5 UFC fighters who were accused of losing their nerve in big fights
To succeed at the highest level of the UFC takes skill, heart, and toughness. It also takes a great deal of nerve and poise, particularly when a fight becomes difficult.
Over the years, we’ve seen several top UFC fighters, even ones who held UFC titles, accused of losing their nerve during major fights - usually ones they would go onto lose.
Whether or not these accusations are true is obviously up for debate, as it’s easy to suggest that a fighter has lost their nerve to explain away a loss rather than looking for more concrete reasons.
Either way, it’s likely that we’ll see similar accusations thrown at UFC fighters for plenty of time to come.
Here are five UFC fighters who were accused of losing their nerve in big fights.
#5. Tyron Woodley (vs. Rory MacDonald at UFC 174)
It’s probably fair to say that UFC President Dana White never quite saw eye to eye with former UFC welterweight champion Tyron Woodley, even when he looked like one of the most dominant fighters in the world.
White regularly frowned upon Woodley’s fighting style, as well as his attitude behind the scenes. However, his ire for ‘The Chosen One’ dated back long before his UFC welterweight title reign, even though Woodley was regularly delivering highlight-reel finishes at that point.
Most notably, White accused Woodley of losing his nerve in a big fight against Rory MacDonald at June 2014’s UFC 174. ‘The Chosen One’ lost a lopsided decision in the fight and seemed to be gunshy throughout, allowing MacDonald to back him up for essentially the whole three rounds.
In an interview with Fox Sports after the event, White hit out at Woodley and stated that he “choked in the big fight tonight.” He went onto suggest that ‘The Chosen One’ should’ve come out with much more aggression in the third round but instead only threw “a few punches” and largely sat back.
He ended by suggesting Woodley was an explosive fighter, but one who had a lot of question marks hanging over him.
Whether White changed his tune when it came to Woodley’s performances in big fights once he won the UFC welterweight title is a fair question to ask, but the UFC President clearly felt that ‘The Chosen One’ lost his nerve in this bout.