UFC: Wanderlei Silva, Brock Lesnar and 5 Fighting Style Fails

There are countless examples of individual styles working to the point that they overwhelm their opponents.  Most notable amongst them is Anderson “The Spider” Silva’s ability to see a punch or kick before it is being thrown, juking and dodging at will.

Likewise, Dominick Cruz and Clay Guida’s relentless conditioning and hyperactive movements provide a style of boxing and takedowns that is next to impossible to predict.  Jon “Bones” Jones is another fighter whose unorthodox stand-up game has blossomed in to highlight reel wins time and time again.

With any style however there are drawbacks. By watching enough tape, and training against an opponent who employs a similar style, a fighter can inevitable exploit weaknesses inherent in these ways of fighting.

The list compiled is a look back at the most recent examples of UFC fighters employing a style that, while working for them in the past, failed them miserable against an opponent knowing what to expect. 

Wanderlei “Berserker” Silva

One of the main reasons Wanderlei Silva is so beloved by MMA fans worldwide is his zombie-like approach to attacking his opponents. Wanderlei’s ability to relentlessly stalk and attack who he is fighting gives him the psychological “predator” and “prey” style advantage that offers downed opponents no choice but to roll over and call it quits.

Silva’s destruction of former light heavyweight champion Quinton “Rampage” Jackson twice in Pride is an example of this, and resulted in two of the most memorable beat downs in MMA history.

The Achilles heel to this style however, is to have somebody with the same mindset fighting against you. For Silva, the most dangerous opponent would be an individual who attacked like Silva. With a blatant disregard for one’s own safety and with all the ferocity of assault that makes Silva such an unstoppable force.

That man was Chris Leben, and in 27 seconds Leben showed that to go along with the berserker style attack, one must possess an equally durable chin. After years of going balls to the wall in his fights, Silva’s resilience has been slowly eroded. The torch has now been passed to a new generation of berserkers in Leben, who will continue to punch and brawl their way in to the hearts of MMA fans worldwide.   

Fighting Style Wins – Quinton “Rampage” Jackson, Michael Bisping, Countless Opponents in Pride

Fighting Style Fails – Chris Leben

Roy “Barroom Brawler” Nelson

We all love Roy Nelson. His persona and general air of unkemptness speak to the unruly hillbilly in all of us. With his bouncing mullet and shaky gut we are taken back to the days of Tank Abbott, thrown in to a world absent of round time limits and gloves.

Nelson has the appearance and character of a man who loves to get in to the octagon and put on a show. He is a throwback, who goes out there and bangs, standing up with opponents from Junior Dos Santos to Brendan Schaub.

With all of the above in mind, it pains me to say that unless Nelson changes everything from his training regime to style of fighting, he is surely one loss away from being cut. When you relentlessly plod forward, hands by your side and chin up, all it takes for an opponent to capitalize is one shot square to the jaw.

Nobody is questioning Nelson’s chin, which is among the best in the UFC, but his style of fighting lends itself to being beaten beyond the threshold any normal man can endure. Little offence, combined with no defense, does not make for a title run.

Like Joe Rogan has said time and time again, we all love Roy, and we all have a laugh at his expense, but if he was in peak physical condition with a completely different game plan, what kind of force would he be?

Fighting Style Wins – Brendan Schaub, Stefan Struve

Fighting Style Losses – Frank Mir, Junior Dos Santos

Lyoto “Lay and Pray” Machida

Machida’s style of karate is built upon the idea of a lay and pray mentality. When an opponent strikes or attempts a takedown, Machida is there, ready and willing to exploit a weakness or open up a potential attack of his own.

We saw this when he sent Randy Couture in to retirement with a snapping front-kick, and when he gave Rashad Evans the only loss of his MMA career. Machida is willing to bide his time in order to get a victory, toughing it out through relentless booing and the baiting of the man he is fighting in order to land a clean blow, or enter in to a finishing submission.

This style of fighting is best used against a reckless opponent. Somebody like a berserker who rushes in like a train, giving little thought to their opponent’s tactics and skill. A brash, hotheaded man who wants to get out of there before the end of the first round.

If you have somebody who is willing to use the same style however, or quite the opposite, and come forth with a planned and focused attack, Machida is prone to quickly overload. The latter was the case in both fights with Shogun Rua, as well as his loss to Quinton “Rampage” Jackson. Cooler heads were able to prevail in both instances, with Machida losing to these concentrated assaults.

Fighting Style Wins – Rashad Evans, Thiago Silva, Randy Couture

Fighting Style Fails – Quinton “Rampage” Jackson, Shogun Rua

Anthony “Crazy Kicks” Pettis

When people think of WEC veteran Anthony “Showtime” Pettis, people often think of his extraordinary off the cage kick of Ben Henderson, and the wild and unorthodox display of kicks in his ever expanding arsenal. 

Going in to his fight with Clay Guida at the finale of The Ultimate Fighter Season 13, many were expecting Guida to act the role of gatekeeper and allow Pettis the opportunity for a warm-up fight before his inevitable lightweight title shot. Little did Pettis know that Guida saw the fight completely different, and capitalized on an opportunity to spoil Pettis’ UFC debut.

Guida fought like a man with something to prove, having been discounted in his fight with Pettis before the two even entered the octagon. As a UFC veteran involved in countless battles, Guida saw it as a sign of disrespect that Petis was looking past him for a lightweight title shot. In Guida’s eyes, a highlight reel kick or two does not a champion make.

Pettis style of mixing up a barrage of punches with an unheard of (and unseen) amount of kicks that come from all foreseeable angles often works so well because of its unpredictable nature. How do you prepare yourself to block something when you have no idea where it is coming from?

Guida however did exactly what you are supposed to against a man who is dangerous in the stand-up game. Take him down and keep him there. By grinding out a victory on the mat, Guida limited Pettis ability to score a one-kick knockout, thereby greatly reducing Pettis ability to win the fight. Pettis legs were so busy trying to escape a potential submission attempt that they had no thought of connecting with an opponent’s head.

Fighting Style Wins – Ben Henderson, Danny Castillo

Fighting Style Fails – Clay Guida

Brock “The Smotherer” Lesnar

Brock Lesnar is a freak athlete. His gargantuan size, combined with the speed of a man half his weight makes him a force to be reckoned with in the heavyweight division. In battles with Shane Carwin, Frank Mir, and Randy Couture, Lesnar was able to literally pounce on his opponent, leaning on them to grind out a victory. On his feet Lesnar can be just as lethal. Provided he does not get hit.

In matches with Shane Carwin and Cain Velasquez, Lesnar wilted in upon himself whenever his opponent showed any signs of going toe-to-toe with the hulking heavyweight. Likewise, when his ability to wrap himself around his opponent was stuffed, such as in the Velasquez fight, Lesnar goes in to panic mode.

What this leaves is a 265-plus pound mass of a man at the bottom of the octagon floor, reduced to a puddle of muscle and bone only identifiable by its large sword tattoo and shit-eating grin.

Fighting Style Wins – Frank Mir, Randy Couture

Fighting Style Fails – Cain Velasquez

Bonus: Chael Sonnen and Quinton “Rampage” Jackson “Gum Flapping”

Both of the aforementioned fighters are amongst the elite in their divisions, ranked within the top-5 at middleweight and light heavyweight respectively.  Chael Sonnen came within mere moments of cradling UFC middleweight gold at UFC 117, before he was suddenly choked out by the elusive Anderson Silva. Quinton “Rampage” Jackson has had an illustrious career in both Pride and the UFC, possessing light heavyweight gold, and challenging for the number one spot again at UFC 135 this fall.

Nobody is denying these fighters credentials, but their style of talking up a fight, and talking down their opponents, has made them as many foes as fans in the UFC.

It is my belief that, pound for pound, nobody can talk as much smack, with as much intensity as Chael Sonnen. From Brazil to Brock Lesnar, the Nogueira brothers to Portugese, Sonnen has no qualms about bringing up any subject matter, then promptly tearing it down.

Whether it be through Twitter or in person, Sonnen’s quick wit and razor-sharp comebacks are made up of the things that, in the heat of the moment, we wish we could say but don’t think of until hours later.

All of the hype and trash talk came to a head at UFC 117 when, for four and a half rounds, Sonnen appeared to be close to living up to his own grandiose self-image. That night was to be the beginning of a very dark period in Sonnen’s life however, with the title falling through his grasp and a steroid-controversy/ federal indictment looming just around the corner for the brash Oregon fighter.

For Rampage Jackson, we saw his mouth create several promises his fighting could not keep during season 10 of The Ultimate Fighter, and his subsequent bout with opposing coach Rashad Evans. Evans, who was the more composed and professional of the two coaches, had his patience tested time and time again by the bullying Jackson.

From paintings to pranks, Jackson found every way possible to get under the skin of Evans and his team-members, getting dangerously close to fisticuffs on more than one occasion (with more than one member of the TUF house).

Unfortunately for Jackson, jokes and anecdotes have to be left at the octagon doors, and even the wittiest of putdowns could not protect him against the superior fighting of Rashad Evans. Although the fight was close, with Jackson almost stealing a knockout victory, Evans proved that nice guys can finish first, and that winning is the best comeback of all.

Fighting Style Wins – Every interview/tweet

Fighting Style Fails- Anderson Silva, Rashad Evans