Which fighter popularized calf kicks?

[SPooderMan]

Changed the sport significantly in such a recent period of time. Who was the fighter who popularized them?

 

[Fact Checker]

Probably Bendo in his fight with Nate Diaz

 

[SPooderMan]

Probably Bendo in his fight with Nate Diaz

He was one of the first to use them, but that fight was in 2012. It wasn't until the last few years calf kicks became prolific; which fighter inspired this?

 

[Elegant]

Gaethje

 

[Koya]

Poirier said that Jim Miller is the one who inspired him because in their fight he threw them and Poirier felt it

 

[Doctor Grudge]

He was one of the first to use them, but that fight was in 2012. It wasn't until the last few years calf kicks became prolific; which fighter inspired this?

Takes a while for things to catch on. But I think Benson was the guy that basically got the ball rolling.

 

[Hymen Crusher]

Primus stopped chandler I think with them. I was shocked he won and after that I started paying attention more.

 

[Pierce 34]

Jeremy stephens vs Gilbert Menendez

 

[Harlekin]

Gaethje

Hard no, Gaethje is a famous leg kicker, he aimed higher though.
Sometimes landing like 40 and still getting knocked out. This wouldn't have happened with calf kicks.

 

[surgeyou1]

Bendo is the first person I noticed that specifically targeted that area.

 

[Koala]

It might be Thiago Alves because he was using them, transitioned to striking coach at ATT and, then, Poirier and Primus used them for game plans against Chandler and McGregor

 

[NoSmilez]

I think it is an American Top Team thing. They learned it from Brazilians MMA guys who picked it from MT guys.

This is probably one of the earliest usage in MMA. You can find some 1980s-90s MT fights in Brazil that used calf kicks but they were just throwing wildly.

 

[Deleted member 110072]

I feel like its as much that it started to become much more common for fighters to put a lot of weight on the front leg ala Conor which left them more vulnerable to them.