5 fighters who were one and done in the UFC despite winning their octagon debuts
Over the last two decades, the UFC has established itself as the biggest MMA promotion in the world. Unsurprisingly, then, it's the goal of most fighters to make it there.
While most fighters who get to the UFC are able to stick around for a while, there have been plenty of examples of 'one-and-done' fighters over the years too.
More rare, though, are fighters who win their octagon debut and never get to return, often for odd or unexplained reasons.
Here, then, are five fighters who were one and done in the UFC despite winning their debuts.
#5 Jonathan Wiezorek - former UFC heavyweight contender
Back in 2004, most of the best heavyweight fighters in MMA were signed with Japan's PRIDE promotion. That left the UFC constantly hunting around for talent, often to no avail.
For every Andrei Arlovski or Frank Mir that was unearthed, then, there was a Jonathan Wiezorek, a fighter who ended up being one-and-done in the octagon despite winning his bout there.
'Lock N' Load' was matched with fellow debutant Wade Shipp at UFC 47, which was, at the time, one of the biggest events in the history of the promotion.
It was a pretty large spotlight to offer to two unknown debutants, even though the fight was positioned on the preliminary card.
It's safe to say that the two newcomers didn't exactly light up the arena, though. They put on a painfully sloppy fight that saw Wiezorek literally run headfirst into some big shots from Shipp, who somehow failed to put his foe away.
When 'The Nightmare' unsurprisingly gassed out, then, Wiezorek was able to land a takedown and pound him out from back mount.
Despite his win, 'Lock N' Load' was never brought back by Dana White and company. Clearly, he hadn't done enough to impress them, even in a much leaner time for the division.
#4 Logan Clark - former UFC middleweight contender
The mid-2000's were a fascinating time in the UFC. As the TUF boom caused MMA to explode in popularity in the US, the promotion saw countless fighters come and go during this period.
One of those fighters was Logan Clark, a middleweight who was signed at the back end of 2006 at the age of just 21.
Sporting the hilarious nickname 'The Pink Pounder', Clark made his debut on the promotion's first event to take place on a military base, although the 'Fight for the Troops' moniker had yet to be coined.
His opponent was former US Marine Steve Byrnes, but Clark made sure to play spoiler. He dominated 'The Sergeant', eventually claiming a lopsided decision win.
Weirdly, though, the fight was the last time fans saw Clark in the octagon.
Rather than keep him in what was a stacked middleweight division, Dana White and company instead moved 'The Pink Pounder' to the WEC, their newly-purchased sister promotion.
Clark ended up winning two of his three fights there, but didn't shine brightly enough to be offered another deal. Instead, he ended up simply drifting back onto the regional scene, even fighting a future UFC title contender in Anthony Smith in 2010.
'The Pink Pounder' is a perfect example of a fighter who simply stumbled into a bit of bad luck rather than actually doing anything wrong to cost him his octagon career.
#3 Tom Murphy - former UFC heavyweight contender
While the bloom has now been off the rose for a long time, the early seasons of TUF were a literal talent goldmine for the UFC.
Everyone remembers successful TUF winners like Forrest Griffin and Michael Bisping, but even fighters who struggled on the reality show often ended up doing well for themselves.
However, even back then there was the odd curious exception, and one such exception was Tom Murphy.
The most inexperienced heavyweight fighter on TUF 2 at just 2-0, Murphy was eliminated from the reality show by eventual winner Rashad Evans.
Still, he seemed young enough to have a bright future, and when his octagon debut was announced a few months later, nobody was surprised.
What did come as a surprise, though, was that the promotion didn't retain his services after he won his debut.
Sure, his bout with Icho Larenas wasn't the most entertaining, but it was hard to argue with Murphy's win. He took his Canadian foe down over and over and beat him bloody en route to a third round TKO.
Quite why Murphy was never brought back remains a mystery, although the fact that he didn't fight for two years after his octagon win might go some way to explaining it.
Regardless, the former TUF competitor ended up retiring from MMA in 2010 with a 6-0 record, and now works as a mental health and anti-bullying coach. His octagon career remains little more than a footnote, but at least he's done plenty of good since.
#2 Kazushi Sakuraba - former UFC middleweight contender
Probably the most well-known fighter to win his only fight in the UFC is Kazushi Sakuraba.
Technically speaking, it could be argued that the Japanese wrestler actually had two fights in the octagon, but for all intents and purposes, it's easier to view them as one continual bout instead.
Debuting at the promotion's first event in Japan way back in 1997, Sakuraba was one part of a four-man heavyweight tournament. He was matched with Marcus Silveira in one semi-final, with Tank Abbott facing Yoji Anjo in the other.
Thanks to a bad refereeing gaffe from John McCarthy, though, the Japanese star saw his fight with 'Conan' stopped early. Essentially, McCarthy saw Sakuraba dive for a takedown, thought he was hurt, and stepped in.
Sakuraba was naturally furious, but his protests appeared to have fallen on deaf ears. That was until Abbott - who beat Anjo - was ruled out of the final bout with an injured hand.
With McCarthy realising his error and declaring the first fight a No Contest, Sakuraba was allowed to replace Abbott, essentially restarting his fight with Silveira. This time, he left no doubt, submitting the Brazilian with an armbar.
Despite winning the tournament, though, the Japanese star never returned to the octagon. Instead, he joined the newly-minted PRIDE promotion and quickly became its biggest star, earning the moniker 'The Gracie Hunter' for his series of legendary wins over members of MMA's first family.
It remains somewhat frustrating that Sakuraba never did return to the UFC, but recognising his accomplishments, the promotion did enter him into its Hall of Fame in 2017 - despite him being one and done in the octagon.
#1 Lee Murray - former UFC middleweight contender
The most infamous example of a fighter who was one and done in the UFC despite winning his lone fight in the octagon is Lee Murray.
A street brawler from London, England, Murray initially shot to fame for a fight that took place outside the octagon.
When the UFC visited London for the first time in 2002, 'Lightning' attended as part of Pat Miletich's camp, which was also home to one of the event's headliners, Matt Hughes.
It was during the event's afterparty that Murray's legend was born. While the various re-tellings of the story have arguably twisted the truth, most witnesses agree on one thing: a misunderstanding led to a confrontation between 'Lightning' and then-UFC light-heavyweight champ Tito Ortiz, and the confrontation ended with Ortiz being knocked out cold.
Suddenly, despite a relatively thin MMA record of 7-1-1, Murray was hot property. Sensing a potential money fight with Ortiz, Dana White and company wasted no time in signing him to a contract.
'Lightning' made his octagon debut in early 2004, and impressed fans by submitting the tough, top-ten ranked Jorge Rivera in the first round.
Unfortunately, Murray's debut turned out to be more of a cameo appearance than a star-making performance.
His colorful past and legal history meant that he struggled to obtain a Visa to compete in the US, and with the promotion not really doing international shows at the time, Murray's career stalled out.
He fought just once more, losing in an entertaining fight to future middleweight kingpin Anderson Silva in London, before his life of crime finally caught up with him.
After narrowly surviving a murder attempt in 2005, Murray was then embroiled in the Securitas Depot robbery, the largest cash heist in UK history.
While he initially appeared to have gotten away with his crime, he was eventually apprehended in Morocco, and remains encarcerated, his past as an octagon star well and truly behind him.
Still, it's fair to say that he made an impression, not least on White, who labeled him a "scary son of a b*tch...and I don't mean fighter wise" in a later interview.