Favorite HW that almost made it to the top but didn't

[Cantalope]

He beat Werdum albeit in a questionable fight, but SF arguably had a better HW division than the UFC then especially when Werdum would go on to beat Cain and Overeem beat JDS.

Wasn't that during the grand pix and not for the belt? If I remember Reem left for the UFC and that's when DC came in and won the whole thing.

 

[Supatune]

Ubereem was arguably at the top for a period. He beat Werdum (in a shitty fight) immediately after Doom dethroned Fedor (making him the lineal Pride HW champion as well as the Strikeforce HW champion, and you can debate the worth of that title all you want - he was still considered the best HW in the best HW division in MMA at the time) and then went to UFC and made Lesnar look like a random bum off the street. That juiced up Reem that was winning K-1 tournaments, starching prospects like Duffee and Rogers like they had never been in a fight before etc, best HW we've ever seen along with Fedor.

My legit answer to this thread is Barnett.

 

[moreorless87]

CroCop was absolutely one of my favorite fighters during the Pride era. I was looking forward to CroCop VS Couture more than any other fight after he got to the UFC, and my jaw dropped to the floor when Gonzaga KOd him.

Then, after seeing him to lose to Kongo, leaving the UFC, and specifically after the Overeem NC where Reem was manhandling him relatively easily before the fight was called off due to repeated low blows...I started reading deep into the matter, researching... one does not spend that much time looking up info on something that one does not find to be important.

I don't know why you'd consider my sharing of the info I found during my research, to be fighter bashing. I'm sharing words from his manager, his peers, business associates, and even Croatian fans.

That side of the coin made sense of most things CroCop related to me, from his handling of his manager, his plays to earn double pay by threatening to pull out one day before the fight with "back injury"... his continued success in Japan despite not even managing to beat top10 opponents in the UFC, his favorable booking in Japan...his USADA bust... etc

Everything I have said has been backed up with sources, and obviously his Win-Loss and performance itself tells the other half of the story. Just because you have not managed to accommodate the truth, it doesn't make me a hater. It just means you've remained ignorant in the face of facts, and that's your call to make.

Wasn't the double pay being potentially paid for fighting twice on the GP finals? I seem to remember that being quite awhile before the event itself and honestly I tend to agree with him. That kind of environment was I think actually much healthier for the sport than the UFC monopoly we've had since where fighters are locked down to long contracts and put on the shelf. Indeed its the kind of environment that resulted in Mirko getting into MMA in the first place, if he was around today say near the top of Glory my guess is he never fights in MMA because nobody comes after him with money.

The situation with Fedor I can kind of understand as well, I don't think there was anything nasty intended in Fedor's comment just concern at seeing Mirko not performing well as he aged but equally I can see why that would piss off Crocop.

 

[Gregoire1]

Carwin

 

[po_thead]

Jerome Le Banner. Non MMA, but that's the answer.

 

[Sakurabinette]

at one point considered a top contender [...] never reached the pinnacle of the sport.
Guys who are no longer relevant,not ones who still have a shot.

Mark Hunt fits that definition so perfectly.

 

[BigMuffler]

Mark Hunt fits that definition so perfectly.

Hassy told me to tell you Mark is still very relevant.