5 top-rated wrestlers who struggled in the UFC
This weekend's UFC event will see the return of middleweight prospect Bo Nickal. One of the most credentialed wrestlers in octagon history, Nickal will be hoping to win big.
Bo Nickal is just the latest in a long line of top-rated wrestlers to hit the UFC, but while plenty have reached the top, others struggled greatly. Whether Nickal can emulate the likes of Cain Velasquez, Johny Hendricks and Mark Coleman and reach the very top - or whether he'll fail - remains to be seen.
For now, though, here are five top-rated wrestlers who struggled in the UFC.
#5. Deron Winn - former UFC middleweight
One name who absolutely won't appear on this list is Daniel Cormier. The captain of the 2008 US Olympic wrestling team, 'DC' went onto claim UFC gold in two divisions and was enshrined in the Hall of Fame in 2022.
Unfortunately, Deron Winn - who was widely viewed as Cormier's protege - did not achieve such heights in his brief octagon career.
Prior to his MMA career, Winn's amateur wrestling credentials were fantastic. An NJCAA national champion wrestler in 2008 and 2010, he also medaled in the NAIA national championships and the Pan-American Games.
After narrowly missing out on making the 2016 US Olympic team, Winn transitioned to MMA and began to train with Cormier at the American Kickboxing Academy. The two men had an already-existing friendship from their time coaching children in amateur wrestling.
After going 5-0 on the regional circuit, Winn was signed by the UFC in 2019, but anyone who'd seen his bout with veteran Tom Lawlor would've been concerned. Essentially, it didn't look like Winn was quite well-rounded enough to succeed in the octagon.
Indeed, after beating Eric Spicely by basically outwrestling him in his debut, he suffered losses to journeymen Darren Stewart and Gerald Meerschaert. In both fights, Winn struggled to control his foes and didn't offer much else.
Winn was able to bounce back in late 2020 with a win over Antonio Arroyo, but after being stopped by Phil Hawes, he was released from his contract in 2022. He has not fought since.
#4. Mike van Arsdale - former UFC light heavyweight
While younger UFC fans likely won't remember the name Mike van Arsdale, there's no disputing his wrestling credentials.
Van Arsdale won a NCAA Division I national championship in 1988 during his collegiate days, and went onto represent the US internationally, becoming a two-time Olympic alternate.
After winning a one-night MMA tournament in Brazil, he made his octagon debut in 1998 and won impressively, submitting his foe with an armlock.
However, a loss in Brazil to a young Wanderlei Silva later that year sent him away from MMA and into the world of grappling for four years.
When he returned, three wins inspired the UFC to bring him back, and he made a successful return, beating John Marsh.
Despite this, there's no way he was ready to face Randy Couture - another world-class wrestler who had taken to MMA with far more success - in the summer of 2005.
Sure enough, 'The Natural' thoroughly outclassed van Arsdale, submitting him with a third round anaconda choke. A subsequent submission loss to Renato 'Babalu' Sobral was even worse, and signalled the end of van Arsdale's octagon career.
Essentially, van Arsdale was a classic example of a tremendous athlete who just didn't fully round out his skills enough to succeed at the top level in MMA.
#3. Reese Andy - former UFC light heavyweight
A three-time NCAA Division I All-American with the University of Wyoming, Reese Andy should absolutely be considered one of the best-credentialed wrestlers in UFC history.
When he turned to MMA in 2005, he was already 32 years old, but 'Riptide' did seem to hold an advantage over some of his wrestling peers.
Prior to fighting professionally, he'd competed at the highest level of submission grappling, competing twice in the prestigious ADCC world championships.
Andy quickly put together an impressive 7-1 record, largely in the IFL promotion, where he defeated octagon veterans Justin Levens and Krzysztof Soszynski.
2008 saw him sign with the UFC, and the promotion clearly had high hopes for him. In his octagon debut, 'Riptide' was matched with top 205-pound contender Brandon Vera in the co-headliner of a Fight Night event.
Unfortunately, Andy looked out of his depth against 'The Truth', who easily stopped his takedowns and outstruck him for a unanimous decision.
Andy's second bout was even worse, as he was violently beaten by Matt Hamill en route to a second round TKO loss.
'Riptide' hung up his gloves after that loss, and currently runs his own MMA gym in Washington state. Whether he'd have had more success in the octagon had he come to the sport earlier is debatable, but it's safe to say that he struggled at the highest level.
#2. Shane Roller - former UFC lightweight
When the WEC's roster was absorbed by the UFC in 2011, one fighter who many observers had high hopes for was Shane Roller.
A three-time NCAA Division I All-American wrestler at Oklahoma State, Roller was well-known as one of the best natural athletes to ever enter MMA, having also excelled at football and baseball during his youth.
After starting his fighting career in 2007, Roller quickly climbed the ladder in the WEC, winning six of his eight bouts, with the only losses coming to future UFC champions Benson Henderson and Anthony Pettis.
However, although he won his octagon debut, that was about as good as it got for the standout wrestler.
Roller suffered a bad knockout at the hands of Melvin Guillard in his second bout with the promotion, a defeat which exposed the massive holes in his stand-up game.
Further defeats to TJ Grant, Michael Johnson and Jacob Volkmann followed, with both Grant and Volkmann submitting him. The latter was his final bout both in the octagon and MMA, as he was released afterwards and then retired.
Essentially, Roller's incredible athleticism allowed him to compete, but his skills in striking and grappling lagged far behind his wrestling, ensuring he couldn't climb to the very top.
#1. Jake Rosholt - former UFC middleweight
A number of NCAA Division I national champion wrestlers have competed in the UFC, with the likes of Brock Lesnar, Johny Hendricks and Josh Koscheck seeing plenty of success.
While Bo Nickal will undoubtedly look to follow in their footsteps, he should also be aware of what happened to another three-time national champion in the octagon.
Jake Rosholt entered the UFC in 2009 with an absolutely stellar wrestling background, winning NCAA Division I national championships in 2003, 2005 and 2006.
He'd also compiled a 5-0 record in MMA since his 2007 debut, although his lone win in the WEC, over Nissen Osterneck, should've given fans cause for concern. Rosholt won via TKO, but the fight was a wild, sloppy affair that showed a lot of holes in the wrestler's overall game.
Still, hopes were high that he'd develop into a genuine contender at 185 pounds once he entered the octagon. Unfortunately, that wasn't the case at all.
Rosholt was easily beaten by Dan Miller in his promotional debut, finding himself caught in a guillotine choke in just over a minute.
He did win his second fight, but it was a sloppy affair with a past-his-prime Chris Leben that saw Rosholt eat a number of heavy blows before using an arm triangle to choke 'The Crippler' unconscious.
It was clear from that fight that despite winning, Rosholt just wasn't ready for prime time, and a triangle choke submission loss to Kendall Grove three months later ended his run with the promotion.
Rosholt did continue to compete on the regional circuit, but despite winning the majority of his fights, it never looked like he'd work his way back to the UFC. Indeed, his final fight came in 2012, as he was knocked out by Anthony 'Rumble' Johnson.
Could Rosholt have succeeded had he been given more time? It's hard to say, but the fact is that he simply didn't have enough outside of his wrestling once he arrived in the promotion. Essentially, his MMA career was rushed and he paid the price for that.