10 Retired MMA Fighters We Wish Were Still at Their Peak

It's a natural sport instinct to compare athletes from different eras. How would Babe Ruth fare against modern-day pitching? Who would win in a Kobe Bryant-Michael Jordan one-on-one? Sure, Carl Lewis mangled "The Star-Spangled Banner," but what of "God Bless America"?

Being a relatively new sport, MMA doesn't engender these types of conversations as much as others. Whenever it happens, though, it's pretty fun, especially considering how quickly the sport has evolved...from the Stone Age to the Silicon Age in just 15 years.

However, there are still plenty of old-school combatants who would have more than a fighting chance today. Here are 10 guys who have retired but would make very interesting competitors if they were at their peak today. Some retired a decade ago, while some retired in the last couple of years. All would be fun to pit against modern competition.

10. Marco Ruas

Record: 9-4-2
Age: 50
Retired: 2007

A pioneer of vale tudo (hence his nickname: The King of the Streets), the hard-hitting Ruas is credited with being one of the sport’s first true mixed martial artists.

In fact, when he won the UFC 7 tournament in 1995, he hit a rare trifecta when he garnered wins by submission, TKO and tapout from “position,” or essentially outgrappling his opponent.

9. Genki Sudo

Record: 16-4-1
Age: 33
Retired: 2006

This may be one of the more shocking retirements on this list.  

One year to the day after losing the Hero’s Lightweight Grand Prix final to Norifumi Yamamoto, Sudo defeated Damacio Page and announced he’d be hanging up his gloves. 

Sudo was a crowd favorite because of his high-energy style and spectacular ring entrances.

8. Igor Vovchanchyn

Record: 54-10-1
Age: 38
Retired: 2005

“Ice Cold” is one of the greatest strikers in MMA history, especially at heavyweight.

Some of the beatdowns he issued will probably always remain lodged in the sport’s lore. But his true contribution came by advancing takedown defense and swinging the MMA pendulum away from grappling and back toward the standup game.

(Photo credit: Susumu)

7. Frank Shamrock

Record: 23-10-1
Age: 38
Retired: 2009

Frank Shamrock was a bad dude.

His panoply of physical submission holds changed the game and made him one of the most feared grapplers ever.

6. Randy Couture

Record: 19-11
Age: 48
Retired: 2011

The five-time UFC champ called it quits this spring after a flash knockout loss to Lyoto Machida. The Natural set new standards both for excellence and longevity.

5. Royce Gracie

Record: 14-2-3
Age: 44
Retired: 2007

Hard to draw up a list and not include the man who started it all.

As it was constituted during his heyday, Gracie’s fighting style doesn’t compare favorably (on paper, anyway) with today’s more well-rounded athletes. But his tenacity plus the sheer curiosity factor would make any of his fights a must-watch proposition for me.

There was talk of a Gracie return at UFC Rio, but that obviously didn't happen. I'll consider him retired until I hear an official confirmation to the contrary.

(Photo credit: Susumu Nagao/Yell Magazine)

4. Pat Miletich

Record: 29-7-2
Age: 43
Retired: 2008

Pat Miletich was always ahead of his time.

He was one of the first to truly mix different fighting styles and to start a super-camp where standout fighters could train together in different disciplines. The UFC’s first welterweight champion, Miletich now does commentary on Strikeforce broadcasts.

He’s pretty good too.

3. Chuck Liddell

Record: 21-8
Age: 41
Retired: 2010

Hard to know what to say about Chuck Liddell that hasn’t been said several million times before.

Everyone knows Liddell had to retire for self-preservational reasons. However, that doesn’t change the fact that, in his prime, he was a wrecking machine like few before him. He was just the right poster boy at just the right time for the UFC, and he brought untold legions of fans to the sport.

I'd pay good money to see Liddell, in his peak form, take on Shogun Rua or Jon Jones. Until flux capacitors come standard on DeLoreans, we'll have to make do with theoreticals.

2. Rickson Gracie

Record: 11-0
Age: 52
Retired: 2000

Why is Rickson ranked above his much more famous half-brother? 

Because the dude never lost—and he might be the best pure fighter of all time.

The eighth-degree Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu black-and-red belt is not only undefeated in MMA but has also won titles in freestyle wrestling and sambo. Maybe it’s a stretch to claim he has never, ever lost, but fighter after fighter—including half-brother Royce and, of course, Rickson himself—lines up to unabashedly proclaim Rickson the best fighter of all time.

It’s a shame he never got the chance to test his theory on the biggest stage.

1. Bas Rutten

Record: 28-4-1
Age: 46
Retired: 2006

More than five years after his retirement and well over a decade out of his prime, El Guapo is still one of MMA’s most popular personalities among hardcore fans.

They love his toughness. They love his sledgehammer striking. They love his barroom charisma and, more importantly, his barroom inventiveness (liver kick, anyone?). They also respect his long line of vanquished foes, including Frank Shamrock, Guy Mezger, Masakatsu Funaki and Kazuo Takahashi.

There’s no one I’d rather see try his hand in the modern world of MMA.

(Photo credit: Tapology)