The 50 Most Powerful Strikers in MMA History

What makes a powerful striker?

It is much more than merely a powerful guy who throws strikes. 

Powerful strikes come from physical strength, but also from technique, accuracy and timing.

A powerful striker is a fighter who has the ability and skill to end a fight with strikes. He will be effective, efficient and consistent.

Here is a look back at some of the best in history. Who else should be there?

Honorable Mention

Tank Abott

Cain Velasquez

Kimbo Slice

Brett Rogers

Pat Barry

Cheick Kongo

Terry Martin

Dennis Siver

Mark Hunt

Rising Careers on Pace To Make the List with a Couple More Performances

Matt Mitrione

Edson Barboza

Brendan Schaub

Brian Stann

50. Matt Hamill

Matt Hamill's striking power comes from his ability to stalk his opponents by wading through oncoming attacks.

Unfazed in the face of onslaught, Hamill throws strikes that his opponents have to respect, or face unconsciousness.

His upcoming battle with Quinton Jackson should pack almost as much firepower as you can fit into a light heavyweight bout.

Highlight Victory: Headkick KO over Mark Munoz  

49. Mike Kyle

Mike Kyle, as it is, is a very effective power striker at heavyweight. But in addition, he cuts down to light heavyweight, where he often has a major strength advantage.

Having fought in the UFC, WEC, Strikeforce and other promotions, Kyle has faced a lot of good competitors, but has yet to crack into the sport's true upper echelon.

Highlight Victory: KOs over Rafael Cavalcante and James Irvin

48. Gary Goodridge

Brutal KO

Gary Goodridge knows how to pack a punch. And a kick for that matter, too.

The heavyweight kickboxer and MMA fighter has been thrilling fight fans since his big KO victories at UFC 8, all the way back in 1996.

His greatest KO, however, was probably his revenge against Don Frye, provided in the adjacent YouTube video.

Highlight Victory: Headkick KO over Don Frye 

47. Lyoto Machida

Lyoto Machida prefers to control fights as opposed to showcasing power strikes, but when given the chance, he'll put your lights out with authority.

The men he has stopped are some of the toughest in the business in Rashad Evans, Thiago Silva, Rich Franklin and Stephan Bonnar.

Highlight Victory: KOs over Thiago Silva and Rashad Evans

46. Rashad Evans

With a quirky stand-up style and fast reflexes, Rashad Evans finds ways to land devastating strikes.

Initially gaining a reputation as a point-based wrestler, Evans has evolved into a devastating finisher when given the right opportunities.

Highlight Victory: KO over Chuck Liddell

45. Semmy Schilt

One of the most accomplished kickboxers in history, super heavyweight Semmy Schilt has a considerable MMA résumé as well.

With tremendous natural physical power and a tightly honed striking game, Schilt is a knockout threat to anyone he faces.

Highlight Victory: TKO over Pete Williams

44. Phil Baroni

Phil Baroni struggled with consistency against top competition, but still earned a name for himself as one of the sport's most powerful punchers while competing in the UFC and Pride.

Also an amateur kickboxer and boxer, Baroni has a penchant for the knockout.

Highlight Victory: KOs over Dave Menne and Ryo Chonan 

43. Jeremy Stephens

Lightweight Jeremy Stephens generates knockout power by "winging" a lot of his punches.

The technique is not regarded as very technical, but when utilized by someone like Stephens, it becomes a formidable weapon.

Highlight Victory: KOs over Rafael Dos Anjos and Marcus Davis

42. Houston Alexander

Houston Alexander seems to be a little bit undersized for the light heavyweight division, but he makes sure to put plenty of power behind his punches.

Alexander exploded onto the scene with back-to-back KOs over Keith Jardine and Alessio Sakara.

Now fighting for smaller promotions, Alexander proved he still has stopping power by taking out Rameau Thierry Sokoudjou in his last fight.

Highlight Victory: KO over Keith Jardine

41. Drew McFedries

Middleweight Drew McFedries uses a powerful boxing style to push the pace on his opponents.

In nine UFC fights, only one fight even made it past the first round.

Highlight Victory: KO over Marvin Eastman

40. Rameau Thierry Sokoudjou

Rameau Thierry Sokoudjou is one of the most explosive strikers to ever step into an MMA fight.

Although he struggles with issues in cardio and ground fighting, Sokoudjou proved he can take out the toughest of fighters if you give him the opportunity.

Highlight Victory: Back-to-back KOs over Rogerio Nogueira and Ricardo Arona

39. Thiago Alves

Mark J. Rebilas-US PRESSWIRE

The 27-year-old Thiago "Pitbull" Alves is a top-of-the-line welterweight who earns most of his victories by way of KO/TKO.

With a sharp Muay Thai attack and great physical strength, Alves is one of the best at finding ways to hurt his opponents.

Highlight Victories: KOs over Matt Hughes and Tony DeSouza

38. Nick Diaz

Many people do not think of the lanky Diaz as a powerful striker, but those people have never traded strikes with the man.

With an excellent boxing discipline, Diaz rarely has to use his revered jiu-jitsu skills to put away his opponents.

Highlight Victory: KO over Robbie Lawler

37. Brandon Vera

Brandon "The Truth" Vera made a name for himself as a devastating heavyweight striker.

Vera has found limited success in recent years, and while now at light heavyweight, he still commands respect as one of the most powerful strikers around.

Highlight Victory: KOs over Andre Mussi and Justin Eilers, TKOs over Michael Patt and Frank Mir

36. Gabriel Gonzaga

Gabriel Gonzaga throws punches and kicks that have the power to smash anything in their way.

Early in his UFC career, he was mostly regarded for being a ground fighter, but that all changed when he earned one of the most memorable and devastating KOs of all time.

Highlight Victory: Headkick KO over Mirko Filipovic

35. Bobby Hoffman

Although major stardom alluded him, Bobby Hoffman made quite a reputation for himself by being a devastating heavyweight knockout artist.

Out of 36 career victories, he has finished 19 by way of his powerful striking (KO, TKO or submission to strikes).

Highlight Victory: KOs over Alistair Overeem and Ricco Rodriguez

34. Aleksander Emelianenko

big guy fall down

The younger brother to legendary Fedor Emelianenko, Aleksander is bigger than his brother and retains incredible hand speed.

With accurate punches and effective body mechanics, Aleksander has shown an ability to put down anyone that dares to stand in the pocket.

Highlight Victory: KO over Ricardo Morais

33. Gilbert Yvel

Heavyweight bad boy Gilbert Yvel has been knocking out MMA fighters since 1997.

Incredibly, Yvel was won more than half of his 54 total bouts by way of KO/TKO (31).

Highlight Victory: KOs over Gary Goodridge and Pedro Rizzo

32. Jens Pulver

Lightweight and featherweight fighter Jens "Lil' Evil" Pulver used to have dynamite in his fists.

His powerful strikes made him the first-ever UFC lightweight champion and led him to victories over such fighters as BJ Penn, Caol Uno and Joe Stevenson.

Highlight Victory: KO over John Lewis 

31. Nate Marquardt

Nate Marquardt is a top-of-the-line, well-rounded fighter with phenomenal striking.

He has the ability to end a fight with punches, knees or kicks.

Whether he is searching for his perfect shot (Maia) or putting together incredible fight-ending combos (Kampmann, Gouveia), Marquardt stands as one of the most dangerous strikers in a rapidly improving talent pool.

Highlight Victory: KO Punch over Demian Maia 

30. Anthony Johnson

Rising welterweight Anthony Johnson has proven one-strike knockout ability.

In 12 fights, Johnson has six knockout victories, with essentially all of them being fantastic highlight-reel material.

Highlight victory: Headkick KO over Kevin Burns 

29. Cung Le

Before moving into MMA, Cung Le was an undefeated, multiple-time world champion in Sanshou kickboxing.

Le only fought eight times in MMA, but he won seven of those fights, all by way of KO/TKO.

Highlight Victory: TKO over Frank Shamrock

28. Rich Franklin

Former UFC middleweight champion Rich Franklin has had a very successful MMA career by forcing opponents to stand and trade strikes with him.

With powerful kicks and punches, Franklin has been able to put away a number of highly respected and durable opponents.

Highlight Victory: KO over Nate Quarry

27. Roy Nelson

Roy "Big Country" Nelson is a fat grappler who has learned how to channel his Kung Fu abilities into some of the most powerful striking in the sport.

Since 2007, Nelson has won eight of his 13 fights by way of KO/TKO.

Highlight Victory: KO over Brendan Schaub

26. Jon Jones

Jon Jones is a rising phenom who is the youngest man to ever win a UFC championship.

Although his striking has plenty of room for refinement, Jones already stands out as a powerful striker for being the first man to ever truly TKO/KO standout fighters Brandon Vera and Mauricio Rua.

Highlight Victory: TKOs over Brandon Vera and Mauricio Rua 

25. BJ Penn

Regarded by many as the best lightweight to ever compete in MMA, Penn earned that reputation by being a devastating grappler and powerful striker.

With quick reflexes and smart boxing, Penn's hands, in particular, have helped put away top-shelf talent since 2001.

Highlight Victory: KOs over Caol Uno and Matt Hughes and TKO over Sean Sherk

24. Mauricio Rua

Fighting against some of the best talent in the world, former world champion Mauricio "Shogun" Rua has finished two-thirds of his fights by way of KO/TKO.

The Muay Thai specialist pressures opponents with all manner of strikes and is an expert at finding the finish.

Highlight Victory: KO over Lyoto Machida

23. Pedro Rizzo

In the late 90s and early 2000s, Pedro Rizzo was one of the baddest heavyweights on the planet due to his powerful strikes.

No matter who you were, if you stepped into the cage with Pedro Rizzo, you were getting brutalized.

Highlight Victory: KO over Josh Barnett

22. Chris Leben

Chris "The Crippler" Leben relies on his power striking as much as if not more than anyone in contemporary MMA, and yet he remains extremely successful.

He fights by the old adage, "take a few punches to give one." When he finds that right one, it normally puts his opponents down and out.

Highlight Victory: KOs over Jorge Santiago and Terry Martin 

21. Melvin Manhoef

Standout kickboxer Melvin Manhoef has also been devastating MMA fighters since the 90s with his striking.

Manhoef has picked up an astounding 23 KO/TKOs out of his 24 total MMA victories.

Highlight Victory: KO over Iron-Jawed Mark Hunt

20. Robbie Lawler

"Ruthless" Robbie Lawler has been providing highlight-reel KOs for the past decade, and he is only 29 years old.

Fifteen of his 18 career victories have come by way of KO/TKO.

He remains one of the sport's most powerful strikers, having won his last two victories by devastating first-round KOs.

Highlight Victory: KOs over Melvin Manhoeff and Matt Lindland 

19. Alistair Overeem

Alistair Overeem was a devastating light heavyweight striker in the early 2000s, but like many, he found his true power and effectiveness by moving up a division.

Now, Overeem is an MMA and kickboxing champion who seems to be hitting his stride.

Highlight Victory: KOs over Kazuyuki Fujita and Todd Duffee

18. Wanderlei Silva

An aggressive fighter with great physical strength, Wanderlei Silva has become a legend in the sport by striving to be a knockout machine.

Just over half of all of Wanderlei's fights have ended with him winning by way of KO/TKO.

Highlight Victory: KOs over Quinton Jackson and Keith Jardine

17. Melvin Guillard

Melvin Guillard has always been one of the sport's most explosive strikers, but has recently become more efficient and consistent.

You can almost not imagine a more dangerous lightweight striker to be put in front of.

Highlight Victory: KO over Rick Davis, TKOs over Waylon Lowe and Evan Dunham

16. Takanori Gomi

Takanori "The Fireball Kid" Gomi was the No. 1-ranked lightweight and one of the best of all time because of his ability to put away top fighters with his strikes.

Simply put, he is one of the most powerful lightweight strikers of all time.

Highlight Victory: KOs over Luiz Azeredo and Hayato Sakurai

15. Paul Daley

British striker Paul "Semtex" Daley has as devastating of punches as you will ever find at welterweight.

The striking expert has finished just more than half of his total fights by way of strikes with 20 career TKO/KO victories.

Highlight Victory: KOs over Scott Smith and Dustin Hazelett

14. Junior Dos Santos

Junior Dos Santos has risen to being one of the top heavyweights in the world because of his striking power.

There are not many men in the world who can stand toe-to-toe with Junior Dos Santos without falling.

Highlight Victory: KOs over Fabricio Werdum and Gabriel Gonzaga 

13. Fedor Emelianenko

The legendary heavyweight Fedor Emelianenko wins more of his fights by way of submission, but ask any one of his opponents and they will tell you that he is one of the hardest hitters around.

Coming from different angles and at the blink of an eye, Emelianenko throws punches with bad intentions.

Highlight Victory: KO over Andrei Arlovski

12. Quinton Jackson

Perhaps no hook in the light heavyweight division is as feared as that of Quinton "Rampage" Jackson.

With solid boxing technique, Jackson is about as dangerous as they come for being able to punch out your lights.

Highlight Victory: KO over Wanderlei Silva

11. Andrei Arlovski

Andrei "The Pitbull" Arlovski has struggled in striking exchanges as of late, but earlier in his career, there might not have been a more powerful striker around.

Fighting some of the world's best, Arlovski has won 11 of his 15 total victories by way of KO/TKO.

Highlight Victory: KOs over Ben Rothwell and Paul Buentello

10. Dan Henderson

The right hand of Dan Henderson is famous for being able to put people to sleep.

Not only that, he has also knocked out top competition with his left hand as well.

Highlight Victory: KOs over Wanerlei Silva and Michael Bisping

9. Sergei Kharitonov

The Russian fighter Sergei Kharitonov is an expert boxer and has been one of the most formidable strikers in the entire sport for the past decade.

If he keeps performing, he has a chance to move even further up the list.

Highlight Victory: KOs over Alistair Overeem and Andrei Arlovski 

8. Igor Vovchanchyn

The Ukranian kickboxer Igor Vovchanchyn has maybe the longest undefeated streak in MMA history from 1996 to 2000, spanning an incredible 38 fights.

The proof is in the numbers, as the powerful striker has 29 career victories by way of KO/TKO.

Highlight Victory: KO over Yoshiki Takahashi

7. Bas Rutten

A pioneer in the sport, Bas Rutten struck down his opponents with speed, accuracy and strength.

Opponents feared his striking even though in the organization in which he predominately fought, Pancrase, he was not allowed to used closed-fist strikes to the head.

Highlight Victory: TKO over Tsuyoshi Kohsaka

6. Vitor Belfort

Whether at heavyweight, light heavyweight, or middleweight, Vitor "The Phenom" Belfort has been one of the most powerful strikers in the sport since the mid-to-late 90s.

Out of his 19 career victories, 13 have come by way of TKO/KO and they are almost always spectacular.

Highlight Victory: KOs over Matt Lindland, Terry Martin, and Rich Franklin

5. Shane Carwin

Although Shane Carwin lost his last fight, he was previously undefeated with 12-straight first-round victories.

His stopping power has led many to speculate that he may have the heaviest hands in the entire sport.

Highlight Victory: KOs over Frank Mir and Gabriel Gonzaga

4. Tim Sylvia

Tim Sylvia has won five UFC heavyweight championship bouts, making him one of the most successful heavyweights in MMA history.

At the height of his career, there was seemingly nobody that could trade strikes with him, as the big man put down almost everyone put in front of him.

Highlight Victory: Headkick KO over Tra Telligman

3. Mirko Filipovic

Despite his recent skid, Mirko "Cro Cop" Filipovic has won just over half of all his total MMA fights by way of KO/TKO.

The kickboxing standout brought a new level of striking to MMA that has made him an all-time legend.

Highlight Victory: KOs over Igor Vovchanchyn and Wanderlei Silva

2. Chuck Liddell

One of the most revered strikers in the history of the sport, Chuck "The Iceman" Liddell used a combination of great timing and unique body mechanics to land devastatingly powerful strikes.

He holds the UFC record for an incredible seven-fight KO/TKO streak, including his championship run and making a case for him as the most powerful striker in the sport's history.

Highlight Victory: KOs over Guy Mezger, Alistair Overeem and Randy Couture (twice) 

1. Anderson Silva

Anderson Silva was one of the most talented strikers on the planet, but when he moved up into the middleweight division, he starting down a path that would prove him to be the most powerful striker in MMA.

Some might not believe Silva's relatively lanky frame could be that powerful, but his strikes speak for themselves.

Even the iron-chinned Dan Henderson started crumpling when Silva laid his fists on him.

Highlight victory: KOs over Chris Leben, James Irvin, Forrest Griffin and Vitor Belfort, TKOs over Nate Marquardt and Rich Franklin