10 Potential Breakout Fighters Who Need to Be on Your Radar

When Glover Teixeira made his debut in the UFC, there was a small buzz that had been circulating about him for years. Fighting out of The Pit with John Hackleman, Teixeira has been training with high-caliber partners and fighting some of the best in the independent circuit for years.

In 2006, Teixeira went 3-0 in the WEC, winning all of his fights in under two minutes. Clearly, he would have transitioned over to the UFC once the WEC phased out their light heavyweight division, but he had visa issues.

Now that Teixeira is making waves in the UFC, let's take a look at some other fighters poised for a major breakout who you should be aware of.

Some of the fighters on this list have already fought for the UFC. Some of them are under contract to Zuffa but have yet to debut. The rest are still battling it out on the smaller circuit in hopes of being noticed.

Jim Hettes

Organization: UFC

Division: Featherweight

Record: 10-0

Starting your UFC career with back-to-back victories is an accomplishment that many new stars can not attain. The fact that Hettes was able to dominate tough-as-nails Nam Phan in his last bout truly put him on the map.

Hettes remains undefeated and would have looked for his 11th career win last month, but an injury forced him out of a battle with Steven Siler at UFC on FX 4.

When Hettes returns, it will be interesting to see who they pair him against, as Siler was a noticeable step down from the Phan bout. Someone along the lines of Cub Swanson or Diego Nunes might be more his speed.

Zorobabel Moreira

Organization: One FC

Division: Welterweight

Record: 8-1

You might recognize the name but be uncertain about why. Zorobabel Moreira is best known for the soccer kick heard round the world which he delivered to Roger Huerta.

Despite his strengths living within his grappling, Moreira displayed his impressive striking when he brutalized the highly regarded Huerta throughout the bout.

No matter how you feel about the brutal kick, the skills that led up to that shocking moment are what put the MMA world on notice. What's truly scary is that Moreira can compete anywhere from lightweight to middleweight.

Chris Clements

Organization: UFC

Division: Welterweight

Record: 11-4

Chris Clements may not have the record of a top prospect, but his UFC debut suggested that he is a dark horse who can deliver some major damage even when in tough positions.

Clements earned his roster spot after knocking out UFC veterans Rich Clementi and Jonathan Goulet.

In 2006, Clements set the record for fastest knockout in MMA history when he finished Lautaro Tucas in only three seconds.

We will see how well Clements stacks up in his next bout. He has the misfortune of drawing Siyar Bahadurzada at UFC 149.

Authors Edit: Clements will no longer be facing Siyar Bahadurzada at UFC 149. Bahadurzada pulled out due to injury and Clements will not square off against Matt Riddle.

Shane Del Rosario

Organization: UFC

Division: Heavyweight

Record: 11-1

Someone coming off of a stoppage loss makes this list? Absolutely.

Regardless of being finished by fellow prodigy Stipe Miocic, there is no question that Shane del Rosario is a monster.

Coasting through a trio of Strikeforce battles with first-round stoppages, it appeared that Shane del Rosario was a head above the rest of prospects in his division. He came up short against Miocic but had an excellent first round that proved his car accident didn't affect him as much as was initially feared.

They say that a fighter learns more from a loss than he does from a win. If del Rosario is able to come back even stronger than he already was, the heavyweight division has its hands full.

Antonio Braga Neto

Organization: Free Agent

Division: Middleweight

Record: 8-1 (1)

Neto is a two-time gold medalist in the World Jiu-Jistu Championship for both 2008 and 2011. His deadly submission skills have earned him victories over UFC veterans Brock Larson and Maiquel Falcao.

The bout against Falcao showed the world that Neto has a heart that rivals Frankie Edgar, as his opponent launched a terribly damaging assault through the first round. 

With excellent conditioning, notable takedown skills and world-class grappling, Neto was named the top middleweight prospect in MMA by Bloody Elbow.

Hacran Dias

Organization: UFC

Division: Featherweight

Record: 21-1-1

Ironically, I wrote the slide for Hacran Dias before his victory over hot prospect Yuri Alcantara. The Nova Uniao standout was able to successfully defeat the fellow Brazilian in his UFC debut at UFC 147.

In the process, he extended his winning streak to nine and picked up the biggest win of his career.

The 28-year-old fighter has an incredible set of grappling skills which match up well against anyone in the division, although his striking has some room for improvement. If Dias can advance his stand-up skills, then he will cause major problems for any opponent.

Mitch Gagnon

Organization: UFC

Division: Bantamweight

Record: 8-1

Mitch Gagnon was the No. 10 featherweight prospect in the February 2011 scouting report put out by Bloody Elbow. Since that time, Gagnon has won two more fights, both by submission, and improved his record to 8-1.

What's most impressive about Gagnon's record is that all eight victories have come by way of submission. 

Gagnon makes his UFC debut in a bantamweight battle against Bryan Caraway at UFC 149.

Jimi Manuwa

Organization: BAMMA

Division: Light Heavyweight

Record: 11-0

Jimi Manuwa is an undefeated prospect currently signed to the BAMMA brand of mixed martial arts. You may be wondering why the UFC hasn't called upon Manuwa to help bolster their shallow light heavyweight division. However, "Poster Boy" turned down a UFC contract last year.

Manuwa was asked to compete in the UK's own UFC 138 event. After a 15-month layoff, he did not feel like it was a good idea to join the biggest organization in the world with that much ring rust.

Debuting in BAMMA back in December, Manuwa has improved his record to 11-0 and has three more fights on his contract.

Ryan Jimmo

Organization: UFC

Division: Light Heavyweight

Record: 16-1

Despite an unfortunate loss that removed him from the elimination round of The Ultimate Fighter: Season Nine, Ryan Jimmo is considered to be one of the brightest stars on the UFC roster.

Victims who have suffered the unfortunate fate of being on Jimmo's hitlist? UFC veterans Sokoudjou, Wilson Gouveia, Marvin Eastman and Jesse Forbes.

Currently riding a 16-fight winning streak, Jimmo will make his long-awaited debut against Anthony Perosh at UFC 149.