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For UFC fighters, the game plan come fight night is an essential component to get right. The correct strategy and intel regarding an opponent can be make or break in securing a win.
It’s a hard process to work through, a fighter must play up their own strengths whilst exploiting a foe’s weaknesses. For the many genius level fight IQ performances out there, there are others that have proven to be head scratchers.
Coming in well-trained and confident, it can be darkly fascinating to watch a fighter’s once thought foolproof plan crumble. By the end of the battle, it’s clear they realize a major mistake was made somewhere along the way.
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Beyond the obvious consequence of a new loss on their record, there’s also the psychological setback of having to rethink everything they once thought they knew.
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The following five fighters all have incredibly impressive resumes. Despite their success in the fighting world, none were immune to questionable strategising. Let’s start with someone who found MMA glory everywhere but the UFC:
#5. Ben Askren at UFC 239
Ben Askren went undefeated for ten years in MMA. He picked up welterweight gold in Bellator and ONE Championship before finally jumping ship to the UFC. Askren’s first UFC opponent was announced as Jorge Masvidal, a no-nonsense street fighter who Askren had frequently mocked.
While most of Askren’s jokes about Masvidal’s out-of-ring antics and training were relatively lighthearted, it was clear ‘Gamebred’ was furious. Worse still, Askren aired some ATT dirty laundry when he claimed to have outwrestled Masvidal in training.
Fed up, Masvidal vowed to break Askren’s face come bell time. It’s commonplace for fighters to try and get under one another’s skin and throw each other off. While ‘Funky’ had succeeded admirably in getting into Masvidal’s head, he had only served to motivate the Miami striker to train harder and smarter.
As per usual with Askren, he shot in for the takedown early, hoping to use his Olympian-calibre wrestling to his advantage. As it turns out, the freestyle wrestling ace had grown predictable. Masvidal had been prepping an explosive flying knee to counter a shooting-in Askren.
Just five seconds into the fight, the end bell was rung as Askren was out cold. The once seemingly unbeatable grappler never really recovered from the Masvidal KO. He lost to Demian Maia later that year and was knocked out by Jake Paul in a boxing bout this year. He has since retired from combat sports.
#4. Ronda Rousey at UFC 193
The then-undefeated Ronda Rousey had trailblazed her way through the UFC and Strikeforce women’s bantmanweight divisions thanks to her grappling. Through judo, the scarily strong Rousey was brutal in her takedowns. She also had that dreaded armbar that netted her nine submission victories.
Looking to prove herself as a complete fighter, Rousey immersed herself in boxing. Despite her power, the then-champ was lacking in technique, something that was badly exposed by Holly Holm.
Holm, a former professional boxer, outstruck and outclassed Rousey throughout the bout before securing the KO in round two. Despite Rousey’s typically vicious start to the fight, she struggled to handle Holm’s southpaw stance and rapid jabs.
Having absorbed a worrying amount of shots early on, Rousey did attempt to retool and go back to what worked best for her. Unfortunately, it was too late for the bloodied, disconcerted champ. Weakened from trying to throw hands with Holm, Rousey’s crack at locking in the armbar did not pan out.
Had Rousey not pushed full steam ahead with a boxer’s approach to this fight, the result could have been very different.
#3. Francis Ngannou at UFC 220
The world’s hardest puncher was a little too happy relying on just that heading into his first title fight with Stipe Miocic. ‘The Predator’ was a rising star tipped to be the UFC’s next big thing leading up to this 2018 showdown.
Miocic, meanwhile, was just one successful title defense away from establishing a new record in the UFC heavyweight division. Frustrated by the UFC’s considerably heavier promotion of Ngannou than himself, Miocic came into this fight even more laser-focused than usual.
The explosive Ngannou went for the knockout shots early on but was met with exceptional head movement and takedown offense from Miocic. An increasingly tired and anxious Ngannou had little else to offer beyond his potentially coma-inducing strikes, nearly all of which Miocic had well-scouted.
By the end of round five, it was clear ‘The Predator’ had not put much effort into any aspect of his fighting beyond striking. Miocic secured the unanimous decision victory thanks to his more complete approach that night. Needless to say, Ngannou had learned his lesson by the time UFC 260 came around...
#2. Alistair Overeem at UFC 203
Former UFC heavyweight star Alistair Overeem is called ‘The Demolition Man’ for one simple reason: he is a ferocious kickboxer. Overeem’s strikes have crumpled the biggest and strongest of fighters over the years.
There were two flaws in Overeem’s monstrous game during his UFC tenure. First, his chin did not get the memo the rest of his body received in being superhuman. Second, he was never much of a grappler.
At UFC 203, the Dutchman finally got his long-awaited heavyweight title shot. Against then-champ Stipe Miocic, Overeem came out all guns blazing. It didn’t take long for the heavy-duty slugger to send Cleveland’s favorite son to the floor.
Miocic’s hometown crowd were horrified, it simply seemed a matter of moments before Overeem was crowned the new heavyweight champion.
Bizarrely, the K-1 legend moved in for a guillotine choke instead of angling for ground-and-pound on the champ. Miocic, a supreme wrestler, fought out of Overeem’s submission attempt and back to his feet. Before round one was over, Overeem fell by way of what he should’ve done a couple of minutes earlier: ground-and-pound.
#1. Conor McGregor at UFC 257
Conor McGregor’s first foray into martial arts was boxing as a youngster in Dublin. The future megastar later moved into MMA and made his amateur debut at just 18 years old.
During his peak years as a fighter, McGregor employed an unorthodox mix of karate, boxing and taekwondo in the octagon. Since his 2017 superfight with Floyd Mayweather and traumatic 2018 loss to Khabib Nurmagomedov however, McGregor has moved into a more orthodox style.
As displayed at UFC 257, McGregor approached the fight with a standard boxing stance. He looked to rely on his fists to get the job done against old foe Dustin Poirier.
Sadly for the whiskey magnate, Dustin Poirer has improved leaps and bounds since their initial 2014 clash at UFC 178. Taking advantage of McGregor’s stiffer, flatter footing and upright posture, Poirier hobbled the former champ-champ with leg kicks before moving in for the kill.
For the first time in his lucrative career, McGregor found himself on the receiving end of a merciless KO. While he was a paragon of sportsmanship and manners heading into UFC 257, it soon became clear the loss had rattled the Dubliner. His antics heading into UFC 264 made his rivalry with Poirier the most bitter and personal of the 2020s decade so far.
