5 best UFC fighters you've most likely never heard of

#4. Jake Hadley – UFC flyweight

Jake Hadley is the latest addition to the UFC's flyweight division.

The undefeated Englishman is a former Cage Warriors and EFC flyweight champion. He has developed a reputation for being an incredibly well-rounded fighter with a killer mentality.

Hadley's introduction to the UFC brass was not ideal. Leading up to his appearance on season 5 of Dana White’s Contender Series, he failed to make the flyweight limit of 125 lbs, missing weight by 2 lbs.

Nevertheless, he produced a sensational performance as he choked out TUF alum Mitch Raposo in the second round. Immediately after the finish, he approached UFC president Dana White and the matchmakers to apologize for missing weight.

Matchmakers Sean Shelby and Mick Maynard were unhappy with Hadley’s behavior before the fight. Despite his impressive showing against Raposo, Shelby and Maynard were reportedly against signing the Birmingham native to the UFC.

However, Dana White overruled his colleagues and opted to offer the Brit a UFC contract. White had this to say before breaking the news to a clearly emotional Hadley:

"He didn’t make weight, which is a really big deal here. If you don’t make weight now, trying to get into the UFC, what’s it going to be like when you get to the UFC? The other thing was, there were a lot of other issues with Jake this week, behind the scenes."

White added:

"I think that Jake Hadley is special. I think this kid is super talented. I asked him who’s your jiu-jitsu coach that you’re only a purple belt, you know? Don’t make an assh*le out of me, Jake! Get over here!”

Haldey holds a perfect professional record of 8-0, comprising two KO/TKO and four submission victories. He is scheduled to make his UFC debut in March at the O2 Arena in London, where he is set to take on Allan Nascimento.

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#3. Alexander Romanov – UFC heavyweight

Alexander Romanov is a Moldovan mixed martial artist. He is undefeated in his professional career and is a nightmare stylistic matchup for most of the fighters in the UFC’s heavyweight division.

Romanov compiled a record of 11-0 while competing in his native Moldova, primarily at Eagles Fighting Championship, where he became the champion of the heavyweight division.

He subsequently joined the UFC in 2020 and made his promotional debut against Roque Martinez at UFC Fight Night: Waterson vs. Hill. He secured an arm-triangle choke in the second round, forcing his opponent to tap.

‘King Kong’ has since picked up three more wins in the UFC and his professional record now stands at 15-0.

Romanov has an incredibly unique style. Unlike most heavyweights, he cuts down to the 265 lbs weight limit. He puts his background in freestyle wrestling to good use in almost every fight and likes to slam his opponents onto the canvas.

Once his counterpart is on the ground, he uses his formidable top pressure to either secure a submission or finish the fight with heavy ground and pound strikes.

Romanov’s ‘forearm choke’ is his signature submission. Essentially, the Moldovan places his forearm on the neck of his grounded opponent and presses down with his entire bodyweight, forcing the tap. He has three such submissions on his record.

He is slated to take on MMA veteran Ilir Latifi in his next bout.