5 of the most disappointing debuts in UFC history
For most MMA fighters, making a debut in the UFC is perhaps the best and most nerve-racking achievement possible. After all, countless numbers of fighters don’t make it that far.
Of course, some UFC debutants receive far more hype than others, largely due to their achievements elsewhere. However, on occasion, these debutants fail to make an impact in the octagon.
We’ve seen numerous examples of disappointing octagon debuts over the years, with fighters who looked great elsewhere simply struggling to adjust to the brighter lights of the world’s biggest promotion.
Here are five of the most disappointing debuts in UFC history.
#5. Mark Hunt vs. Sean McCorkle – UFC 119
When the UFC bought out PRIDE in 2007, most of the Japanese promotion’s biggest stars made their way to the octagon, from Wanderlei Silva to Mauricio ‘Shogun’ Rua. However, one name conspicuous by his absence was Mark Hunt.
‘The Super Samoan’ had become wildly popular in PRIDE and had fought the likes of Fedor Emelianenko and Mirko Cro Cop. Rather than enter the octagon, he instead headed to the new Japanese promotion DREAM. This, it transpired, was no accident.
According to many sources, Dana White and company had passed on the opportunity to sign Hunt despite the New Zealand-born fighter being under contract with PRIDE, and even attempted to buy said contract out when ‘The Super Samoan’ finally decided he wanted to try his hand in the octagon.
Hunt refused to do that, and so the UFC finally bought him in during the latter stages of 2010, matching him with fellow debutant Sean McCorkle in his first fight. On paper at least, it looked like an easy enough match for Hunt.
Debut de Mark Hunt en UFC ante Sean McCorkle https://t.co/ndukbAdLFA
Incredibly, though, ‘The Super Samoan’ looked awful in the fight. It took McCorkle just over a minute to take the former K-1 champion down, where he quickly submitted him with a straight armbar. Overall, the debut couldn’t have been more disappointing for Hunt, and it looked like he’d wash out of the promotion immediately.
Thankfully for his fans, that didn’t happen. Hunt stunned everyone by bouncing back from the defeat to win his next four fights in the octagon, and while he never won gold there, it’s safe to say he was a big success, even if his time with the promotion ended on a sour note.
If tonight really is the end of the road for Mark Hunt in UFC — and he says it is — let’s acknowledge he backdoored his way into the company w/ a 5-6 MMA record @ lost his debut to Sean f’n McCorkle in 63 seconds 8 years ago. What a run, KFC King. Respect to an all-time legend. https://t.co/gJy93HQ3G0