5 fighters who failed to win UFC gold but became legends elsewhere

#4. Mike Brown – former UFC lightweight contender, featherweight champion in WEC

Unheralded upon his arrival there, Mike Brown went onto become a WEC legend

When powerful featherweight Mike Brown signed with the WEC, the sister promotion of the UFC, in mid-2008, few fans, even hardcore ones, remembered his career as a lightweight in the octagon.

That was hardly surprising. Brown had only fought on the big stage once, albeit under the large spotlight of UFC 47, one of the promotion’s biggest pre-TUF pay-per-views. However, the fact that he was submitted by Genki Sudo in the first round of that fight, and did not return to the promotion, meant that he was immediately forgotten.

Following the loss to Sudo, Brown put together an impressive run of 9-2, defeating former octagon star Yves Edwards along the way. That was enough to earn him a shot in the WEC, where he beat former featherweight title challenger Jeff Curran in his debut.

Nobody foresaw what would happen next, though. Promoted as a ‘challenger of the month’ type against longtime WEC featherweight champion and poster-boy Urijah Faber, Brown stunned everyone by knocking out ‘The California Kid’ in the first round, cementing himself as the world’s best 145lber.

Brown went onto defend his title against Leonard Garcia and against Faber in a rematch, before losing it to Jose Aldo in late 2009. By that point, his legacy as one of the Zuffa-era WEC’s legends was already complete.

2011 saw Brown move back to MMA's premier promotion, along with the rest of the WEC roster. However, he was less successful there, putting together a record of 2-3 before hanging up his gloves in 2013. He now acts as one of American Top Team’s main coaches, but is still fondly remembered for his run in the WEC.

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#3. Wanderlei Silva – former UFC light heavyweight contender, middleweight champion in PRIDE

Wanderlei Silva washed out of the UFC, but quickly became the most feared man in Japan's PRIDE promotion

Japan’s PRIDE promotion produced a number of legends, but it’s arguable that none were bigger than Wanderlei Silva, who ran roughshod over their middleweight (205 pounds) division from 2001 through to 2007.

‘The Axe Murderer’ made his debut there in 1999, defeating pro-wrestler Carl Malenko. But it was his victories over PRIDE’s biggest star, Kazushi Sakuraba, that turned him into the most feared fighter in Japan. From there, Silva victimized everyone he fought, from Yuki Kondo to Quinton ‘Rampage’ Jackson, usually knocking them out with his trademark stomps or soccer kicks.

However, longtime UFC fans tended to argue that the fighters competing in that promotion’s light heavyweight division were still superior to the Brazilian, despite his fearsome nature. The explanation was a simple one, Silva had failed to make an impact in the MMA leader prior to his move to PRIDE.

He’d debuted in the octagon with a famous 44-second loss to Vitor Belfort. While he did rebound with a knockout of the unheralded Tony Petarra, he was then thoroughly beaten by Tito Ortiz in a bout for the vacant UFC light heavyweight title.

Given that Ortiz, and then Randy Couture and Chuck Liddell, held that title at the same time as ‘The Axe Murderer’ was on his great run in Japan, the derisive attitude of UFC fans towards him did make sense.

Eventually, Silva did return to the UFC, but to be fair, by that stage he was past his prime. He did put on a few epic bouts, most notably with Liddell, Keith Jardine and Brian Stann, but never came close to recapturing his PRIDE form.

However, it’s safe to say that despite his failure in the octagon, he remains a legend of MMA due to his success in Japan, and is still renowned today.