MMA: Another Year Of Upsets In The Sport Of Upsets

For fight fans all over the world, 2007 has come to be known as “The Year of the Upset.”  Quinton Jackson knocked out Chuck Liddell, Matt Serra destroyed Georges St. Pierre, Gabriel Gonzaga beat Mirko Filipovic at his own game, Nick Diaz stunningly submitted Takanori Gomi, Randy Couture thrashed Tim Sylvia, and Forrest Griffin shut down Mauricio Rua, and the list goes on.

For years, men like Chuck “the Iceman” Liddell, Wanderlei “the Axe Murderer” Silva, Georges “Rush” St. Pierre, and Mauricio “Shogun” Rua have shown such technical and physical prowess in their performances that viewers actually began to believe that they were invincible.  As fans, we forgot about the unpredictable nature of the sport of mixed martial arts. 

In the case of a dominant fighter like Georges St. Pierre, it took a heartbreaking knockout loss to a huge underdog like Matt Serra, in the first round no less, to remind fans everywhere that literally anything can happen once the bell rings. 

One punch can easily make the difference between a win and a loss, and 2008, like the year 2007 before it, continued to prove it.  

I’m going classify these upsets on a scale including one (surprise), two (big surprise), three (who saw that coming), four (will he remember it at all when he wakes up) and finally, five (we just witnessed history ladies and gentlemen). 

I will refer to it simply as the “Upset Scale.” 

Early on in 2008, it seemed that veterans and favorites had turned the strange 2007 tide back to the way it once was.  In some unsurprising results, Georges St. Pierre reclaimed his title from Matt Serra, Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira re-asserted his almost mythical status, submitting Tim Sylvia, and Japanese MMA icon Takanori Gomi returned to his winning ways by winning two straight fights, including a unanimous decision over the always-tough Duane “Bang” Ludwig. 

But it was still only February and the upsets of 2008 soon popped out, and began to pile up quickly.  No matter how much it pained fans to witness it, perennial contenders, fan favorites, and champions alike were all toppled throughout 2008 by their underdog opponents. 

Matt Hughes may not have seemed the dominant warrior he once was, but it was still unexpected that Thiago Alves would end his night in such brutal fashion at UFC 85, last June.  Hughes shot in lazily for a takedown in the second round of the fight, and the ever-dangerous Alves made him pay for it dearly.   

The rising welterweight star brought Hughes crashing down with a vicious flying knee and followed it up with strikes on the ground that forced the referee to step in and rescue the limp former-champ.  Viewers everywhere were stunned, but Alves had earned a convincing two on the upset scale. 

Another huge upset, rating a four on the upset scale, came the very next month, at UFC 86, when number one contender Forrest Griffin picked apart the champion Quinton “Rampage” Jackson and took the UFC light-heavyweight championship belt.  Griffin brutalized Jackson with barrages of leg kicks that clearly hurt the defending champion’s knee.  This neutralized Rampage’s game-plan by taking the significant power out of his punching, and from there on out, it was Forrest Griffin’s night.

Earlier in the year, across the Pacific Ocean, tough veteran Denis Kang was submitted via triangle choke by lesser-known Gegard Mousasi in round one of the middleweight grand prix of the new Japanese MMA promotion, DREAM.  While this outcome only ranks about a two on the upset scale, it is needless to say that Mousasi is now a well-known name in the fight game. 

As the year progressed, one favorite after another dropped fights they were expected to win.  After winning two straight fights earlier in the year, Takanori “the Fireball Kid” Gomi came up on the losing end of a controversial split decision against the obscure Sergey Golyeav.  This upset comes in at a three on the scale, as it appeared as though Golyeav had literally been fed to the man who once was once known as the king of the Japanese lightweights. 

Back in the DREAM Middleweight Grand Prix, Gegard Mousasi returned to the ring for two more upset victories in the span of a single night.  He came out unafraid of the hard-hitting “Marvelous” Melvin Manhoef, submitting the Dutch striker early in the first round with a very slick triangle choke.  The skill-level of Manhoef’s ground-game, or lack-there-of, means this particular victory only makes it to a two on the upset scale. 

Mousasi followed up this victory with one of the most original knockout victories ever; beating the tournament favorite, Ronaldo “Jacare” Souza, with a brutal up-kick to win the middleweight tournament and capture the first-ever DREAM Middleweight Championship.  The incredible kick, delivered from Mousasi on his back, rendered Souza utterly unconscious, making this victory an easy number three on the scale. 

Over in the WEC, celebrated, undefeated middleweight champion, Paulo Filho, who could not even make weight, looked terrible in his rematch with Chael Sonnen.  An awkward, disappointing fight led to Filho dropping a decision to Sonnen, resulting in the first loss of his career; only rated a one given Filho’s attitude and performance. 

In the U.S., the UFC and WEC saw even more upsets.  After losing the light-heavyweight championship in July, Quinton “Rampage” Jackson returned to action, at UFC 92, in December for his third bout against former PRIDE champion, Wanderlei Silva.  Silva had previously knocked Jackson out brutally, not once, but twice. 

Despite the two haunting defeats, Jackson delivered a monstrous left hook in the first round of the fight that knocked Silva out cold, giving Jackson a three on the upset scale. 

Also at UFC 92, arguably one of the strongest cards of the year, number one UFC light-heavyweight contender, Rashad Evans, took fan favorite, Forrest Griffin’s title, in the third round of their championship fight.  For the first two rounds, Griffin seemed to be effectively asserting his game-plan, as was expected by many. 

However, once Evans had Griffin on his back, he unleashed a brutal barrage of ground-and-pound from inside the champion’s guard, until the referee rushed to Griffin’s aid.  Rashad Evans’ defeat of Forrest Griffin made another easy three on the scale.

Despite all of the amazing upsets of 2008 already mentioned, there are still three fights in particular that stand above the rest as the top three upset victories of the year.  They all took place in the U.S., and they are as follow in shock-value order:

3.  Michael Thomas Brown vs. Urijah Faber, WEC 36, November 5, 2008 – As respected a veteran as Brown was, there was next to no one who believed that he would walk away the new WEC featherweight champion after his title fight with the relentless “California Kid,” Urijah Faber.

Faber had only one career loss over three years prior, and had been steamrolling his opponents ever since.  Faber was also considered one of the top pound-for-pound fighters in the world coming into the fight. 

Nevertheless, Brown left little to discuss after capitalizing on Faber’s sloppy attempt at a spinning elbow strike in the first round of the fight.  As Faber spun in for the elbow strike, Brown literally clothes-lined him with a perfectly-timed right hand.  The huge punch floored Faber, and Brown pounded him out on the ground for a first round victory, the WEC Featherweight Championship, and the number three upset of 2008. Brown’s victory was a clear four on the upset scale. 

2.  Rashad Evans vs. Chuck Liddell, UFC 88, September 6, 2008 – It was generally understood that the stakes in the matchup between the beloved former champion, Liddell, and the undefeated contender, Evans, would be the first shot at newly-crowned light-heavyweight champion Forrest Griffin.  Fans everywhere watched eagerly, hoping Liddell would get his shot at regaining the championship belt he had once held for so long. 

We all knew that Rashad Evans was a hot prospect indeed, especially after winning the second season of The Ultimate Fighter.  However, the image that Chuck “the Iceman” Liddell had left in the minds of fans after so many years of battering his opponents brought forth a collective understanding that he would knock his younger opponent off and continue his climb back up the light-heavyweight ladder. 

In the first round, despite taking one or two big shots from Liddell, Evans seemed to frustrate the former champion as he was unafraid to stand and strike with him and deliver several blows of his own.  By the end of round one, Evans’ confidence had visibly risen after withstanding the Iceman’s hail of blows. 

As the second round commenced, Evans continued to stay in the pocket and outpoint Liddell.  Midway into the round, Evans’ golden opportunity came knocking.  When Liddell came in for a right uppercut, Evans countered with an overhand right.  Evan’s right, ironically known as one of Liddell’s signature punches, got there first, and sent the former light-heavyweight kingpin buckling to the canvas. 

The crowd in attendance was speechless after witnessing the brutal number two upset of 2008 and the first of only two victories in the year that warranted a five on the upset scale.  Evans’ toppling of Chuck Liddell would have been an obvious candidate for the upset of the year if it was not for one fight that proved to be even more shocking.

1.  Frank Mir vs. Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira, UFC 92, December 27, 2008 – The fight for the UFC’s interim-heavyweight championship, and the first shot at heavyweight champion Brock Lesnar, was a much anticipated fight due in large part to the fact that Mir and Nogueira were the coaches of the two rival teams on the eighth season of The Ultimate Fighter reality television series. 

Both fighters were known as accomplished heavyweights and excellent ground fighters.  However, as tough as Mir was, absolutely no one gave him a chance against the legendary “Minotauro” Nogueira.  In thirty-six professional fights, Nogueira had never once been stopped, by knockout or submission.  A recurring image in the minds of many fans is the sight of Nogueira being beaten savagely, round after round, only to snatch an impossible turn-around victory. 

The beatings Nogueira had survived and overcome had earned him a reputation for having perhaps the toughest chin and greatest will to win of any fighter in the history of the sport.  Frank Mir, on the other hand, had a much less solid reputation coming into this fight.  He had once been considered a dominant fighter after winning the UFC heavyweight championship several years ago.  However, his dreams were shattered in a motorcycle accident that snapped his femur in half.  After a slow recovery, Mir looked mediocre in his fights. 

When the time came for Mir to face “Minotauro,” it was generally believed that there was nothing he had to offer the incredibly tough Brazilian.  However, in the first round Mir looked perhaps better than ever as he dominated by knocking Nogueira down twice. 

When the second round began, Mir came out and made history as he knocked Nogueira down yet again and continued with strikes on the ground until the referee stopped the fight. Frank Mir had become the first man to ever finish “Minotauro” Nogueira. 

Not only was this the upset of the year, but in defeating Nogueira and earning a title fight, Mir has achieved what is perhaps the greatest comeback of any fighter in the history of MMA, and also the second, and final, upset of 2008 worthy of a number five on the upset scale.

The many upsets of 2008, like those of 2007 before it, have dramatically reminded fight fans that, while great underdog victories can occur in any sport, mixed martial arts is an event in which even the mightiest of athletes can fall in the blink of an eye.  One punch is all it takes to completely change the course of a fight. 

The potential for a shocking upset is ever-present in MMA to a degree not seen in most other sports.  As 2009 opens, looming match-ups guarantee not only another year of exciting fights, but also some eye-opening upset victories.  Will the unexpected outcomes of 2009 be as numerous or as dramatic as 2008’s?  Look for the annual upset scale again after 2009, but let’s talk about it all year.