little chance against the American Top Team veteran.
After a competitive fight round, Burns began to show his mettle by outworking the more accomplished Carneiro. Burns was surprising everyone by holding his own on the ground against such a decorated black belt.
Halfway through the second round, Carneiro got on top and Burns locked in a triangle choke, forcing Carneiro to tap. It wasn't just the win, but the way Burns won that was so shocking. This was a no-name fighter with very little experience, tapping out a black belt that had fought many of the top names in the division.
Burns has found little success since.
42. Wanderlei Silva Def. Kazushi Sakuraba Via First-Round TKO at Pride 13
Though these days it may seem hard to believe, when Wanderlei Silva first met Kazushi Sakuraba, Silva was expected to lose.
Going into their bout at Pride 13, Sakuraba was considered by most to be the pound-for-pound best fighter in the MMA.
Early in the fight, Sakuraba knocked Silva down, but the Brazilian quickly recouped and stopped Sakuraba with knees to the head on the ground.
After the fight, Sakuraba presented Silva with his belt with the letters SAKU on it. Silva then offered Sakuraba a rematch if he was willing.
41. Jason Lambert Def. Renato Sobral Via Second-Round TKO at UFC 68
Renato Sobral had earned himself a title shot at Chuck Liddell in the UFC, but after a minute and a half of an ill-advised game plan consisting of running straight at Liddell, Sobral's championship dreams were squashed.
Still, Sobral was a top ten light heavyweight, and would be favored against most competition, especially Jason Lambert, who was coming off being knocked cold by Rashad Evans.
The two met at UFC 68, and in the second round of a fight Sobral was likely winning, the two were stood up from the ground. Immediately after the fight restarted, Sobral attempted a reckless flying knee
and was countered by a strong left hand by Lambert. Sobral was out and the fight was quickly called off.
40. Dan Henderson Def. Wanderlei Silva Via Third-Round KO at Pride 33
Even though Wanderlei Silva had recently been knocked out by Mirko Cro Cop, he was still the 205-pound champ and the loss was at heavyweight. He already owned a win over Dan Henderson and most felt he would do it again.
At Pride 33, Henderson controlled Silva for the first two rounds. In the third, the two began to exchange and Silva caught a hard left-hook on the chin. He immediately hit the floor and the one and only Pride middleweight champ was champion no more.
Henderson became the only champion to hold two major titles in different divisions at the same time.
39. Nick Diaz Def. Robbie Lawler Via Second-Round TKO at UFC 47
Back in 2004, many were imagining Robbie Lawler to be the next UFC welterweight champion. When he met Nick Diaz at UFC 47, it was assumed that if Diaz didn't take the fight to the ground, he was going to be left unconscious.
From the opening bell, Diaz surprisingly was the one forcing a standup battle. The first round was back and forth and saw both fighters take hard shots. In the middle of the second, Diaz landed a right-hook from his southpaw stance and put Lawler down. The fight was called off even though both fighters wanted to continue fighting.
The win put Diaz on the MMA map.
38. Chael Sonnen def. Nate Marquardt via unanimous decision at UFC 109
At the start of 2010, Nate Marquardt was very clearly the No. 1 contender for the UFC middleweight title. However, Vitor Belfort was first scheduled to meet the champ, so Nate was given a fight with Chael Sonnen in what many assumed a fight to stay busy until his title shot.
At UFC 109, Chael Sonnen let it be known that he had plans of his own, taking Marquardt down and punishing him for the extent of three rounds.
Nobody had ever seen Marquardt on his back so helpless, but Chael wrestled the title shot right out from under him and is now scheduled to meet the champ on Saturday.
37. Antonio Schembri Def. Kazushi Sakuraba Via First-Round TKO at Pride 25
In 2003, Pride was setting up plans for a new weight division more fit to Sakuraba's size, and putting him in a championship fight for the new title. First he would have to get through Antonio Schembri, which most assumed would not be an issue.
After dominating most of the fight, Schembri landed a series of knees that hurt Sakuraba and then finished him with soccer kicks on the ground. It was a sudden and shocking defeat for the Japanese fan-favorite.
This marked a turning point in Sakuraba's career, and though he would get his revenge on Schembri a year later, Sakuraba began his decline here.
36. Tim Sylvia Def. Andrei Arlovski Via First-Round TKO at UFC 59
At UFC 59, Andrei Arlovski was set to defend his UFC heavyweight title against Tim Sylvia in a rematch of a fight Arlovski had dominated and ended quickly, one year earlier. Arlovski was around a 5:1 favorite to keep his title.
Early in the round, everything seemed to be going to plan as Arlovski dropped Sylvia with a right hand, but Sylvia showed his perseverance by standing back up and landing his own right hand to drop the champion. A few shots on the ground and Sylvia was the UFC heavyweight champion for a second time.
The two would settle their rivalry with a rubber match only a few months later in which Sylvia earned a unanimous decision.
35. Marcio Cruz Def. Frank Mir Via First-Round TKO at UFC 57
In 2004, Frank Mir was the UFC heavyweight champion, but soon after winning the title, he was involved in a motorcycle accident that left him with a broken femur and torn ligaments in his knee.
In 2006, he made his return to the octagon against 1-0 Marcio Cruz. Mir looked sluggish and out of shape, and shockingly was stopped by strikes in the first round.
It would be a few years before we began to see the Mir of old. Cruz never won in the UFC again.
34. Pete Williams Def. Mark Coleman Via Overtime KO at UFC 17
At UFC 17, former heavyweight champion Mark Coleman was scheduled to face current champ Randy Couture in the main event. When Couture was forced to pull out of the fight due to a training injury, he was replaced by 3-0 Pete Williams, who was making his debut in the UFC.
Coleman had been out of action for a year since losing his title, but was still expected to make easy work of the newcomer.
After quickly taking Williams down and punishing him with his infamous ground and pound, Coleman was stood up by referee John McCarthy. Clearly gassed from his opening onslaught, Coleman was having a hard time keeping his hands up.
After a 12 minute first round, the fighters came out for the three minute overtime. Coleman was clearly exhausted and Williams went right at him. After landing a barrage of punches, Williams threw a right head kick, to which Coleman ducked right into and took square in the mouth. The former champ was immediately out and the UFC's first head kick knockout highlight was in the books.
33. Brett Rogers Def. Andrei Arlovski Via First-Round TKO at Strikeforce: Lawler vs. Shields
Though Andrei Arlovski had recently been knocked out in the first round by Fedor Emelianenko, he was still considered to be on a higher level than the less experienced Brett Rogers, and most figured it a good fight to get Andrei back into the win column.
Arlovski never got the chance to show off any advantage in technique as Rogers charged him in the opening seconds, landing a hard right hand forcing the referee to stop the bout at 22 seconds.
Rogers parlayed the win into a match against then No. 1 heavyweight Fedor Emelianenko.
32. Jens Pulver Def. B.J. Penn Via Majority Decision at UFC 35
Penn began his career with three spectacular early first-round knockouts over Joey Gilbert, Din Thomas, and Caol Uno. He was also the most highly decorated American jiu-jitsu practitioner of all time. After defeating each opponent with such ease, he was given a title shot against lightweight champion Jens Pulver.
In a rare instance of a challenger being favored over the champion, most were calling Penn unbeatable. The fight turned out to be the highpoint of Pulver's career, as he survived the early attacks of Penn and went on to win the last three rounds to retain his title.
Pulver would vacate his title and leave the UFC after this fight. He later came back and lost a rematch with Penn in 2007.
31. Forrest Griffin Def. Quinton “Rampage” Jackson Via Unanimous Decision at UFC 86
Though Forrest Griffin was coming off an even bigger upset that changed the fan perception of him as a fighter, he was still expected to be outclassed in his title shot against Quinton Jackson.
Jackson had won the title by ending the reign of Chuck Liddell, and defended it by besting Dan Henderson for the majority of five rounds. This was expected to be an easier defense of his title.
What occurred instead was a thrilling back and forth fight that came down to the final bell. Griffin was awarded with the title, and Jackson was left wondering what had happened.
30. Scott Smith Def. Cung Le Via Third-Tound TKO at Strikeforce: Evolution
In December of last year, former Strikeforce middleweight champion Cung Le was coming back from a long layoff due to his budding action movie career. At Strikeforce: Evolution, Le met the always exciting Scott Smith in the main event.
After two and a half rounds of the normal eye-catching striking dominance from Le, Smith landed a big hook to his chin and wobbled the ex-champ. A few more punches and a broken nose later, the fight was called off with just 35 seconds left.
It was another come from behind win for Smith, who has made a career out of them.
Le won the rematch just last month by second-round TKO.
29. Rashad Evans Def. Chuck Liddell Via Second-Round KO at UFC 88
I remember taking bets with a room full of my friends on what round Chuck Liddell was going to knock out Rashad Evans. The conversation continued until a shocking right hand dropped Liddell like a bag of bricks midway through the second round.
The room was absolutely silent as everyone watched the former indestructible champion laying unconscious on the mat.
Evans parlayed that UFC 88 win into a shot at the light heavyweight title, which he won.
28. Mark Coleman Def. Stephan Bonnar Via Unanimous Decision at UFC 100
Mark Coleman was the first ever UFC heavyweight champion and it had been almost ten years since he achieved a victory in the promotion. It was only fitting for him to fight at UFC 100.
He was matched against Stephan Bonnar—a beloved fighter known for his historical fight with Forrest Griffin in the finals of the first season of The Ultimate Fighter.
Coleman used his wrestling that had served him so well in the early days of the UFC to control Bonnar while he punished him with punches on the ground. Coleman was awarded a unanimous decision.
It was one of the highlights of the monumental event.
27. Ryo Chonan Def. Anderson Silva Via Third-Round Submission at Pride Shockwave 2004
In what was assumed to be an easy return to Pride for Anderson Silva at Shockwave 2004, turned into a highlight reel finish for Ryo Chonan.
After two rounds of competitive action with Anderson clearly getting the better of it, Chonan pulled the infamous flying-scissor-heel-hook and forced Anderson to tap.
It was the last time Silva was legitimately beaten.
26. Brian Bowles Def. Miguel Torres Via First-Round KO at WEC 42
Going into WEC 42 Miguel Torres was in the top ten of every pound-for-pound list and had defended his bantamweight title three times. Most figured Brian Bowles to be just another opportunity for Torres to display his unique set of skills.
In the beginning it looked to be all Torres, but one right hand from Bowles changed everything, and Torres was finished seconds later on the ground.
Bowles lost the title in his next fight.
