10 best fighters. The best mma fighters. The Greatest MMA Fighters

Mixed martial arts(MMA) is perhaps the fastest growing sport in the world. Every day the number of his fans is growing inexorably. Even though the sport is only about 25 years old, there have been many great champions in that short time. It is quite possible that this list best fighters MMA in another 25 years will look completely different, but today it looks like this.

St-Pierre, known by his nickname "Napor", is one of the most promising fighters in the MMA world. Canadian competitor, former UFC welterweight champion. He's still in his prime (born in 1981) and when you look at his superior athleticism and wrestling skills, he's still going strong. During participation in UFC fights in the welterweight category, Georges St-Pierre had 27 fights, of which he won 25 and only 2 defeats, both of which he avenged. In 2008 and 2009 it was recognized best athlete of the Year in Canada, and also according to Wrestling Observer magazine as the best fighter of 2009.

Anderson Silva, also known as "Spider" (born 1975) - Brazilian participant mixed martial arts. He recently lost the championship to the younger and stronger Chris Wideman. But still, Silva remains one of the best fighters who took part in mixed martial arts. The Brazilian master held the champion title for the longest time in UFC history, defending him 10 fights in a row. UFC President Dane White called Silva the strongest fighter in the history of mixed martial arts.

Five-time UFC light heavyweight and heavyweight champion (record three times). Randy (known as “The Natural,” “Captain America”) became the first fighter to win two championship belts UFC in two different weight categories. Randy Couture (born in 1963) is known not only as an American fighter who competed in Greco-Roman wrestling and MMA, but also as an actor and showman.

Chuck Liddell for MMA, someone like Michael Jordan for basketball, David Beckham for football, in one word “SUPERSTAR”. It would not be an exaggeration to say that to this day it is considered the most popular UFC fighter of all time, and probably one of the best. Charles David Liddell, nicknamed “Icy,” born in 1969, is a professional kickboxer, world champion in the UFC light heavyweight category from 2005 to 2007.

Sixth place in the ranking of the best MMA fighters goes to Bas Rutten. This is a Dutch kickboxer who took part in mixed martial arts fights. UFC heavyweight champion. Bas Rutten (born in 1965), also known by the nickname “Handsome”, finished his career without ever losing, he had 22 fights, of which 21 victories and 1 draw. Rutten's favorite tactic is to attack the liver, both with his hand and his foot. His charisma, inside and outside the octagon, helped make the Dutch athlete a celebrity. Today, the former champion is a television commentator and has also appeared in several films and video games.

Royce Gracie (born December 12, 1966) is a Brazilian fighter and master of Brazilian jiu-jitsu. His name is first on the list in the UFC Hall of Fame. Considered one of the most influential figures in MMA history. He gained his fame thanks to victories over larger opponents using wrestling techniques, thereby drawing the attention of athletes participating in MMA to study more ground wrestling. During his career, which ended in 2007, Gracie fought 16 fights, winning 14 of them.

Matt Hughes (born October 13, 1973) is an American mixed martial artist and former two-time UFC welterweight champion. He defended his title a total of seven times, a record for the welterweight division. In his prime, Matt Hughes was literally unstoppable. During his career, he fought 54 fights, winning 45 of them.

Dan Henderson

Words are not enough to describe the greatness of Dan Henderson. He is undoubtedly one of the greatest and most durable MMA fighters of all time. What's even more impressive is that he is still fighting younger athletes to this day. Dan Henderson (b. August 24, 1970), nicknamed "Hendo", became the first fighter to win the Pride Championship in multiple weight classes (welterweight and middleweight). Former Olympic wrestler. He has won more titles than any other fighter in MMA history.

Igor Vovchanchyn (born June 8, 1973) is a former Ukrainian kickboxer and mixed martial arts fighter, winner and medalist of many mixed style tournaments. Igor (born in 1973) known by the nickname “Cold Blooded” was one of the most dominant fighters of all time, from 1995 to 2000 he fought 32 fights in a row, never losing. In total, the kickboxer had 87 fights, of which he won 76. Igor Vovchanchyn was also one of the shortest (174 cm) heavyweight fighters in the history of mixed martial arts.

Fedor Emelianenko

“The Last Emperor”, “Terminator”, these are the nicknames of Fedor Emelianenko (born September 28, 1976), the greatest MMA fighter who ever entered the octagon. Four-time world champion in MMA in the heavy weight category, seven-time champion of Russia and four-time world champion in combat sambo. International Master of Sports in Judo and Honored Master of Sports in Sambo.
For almost 10 years, Fedor remained unbeaten, having fought a total of 32 fights during this period of time, which made him the best fighter in the history of MMA.

GEORGES SAINT-PIERRE was born on May 19, 1981 in Canada. He started playing sports at the age of seven and his first martial art was Kyokushin-kai, arguing that hooligans were picking on him and he had to fight back. Soon his coach died, and he switched to Brazilian jiu-jitsu, and also attended boxing classes. To pay for his studies, he had to work as a security guard at a nightclub and as a garbage collector. In 2008 he received a black belt in Brazilian martial arts. Georges' first fight took place when he was barely sixteen years old; he won by knockout despite the fact that his opponent was twenty-five.
In 2004, Georges fought for the title of best middleweight fighter in the world against former UFC champion Matt Hughes. This was Georges' first defeat in MMA. Georges lost in the second round when his opponent delivered a painful blow to his arm. For a long time, the Fighter devotes himself to training and only occasionally performs in prestigious fights. In 2006, Georges challenges Matt Hughes to a rematch and knocks him out in the second round, after this victory he receives the title of world champion. But already in 2007, having underestimated his American rival Matt Serra, he lost his acquired title.
For a long time, Georges tried to beg for revenge and wanted to regain his belt from Matt Serra, but since Matt could not take part in the competition due to a serious injury, the UFC decided to hold a third fight between Georges and Matt Hughes, for the title of interim champion. Serra lost the fight and officially retired big sport, and a year later a rematch between Georges and Serra took place, in which Saint-Pierre won. Saint-Pierre is still considered the best fighter in MMA.

Martial arts and unarmed fighting have deep historical roots. Even in ancient times, there was this type of wrestling - pankration, the prototype of modern mixed fighting. By the way, it was even included in the program Olympic Games in 648 BC.

From the time of Ancient Greece and to this day, watching the fight between fighters attracts the relentless attention of spectators.

"Meal'n'Real!" - the public demanded dozens of centuries ago. He demands the same now.

The best fighter in the world in cinema

Films about fights have always been and will be popular, if not cult. An interesting plot, chases, stunts - they captivate you completely. The heroes put into practice various systems of martial arts: boxing, sambo, karate, aikido, and possession of bladed weapons.

Pictures of this genre attract a lot of fans, who immediately create idols for themselves, for whom they are ready to conduct their “fights without rules” in various forums and chats.

Therefore, it is simply impossible to single out the “best fighter” of cinema. I will name only a few of the very best, classics, so to speak, of the genre:

• Steven Seagal
• Bruce Lee
• Chuck Norris
• Jackie Chan
• Jean-Claude Van Damme

And also Billy Blanks, Jet Li, Dolph Lundgren, Mark Dacascos, Don “Dragon” Wilson, Tadeusz Kasyanov and others.

These actors were fighters both on screen and in life. Films with their participation played a huge role in the growth of popularity of martial arts. There was just a boom in the eighties, even housewives loved them.

However, the fashion for action films will never go away. I would like to highlight the hits of recent years:

• "Never Give Up" (2008)
• “Fight without rules” (2009)
• "Bouncer" (2011)
• "Made in Mexico" (2012)
• "Fighter" (2014)

What is so attractive about this genre? What qualities of heroes are so attractive, especially for men? Character, self-control, code of honor, brutality? Yes, sure. But the main thing is strength. Moral and physical. And the ability to take a punch.

Impact force

One of the criteria for a fighter’s skill is the force of the blow, which for a man ranges from two hundred to a thousand kilograms. Although you can disable a person with a 15-kilogram blow.

It is believed that heavyweight boxers have the most powerful punch. According to experts, the record holder in this category was Mike Tyson. His blow reached eight hundred kilograms. This way you can kill, not only knock out.

By the way, Mike was not shy about using his abilities in his personal life. He himself admitted that his wife Robin received the most powerful blow. At the same time, she flew 8 meters and hit the wall. This is the boxer’s character, for which he paid with three convictions. Well, as they say, there is strength... what else do you need?

Ernie Shavers, nicknamed “The Black Destroyer,” was also famous for his crushing blow. On the set of Rocky III, he almost killed Sylvester Stallone. True, he himself asked not to do him any favors.

Comparing Tyson and Shaney, they say that when Mike hits, it feels like a Ferrari has crashed into you, while Ernie’s hit is like being hit by a truck.

But the impact force depends not only on weight. According to Newton's second law, force is equal to the product of body mass and acceleration. And the acceleration is proportional to the difference in speed, which, when applied to the striking technique, can be called its sharpness.

An example of proof that not everything depends on mass is Mike Zambidis, a fighter from Greece born in 1980, nicknamed “Iron” (kickboxing, Thai boxing).

With a height of 167 cm and a weight of only 70 kg, the force of his blow was:

• right hand - 1200 kg
• left – 987kg
• right leg – 1870 kg
• left - 750.

And the most powerful kick in the world was recorded by Mirko Filipovic, a Croatian mixed martial arts fighter, professional heavyweight kickboxer nicknamed “Cro Cop”. The impact force of his left leg was 2703 kg.

So it's not just body weight that matters. The defining qualities of a fighter are speed, body control technique, highest craftsmanship and perfect interaction of all muscles.

Fighters. The best of the best

It is difficult to name absolute record holders in mixed martial arts. In this sport, stars come and go more often than in classical boxing. In addition, there are many organizations and many titles. But you can name the most popular fighters.

• The most strong fighter In the world, Anderson da Silva from Brazil, nicknamed “Spider,” is considered. He lost only 4 fights out of 35. Fans adore him because he turns every appearance into the ring into a show.
• Brazilian heavyweight Junior Dos Santos knows jiu-jitsu, has a black belt, and defeated the legendary Mirko “Cro Cop” himself.
• American Luke Rockhold, world champion.
• American Robbie Lawler.

In Russia, the most successful fighter based on the results of 2014 is Khabib Nurmagomedov from Dagestan. He fought 22 fights and was undefeated in all of them.

And here are the next ten most popular fighters:

• Ali Bagautinov
• Rustam Khabilov
• Alexey Oleynik
• Adlan Amagov
• Rashid Magomedov
• Zubaira Tukhugov
• Ruslan Magomedov
• Albert Tumenov
• Mairbek Taisumov
• Omari Akhmedov

The popularity of martial arts among women is growing year by year. Here are examples of world celebrities: Julianna Pena (USA), Isabella Badurek (Poland), Alexandra Albu (Moldova), Michelle Waterson (USA).

The Russian star, Yulia Berezikova, originally from Siberia, is the Russian champion in mixed martial arts. She is a master of sports hand-to-hand combat, jiu-jitsu, sambo.

Julia - active fighter, uses men as sparring partners in training. It is possible that she will become a screen star; she has already starred in two films.

Of course, the attitude of society towards mixed martial arts both in the world and in Russia is ambiguous. Some consider such competitions to be a bloody primitive ritual, causing physical harm to its participants and arousing an unhealthy excitement among the spectators.

Others, on the contrary, are ardent supporters, even fans of martial arts.

Natural selection has always existed in nature, and in human nature one of the basic instincts will forever remain the desire to fight, fight, fighting for one’s survival. And it is the unrealized desire that gives rise to this thirst for spectacle.

Yes, it's a cruel sight. But at the same time it is beautiful.

The fight demonstrates courage, endurance, boldness, professionalism, effective mastery of martial arts techniques and provides an answer to the eternal question: “Who is stronger? Which one of us is the best fighter?

The names of these fighters will be remembered forever, because no one has ever deserved their merits in the history of sports.

Georges Saint-Pierre

Georges St-Pierre is a Canadian mixed martial artist (MMA) and former UFC welterweight champion. St-Pierre is widely considered one of the best MMA fighters in the world: the largest publications covering MMA unanimously recognize him as the best welterweight and among the best fighters regardless of weight category.

Watch promotional video from best fights George:

Conor McGregor

Conor McGregor is an Irish mixed martial artist and UFC featherweight champion. Shorty impresses with his tattoos and arrogance and ability to fight skillfully.

Muhammad Ali

This is the most recognizable fighter in history American boxing. His name has almost become a household name today. Merits of Ali (real name: Cassius Clay):

• absolute world champion in heavyweight (1964—1966, 1974—1978);
• winner of the title “Boxer of the Year” (five times - 1963, 1972, 1974, 1975, 1978);
• "Boxer of the Decade" (1970s) according to The Ring magazine;
• 2nd boxer in history to be awarded Sportsman of the Year by Sports Illustrated (1974);
• was recognized as “Sportsman of the Century” by several sports publications.

At the end of his career, he was inducted into the Boxing Hall of Fame (1987) and the International Boxing Hall of Fame (1990). Watch the video with ten best knockouts Mohammed:

Fabricio Werdum

Fabricio Werdum is a Brazilian mixed martial artist, UFC world heavyweight champion, two-time world champion in heavyweight champion in European Jiu-Jitsu. He has a black belt in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu and a black belt in Judo. With this, it’s not scary to wander around unfamiliar areas late at night.

Watch promo video with Fabricio's best fights:

Sugar Ray Robinson

200 fights. 173 victories. This American professional boxer, who competed in the light, first welterweight, welterweight, first middle, middle, second middle and light heavy weight categories, usually leaves no hope of victory to his opponents. Today Sugar is the world champion in the welterweight and middle weight categories in boxing. Watch his best fights:

Ronda Rousey

The young lady also entered the chart of the best fighters. Ronda Rousey is an American MMA fighter and judo fighter, actress. The first UFC champion former champion Strikeforce in the bantamweight division (today the young lady weighs 61 kg).

See one of best fights Ronda:

Anderson Silva

From October 14, 2006 to July 6, 2013, Brazilian mixed martial arts fighter Anderson Silva was the champion of the largest MMA organization in the world Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) middleweight. He made 10 successful title defenses, which is an absolute record in UFC history. Silva also has a streak of 16 wins in a row in this organization, which is also a record figure.

The relatively recently emerged sport of MMA or mixed martial arts has already acquired its famous personalities, who have gone down in history as the most irresistible. Over the 25 years of its existence, this sport has gained enormous fame and continues to develop rapidly. The question of who deserves the title “The Best Fighter in the World” periodically comes to the surface. There are more than enough contenders for this degree of distinction, but one can still single out one fighter who made the greatest contribution to MMA. This is exactly what we will talk about in our article today.

"The last Emperor"

Fedor Emelianenko is recognized as the most prominent personality in this sport. This is one of the most worthy and strong athletes in all weight categories. Between 2001 and 2009, he took part in 27 battles and during this time no one defeated him. Many experts confidently claim that the four-time world champion is truly the best fighter in the history of MMA.

Childhood and youth of the Russian “Terminator”

F. Emelianenko was born on September 28, 1976. 2 years after the birth of the future athlete, the family moved from Ukraine to Russia. For a long time, all family members lived in a communal apartment, and they had to be crammed into one room. Fedor had an older sister and two younger brothers.

At the age of ten, Emelianenko enrolled in the martial arts section. His mentor in judo and sambo was Vasily Gavrilov. Often the teenager attended training sessions accompanied by his brother, whom he had to keep an eye on. So, in the future, another famous professional athlete appeared in the Emelianenko family.

Russian “Terminator”

A year after successful training, Fedor received an offer to move to a sports class, which was created by a trainer-teacher of the highest category, Vladimir Voronov. Entering the school did not stop me from continuing my training. After receiving an electrician's diploma, F. Emelianenko decided to take up professional sports. In 1995, he was drafted into the army, where he stubbornly continued to devote time to sports and was even able to increase his muscle mass by several tens of kilograms.

Performances before UFC

In 2009, the Russian “Terminator” won the Russian championship in sambo, the total time to fight three opponents was 41 seconds.

After completing his service, Fedor became a master of sports of Russia in self-defense without weapons (sambo). After winning the 1997 international tournament, received the title of Master of Sports in judo.

In 1999, Fedor became a member of the Russian sambo team, thereby helping the team get gold at the European Championships, which took place in Istanbul. F. Emelianenko’s participation in the national team was short-lived; the reason for his departure was the bias of the judging and the rule by which team members were selected. The last straw for leaving was the need for income for the athlete. The lack of funds pushed Fedor Emelianenko to participate in mixed martial arts, because by this time he already had a family, and the money that was allocated sports organizations, it was not enough. However, leaving the national team did not prevent F. Emelianenko from continuing to participate in sambo competitions.

Since 2000, the athlete, under the guidance of honored coach Alexander Michkov, began intensively studying boxing techniques. Simultaneously with his performances in the UFC, Emelianenko became a member of the Russian Top Team mixed martial arts club, which was managed by Russian sports functionary Vladimir Pogodin. After 3 years, F. Emelianenko moved to the Red Devil Fighting Team club, the founder of which was Russian businessman Vadim Finkelstein.

Career takeoff

The first institution that offered cooperation to F. Emelianenko was the RINGS organization, founded by the Japanese wrestler Akira Maeda. Of the 12 fights in which he participated, he lost only once, and that was when the opponent used an illegal elbow strike. However, this did not prevent him from becoming the champion of this organization in 2001.

Having shown himself in Rings, Emelianenko became interested in many organizations, he was even invited to Pride. According to the athlete, the fights at Pride were the best of his entire career. First, F. Emelianenko defeated Sami Schilt.

2004 was extremely successful for Fedor, during which he always won victories over his rivals. Initially, he defeated M. Coleman, later K. Randleman, and by “putting down” A.R. Nogueira, Emelianenko again confirmed his title as Pride champion.

From the very beginning, the judges suspended the fight with Nogueir because both Fedor and Antonio broke their heads. The rivals met again only at the end of December.

Then the audience watched a series of not very successful fights, but Emelianenko showed himself to be a fighter who always achieves his goals. He was able to defeat Mark Hunt, who could well have won the Pride title. Almost at the beginning of the fight, F. Emelianenko broke his toe, but was able to not only finish the fight, but also win. This happened back in 2006. Since Pride went bankrupt very soon, the fighter became its champion forever.

Participation of F. Emelianenko in M-1 Global

Despite the fact that the majority of spectators and experts were of the opinion that the fighter, after Pride went bankrupt, would take part in the 8-sided American ring, otherwise called the “cage,” Fedor opted for “M- 1 Global". In addition, he became its co-owner.

The number of battles for F. Emelianenko decreased sharply, but in Russia they began to show more interest in him. A very bright fight in Fedor’s career took place with the representative of Korea - fighter Hong Man Choi.

There was a moment when one of the strongest UFC fighters said on TV that Fedor Emelianenko is scared to fight with professional athletes. Thus, a fight between Emelianenko and T. Silvia was organized. When Fedor defeated him, he received the title of WAMMA champion. In 2009, the need arose to defend this title in the fight against the Belarusian fighter Andrei Orlovsky. This athlete had excellent technique, and from the very beginning there was a feeling that this fact was very depressing for Emelianenko. But, be that as it may, Fedor defeated the Belarusian too.

Fedor's fans have long assumed that he would sign a contract with Strikeforce. In accordance with it, the athlete had to take part in 3 “cage” fights. Emelianenko’s first fight took place with B. Rogers - here Fedor didn’t even have to strain. Well, unfortunately, he lost the 2nd and 3rd fights. His opponents in these fights were F. Werdum and A. Silva (nickname - Bigfoot).

The end of a difficult journey

Fedor, having suffered such defeats, began to talk about the fact that he probably needed to end his career. But as a result, his fans saw many more victories from him. In the fall of 2011, Emelianenko defeated Jeff Monson, who had good technique and was equal to Fedor in strength. V. Putin personally congratulated the fighter on this victory!

Fedor Emelianenko Awards

In 2012, Emelianenko met with Pedro Rizzo. He defeated him already in the 2nd minute of the 1st round, knocking out his opponent.

Fedor decided to end his career precisely after this fight, in which he also emerged victorious!