The 12 Most Scrutinized Fighters and Their Biggest Weakness

MMA fans can be some of the most critical of any fanbase. In a sport where something as small as a second in time can be the difference between a win and a loss, MMA fans tend to over-exaggerate when discussing fighters.

A win is a win and a loss is a loss.

The fighters on this list are some of the most scrutinized in the fighting game, even if it is a little much at times. Sometimes the scrutiny is warranted and other times it's simply fans attempting to find a weakness.

Whether they deserve the criticism or not is up for debate, but there's no debating these fighters are more often than not being placed under a microscope for us to find their biggest weakness.

Melvin Guillard

For years we've been waiting for Melvin Guillard to take off and challenge for the lightweight title. Despite his setbacks, we keep waiting and waiting for Guillard to finally realize his potential.

But it seems a UFC title isn't in Guillard's future. His critics like to point out his lack of focus, and it's hard to argue with that. Prior to joining Jackson's MMA, Guillard was known for his reckless fighting style, and it's clear that Guillard is going to resort back to that after joining the "Blackzillians."

Guillard is always credited with having tons of potential, but eventually, we need to realize he's either not a title contender or he doesn't take the fight game seriously.

Weakness: mental focus

Michael Bisping

Michael Bisping has made a career of becoming the anti-hero to many UFC fans. If Chael Sonnen were to step away from MMA, Bisping may become public enemy No. 1 for fight fans.

Even though he's had a very successful run at 185 pounds, Bisping is always under constant scrutiny for two things: lack of power and lack of wins against top-level opponents.

The first criticism is that Bisping lacks the power in his strikes. That may or may not be true, but with Sonnen claiming he was hit so hard he didn't know where he was in their contest, I'm willing to bet Bisping isn't a total "pillowfist."

The other criticism of Bisping is the fact that every time he gets some momentum and faces off against top-level competition, he loses. It's happened four times in his career, with losses to Rashad Evans, Dan Henderson, Wanderlei Silva and Sonnen.

Weakness(es): Pillowfist Syndrome and losses against top-level fighters

Nick Diaz

Ask an MMA fan this week what they believe Nick Diaz's biggest weakness is and they will likely tell you his lack of understanding about the rules of athletic commissions.

However, Diaz's biggest weakness is his lack of ability to adapt.

There's no questioning Diaz comes to fight and will never be accused of playing it safe. When opponents step into the cage against Diaz, they know they're in for a hard battle.

But Diaz follows the same strategy for each bout. If opponents refuse to stand in front of Diaz as he attempts to walk them down, we see him get frustrated. Carlos Condit's strategy didn't win him any fans, but it definitely provided a striker's blueprint to defeating Diaz.

Weakness: refusal to adapt

Jon Jones

In a single calendar year, Jon Jones went from a fan favourite to being despised by a large amount of the MMA community. Perhaps it's because he wins or because he's beaten a number of fan-favourites, but whatever the case is, people love to hate on him.

However, through all the scrutiny are some legitimate criticisms.

We've yet to see Jones really challenged and put on the defensive. His detractors always point to his immaturity given his age, but we haven't had the chance to seem him respond after being put into a corner.

It's easy to be confident when you're the bully, but how will Jones respond when he's the one being bullied?

Weakness: hasn't been tested

Frank Mir

Despite winning four of his last five fights, Frank Mir isn't on a lot of people's title contenders lists. Like Chael Sonnen, Mir's mouth often makes fans tune out to what he's saying despite the fact he backs up the talk.

After returning from a career-threatening injury, Mir's biggest weakness was his training habits. Mir seems to have fixed that problem, but he's run into another issue that may be more difficult to overcome.

In his past few fights, we've seen Mir get rocked on the feet and freeze inside the Octagon. It seems once the fists start connecting to his face, Mir forgets his strategy. However, his recovery in his last fight shows he's getting better about this issue.

Weakness: chin

Jon Fitch

Although most people agree that winning is all that matters, for Jon Fitch, it simply isn't enough. Fitch has been scrutinized for pretty much the majority of his career for his fighting style.

Fitch is in quite the "damned if you do, damned if you don't" kind of situation. His greatest strength is also his biggest weakness.

His grinding type style allows him to simply outwork his opponents, but it also fails to impress fans. And when fans are the ones deciding matchups (especially title fights), Fitch had to know he wasn't getting another crack at Georges St-Pierre anytime soon.

I think it's safe to say nobody was happier than Dana White when Fitch lost, because now he doesn't have to hear Fitch complain about not getting a title shot and not fighting teammates.

Weakness: fighting style/lack of finishing capability

Anthony Johnson

There's no doubting that Anthony Johnson comes to fight every time he steps into the cage. The only problem is getting Johnson on the scale the day before.

Johnson's fighting talents go without question, but he's had a history of failing to make weight. It's likely hurt his career (and his wallet) way more than it should have. It's also led to him being released by the company.

If Johnson can get his weight issues under control, he could return to the Octagon and be a force to be reckoned with.

Weakness: weight cutting

B.J. Penn

B.J. Penn should have no regrets about his career when he looks back. Well, maybe he would have one regret.

His biggest weakness hasn't been a lack of talent or any physical detriments, but rather a lack of conditioning. It's an issue that has failed the former champion on multiple occasions.

There are some bouts in his career where you could point to his lack of conditioning as the main cause of his loss. Take for example his bout with Jens Pulver. Penn has all the talent in the world and undoubtedly is a better fighter, but he failed to win the lightweight title due to his lack of cardio.

Weakness: conditioning

Rashad Evans

Rashad Evans will likely hear something he's not used to at UFC 145: fans cheering for him. Since his debut with the UFC, it seems like Evans has constantly been on the fans' bad side.

When looking at Evans' fighting skills, it'd be hard to find a reason for fans to not like him. Although he's fought "safe" in his past couple fights, he still possesses knockout power with solid wrestling to go along with it.

Evans' skills are among the best at 205 pounds, but his major weakness is his lack of size. Thus far in his career, Evans has been able to nullify the size disadvantage, but in some cases, we've seen where his small frame has worked against him.

Weakness: size

Georges St-Pierre

Perhaps no fighter under the UFC banner receives as much criticism while winning than Georges St-Pierre.

St-Pierre has been ruling over the 170-pound weight class for years and seemingly has no weaknesses other than his lack of finishes. A year ago, this would've been what fans could point to as being GSP's main weakness.

All that changed with his ACL injury.

Despite St-Pierre claiming that he will be back to normal when he comes back, odds are we are likely to see a different GSP. Athletes are never the same after returning from any kind of surge, let alone an ACL tear. St-Pierre, who depends a lot on his explosiveness for his offense, will need to put his knee injury out of his mind fast when he returns against Carlos Condit.

Weakness: uncertainty about knee injury

Chael Sonnen

Stepping into the role of MMA super villain, Chael Sonnen knows how to be a polarizing figure. Never one to shy away from a microphone, Sonnen is like a walking sound byte.

For the fans that dislike him, Sonnen's biggest criticism is his mouth. But this isn't his biggest weakness.

Sonnen usually backs up all his talk, but his kryptonite has to be his submission defense. Eight of his 11 losses have come via submission. That includes his most recent loss to UFC middleweight champion, Anderson Silva.

Weakness: submission defense

Fedor Emelianenko

Having fought his entire career outside the UFC banner, Fedor Emelianenko has been under constant scrutiny throughout his career. Fans will argue back and forth about the quality of opponents Emelianenko has fought, and he will always be a hot topic in the MMA community.

Like Dana White, most UFC fanboys were gloating and boasting "I told you so" when Emelianenko left Strikeforce on three straight losses

Although he's not as gone as some fighters his age, it's clear the Emelianenko's chin is beginning to fail him. His nose was bloodied against Brett Rodgers, he sustained a brutal beating at the hands of Antonio Silva and he was floored by Dan Henderson.

Emelianenko can still find success in the MMA world, but it's clear that he's no longer the dominant force he once was.

Weakness: declining chin