MMA Fighters and Their Superhero Counterparts

In the world of mixed martial arts, you can find several fighters who are similar to superheroes and other characters from comic lore. After all, professional fighters possess traits that help make a normal person a superhero.

Clearly, the UFC doesn't house any fighters who have been exposed to heavy doses of radiation, but here is a look at some of MMA's biggest figures and their superhero counterparts.

Brian Stann as Captain America

In comic book lore, when Steve Rogers, the original Captain America, was presumed dead, his mantle was taken up by James Buchanan Barnes. Now that the UFC's original Captain America, Randy Couture, has retired, it's time that another man step up and honor the red white and blue to the best of his abilities.

Just like the real Captain America, Brian Stann is a military man who rose to the rank of captain in the United States military. Stann is a decorated officer, and received a silver star for his time of service.

A quote from Captain America:

"I don't want to kill anybody. I don't like bullies. I don't care where they're from."

Anyone who saw the restraint possessed by Stann in his battle with Alessio Sakara can clearly see that Stann doesn't have any desire to do more damage than necessary to get the job done. When he recognized that his opponent was unconscious, he alerted the referee and threw his hands up instead of raining down bombs that could have caused serious injury.

Randy Couture should be proud to pass his moniker along.

Georges St. Pierre as Superman

You think that it's a coincidence that GSP commonly throws the Superman punch?

Superman appears to be invulnerable at every turn. He is smart enough to plan ahead before every battle, and while we know that weaknesses exist (kryptonite), he finds a way to stay safe in battle while making sure that justice is served.

Georges St. Pierre has looked invulnerable ever since winning the UFC welterweight championship back from Matt Serra in 2008. Aside from receiving an errant eye poke at the hands of Jake Shields, GSP has absorbed little damage from any opponent inside the Octagon.

A strong moral fabric binds these two even further, as does the "Rush" nickname. After all, Superman is faster than a speeding bullet, right?

Personally, I think that GSP's dabbling with gymnastics is a thin veil over his ability to leap tall buildings in a single bound.

Brock Lesnar as The Incredible Hulk

Leading up to their UFC 87 battle, Heath Herring described Lesnar's game plan. 

"He's gonna try and take me down and he's gonna try and play Donkey Kong on my head."

Lesnar is a bit too powerful to play Donkey Kong. Instead, he prefers to play HULK SMASH!

When The Hulk gets angry, he turns green. Similarly, we saw Lesnar turn beet red at UFC 100 while screaming at Frank Mir, even after the fight was over. Anger is what triggers the monster inside of Bruce Banner, and any MMA fan will agree with the notion that Brock Lesnar could benefit from some anger management therapy.

With the flick of a switch, Lesnar can go from a calm and collected guy to an angry beast with a throbbing neck vein that indicates the true level of danger that you are in.

The Hulk can absorb a lot of punishment, as did Lesnar. It took someone truly superhuman to come back and fight after a pair of career-threatening bouts with diverticulitis. 

Like Lou Ferrigno, the man who played The Hulk, Lesnar now makes his money acting like a tough guy on TV. 

Ed Soares as Professor Charles Xavier

Professor X is best known as the leader and founder of the X-Men. Although the individual members of the X-Men have their own powers and abilities, Professor X is their leader who helps to facilitate their learning. His facilities are designed to make sure that superheroes are able to fight to the best of their abilities.

Ed Soares is best known as the co-founder of Black House. His training camp includes some of the greatest "superheroes" of mixed martial arts like Anderson Silva, Lyoto Machida and the Nogueira brothers.

Similar to the X-Men, several members of Black House have come and gone through the years. Current UFC heavyweight champion Junior dos Santos is a former Black House member.

The X-Men didn't limit themselves to mutants with extraordinary gifts. They also housed lesser known mutants like Wolfsbane and Magma. Similarly, Black House is the home to unknown (but dangerous) fighters like Carlos Eduardo Rocha and Fabricio Camoes.

Soares is generally surrounded by elite fighters and is usually seen sitting down at press conferences. Coincidence? I think not.

Anderson Silva as Spider-Man

While there is an obvious play here on Anderson Silva's "Spider" nickname, the comparisons are pretty accurate.

First of all, Peter Parker never looked like someone who would be a superhero. Likewise, Anderson Silva does not look like the world's greatest fighter. 

Spider-Man has a wide arsenal of attacks, but many would agree that his most effective weapon is his webbing. It's impossible to defend and even harder to get out of. Silva has his own version of the web that fans know as the Muay Thai clinch. Take a look at Silva vs. Franklin to see how difficult it was for a world champion to get away from Silva's deadly plum. 

Ever wonder how Silva knows exactly where he can stand to avoid danger? How he can predict the trajectory of his opponents' attacks and deliver a painful counterattack so effortlessly? Sounds a bit like Spidey-Sense, doesn't it?

Junior Dos Santos as Colossus

Colossus is 6'6" and 250 pounds. He is a member of the X-Men who can transform his body into steel. He was recruited by Professor X and now fights on American soil, despite originating from another continent.

UFC heavyweight champion Junior dos Santos is a similar sized 6'4" 240 pounds and a former member of Black House. His departure from Black House is similar to when Colossus decided to leave the X-Men.

Anyone who has seen dos Santos turn out the lights of such opponents as Cain Velasquez and Fabricio Werdum may suspect that JDS has hands that are made of steel.

Like Colossus, JDS now finds himself doing battle in America, although he is originally from another continent. 

Dana White as Lex Luthor

Lex Luthor wants to take over and control the world. Luthor is physically outmatched by those who are in his presence, but he uses incredible resourcefulness in attempting to shape the world to fit his vision. He is the arch-nemesis of Superman, but both greatly influential and widely feared as he eventually became President of the United States.

Dana White has similar plans of global domination. Over the years, we have heard the UFC President discuss his plans of watching the UFC take over the world. Over the last year, we have seen Zuffa solidify their presence in the USA, Canada, Japan, Australia, Sweden, Brazil and the U.K. With White planning to continue expansion into India, China and beyond, it's only a matter of time before he finds himself successful.

While White may not be the arch-nemesis of Superman (GSP), he certainly loves testing his version of the Man of Steel by constantly throwing him the stiffest tests available.

White is certainly influential. On a Time Magazine's poll of the 100 Most Influential People in the World, White ranked higher than President Barack Obama.

Need I point out that both White and Luthor are bald, middle-aged white guys?

BJ Penn as Mr. Fantastic

The leader of the Fantastic Four, Mr. Fantastic, has the ability to stretch his limbs and use them in ways that regular humans cannot. This has come in handy when in combat. Additionally, Reed Richards was deemed a prodigy since the time he was a child.

Known as "The Prodigy" in the UFC, BJ Penn is a multi-divisional champion, who uses his uncanny flexibility to avoid takedowns and secure submission holds. The limb dexterity allows Penn to use Jiu-Jitsu techniques that others simply cannot apply.

Ever wonder why Penn makes use of the rubber guard technique?

Roy Nelson as The Blob

Yeah... I think you guys are smart enough that I don't need to explain this one.

Chael Sonnen as Two Face

All heroes need a villain.

Before his transformation into a psychopathic supervillain, Harvey Dent was once a clean-cut political figure who was well spoken and charismatic. When Dent was transformed into Two-Face, he went insane and turned to a life of crime. In the Batman: Face To Face story, we learn that Dent has extensive training in hand-to-hand combat.

To this day, Sonnen remains a charismatic and well-spoken figure in the MMA arena, although moments of insanity shine through on occasion. Sonnen continues to claim that he is the undefeated UFC middleweight champion, even going as far as to bring a replica championship belt with him to press conferences and interviews.

Sonnen may not be a criminal mastermind, but he has certainly broken the rules since his transformation into a true title contender. Sonnen broke federal laws and has since plead guilty on charges of money laundering in association with mortgage fraud.

Harvey Dent has an obsession with the number "two." Two happens to be Sonnen's lucky number. He defeated world-ranked and undefeated WEC champion Paulo Filho in their second battle. Sonnen is current amid his second run in the UFC after a failed tenure in 2006, which has been far more successful than his first.

Sonnen hopes that two will remain his lucky number this summer when he challenges for the UFC middleweight championship for a second time. I don't know about you, but I believe in Chael Sonnen.

Your Turn!

I don't want to have all the fun. There are so many superheroes out there and several untapped MMA stars for you to play around with. What other connections can you find?

I want to see what you can find for:

Nick Diaz
Carlos Condit
Urijah Faber
Jose Aldo
Dominick Cruz
Alistair Overeem
Rashad Evans
Michael Bisping
Forrest Griffin
Matt Hughes

and anybody else you can think of. Feel free to share your ideas in the comments below.