5 UFC prospects who turned out to be busts

#2 Papy Abedi

Papy Abedi was once considered a better prospect than Chris Weidman

The Congo-born, Swedish-based powerhouse Papy Abedi was signed by the UFC in 2011 on the back of eight straight wins on the European circuit. None of his victims were notable fighters, but the way Abedi destroyed them meant he came into the Octagon with some substantial hype – noted MMA journalist Leland Roling even ranked him above Chris Weidman on his list of prospects at 185lbs to watch for 2011.

When it was announced that he was dropping to 170lbs for his UFC debut, it seemed even more of a given that he’d be a success. At 5’11” he’d been a relatively short Middleweight, but seemed like the perfect size for a Welterweight, especially with his heavy hands and strong judo background.

He was matched with perennial contender Thiago Alves in his debut, and despite starting strong, Alves eventually took over, dropping Abedi with punches and finishing him with a rear-naked choke.

It seemed like a slight setback for ‘Makambo’, as after all, Alves had been a notoriously tough opponent to debut against. A second loss – a one-sided submission against the unheralded James Head – took the bloom fully off the rose, though, and a razor-close split decision win over Besam Yousef – also winless in the UFC – hardly steadied the ship. Abedi moved back to 185lbs for his next fight but was knocked out by middling TUFer Dylan Andrews and that was that for his UFC run.

In the end, it seemed like Abedi’s bullying style that had looked so good against lesser opponents just couldn’t cut it against the much tougher opposition he faced in the UFC – a big disappointment considering the promise he showed prior to his Octagon entry.