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UFC fighters are widely regarded as the most well-trained mixed martial artists in the world. Among them, the globe's finest unarmed combatants compete for supremacy. Currently, the pound-for-pound best fighter in the entire sport is reigning UFC featherweight champion Alexander Volkanovski.
Before him, former 170-pound titleholder Kamaru Usman sat at the mountain peak. Often, a clear superior fighter emerges to announce themselves as the unchallenged kingpin among their peers. Georges St-Pierre, for example, is widely recognized as the greatest welterweight in MMA history.
At the height of his success, the Canadian's rule was uncontested. Unfortunately, not every fighter enjoys such success. Even highly skilled mixed martial artists who capture titles struggle to emerge from the looming shadow of a difficult foe. In fact, on occasion, a fighter simply has their opponent's number.
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Regardless of how hard they try, they can never overcome one specific fighter. To further explore the topic, this list details five UFC fighters who had opponents who they simply couldn't defeat.
#5. Max Holloway - UFC featherweight
At one point in time, Max Holloway was heralded by Joe Rogan as the greatest featherweight in MMA history. The Hawaiian great was fresh off his second lopsided win over José Aldo, from whom 'Blessed' captured the UFC featherweight title. While more dominant wins over Brian Ortega and Frankie Edgar followed, Max Holloway met his match when he crossed swords with Alexander Volkanovski.
From a stylistic standpoint, the Australian posed significant problems for 'Blessed'. Max Holloway is among the finest boxers in modern-day MMA, with his record-setting volume stemming from his ability to build combinations from his jab. Unfortunately, for Holloway, a proper jab entails an extension of one's stance, overexposing his lead leg every time he steps forward to land his jabs.
As a short fighter, Volkanovski uses a calf kick as a counter, targeting Holloway's lead leg mid-jab to interrupt him and stop him from stringing his punches together into combinations. Without the ability to overwhelm his opponents, the Hawaiian becomes a far more limited fighter.
Furthermore, it enables Volkanovski to throw punches over the top right after he destabilizes Holloway's stance with his calf kicks. While Holloway tries to reset his stance, Volkanovski uses quick one-two combinations.
That enabled the Australian to defeat the Hawaiian great three separate times, with the third bout this past July being the most one-sided of the lot.
#4. Anderson Silva - Former UFC middleweight
The feats Anderson Silva accomplished inside the octagon will likely never be repeated. When the Brazilian was at the peak of his powers, he was a mixed martial artist unlike any other. His sublime counter-striking carried him to a 16-fight unbeaten streak, with 10 consecutive UFC title defenses.
Despite how consistently he mystified his foes, 'The Spider' was eventually figured out. Anderson Silva used a multitude of feints and kept his hands low to dupe opponents into becoming overzealous as he presented himself as an open target. Once his opponent committed to a strike, the Brazilian leaned away, causing his foe to overextend and run into a perfectly timed counterpunch.
However, pulling back from the waist to lean away from punches and kicks has its drawbacks. This was eventually grasped by Chris Weidman. At UFC 162, the American shocked the world by implementing double jabs and triple jabs.
Because Silva leaned away from punches, a double or triple jab forced him to lean far back enough that his balance was disrupted and he could lean back no further without falling over. Upon doing so, Weidman followed up his jabs with a hard left hand that floored Silva.
Despite his best attempts, Silva lost the rematch due to similar issues. Weidman refused to bite on his feints and remained committed to a gameplan en route to fracturing Silva's shin with a perfectly timed low kick-check.
#3. Colby Covington - UFC welterweight
Former UFC interim welterweight champion Colby Covington is one of the best fighters in the 170-pound weight class. His combination of endless cardio, relentless pressure and aggressive wrestling have overwhelmed nearly everyone he's faced. Most recently, 'Chaos' defeated former friend and heated rival Jorge Masvidal at UFC 272.
However, Colby Covington has twice encountered a wall he could not overcome.
Covington's fighting style is chaotic. He relies on his cardio and level changes to keep his foes on constant alert as they await his takedowns. Once they're preoccupied with the perceived threat of his wrestling, 'Chaos' throws chaotic combinations like knees, etc., to overload his opponents.
This proved less effective than usual against Kamaru Usman, whose own cardio and wrestling neutralized Colby Covington's. Furthermore, the erratic striking style used by 'Chaos' was not as effective without a reliable takedown threat to keep his Nigerian rival too fearful to square his hips for a counter.
Thus, every time Covington committed to advancing without fear, he'd be intercepted as Usman's jabs and crosses landed before his foe's looping punches due to the linear trajectory of his straight punches. Additionally, Usman's stance-switching changed the alignment of their kicking exchanges, keeping Covington from using his calf kick.
This led to close but clear defeats against Usman at UFC 245 and UFC 268. Due to these losses, the undisputed UFC welterweight championship continues to elude Colby Covington.
#2. Robert Whittaker - UFC middleweight
Robert Whittaker is likely the most skilled middleweight in the world. Few fighters are as exceptional as 'The Reaper' when it comes to dominating mid-range engagements. Using a wide karate stance, the former UFC middleweight champion bounces in and out of range, allowing him to stutter-step into crisp boxing combinations at an absurd speed.
Additionally, the 185-pound standout dupes his foes into falling victim to his right high kick. The Australian phenom stings his opponent with a jab before following it up with a right cross. Once the threat of his right cross is established, he'll fake the punch to trick his opponent into slipping to the outside of his cross — and into the path of a right high kick.
Alternatively, 'The Reaper' deliberately misses his right cross but turns his hand inward and shoves his opponent's head into his right high kick. Despite Robert Whittaker's exceptional striking, he struggles tremendously against opponents who force him to operate outside of his preferred range.
This was evident against Stephen Thompson when the Australian was a welterweight. However, it was painfully obvious against Israel Adesanya.
The reigning UFC middleweight kingpin fights from a much longer range than Robert Whittaker is accustomed to, causing the Australian to lunge into range in an effort to close the distance. It's an ill-advised approach as Whittaker runs himself into Adesanya's counterpunches.
Worse still, the more Whittaker is countered, the more he convinces himself that he must lunge forward even faster because from his perspective, fighting at long range is leading to damage.
This led to two losses against Israel Adesanya, whom Robert Whittaker himself described as a difficult matchup.
#1. Daniel Cormier - Former UFC light heavyweight & heavyweight
Daniel Cormier is a legend in heavyweight MMA. The former Olympic wrestler is fundamentally connected to a trio of great former UFC champions. 'DC' enjoyed close friendships with former UFC heavyweight champion Cain Velasquez and former UFC lightweight champion Khabib Nurmagomedov.
However, Daniel Cormier is best known for his heated rivalry with former UFC light heavyweight champion Jon Jones. The pair crossed swords twice, with both bouts ending with clear losses for 'DC'. Stylistically, Jon Jones presented a curious conundrum for Cormier.
While Daniel Cormier was the more technically skilled wrestler between the two men, Jon Jones' length and height led to unforeseen issues. Due to his height and reach, whenever 'Bones' widened his base to defend against takedowns, 'DC' was unable to hook his hands behind his foe's thighs.
Conversely, it also led to Jones being able to outwrestle Cormier simply due to the fact that when 'DC' widened his base, Jones' arms were so long that he could hook his hands behind his foe's thighs anyway. Furthermore, the leverage Jones enjoyed in the clinch due to his height and length greatly troubled the AKA standout.
Their second bout was more evenly contested, but Cormier's tendency to lean cost him. As a short fighter, 'DC' is accustomed to being jabbed by taller foes. To mitigate this, Daniel Cormier developed a habit of slipping on the outside of jabs. Once Jon Jones understood this, he drew his rival into a high kick, causing him to lean right into his shin to mark his win in their rematch.
