Most Terrible Mismatches in the History of MMA

MMA is a sport that relies heavily on good matchups and captures the attention of the public. Remarkable bouts like Khabib vs. McGregor captured the minds of fans all over the world due to the unique matchup and potential for a spectacular battle. However, there have been several mismatches in MMA that turned out to be bizarre fights. Let’s have a look at some of the biggest mismatches in the history of MMA. 

#10 B.J. Penn vs. Yair Rodriguez

BJ Penn gave featherweight another chance when he came out of retirement in 2017. After dominating his previous fights, he faced rising star Yair Rodriguez. Most people had the thought that the fight would not go well, and it turned out to be worse than imagined. The bout was difficult to watch for everyone as Rodriguez smashed out Penn badly in the first round and then knocked him out 24 seconds into the second round. 

#9 CM Punk vs. Mickey Gall

After signing former WWE Champion CM Punk in 2014, the UFC let him train for two years before giving him the actual bout. Instead of giving him an opponent at his level, they matched him with a prospect who was not only 15 years younger than him but also had more MMA experience. Mickey Gall took Punk down and dominated him during the whole fight before submitting him in the first half of the first round. This was an expected result considering that Gall was a brown belt in jiu-jitsu and was just a white belt when the bout took place. 

#8 Jose Canseco vs. Hong-man Choi

It is weird that this fight was staged. Former MLB All-Star Jose Canseco stated that he is a black belt and wanted to prove his skills by fighting in MMA and entering the Dream Super Hulk Tournament. Due to the fight against 7’2″ kickboxer Hong-man Choi, Jose’s movement was awkward in the ring for a while before slipping on one of his kick attempts. Choi pounced with ground and pound, and Canseco tapped to end this awkward matchup. 

#7 Kazushi Sakuraba vs. Shinya Aoki

Kazushi Sakuraba is one of the greatest MMA fighters of all time, but he wasn’t exactly that in 2015. “The Gracie Hunter” was out of action since 2011, as he lost his last four fights. When he made a comeback in 2015, Sakuraba faced one of the best fighters around the globe, Shinya Aoki, at the inaugural Rizin show. Unsurprisingly, Aoki quickly defeated Sakuraba and beat the veteran to the ground before knocking him out in half of the first round. After this loss, Sakuraba retired from the sport. 

#6 Petr Yan vs. Teruto Ishihara

Teruto Ishihara was once a brilliant prospect in the UFC at 145 pounds. However, by 2018, he dropped to bantamweight in an attempt to save his career, but then lost his first fight at the weight as well. Holding a 1–3 record in his last three bouts with a loss to Artem Lobov, he faced Petr Yan. Given his status as an ACB Bantamweight Champion, Yan was already marked as a potential future champion at this point. “No Mercy won the fight promptly after knocking out Ishihara in the first round. 

#5 Randy Couture vs. James Toney

In 2010, UFC 118 was the MMA debut of former boxing champion James Tone, who, despite having no experience, faced one of the greatest MMA fighters, Randy Couture. “The Natural” battered Tony down just seconds into the match. He then beat him from mount before locking him in an arm-triangle choke halfway through the first round to pick up the victory. 

#5 Sage Northcutt vs. Cosmo Alexandre

It looks like ONE Championship has signed former UFC prospect Sage Northcutt to be the man to beat. They probably wanted to show that their fighters were better than the UFC. ONE Championship gave Northcutt, who was a young prospect, a former kickboxing champion who had a 7-1 record in his MMA career. This was totally an unfair matchup and as a result, Cosmo knocked out Northcutt in just 29 seconds after landing a right hand that left Sage unconscious. During the fight, Alexandre also caused eight fractures to his opponent’s face that kept him out of action for almost four years, and he returned in May 2023. 

#4 Conor McGregor vs. Donald Cerrone

After Conor McGregor lost a one-sided match against Khabib Nurmagomedov and Floyd Mayweather, the UFC was probably worried that fans wouldn’t view the UFC superstar in the same way. So they organized the most bizarre match in the main event of UFC 246. When the fight took place, Cerrone had already lost his previous two bouts via knockouts and was approaching his 30s. So this was definitely a terrible matchup for him. As a result, McGregor knocked out Cerrone in approximately one minute. 

#3 Yuji Nagata vs. Mirko Cro Cop

A pro-wrestler in New Japan Pro Wrestling, Yuji Nagata was given the opportunity to compete in MMA. He didn’t have much training in the sport and when he was matched with Mirko Cro Cop, Yuji lost the bout in just 21 seconds. Mirko was a tough kickboxer and he knocked out Nagata very quickly. 

#2 Yuji Nagata vs. Fedor Emelianenko

As if one mismatch was not enough, Yuji Nagata was somehow convinced again to compete in Inoki Bom-Ba-Ye. Instead of setting him up with someone who has a one of two fight experience, they made Yuji face the PRIDE Heavyweight Champion, Fedor Emelianenko. This is the biggest mismatch in MMA. Just one minute into the match, poor Nagata was thrown to the mat by the PRIDE Champion. After this loss, Nagata never competed in MMA again. 

Also Read:- Top 5 Most Controversial Judges Decisions in UFC History