10 big UFC fights that failed to deliver

#1: Ken Shamrock vs. Dan Severn, UFC 9

Ken Shamrock's rematch with Dan Severn is probably the worst main event in UFC history

Ask any longtime fan what the worst UFC main event of all time is and they’ll usually come up with this stinker from UFC 9, way back in 1996. The two had met previously at UFC 6, with Shamrock choking Severn out with a guillotine choke to claim the UFC’s first ‘Superfight’ championship, but Severn had won the ‘Ultimate Ultimate’ tournament in 1995 to earn a rematch. In the end, the UFC fans probably wished he hadn’t.

The event – which took place in Detroit, Michigan – featured some last-minute rule changes which probably contributed to the terrible nature of the fight.

Firstly the Michigan Athletic Commission decided to ban both strikes to the head with closed fists and headbutts and promised to arrest the fighters if they were seen using either. Secondly, they also made the call to ban kicks if the fighters decided to wear wrestling shoes, which both Shamrock and Severn did.

And so what we got was not the exciting rematch the UFC had hyped, but a solid 30 minutes of circling with mean looks, with the odd strike being exchanged between the two. The only part of the fight that even felt close to exciting was a brief period of grappling at the end of the regulation period, which saw Severn come out on top.

It was enough for ‘The Beast’ to earn a decision victory, but realistically there was no true winner in this stinker of a fight. Even more than two decades on, Shamrock/Severn II remains the gold standard for bad UFC fights, and thus it’s easily the big fight which disappointed the most.