5 fighters who were one and done in the UFC

#4 Roger Gracie

Roger Gracie failed to make an impression in his lone UFC appearance

After Rolles’ embarrassing loss and Renzo’s cameo in 2010, it would be another three years before a member of the famed Gracie family would enter the UFC. This time it was Roger Gracie, and many observers felt that things would be different. Firstly Roger was one of the best grapplers on the planet, having won countless titles in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu and no-gi grappling.

Secondly, he’d already had plenty of fights in StrikeForce and beaten decent, UFC-level opposition, too – the likes of Keith Jardine, Trevor Prangley and Anthony Smith. So hopes were high when he arrived in the UFC following the StrikeForce merger in 2013. For his debut, he was matched with fellow StrikeForce alum Tim Kennedy.

Unfortunately, Roger was beaten by Kennedy by unanimous decision in what was a relatively dull fight. It turned out to be the last fight on his StrikeForce contract and the UFC chose not to renew it. Why this was is somewhat of a question mark, but it was likely due to the poor performance, Gracie’s hefty pay cheque, and the fact that he always felt more at home in grappling competitions.

Roger has fought twice in MMA since, but for the most part, he’s indeed returned to the grappling world. His UFC performance was better than Rolles’s, but it still wasn’t enough to earn him more than one UFC outing.