5 UFC champions who underestimated their opponents and lost as a result
Prior to UFC 290, some fans were worried that Alexander Volkanovski might have been overlooking Yair Rodriguez ahead of the pair's scheduled clash. The reigning featherweight champion has been more than vocal about his desire to book a rematch with lightweight kingpin Islam Makhachev.
Fortunately, 'The Great' eased his fans' fears by having a dominant performance against 'El Pantera' en route to a third-round TKO. However, not every champion is able to do what he did. In fact, champions losing to challengers they underestimate tends to be a more common occurrence than people realize.
While it did not occur with Volkanovski, it has occurred several times in the past, even with some of the most dominant titleholders in the promotion's history. So with that in mind, this list looks at five UFC champions who overlooked or underestimated their opponents, then lost.
#5. Daniel Cormier vs. Stipe Miocic 2, UFC 241
At UFC 226, Daniel Cormier achieved heavyweight immortality by dethroning Stipe Miocic for the 265-pound title. His was an emphatic victory, a first-round knockout that came when he pulled Miocic into a single collar-tie and took advantage of his foe's tendency to drop his left hand every time he exits the clinch.
At the #UFC241 press conference Daniel Cormier said that he doesn't think Stipe Miocic is "good enough" to beat him. Stipe's response 🔊🆙
"We'll find out. I'm not good enough. When he's looking up at me I'll punch him in the face."
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So when Miocic did just that, Cormier blasted him with a right hand. After defending his newly claimed heavyweight title against Derrick Lewis, 'DC' sought a matchup with Brock Lesnar that never came to fruition. Instead, he was booked to face Stipe Miocic in a highly anticipated rematch.
'DC' was supremely confident ahead of the pair's second bout, even claiming that he simply didn't see anything Miocic could do to win. He was dismissive and still more concerned with facing Lesnar. Unfortunately, at UFC 241, he suffered a stunning fourth-round TKO loss to Miocic that left him stunned.
#4. Ronda Rousey vs. Holly Holm, UFC 193
Women's MMA has never seen anything quite like the Ronda Rousey phenomenon that took the entire world by storm some years ago. In mid-2015, 'Rowdy' was an unbeaten icon, who was praised to hyperbolic proportions due to her inimitable excellence inside the octagon.
This is going to be good.
Ronda Rousey & Holly Holm separated at weigh-in before fight tonight. #PhotoOfTheNight https://t.co/pydEk9Crqv
So when she was booked to face Holly Holm, everyone, including Ronda Rousey herself, gave her foe no chance at dethroning her. At the weigh-ins, 'Rowdy' exploded against Holm, telling her that she isn't the first person who thought they had the perfect plan to beat her, nor was it the first time her camp had tried.
Rousey also told Fox Sports 1 that she's been in more situations and was better prepared than her foe and would undoubtedly win. However, come UFC 193, she was on the wrong end of an all-time great upset as Holm used lateral movement, footwork and counter-striking to knock her out in the second round.
#3. Luke Rockhold vs. Michael Bisping 2, UFC 199
Luke Rockhold could be forgiven for assuming he'd defeat Michael Bisping in their second outing. Their first-ever fight was extremely one-sided, wherein Rockhold dropped and choked 'The Count' unconscious to claim a submission win. By the time of their rematch, Rockhold was the UFC middleweight champion.
"Conceive, believe, achieve!"
It's safe to say that Luke Rockhold and Michael Bisping saw life differently.
The trash talk was 🔥 https://t.co/91Kj5Zg5nI
It was a position that had long been coveted by Bisping, but always seemed beyond his ability to reach. Ahead of their bout, Rockhold was extremely dismissive of Bisping's chances, reminding everyone of how dominantly he had won their previous bout, while stressing how much better he was than him.
Given that Bisping was a short-notice replacement heading into the bout, his chances seemed slim, with Rockhold even implying that his foe was delusional for thinking he could win. Yet, at UFC 199, he did win, punishing his foe for dropping his right by blasting him with a left hook en route to a legendary knockout win.
#2. Kamaru Usman vs. Leon Edwards 2, UFC 278
Underestimating and overlooking opponents one has already beaten seems to be a recurring theme among fighters. This was no different when Kamaru Usman headlined UFC 278 alongside Leon Edwards, a man he had faced years ago, and a main against whom he had a lopsided win.
Ahead of their fated rematch, Usman claimed to recognize Edwards' skills, but was more concerned with setting up a boxing match with Saúl 'Canelo' Alvarez and asserting that he could move up to light heavyweight and capture the title. He massively overlooked 'Rocky'.
Besides losing the first round, 'The Nigerian Nightmare' dominated most of the bout, exhausting his foe into a demoralized state. This led to one of MMA's all-time great pep talks from Edwards' corner, prompting him to make one of the greatest comebacks in MMA history by KO'ing Usman with a head kick with a minute left.
#1. Amanda Nunes vs. Julianna Peña, UFC 269
By late 2021, Amanda Nunes seemed all but invincible. 'The Lioness' was on a 12-fight win streak, including thunderous knockouts over WMMA icons Ronda Rousey and Cris Cyborg. She was a simultaneous two-division UFC champion and had firmly enthroned herself as the greatest female fighter in history.
Enter Julianna Peña. 'The Venezuelan Vixen' was on a one-fight win streak, with almost half as many losses as she had wins. One of her defeats was even a submission loss to Germaine de Randamie, a kickboxer and Brazilian jiu-jitsu white belt. Peña's inability to mount a win streak was pointed out by Nunes.
The Lioness already responded to Julianna Pena's callout at #UFC257 👀
(via @Amanda_Leoa) https://t.co/HMA51cvc4I
The Brazilian claimed that her foe couldn't even make herself a contender to earn a title shot and scoffed at the idea that Peña posed any challenge whatsoever. Instead, she was looking towards a potential bout with Kayla Harrison, who sat cage-side for the pair's bout.
When the two women finally locked horns, 'The Venezuelan Vixen' stood firm, jabbing with Nunes to offset her rhythm and stop her power-punching combinations before they could ever begin. By the second round, Nunes was exhausted, conceding a takedown and tapping to a rear-naked choke.