10 Most Overvalued Fighters in MMA

As sports fans, we sometimes place too much stock in certain athletes.

Often times, fans see an athlete as untouchable, and sure to find out, the athlete is far from invincible.

This happens in MMA as well, when the fans and media put fighters on pedestals that they're just not ready for. It's sort of like placing hype on something that's unproven.

So with that said, these are the mixed martial artists that are overvalued today.

Jon Fitch

When's the last time Jon Fitch had a fun fight?

Was it his last outing when Johny Hendricks knocked him out or was when Georges St-Pierre dominated him at UFC 87?

Though he's won plenty of fights in the UFC, he fails to electrify audiences. If Fitch is in control of the fight, the chances are he's laying on top doing little to no damage.

This brings about jokes such as "Fitch is the cure to insomnia" and so on. Everyone loves a winner sure, but if your game has no flash to it, what's the point in tuning in when two kids wrestling in the backyard provide the same amount of excitement?

Jake Shields

From one sleep inducing fighter to another, Jake Shields has been less than spectacular in the Octagon.

After defeating Dan Henderson in Strikeforce, Shields came over to the UFC and won a boring fight against Martin Kampmann, lost to GSP and Jake Ellenberger, and managed to not have a fight of the night-type performance against the always entertaining Yoshihiro Akiyama. Who would have thunk?

He's a one-dimensional fighter that has tremendous skill on the ground, but what happens when he can't get the fight to the ground?

The welterweight division is full of some of the best wrestlers in the UFC, and with Shields' weak striking game, he's a one-trick pony at best.

Phil Davis

Phil Davis may be a future champion one day, but as of right now, he's too raw.

We found this out first hand on UFC on FOX 2. In the main event, Davis was dominated by Rashad Evans, and though Evans was expected to have the better hands, Davis was outmatched in the wrestling department as well.

Wrestling is Davis' bread and butter, and with Evans showing that he has superior MMA wrestling, it's safe to say Davis is a ways off from being the next big thing at light heavyweight.

Let's just say he's going to need more than a strong double leg to put up a fight against Jon Jones.

Vitor Belfort

Has there every been a more inconsistent fighter than Vitor Belfort?

One minute he's unleashing fists of fury and the next he's getting drug around the ring by Tito Ortiz and Randy Couture.

That's been the story of Belfort's career, and just when you think Belfort is about to make a run at Anderson Silva's title, Silva knocks him out with a front kick.

Belfort is one of the best fighters in the middleweight division, but unfortunately, his inconsistency in the UFC will always lead many to doubt the "The Phenom."

Mark Munoz

Mark Munoz is supposed to be the best wrestler at middleweight.

When it comes to MMA wrestling, Munoz's amazing credentials outside of the Octagon don't seem to translate inside it.

Sure, he's taken the fight to the ground multiple times in fights, but there have been some fighters that he's struggled to get to the ground. Fights against Yushin Okami and Demian Maia failed to convince that Munoz's wrestling is the best in the division.

Chael Sonnen has mapped out the game plan to beating Anderson Silva, but after Munoz's recent scraps, who's to say Munoz could replicate that same attack?

Ryan Bader

Ryan Bader's riding a little higher than he should be following his win against Quinton "Rampage" Jackson.

At one point in his career, Bader was facing off against Jon Jones to determine which fighter would represent the new wave of talent. Long gone are those days.

Why? Well, Bader was dropped by none other than Tito Ortiz and then submitted in a guillotine. Since, he knocked him out Jason Brilz and Bader wrestled a decision away from Jackson.

Bader's stock has begun to rise again because of his recent victories and he finds himself on FOX's main card. But with his next bout coming against Lyoto Machida, Bader will find himself in the bottom half of the rankings once again.

Josh Koscheck

Will Josh Koscheck ever be relevant again?

Koscheck reached the peak of his career when he got his rematch against Georges St-Pierre at UFC 124. 

After his trash talking before the bout hyped the event, Koscheck failed to leave a lasting impression on GSP. In fact, it was GSP that left Koscheck with something he'll remember forever. 

To this day, Koscheck still has numbness in his face from GSP's jab, and after losing to the welterweight champion twice already, I'm afraid Koscheck will be nothing more than a gatekeeper for the rest of his career. 

Melvin Guillard

Melvin Guillard almost reached his potential, but after two straight losses, he's proven the doubters right.

Guillard is the quickest lightweight in the division, and after years and years of hearing the hype, he has failed to win his first lightweight championship in the UFC.

A new and reinvigorated Guillard was on the verge of reaching a title shot before he dropped two straight by submission.

Jiu-Jitsu has always been Guillard's Achilles' heel, and though he's a fantastic knockout artist, his weak ground game continues to haunt his legacy. 

Ben Askren

Ben Askren is one of the biggest names in Bellator.

He's a dominant champion, but he still lacks in the striking department like Shields and Davis.

But worst of all, he's a boring fighter. There's really not a nice way to put it. If you've seen one Askren fight, you've seen all of them.

Askren has six straight decisions in Bellator, and in every single one of them he's taken his opponent down and basically held them there. Though he's been dominant in Bellator, it's hard to consider him a draw with his style of fighting. 

Hatsu Hioki

I guess Hatsu Hioki wasn't ready for that title shot after all.

So much was riding on Hioki to become the new featherweight champion. He represented the dying breed that is Japanese MMA, and after Yushin Okami failed to defeat Anderson Silva, Hioki was supposed to be Japan's white knight.

Well, that day won't come any time soon following Hioki's loss to Ricardo Lamas at UFC on FX 4.

Hioki had the unrealistic expectations of single-handedly bringing Japanese MMA back to light, and with Jose Aldo reigning as champion in the division, Hioki may never meet those standards.