5 best fighters from Down Under in UFC history

Australia and New Zealand have produced a number of legendary UFC fighters, including Israel Adesanya

This weekend sees Israel Adesanya and Robert Whittaker go head-to-head at UFC 271 in a battle for the middleweight title. It is probably the biggest ever clash between two fighters based Down Under.

It’s hard to believe it, but just over a decade ago, the only famous UFC star from Oceania was Elvis Sinosic. Now, numerous excellent fighters, including champions, have emerged from Down Under.

Last time.. ⏪

Imperious from @Stylebender in their first meeting.

#UFC271 | Saturday | BT Sport 1 HD https://t.co/ILIFvn6U0F

Australia and New Zealand in particular now regularly produce high-level contenders in the octagon, from thrilling strikers to genuinely dangerous grapplers.

With that in mind, here are the five best UFC fighters to hail from Down Under.

#5. Mark Hunt – former UFC heavyweight

Mark Hunt popularised the walk-off knockout during his career in the octagon

Mark Hunt might be persona non grata with Dana White and company right now thanks to the way he left the promotion and then tried to sue them in court in 2018. However, in his prime, ‘The Super Samoan’ was a genuine contender for the heavyweight title.

Interestingly, when he first joined the promotion in 2010, it certainly didn’t look like he’d develop into a contender of any kind.

A former K-1 champion who’d fought and beaten some greats in PRIDE, including the likes of Wanderlei Silva and Mirko Cro Cop, Hunt had fallen on hard times and was in the midst of a five-fight losing streak when the UFC offered to buy out his old PRIDE deal.

Surprisingly, Hunt instead decided he wanted to fight in the octagon and subsequently joined the promotion. He lost his debut in a terrible effort to the unheralded Sean McCorkle.

However, rather than simply wash out of the promotion, Hunt joined American Top Team and ended up going on arguably the best run of his MMA career.

Over the eight years that followed, he defeated the likes of Frank Mir, Antonio Silva, Roy Nelson and Derrick Lewis in the octagon. He also popularized the “walk-off” knockout, essentially calling his fights off before the referee had stepped in.

WALK-OFF KING! Mark Hunt is back tonight and looking for another huge KO... 👊 #UFCAuckland https://t.co/2oKpXOnG8m

While ‘The Super Samoan’ failed in his quest to claim gold in the octagon, falling to Fabricio Werdum in an interim heavyweight title bout in 2014, he featured as a headline act for the majority of his tenure with the promotion and was always popular with the fans.

This success, along with his laundry list of knockouts, makes him easily one of the best fighters from Down Under to head into the octagon.