MMA: 10 Best Fighters with 10 or Less Fights

It's amazing what some fighters can accomplish with less than 10 fights under their belt.

Some make it into their division's top 10 rankings. Some have even become contenders and champions.

A good example of the immediate rise from making your debut to becoming a challenger and a contender fast is BJ Penn, who challenged Jens Pulver for the lightweight championship with only three fights. He would make two more challenges for a title even before his 10th professional bout, finally winning it when he defeated Matt Hughes with a 6-1-1 record.

As the list will show, there have been similar paths taken by several fighters. Some have become champion in different organizations, including Bellator, Strikeforce and the UFC. Others are still on their way up.

Notable Mentions

Cole Conrad (7-0)

Daniel Cormier (8-0)

Amir Sadollah (5-2)

Pat Barry (6-3)

Chris Weidman (6-0)

Tyrone Woodley (8-0)

Roger Gracie (4-0)

Joe Warren (7-1)

John Makdessi (9-0)

No. 10: Edson Barboza (8-0)

Edson Barboza is one of the most exciting lightweight up-and-comers and his fights have been nothing but fireworks.

With vicious Muay Thai skills and Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu skills to back it up, he is quickly becoming one of the fan-favorite fighters in the division and a future title challenger.

His next fight will come on the main card of UFC 134 against Ross Pearson. The fight will take place in his hometown of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.

No. 9: Cung Le (7-1)

Unlike many of the fighters on this list, Cung Le is in his late 30s and doesn't have the extensive record that many fighters at his age have.

That doesn't mean he isn't skilled. He went 17-0 in kickboxing and won a ton of tournaments, including the IKF Sanshou World Light Heavyweight Championship and the ISKA Shanshou U.S. Light Cruiserweight and Light Heavyweight Championships.

He became the Strikeforce Middleweight Champion after defeating Frank Shamrock in 2008. It was his sixth professional bout.

No. 8: Matt Mitrione (5-0)

Many contestants from The Ultimate Fighter series will make their UFC debut with a small amount of fights under their belt. The fights that occur on the show don't count on their records as is the case with heavyweight fighter Matt Mitrione.

Mitrione made his MMA and UFC debut on the same night, knocking out Marcus Jones in 2009. Since then, he has gone 4-0 and is quickly becoming one of the top prospects in the division.

He hasn't taken the leap that many challengers need to become a contender, but big things are to come from the former NFL player.

If anyone on this list is going to get a title shot before their 10th bout, it will probably be Mitrione.

No. 7: Muhammed "King Mo" Lawal (7-1)

Muhammed "King Mo" Lawal is the former Strikeforce Light Heavyweight Champion. He defeated Gegard Mousasi to win the title in 2010 and put on a quality display of wrestling to out-grapple his opponent over five rounds.

Before that, he had knocked out Mark Kerr and Mike Whitehead back-to-back.

He lost his title in his last outing versus Rafael Cavalcante, but he is returning at Strikeforce 36 to take on Roger Gracie in the heavyweight division.

No. 6: Ben Askren (8-0)

With an extensive list of wrestling accolades, Ben Askren entered MMA with an advantage many opponents cannot deal with.

He excelled up the Bellator ranks to win the welterweight championship in only his seventh professional fight. Before that, he also made his way through a three-fight tournament to win the Bellator Season 2 Welterweight Tournament finals.

His next fight will come against UFC veteran fighter Jay Hieron at a date still to be determined.

No. 5: Brendon Schaub (8-1)

Brendan Schaub may only be 8-1 in MMA, but he has already taken on some of the very best heavyweights, including Gabriel Gonzaga, Roy Nelson and Mirko Cro Cop.

His next fight will come against a legend in Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira at UFC 134. A win against the Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu wizard can only mean one thing—a UFC title shot.

No. 4: Chad Mendes (10-0)

Chad Mendes is a featherweight contender and a NCAA Division I wrestler.

Many have him ranked in the top of the division and ahead of the next challenger for Jose Aldo's title, Kenny Florian.

He made his debut in 2008 and went 4-0 in 2010 in the WEC, defeating Erik Koch, Javier Vazquez, Cub Swanson and Anthony Morrison.

He recently made his UFC debut at UFC 126, defeating Michihiro Omigawa. He is scheduled to fight Rani Yahya at UFC 133.

No. 3: Brock Lesnar (5-2)

Brock Lesnar has accomplished a lot in his short time in MMA. In only seven bouts, he has won, defended and lost the UFC heavyweight title.

His record was 1-0 when he first made his appearance inside the Octagon but he lost to Frank Mir quickly in the first round.

He rebounded to defeat Heath Herring and win the UFC Heavyweight Championship when he took on Hall-of-Fame fighter Randy Couture at UFC 91.

A successful title defense followed, but the title reign was cut short when he lost to Cain Velasquez at UFC 121.

No. 2: Phil Davis (9-0)

Light-Heavyweight contender Phil "Mr. Wonderful" Davis is 9-0 and has impressive victories over Brian Stann, Antonio Rogerio Nogueira and Alexander Gustafsson.

He was scheduled to take on his biggest test yet in Rashad Evans but was forced to pull out of the fight due to an injury suffered in training.

The NCAA Division I wrestler is only 26 so expect to see more than one attempt at a UFC belt before his career is over.

No. 1: Cain Velasquez (9-0)

There was a lot of hype surrounding Cain Velasquez before he entered the UFC with a 2-0 record. Fans found out just how good he was when he stopped Brad Morris in the first round of his UFC debut in 2008.

The NCAA Division I wrestler's success continued throughout 2009 and 2010 before he earned his first title shot at UFC 121.

It didn't take long for Velasquez to stop Brock Lesnar in their title fight, and it was one of the most standout performances of the year.

Injuries have held him back from defending his title but he is finally scheduled to face Junior dos Santos at UFC 138.