B.J. Penn, Nick Diaz and the 10 Most Fearless Fighters in MMA
No fighter is fearless, but there are some who love to fight their opponents at their own game without thinking about the worst-case scenario.
They will take on any challenge that is put in front of them and try their best to make a statement.
These are the fighters who like to prove a point that they can beat anyone where they are the most skilled or where people think they have no chance of succeeding.
It's what improves them as a fighter and makes fans respect them, giving them a well-rounded skill set while giving themselves confidence in their fighting ability.
These are the top 10 most fearless fighters in MMA.
10. Carlos Condit (26-5)
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There is a reason the former WEC welterweight champion has never been in a boring fight. It's because he isn't afraid to mix it up with his opponents and is one of the toughest fighters in the sport.
In his fight with Dan Hardy, he was motivated by the British fighter's trash talk to stand and trade until someone got knocked out.
It paid off for Condit in the end when he connected on a left hook that knocked out the former title challenger in the first round.
It was the first time Hardy had been knocked out, and you can thank Condit's fearless fighting personality for that.
9. Chris Leben (25-7)
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Chris Leben has fought his entire career in the middleweight division and has taken on the likes of Anderson Silva, Patrick Cote and Yoshihiro Akiyama, and is set to face Wanderlei Silva at UFC 132.
That fight should show, once again, why fans love to watch this guy fight. He goes into every fight looking for the knockout and will walk through hell and back to get it.
In 2010, Leben fought twice in a two-week time span against Japanese Judo Olympian Yoshihiro Akiyama and standout wrestler Aaron Simpson. Leben defeated both: one by knockout and the other by submission.
8. Kazushi Sakuraba (26-15-1)
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Japanese legend Kazushi Sakuraba has been in the fight game since 1997 and is still competing against some of the toughest fighters outside the UFC.
He has fought everyone from Wanderlei Silva (x3), Melvin Manhoef, Vitor Belfort, Mirko Cro Cop, Rogerio Nogueira and four members of the Gracie family.
If you want to know how fearless the 41-year-old is, watch his trilogy with Wanderlei Silva. In three bouts, he stood and traded punches with the ferocious striker and was knocked out in two of them.
Many are calling for his retirement, but he has yet to officially announce it so until then, he will remain on the list of the most fearless fighters.
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7. Chris Lytle (30-18-5)
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UFC welterweight fighter Chris Lytle has established his reputation as one of the best fighters never to fight for a title.
He is also known as one of the most exciting fighters in the sport because of his iron chin and aggressive fighting style, which have earned him five "Fight of the Night" awards, one "Submission of the Night" award and two "Knockout of the Night" awards.
There will be no shortage of haymakers exchanged in a Lytle fight, and his UFC career, which goes all the way back to 2000, supports that.
Memorable wars with Robbie Lawler, Marcus Davis, Paul Taylor, Joe Riggs, Thiago Alves and Matt Serra have all made Lytle a fan-favorite fighter.
He had considered retiring from the sport after losing his last fight to Brian Ebersole at UFC 127, but he will continue to fight on.
6. Dan Henderson (27-8)
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In a career that spans three weight divisions, former Pride middleweight and welterweight champion Dan Henderson has one of the deepest and most extensive records in MMA.
His most recent win over dangerous Muay Thai striker and Strikeforce light-heavyweight champion Rafael "Feijao" Cavalcante was an impressive display of toughness and power as he knocked out the Black House member in the third round.
Some of the names on Henderson's resume include the Nogueira brothers, Anderson Silva, Wanderlei Silva, Ricardo Arona, Michael Bisping, Jake Shields and Vitor Belfort.
His next fight is most likely going to be against Fedor Emelianenko on Strikeforce PPV.
5. Nick Diaz (25-7)
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Strikeforce welterweight champion Nick Diaz is on a 10-fight win streak. Of those 10 fights, he has finished nine of them.
Diaz is on this list more so for how he fights than who he has fought, and he has fought some of the best.
His fighting style and aggressive attitude are what makes fans appreciate him, and his latest fight vs. Paul Daley is a good example of that.
He had every advantage on the ground over the fighter known as "Semtex" because of his explosive punching power, but Diaz didn't take it there once.
Instead, he stood and traded power punches with Daley for five minutes before earning a TKO victory 4:57 into Round 1.
4. Wanderlei Silva (33-10-1)
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It's going to be an early candidate for "Fight of the Year" or "Knockout of the Year" when Wanderlei Silva and Chris Leben are done exchanging haymakers in their fight at UFC 132 in July.
For 15 years, Silva has fought over 40 times and has been in some of the most memorable wars in MMA history.
He has fought almost all of the best and most exciting fighters including Chuck Liddell, Mirko Cro Cop, Rich Franklin, Dan Henderson and Rampage Jackson.
Silva's fighting style has made him one of the most popular fighters in MMA but has also taken a toll on the 34-year-old from Brazil.
He has suffered devastating knockout losses in three of his last seven bouts but is still putting on entertaining fights.
3. Randy Couture (19-10)
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Couture has the second-highest amount of fights in the UFC at 23 and is currently scheduled to face former UFC light-heavyweight champion Lyoto Machida at UFC 129.
He has fought everyone in the light-heavyweight and heavyweight divisions and has even fought former boxing heavyweight champion and pound-for-pound ranked James Toney.
Three fights with Chuck Liddell, Vitor Belfort and a host of heavyweight title bouts with notably bigger opponents Brock Lesnar, Gabriel Gonzaga and Tim Sylvia have impressed fans and made Couture one of the most influential fighters in the sport.
2. Fedor Emelianenko (31-3)
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Fedor Emelianenko has made a career of fighting fighters with a considerable size advantage over him in the heavyweight division.
In his last fight with Antonio Silva, the PRIDE heavyweight champion weighed 50 or more pounds less than his opponent going into the fight.
The size advantage was a factor at the very start and proved to be too much for the Russian fighter. The doctor called a stop to the bout before the third round after his right eye was completely shut.
In his bouts with Brett Rogers, Andrei Arlovski and Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira, Emelianenko fought each of them where they were thought to have the biggest advantage and defeated them, all including two by knockout.
His future in the heavyweight division is uncertain, but a rumored bout with Dan Henderson may be next.
1. B.J. Penn (16-7-2)
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Former UFC lightweight and welterweight champion B.J. Penn has fought everywhere from 155 pounds to 191 pounds.
His career spans three divisions and includes opponents of every weight class from Jens Pulver to Georges St. Pierre to Lyoto Machida.
All of his losses have come to current or former champions, and his undeniable fighting spirit has made him one of the most appreciated and skilled fighters ever to compete in mixed martial arts.
Penn is 1-2-1 in his last four bouts and has considered retiring from the sport before accepting a rematch with Jon Fitch.
Unfortunately, both fighters pulled out of the UFC 132 bout and will need to accept a later fight date or choose a new opponent.
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