5 times a UFC fighter was visibly intimidated by their opponent

#2. Brock Lesnar vs. Alistair Overeem – UFC 141

Despite his own intimidating presence, Brock Lesnar seemed to wilt when he faced Alistair Overeem

Given his size and aura, it’s hardly a surprise that former UFC heavyweight champion and current WWE superstar Brock Lesnar usually appears on lists of the most intimidating UFC fighters of all time.

However, despite winning the UFC heavyweight title in just his third fight with the promotion and fourth fight overall, Lesnar never quite got to grips with taking a hard shot from an opponent. And at UFC 141, he found himself faced with someone more than capable of dishing out hard shots.

Alistair Overeem was the UFC’s biggest acquisition in some time. He was the reigning Strikeforce heavyweight champion. 'The Reem’ had also won K-1’s esteemed Grand Prix in 2010. He was widely recognized as the most dangerous striker in the division at the time.

The UFC set up a fight between him and Lesnar with the idea being that it would pit two of the promotion’s most intimidating fighters against one another. But it quickly became clear that ‘The Beast Incarnate’ found Overeem just as intimidating as the fans did.

Despite attempting to pump himself up for the fight by screaming and flexing during the weigh-ins, Lesnar looked horribly nervous, particularly during his walk-out. If anything, it looked like he was trying to convince himself that he could beat Overeem.

Sure enough, despite Lesnar throwing some strikes from distance, it only looked like a matter of time until Overeem landed. And when he did with knees to the body and finally a nasty kick, the former champion simply folded.

There was no question that Overeem’s strikes were enough to finish any man. But equally, it definitely looked like Lesnar had trepidation going into the fight and didn’t really want to be there.

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#1. Georges St-Pierre vs. Matt Hughes – UFC 50

Georges St-Pierre knocked out Matt Hughes in their second meeting, but admitted he was scared in their first clash at UFC 50

Arguably the greatest MMA fighter of all time, former UFC welterweight champion Georges St-Pierre beat a seemingly endless list of top-ranked fighters in his time with the promotion. Often, the Canadian would make it look frighteningly easy, too.

But even GSP was human and in his early years with the UFC, he suffered a loss to the legendary Matt Hughes in a fight for the then-vacant welterweight title.

And fascinatingly, in the years that have followed, St-Pierre has detailed the anxieties that surrounded him during the fight. He even outright admitted he was hugely intimidated by Hughes.

According to GSP, he didn’t even believe Dana White when he was offered the fight with the legendary former champion for the vacant belt. That's hardly surprising when you consider he’d only had two fights with the UFC beforehand.

He actually fought well until he was caught with an armbar with just one second remaining in the first round. But St-Pierre has since admitted that he was “scared to death” of Hughes because he knew he wasn’t ready to fight him at that point.

Of course, GSP used the experience to his advantage. He would eventually cut a swath through the division until his second title fight with Hughes, which he won via head kick in the second round.

While he achieved unthinkable levels of success with the UFC, St-Pierre has never been afraid to admit to his fears and anxieties both inside and outside of the octagon. To see him admit that he was intimidated by Hughes was hardly out of character.