UFC 183's Joe Lauzon and the 8 Most Violent Fighters in the UFC Today

Fighters cut from the same cloth as Joe Lauzon don't need pristine records to maintain job security in the UFC. Win-loss records don't carry as much weight in the careers of the sport's most genuine gladiators.

The UFC has a massive stable of 565 competitors, all of whom have proven capable of putting on captivating shows. However, this countdown is an homage to the most ruthless fighters in the promotion, the guys and gals who act like their lives are on the line every time the Octagon door slams shut.

Whether they're wrestling, striking or looking to slap on a submission, these fighters always scrap for the finish and rarely leave their fates in the hands of judges.

Here's a look at the eight most violent fighters in the UFC today.

Honorable Mentions: Travis Browne and Yoel Romero

Travis Browne

For a former basketball player who began his career in 2009, Browne already possesses all the variables to someday become the UFC's most feared heavyweight.

Hapa, who stands 6' 7" and has a gas tank that backs up his aggressive style, pulls off techniques that most heavyweights can only dream of doing, like landing a front-kick knockout to the face of Alistair Overeem in a fight that he nearly lost in the first round.

But what landed Browne on the list is his ability to end a fight violently from virtually any position. Browne knocked out both Josh Barnett and Gabriel Gonzaga with elbows while his back was against the cage. He also KO'd Stefan Struve with a Superman punch and strangled Chad Griggs with an arm-triangle choke.

In his last fight, Browne showed that he could pummel a capable Brendan Schaub in several positions on the ground before mounting him, taking his back and ultimately TKO'ing him with an old-fashioned beatdown from the back mount.

Yoel Romero

He made his bones as an Olympic freestyle wrestler, but in the last two years, Romero has emerged as a bona fide brawler and one of the heaviest hitters in the UFC.

Unlike some high-caliber wrestlers, Romero doesn't usually game-plan to ground and maul his opponents. Instead, the 37-year-old Cuban uses his wrestling as a deterrent while he looks to impose his will with relentless bombs from the stand-up position.

In his five UFC fights, Romero has utilized brutal punches, elbows and flying knees to score four wins via KO or TKO. 

8. Matt Brown

Although he doesn't have the one-strike KO power that some of his peers on this list possess, when Matt Brown blitzes an opponent, it often resembles a swarm of angry hornets trying to protect a nest.

Brown has tremendous cardio, a wide spectrum of tools and an unmatched will to win, a rare combination that's enabled him to become a relentlessly punishing brawler.

Rather than attempting to control or submit his foes, the 34-year-old Ohio native typically takes the same approach in every fight he's in: weather any storm that's thrown his way and then fight back with twice as much fire.

Those who can't combat Brown's fast-paced, never-say-die style, like 14-fight UFC vet Mike Pyle failed to do, get viciously clubbed in less than 30 seconds.

7. Robbie Lawler

Since turning pro in 2001, Robbie Lawler has always lived up to his "Ruthless" moniker. But it wasn't until the beginning of his second stint with the UFC in early 2013 that Lawler truly maximized his ruthlessness.

Lawler strengthened every aspect of his game when he decided to start training full time at American Top Team in Coconut Creek, Florida. Since then, Lawler has improved his cardio and tightened up his defense, advancements that allowed him to optimize his abilities as a ferocious striker.

Lawler's unforgiving style helped him score fierce TKO or KO wins over Josh Koscheck, Bobby Voelker and Jake Ellenberger. And even though he won his last two fights by decision, the second of which earned him his first UFC title, Lawler never deviated from the style that initially landed him his first contract with the UFC at age 20.

6. Mark Hunt

Like Lawler, Mark Hunt typically does anything he can to force his opponents to engage in a stand-up war, and also akin to the welterweight champ, few men can withstand Hunt's savage striking ability.

Regardless of what Hunt uncorks, smart heavyweights in the UFC are always aware that he fires everything with bad intentions.

While iron-chinned Roy Nelson and the 7-foot Stefan Struve may have both trained to stop Hunt's fierce offensives, neither man left the Octagon without succumbing to the Super Samoan's nasty muay thai game.

Hunt broke Struve's jaw with a thunderous, fight-ending left hook. He then served Nelson just his second KO in 29 fights with a hellish fight-ending rear uppercut.

Don't expect to see Hunt break an opponent's arm or slam a foe into unconsciousness at any point in his career. For what Hunt doesn't bring to the table in the offensive grappling department, he easily makes up for in the realm of striking.

5. Joe Lauzon

The UFC's brass covets fighters like Lauzon because of its understanding that the most violent fighters tend to also become the most entertaining.

Lauzon holds an 11-6 record in the UFC and has never competed in a title fight or a title eliminator bout. But Lauzon's standing in the lightweight division aside, the UFC has happily employed him for over eight years and will continue to do so in the future knowing that they'll get the same balls-to-the-wall effort from the Massachusetts native whether he prevails or fails.

J-Lau has proved time after time in his 17-fight UFC career that he has one thing on his mind once inside the Ocatagon: making his opponents cry uncle. Amazingly, Lauzon has stacked up a UFC-record 13 performance bonuses, including six "Submission of the Night" checks, and he's been downright dastardly to his opponents in the process.

Had he only done as much damage in the striking department as he did with his submission wrestling, Lauzon could have swiped one of the top three spots on the list.

4. Cain Velasquez

Cain Velasquez simply does everything as fast and as hard as he can in the Octagon, and it's that perpetual sense of urgency that has made the former NCAA Division I All-American wrestler the world's best heavyweight fighter.

The longtime UFC heavyweight champ reacts and recovers like a lightweight. But when it comes to explosiveness, Velasquez can render an opponent unconscious with a slam or a strike.

Velasquez's rare gifts enabled him to pummel both Junior Dos Santos and Antonio "Bigfoot" Silva twice. From start to finish in those fights, Velasquez attacked both Cigano and Bigfoot from all angles until both men eventually broke.

On any given fight night, fans can see Velasquez using his never-ending gas tank and his top-flight wrestling and striking games to forcefully chop his opponents down.

If he only had a better knack for one-strike knockouts, the heavyweight champ would have solidified a higher slot on the list.

3. Hector Lombard

Lombard lives up to his intimidating persona and appearance by doing everything in the Ocatgon as swiftly and powerfully as he can.

When Lombard throws a strike, he tries to launch it through his foe's body. When he attempts a trip, he wants to trip his opponent through the canvas. And when he fishes for a submission, which he rarely does (even though he's a fully capable finisher on the ground), he looks to take a limb with him.

Whether it happens in the standing position or on the mat, few can handle a violent blitz from the 36-year-old Cuban judoka.

The only factor that kept Lombard from taking one of the top two slots on the countdown is that fact that he doesn't use his Brazilian jiu-jitsu skills to emphatically finish more opponents. (Lombard has seven career submissions in 41 fights.)

2. Ronda Rousey

The fact that Rousey has yet to go the distance in her unbeaten career certainly contributed to her landing on this countdown.

However, Rowdy made the cut above legendary maulers like Velasquez and Lombard because of her truly vehement desire to end her fights by any means necessary and as quickly as she can.

Whether it's a bone-snapping armbar, a paralyzing knee to the liver or a hip toss that all but renders an opponent unconscious, Rousey has done it all. 

Like a female version of Fedor Emelianenko, Rousey flips a switch when the opening horn sounds and becomes a hunter who always finds the weaknesses of her prey.

1. Anthony Johnson

He may not terrorize his opponents on the ground, but for what Johnson lacks in his submission game, he makes up for in spades in his ability to punish foes on their feet. 

With some of the UFC's heaviest knees, punches, elbows and kicks, no fighter in the UFC today can say he or she brings the brand of controlled aggression that Johnson operates with. On top of that, no UFC fighter can claim to match Johnson's killer instinct.

In essence, Johnson has perfected the art of stuffing takedowns from top-flight wrestlers and Brazilian jiu-jitsu players and forcing these men into engaging in fisticuffs.

With ungodly athletic gifts, a sturdy chin and the proper guidance from his coaches at the Blackzilians, Johnson has found a way to blossom into the UFC's most effectively violent fighter.

Johnson was born with gifts that made him an elite fighter. But until he fully bought into the principles being taught by Blackzilians' head striking coach, Henri Hooft, Johnson hadn't given himself a chance to reach his potential.

Since letting go of his ego and giving into Hooft's guidance, Johnson has won nine straight fights, six of which he won via TKO or KO.