The 15 Biggest One-Hit Wonders in MMA

Just as an MMA fight can end at any moment, so too can a fighter's career.

Throughout the sport we've seen prospects have a "meteoric rise" only to crash back to Earth in quick and often times, ugly fashion.

These one-hit wonders captivated audiences for one reason or another, many because of one or two victories that made people feel they were a lot better than they were. 

15. Andrei Arlovski

Andrei Arlovski was, at one time, the cream of the crop in the UFC heavyweight division. Arlovski possessed some of the best striking we had ever seen and had grappling skills to boot.

But then the two losses to Tim Sylvia seemed to change "The Pitbull" forever.

He's recently won two fights in a row, but that doesn't erase any of the images of his lifeless body being pulled off the canvas following the Kharitonov and Fedor bouts.

Highest Point: Beating Tim Sylvia for the interim (future undisputed) UFC heavyweight belt.

Lowest Point: I'm going with the Fedor loss. He was on his way to winning that fight and then everything fell apart.

14. Mike Brown

Mike Brown made a lot of noise in the WEC by knocking out Urijah Faber in their first match.

In the rematch, Brown struggled to put Faber away even after Faber broke his hand and dislocated his finger.

He followed the Faber wins with ugly losses to Jose Aldo and to Manny Gamburyan.

There were a lot of reports about Brown having some personal issues going on before the Gamburyan loss and let's hope Brown has moved past his demons and can build on his first UFC win.

Highest Point: The KO of Urijah Faber.

Lowest Point: The Gamburyan loss.

13. Carlos Newton

For some reason, Carlos Newton is considered by many to be a legend in the sport of MMA.

Newton was able to submit Pat Miletich at UFC 31 and followed that up with perhaps his only other career highlight, getting slammed unconscious by Matt Hughes.

He's faced a who's-who in MMA and he's lost to all of the big names he's fought against.

Highest Point: Tapping out Pat Miletich.

Lowest Point: Being a part of two UFC Hall of Famer's highlight reels forever.

12. Dennis Hallman

Dennis Hallman is and will always be known as "the man who beat Matt Hughes twice."

It took Hallman a combined 38 seconds to submit Matt Hughes two times. Hallman has been living off that moment ever since. Every time he's faced a significant challenge, Hallman has lost.

Highest Point: The submission wins against Matt Hughes.

Lowest Point: His UFC 133 fight "shorts."

11. David Abbott

David "Tank" Abbot was the face of the UFC for a short period of time. His KO victories at UFC 6 coupled with his attitude made him a popular figure among casual fans.

With a final record of 10-14, Abott's career has been nothing short of appalling.

Highest Point: His 20-second KO of John Matua.

Lowest Point: This.

10. Marcio Cruz

Marcio Cruz entered the UFC with some of the best Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu credentials we've ever seen in MMA.

When he faced a returning Frank Mir at UFC 57, many fans were expecting an exciting grappling match. In a surprising turn of events, Cruz actually out-struck Mir and won by TKO, causing a bad cut on Mir's face in the process.

After the Mir bout, Cruz followed that up by losing a decision to Jeff Monson and being knocked out (and out of the UFC) by Andrei Arlovski.

Highest Point: The Frank Mir TKO.

Lowest Point: Either the Arlovski KO or weighing in at an out-of-shape 256 lbs. Take your pick.

9. Houston Alexander

When Houston Alexander knocked out Keith Jardine, Joe Rogan declared, "Houston Alexander is for real!" 

Rogan appeared to know what he was talking about after Alexander knocked out professional boxer, Alessio Sakara in his next fight.

And, well, then... You know how his career turned out.

Highest Point: The Keith Jardine KO.

Lowest Point: The Kimbo Slice fight. Seriously, what was that?

8. Brandon Vera

Brandon Vera once claimed he would hold both the heavyweight and light heavyweight belts at the same time.

As crazy as that sounds, at the time, a lot of people believed he could do it. He had a Greco-Roman background and some good Muay Thai skills.

But then he decided to sit on the sidelines due to contract disputes and he's never been the same again.

Highest Point: His KO of Frank Mir.

Lowest Point: Having Thiago Silva play the bongos during their fight.

7. Brett Rogers

Brett Rogers was supposed to be that "feel good" story that Americans loved to hear. He changed tires at a local Sam's Club and became a prominent figure in Strikeforce.

After KO'ing Andrei Arlovski in just 22 seconds, Rogers faced off against Fedor Emelianenko and found "some success" in the bout. He was then struck down by a WMD known as Fedor's right hand and it's been all downhill from there.

Highest Point: The Arlovski KO.

Lowest Point: It's honestly a tie between his performance against Alistair Overeem and the stories about his arrest for domestic abuse.

6. Stephan Bonnar

Stephan Bonnar became a one-hit wonder by losing in his biggest moment.

The Ultimate Fighter Season 1 finale was the single most important event in UFC history and Bonnar was a part of the most significant fight in UFC history.

Since then he's done relatively nothing and been regulated to "gatekeeper" status in the UFC. Dana White has pretty much guaranteed Bonnar will always have a job and his brawling style will always be popular with fans.

Highest Point: The TUF 1 Finale.

Lowest Point: Being suplexed around repeatedly by Jon Jones.

5. Rameau Thierry Sokoudjou

When Sokoudjou made his MMA debut, he had enough hype around him to make fans believe he was a future world champion.

If his judo credentials weren't enough to sway you, his KO of Antonio Rogerio Nogueira and Ricardo Arona certainly made you turn your head.

Unfortunately for Sokoudjou, his tenure with the UFC was uneventful and he was quickly released. Ever since his release, he's struggled to get anything going.

Highest Point: KO'ing Little Nog.

Lowest Point: Losing to Houston Alexander.

4. Roger Huerta

Roger Huerta seemingly became a superstar overnight. He was the first MMA fighter to be featured on the cover of Sports Illustrated and was thought to be a future star for the UFC.

But looking at Huerta's resume, other than his win over Clay Guida, none of his wins came against anyone who's good.

Huerta's career is just a victim of its own hype. He could never live up to what we expected him to be and the loss to Eddie Alvarez only confirmed that thought.

Highest Point: Gracing the cover of SI.

Lowest Point: The beating he took from Eddie Alvarez.

3. Gabriel Gonzaga

Gabriel Gonzaga is one of the more talented fighters on this list. His grappling accomplishments speak for themselves.

Unfortunately, so do his losses.

After kicking Cro Cop's career into dust, Gonzaga found himself out-muscled and out-grappled by the much smaller Randy Couture.

When Gonzaga faced actual top-level talent, he's been found wanting as he's lost to Fabricio Werdum, Shane Carwin and Junior dos Santos after the Couture fight.

Highest Point: The Cro Cop KO.

Lowest Point: Even worse than his performance against Couture was him getting dropped after hurting Shane Carwin multiple times.

2. Matt Serra

Perhaps nobody personifies a one-hit wonder more than Matt Serra. It was after all, one punch that made him champion.

Although his win is without a doubt the biggest upset in UFC history, Serra has done absolutely nothing since winning at UFC 69.

Highest Point: Winning the welterweight title at UFC 69.

Lowest Point: Getting destroyed in the rematch with GSP at UFC 83.

1. Kevin Ferguson

When your loss brings down an entire promotion, you're the definition of a one-hit wonder.

Kimbo enjoyed popular acclaim from his YouTube videos and used that to garner a spot in the EliteXC. As quick as his rise to fame was, Kimbo's failure was even quicker.

A 14-second TKO loss to Seth Petruzelli sent not only Kimbo's career, but the entire EliteXC promotion into bankruptcy.

Kimbo, not content to let his fame to go waste, got onto The Ultimate Fighter and was mainly used as a ratings boost by Dana White until his release.

Highest Point: The YouTube videos.

Lowest Point: The Petruzelli loss.