5 UFC rematches that went differently to the first fight

#4. Brock Lesnar vs. Frank Mir – UFC 100

A more experienced Brock Lesnar battered Frank Mir in their rematch at UFC 100

When the UFC signed former WWE champion Brock Lesnar to a contract in late 2007, nobody expected him to be pushed to the top right away. Stunningly, the promotion decided to match him with former champ Frank Mir in his octagon debut.

Many fans expected Lesnar to be whitewashed. Incredibly, ‘The Beast Incarnate’ used his powerful wrestling and striking to take the fight to Mir in the early moments, taking him down and abusing him with heavy ground-and-pound.

However, the former pro-wrestler simply got too wild for his own good, forgot about Mir’s sublime grappling skills, and fell victim to a kneebar late in the round. The fight was an instant classic, and sent a message to the rest of the roster that Lesnar was for real, even if he lost.

Nobody could’ve expected him to climb to the top quite as quickly as he did, though. Just two fights later, he knocked out Randy Couture to claim the UFC heavyweight title.

Just a month later, Mir took out Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira to claim the interim heavyweight title that’d been introduced during Couture’s lengthy absence. To the surprise of no-one, a rematch was quickly signed.

Mir came into the rematch in the best shape of his life, but it didn’t matter. The small adjustment Lesnar needed to make was simply to avoid Mir’s submissions if the fight hit the mat, and that’s exactly what he did.

Once the former WWE star got into a dominant position in the second round, rather than go wild with his punches like in the first bout, Lesnar simply hammered Mir to the head with stiff, methodical shots. The fight was soon over and it was hard to doubt Lesnar again.

---

#3. Georges St-Pierre vs. Matt Hughes – UFC 65

Georges St-Pierre showed just how far he'd come when he smashed Matt Hughes in their rematch

One of the most famous examples of a UFC rematch that went differently is Georges St-Pierre’s second crack at legendary welterweight champion Matt Hughes.

When the two men first fought at the end of 2004 for the vacant welterweight title, St-Pierre had just two bouts in the octagon to his name and seven overall, lagging hugely behind Hughes in experience levels.

That experience meant that GSP – who had idolized Hughes – was massively nervous coming into the fight. While he performed well, he made a rookie mistake by telegraphing a kimura, and ended up falling prey to a slick armbar.

The loss sent the Canadian on a journey of self-discovery. By smashing through fighters who’d pushed Hughes hard like Frank Trigg and Sean Sherk, he quickly realized that he was more than capable of beating the legend in a rematch.

That rematch came in November 2006, just over two years after the first fight. Sure enough, where he’d been nervous the first time around, GSP was brimming with confidence.

He stopped Hughes’ takedown attempts with ease, picked him apart with heavy strikes on the feet, and eventually stopped him with a second-round head kick.

It was the worst beating of Hughes’ career to that point. It left no doubt as to who the world’s best welterweight was – particularly when, just over a year later, the Canadian destroyed the former champ in an even more one-sided third bout.