5 times that overzealousness to finish a fight cost a UFC star dearly
There are few things more entertaining in a UFC fight than a truly explosive and violent finish. Naturally, all of the promotion’s fighters would prefer to stop their foe rather than allow a fight to go to the judges.
Over the years we’ve seen a number of UFC fighters get so desperate to finish their opponent that things have backfired on them – usually ending instead with them suffering a loss.
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Sometimes this overzealousness leads to them gassing out – leaving them a sitting duck for a recovered opponent. Other times it leads them to get too wild in their attempts to finish, leaving them susceptible to a counter.
So with this considered, here are five times that overzealousness to finish a fight cost a UFC star dearly.
#5. Shane Carwin vs. Brock Lesnar – UFC 116
There have been a number of true power punchers operating in the UFC’s heavyweight division over the years. However, few fighters hit quite as hard as Shane Carwin.
The hulking wrestler debuted in the octagon in mid-2008, and quickly established himself as a fighter to watch with a number of crushing knockouts. Often, it felt like all Carwin had to do was touch an opponent on their jaw, and they’d be knocked silly.
After reeling off four straight victories in the UFC – including a seriously brutal one over Frank Mir that gave him the interim UFC heavyweight title – Carwin was finally handed his shot at reigning UFC heavyweight champion Brock Lesnar.
Many people favored Carwin to dethrone ‘The Beast Incarnate’ but, in reality, he simply hadn’t been all that tested during his UFC career.
So when it came to their clash at UFC 116, as per usual, Carwin started quickly. He stunned Lesnar with a flurry, causing the former WWE star to retreat, and then put him down with another series of punches.
The fight looked all but over as Carwin bombed on Lesnar with heavy ground-and-pound, but ‘The Beast Incarnate’ was able to do just enough to survive. When the buzzer sounded, it was clear something wasn’t right with the challenger.
Carwin had run completely out of steam in his attempts to finish Lesnar. When he came out for the second round, he looked like a dead man walking.
Within seconds of the round beginning, Lesnar secured an easy takedown, passed Carwin’s guard and slapped on an arm triangle choke, forcing him to tap out after two minutes.
Earlier today, ESPN aired a collection of fights from @BrockLesnar's UFC run.
One of the most memorable is his return from diverticulitis to face Shane Carwin at UFC 116. After looking like it was over in the first round, Lesnar mounted a miraculous comeback in Round 2. https://t.co/zinXK0fnwU
This was a classic example of a fighter’s overzealousness costing them. Had Carwin simply picked his shots rather than unloading his entire gas tank in the first round, he likely would’ve become the new UFC heavyweight champion.