7 Most Creative Strikers in MMA History

The number of ways a fight could end is one reason combat sports fans prefer mixed martial arts over boxing.  A buffet of elbows, knees, punches, and kicks is more electrifying than just punches. 

Over the years, we've seen many great strikers come and go.  A few stood out in the crowd by popularizing previously unseen moves. 

This article pays tribute to those pioneers who revolutionized striking and always brought the crowd to its feet.  A few qualifying conditions will be kept in mind:

1) This is about creative strikers, not devastating strikers.  Thus, hard-hitting but conventional kickboxers like Thiago Alves, Mauricio Rua, and Chuck Liddell will be excluded.  Carlos Condit's knockout of Dong Hyun Kim will be omitted too because flying knees aren't exactly new.  BJ Penn famously used it on Sean Sherk and countless other bouts have featured it.  

2) The creative techniques have to be finishing fights or at least causing significant damage.  Therefore, Anthony Pettis' wall-running kick won't be considered because Ben Henderson escaped being finished.

3) These fighters have all used their innovative techniques in numerous fights.   

Honorable Mention: Luke Rockhold, Anthony Pettis, and John Makdessi

Fighters will often use the cage for trapping an opponent in the corner.  But Anthony Pettis decided to think outside the box.  In the WEC's last event, he ran up the cage wall and kicked Ben Henderson in the face.  Someone with Troy Polamalu's hair being knocked down by a Matrix kick is pretty intense.

However, the "showtime kick" may not have actually been as destructive as it looked.  First off, Henderson sat up and went for an ankle pick immediately afterwards.  He may have stumbled about after that but Pettis' subsequent punches were probably to blame.  Fighters are usually dazed a few seconds after being tagged hard and don't recover that quickly.  Second off, Henderson's eyes weren't rolled back the way they would be with a true knockout or near-knockout.  Furthermore, he was circling away when the kick happened.  Last but not least, there are skeptics who believe it was a planned prank meant to end the WEC on a high note.

Pettis has also thrown capoeira kicks in live competition.  But once again, they weren't significantly damaging.  That is why he's only in the honorable mention.  

Rockhold and Makdessi both sport beautiful taekwondo kicks.  The former has done 360 degree spins followed by a roundhouse kick and jumping double roundhouse kicks.  The latter unleashed axe and spinning hook kicks on Pat Audinwood at UFC 124.  But neither man is rocking opponents with these kicks.  Thus, they're only worthy of an honorable mention.  

7: Bas Rutten's Liver Shot

Bas Rutten may not have won the UFC heavyweight championship if he hadn't slowed down Kevin Randleman with a kick to the liver.  He has also finished off Jason DeLucia and Minoru Suzuki with liver shots by punch and knee respectively.  

6: Shonie Carter's Spinning Backfist

Shonie Carter sometimes gives the impression that he's more interested in using spinning backfists than winning fights.

Despite a mediocre run in the UFC, his unorthodox attack did pick up a win over former welterweight champion Matt Serra.  Win or lose, we'll always love him for the entertaining show.  

5: Lyoto Machida's Jumping Kicks

Lyoto Machida will go down in history for not only retiring Randy Couture, but doing it with style.  A jumping front kick reminiscent of Ralph Macchio's crane kick in The Karate Kid is pretty hard to forget.  Against Tito Ortiz, he executed a jumping double roundhouse kick. 

But he's only at No. 5 because his crowning achievement came a few weeks after teammate Anderson Silva recorded the first front-kick knockout in UFC history.

4: Dennis Siver's Spinning Back Kick

Dennis Siver has already given UFC fans two memorable wins by spinning back kick.  He's well on his way to making it his trademark tactic.  

Many fighters come from Muay Thai backgrounds.  As a result, spinning back kicks aren't exactly a common sight.  But don't be surprised if Siver succeeds in changing that.   

3: Jon Jones' Spinning Elbows

From flying side kicks to backwards suplexes, Jon Jones is never afraid to try new things.  He expands his repertoire while most of his colleagues stay within their comfort zones.  And that's exactly why he's the UFC light heavyweight champion. 

Of his numerous tools for picking apart an opponent, the spinning elbow is by far the most dreaded.  Just ask Quinton Jackson or Stephan Bonnar. 

2: Anderson Silva's Muay Thai in General

At UFC 126, Silva kicked Vitor Belfort in the chin with laser-like accuracy.  He then further mystified the achievement by claiming that former action movie star Steven Seagal had taught him the move.  However, that's probably questionable given that he previously front kicked Dan Henderson in the throat.

And his kicks are only the beginning.  His boxing is arguably the best mixed martial arts has ever seen.  He's so much faster than his victims that he can afford to slip punches, Muhammad Ali-style, instead of bothering to block.  

A first-round knockout of Forrest Griffin is perhaps the best instance of this.  The former UFC light heavyweight champion was completely bewildered. 

His fights with Rich Franklin showcase the deadliest knees ever seen in mixed martial arts.  He knocked out former UFC welterweight champion Carlos Newton with a flying knee during an encounter in PRIDE.

Last but not least, we shouldn't forget that he initially impressed UFC officials and earned his contract by knocking out Tony Fryklund with a reverse elbow that came out of nowhere.  He credits a Tony Jaa action movie as the source of inspiration.

All in all, the "Spider" redefines why Muay Thai kickboxing is sometimes called "the art of the eight limbs."

1: Mirko Filipovic's High Roundhouse Kick

Once upon a time, high roundhouse kicks were considered ineffective.  After all, they were associated with taekwondo and mixed martial artists are generally not open-minded towards traditional martial arts. 

But Mirko Filipovic's run in PRIDE silenced all the critics.  Now the head kick is a standard feature of the sport.  The last UFC event saw Gray Maynard repeatedly attempt to land one on Frankie Edgar.

I ranked Filipovic ahead of Silva because his contribution had more far-sweeping effects.  Silva's brand of kickboxing requires extreme speed and accuracy.  It's something the vast majority of fighters don't possess.  That's why there's no current fighter imitating his style. 

Filipovic's roundhouse kick to the head was simple enough for the average fighter to pick up.  In fact, Gabriel Gonzaga knocked him out with his own kick.  What's better proof than that? 

At the end of the day, the UFC has seen dozens of head-kick knockouts since Filipovic popularized it and only one other front-kick knockout since Silva pulled it off.