5 fighters who hold unwanted UFC records
There's definitely some level of prestige to holding a UFC record. Unfortunately, there are some records that no fighter would want to hold.
Remarkably, some of the most unwanted UFC records are held by fighters who would be considered largely successful overall, with some having lengthy tenures in the promotion.
Does the fact that these athletes hold unwanted records make them bad fighters? Absolutely not, but these records could be seen as black clouds hanging over them.
Here are five fighters who hold unwanted records in the UFC.
#5. Most significant strikes absorbed in a single UFC bout - Calvin Kattar
Featherweight contender Calvin Kattar is nicknamed 'The Boston Finisher', and for the majority of his career, he's lived up to that nickname. He's scored memorable stoppages of fighters like Shane Burgos, Ricardo Lamas and Jeremy Stephens.
It's arguable, though, that Kattar's best attribute is his sheer toughness. He's lost six fights in the octagon but has never been finished with strikes or via submission.
Unfortunately, that toughness has also led him to a completely unwanted record. In his 2021 clash with Max Holloway, Kattar ate a total of 445 significant strikes, more than any other fighter in a single UFC bout.
Quite how 'The Boston Finisher' survived all five rounds with the Hawaiian remains somewhat of a mystery. He absorbed 141 significant strikes in the fourth round alone - more than he landed back on Holloway throughout the entirety of the fight.
What makes this statistic even more remarkable, though, is the fact that despite scoring so many shots, Holloway was not able to knock Kattar down even once.
That isn't to say the fight didn't score lasting damage, though. In the near-four years that have followed it, Kattar has won just once, while losing a further three bouts. Arguably, he hasn't been the same since.
#4. Most lopsided decision loss in UFC history - David Loiseau
Any fighter who manages to last the distance in a losing effort deserves plenty of respect, but at times, some fighters have proven too tough for their own good.
The aforementioned Calvin Kattar took a beating from Max Holloway and lasted the distance. Despite one judge scoring the fight 50-42 in favor of Holloway, though, Kattar did not suffer the most lopsided decision loss in UFC history.
Instead, that unwanted record still belongs to David Loiseau, who took an inhumane beating in his middleweight title fight with Rich Franklin back in March 2006.
'The Crow' came into the fight on the back of a serious winning streak, and had violently stopped former champ Evan Tanner in his previous fight.
Against Franklin, though, he was completely outgunned.
Loiseau was knocked down in the first and second rounds, and despite landing a big knockdown of his own in the third, barely laid a glove on Franklin outside of that.
In the end, the Canadian landed a total of 26 strikes across the entire fight, while absorbing 211 in return. Franklin even managed to throw him around with a series of German suplexes in the final stanza.
In the end, the scorecards were 50-43, 50-42 and 50-42 in favor of 'Ace', meaning the champion had been awarded three 10-8 rounds.
Nearly 20 years on, this remains the most lopsided decision in UFC history. What's more, Loiseau never recovered, failing to win another fight in the octagon during his career.
#3. Longest losing streak in UFC history - Tony Ferguson
Few UFC fighters have suffered a downturn in their careers quite as bad as former interim lightweight champion Tony Ferguson.
Starting in 2013, 'El Cucuy' cut a path of destruction through the 155-pound division. He won 12 fights in a row, finishing nine of his opponents, and looked all set to face off with Khabib Nurmagomedov for the undisputed title in early 2020.
However, the COVID-19 pandemic then struck, resulting in Nurmagomedov's withdrawal from the planned fight.
Ferguson instead fought Justin Gaethje and ended up suffering a horrendous beatdown before the fight was stopped in the fifth round.
'El Cucuy' had always been able to absorb punishment before that, but the beating from Gaethje seemed to alter his trajectory entirely.
Since then, the former interim champion has not won a single fight. Instead, he's lost a further seven in a row, putting him on the longest losing streak in UFC history with a total of eight defeats.
Remarkably, Ferguson has been knocked out in two of those defeats and has also been submitted three times.
Ferguson's most recent defeat came in August at the hands of Michael Chiesa, but despite this, 'El Cucuy' has vowed not to stop fighting.
On current form, then, there's every chance he extends this unwanted record further if he does return to action.
#2. Most wins in the UFC without scoring a finish - Katlyn Cerminara
Not all of the UFC's unwanted records involve fighters losing. Given how highly CEO Dana White values finishes inside the octagon, it's arguable that going the distance more often than not - even in a win - is not a good thing.
Therefore, the record held by former flyweight title challenger Katlyn Cerminara is probably one that is not envied by any of her peers. That record is for the most wins in the octagon without scoring a single finish.
It's undeniable that Cerminara has a lot of big wins to her name. 'Blonde Fighter' has beaten the likes of Jennifer Maia, Amanda Ribas and Irene Aldana. She's won a total of eleven bouts in the octagon.
However, not a single one of those wins has ended before the final buzzer, with Cerminara allowing each of her victims to survive three rounds.
Taking into consideration the fact that she's only been finished in two of her six defeats in the octagon, Cerminara has a finish rate of just 12% - meaning that 88% of her bouts have gone the distance.
While this definitely doesn't make her a poor fighter, it does give her an unwanted UFC record nonetheless.
#1. Most losses in UFC history - Clay Guida and Jeremy Stephens
It's arguable that the most unwanted record in the UFC would be for suffering the most losses inside the octagon.
It's arguable that this could be looked upon in another way, of course. Most fighters who suffer two or three defeats tend to be cut from their contract with the promotion.
Therefore, any fighter tenured enough to suffer a far larger number will naturally have a lot of wins under their belt, too.
That's the case for the two fighters who jointly hold this record - veterans Clay Guida and Jeremy Stephens.
Both men have lost a total of 18 fights in the octagon over the years, but both have scored plenty of big wins in their careers, too.
Stephens was released from his contract in 2021 after a winless run of six bouts. However, 'Lil Heathen' also won 15 fights during his 14-year run with the promotion, and claimed wins over opponents like Renan Barao, Rafael dos Anjos and Gilbert Melendez.
Guida, meanwhile, remains part of the roster and could actually extend his unwanted record to 19 losses when he faces Chase Hooper this weekend.
However, 'The Carpenter' has also won 18 fights in the octagon and has beaten Nate Diaz, Takanori Gomi, Anthony Pettis and BJ Penn. He's also never lost more than two fights in a row.
In many ways, in fact, Guida could be considered a legend of the octagon - but that doesn't mean the record he holds is any more desirable.