5 UFC stars who saw a lengthy winning streak snapped before they could get a title shot
In the ultra-competitive world of the UFC, a title shot is often remarkably hard to come by, even for a fighter who puts together a lengthy winning streak.
While some UFC fighters have been given title shots after only a couple of wins, over the years we’ve seen others put together long winning streaks, only to see them snapped at the final hurdle before a title bout. It’d be easy to put this down to simple bad luck, but in a number of cases, it seems like the promotion was simply waiting for these fighters to lose rather than hand them a shot at gold.
With that in mind, here are five UFC stars who saw a lengthy winning streak snapped before they could get a title shot.
#5. Sean Strickland – UFC middleweight contender
The latest entry on this list is current UFC middleweight contender Sean Strickland. His impressive six-fight win streak was snapped this past weekend by Alex Pereira. With the victory, Pereira is set to possibly challenge middleweight kingpin Israel Adesanya for his title in the near future.
Admittedly, had ‘Tarzan’ defeated Pereira, there would’ve been no guarantee that he would’ve been matched with Adesanya in his next bout. However, given that he verbally sparred with ‘The Last Stylebender’ prior to his defeat to ‘Poatan’, it’s definitely fair to suspect that his loss caused him to miss out on a big opportunity.
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Why didn’t Strickland’s lengthy win streak – which dated back to 2018 – not earn him a title shot?
The truth is that despite his impressive run, he simply didn’t defeat one of the higher-level contenders in the 185lbs division, with his best win probably coming over Uriah Hall. More importantly, Strickland defeated four of his six opponents during the run via decision. The largely dull nature of those victories didn’t exactly have fans clamoring for him to fight for the title.
Despite this, though, it’s safe to say that ‘Tarzan’ almost certainly stumbled at the very last hurdle when he was knocked out by Pereira.
#4. George Sotiropoulos – former UFC lightweight contender
Back in early 2011, there weren't many hotter lightweight contenders in the UFC than George Sotiropoulos. The Australian entered the promotion with little fanfare following an underwhelming stint on TUF 6. Nonetheless, he quickly opened everyone’s eyes with his skills shortly after.
Naturally, nobody batted an eyelid when he defeated the likes of George Roop and Jason Dent. However, when he then took out three high-level contenders in the form of Joe Stevenson, Kurt Pellegrino and Joe Lauzon, it seemed like a title shot was the next logical step for him.
Unfortunately for Sotiropoulos, his winning streak could not have come at a much worse time. Usually, eight wins in a row would’ve garnered an instant title bout, but the state of the lightweight division made that largely impossible.
Not only had the UFC promised a title shot to incoming WEC champion Anthony Pettis, but champion Frankie Edgar’s controversial draw with Gray Maynard meant that the promotion was forced to book an immediate rematch.
That left Sotiropoulos as the odd man out, which would ultimately mean the end to his streak. He took what looked like a simple fight with Dennis Siver to keep himself busy. However, he found himself surprisingly outgunned by the German, who beat him up on the feet to snap his winning streak.
Sotiropoulos never recovered from the loss and ended up departing the UFC after losing his next three bouts. His winning streak of eight fights remains one of the most impressive in the promotion’s history that didn’t end in a title bout.
#3. Jim Miller – UFC lightweight contender
As one of the longest tenured veterans still competing today, Jim Miller holds multiple records in the UFC. He has the most bouts in the promotion’s history, most wins in the promotion’s history and the most wins in the lightweight division.
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However, the one thing that has always eluded ‘A-10’ is a title shot, and at this stage of his career, it’s unlikely that things will change in the near future.
So how close did Miller get to challenging for gold inside the octagon? It’s probably fair to say that he wasn’t far off on a couple of occasions. The most notable would be between 2009 and 2011, when he compiled a massive seven-fight win streak.
It wasn’t like Miller was defeating scrubs during this period. Some of his victims included high-level opponents like Mac Danzig, Gleison Tibau and future lightweight kingpin Charles Oliveira.
However, like George Sotiropoulos, Miller’s winning run simply came at the wrong time, and he too ended up lost in the shuffle somewhat. After being booked into a de facto top contender’s bout with Benson Henderson, he ended up losing a tight decision, snapping his winning streak and knocking him down the ladder.
If you consider that Henderson ended up winning the lightweight title just two fights later, it’s probably safe to say that Miller had a right to feel bitter about the loss. He also hasn’t come close to matching such a great run since.
#2. Raphael Assuncao – UFC bantamweight contender
Under different circumstances, Raphael Assuncao would not be part of this list at all. After all, the Brazilian bantamweight veteran, who compiled a seven-bout winning streak from 2011 to 2016, was actually set for a title shot against then-135lbs champ Renan Barao in 2014.
So what went wrong for him? Essentially, a badly timed injury – as well as the UFC’s trademark impatience – ended up costing Assuncao everything.
After capping his winning run at six fights by beating TJ Dillashaw and Pedro Munhoz, the Brazilian was offered his shot at Barao at UFC 173 in May 2014. However, Assuncao was unable to make the date due to a lingering rib injury suffered in the fight with Munhoz.
Realistically, the fairest thing to do would’ve been to postpone the bout. However, with the promotion desperate for a headliner for the show, they instead replaced the Brazilian with Dillashaw, who subsequently upset Barao for the gold. Even more bizarrely, rather than simply booking a rematch between Assuncao and the new champion, the Brazilian’s next fight came against Bryan Caraway - a fight Assuncao won with a comfortable decision.
Unfortunately, the bout ended up being Assuncao’s final one for the better part of two years. When he returned, his streak was snapped by Dillashaw – who had previously dropped his title to Dominick Cruz – meaning that any idea of a title bout was swiftly out of the window.
With better luck, Assuncao would almost certainly have fought for the bantamweight title at some point – but as always in the UFC, bad luck can cost a fighter everything.
#1. Matt Brown – UFC welterweight contender
One of the most unlikely winning streaks in UFC history was put together between 2012 and 2014 by veteran welterweight contender Matt Brown. Moreover, it’s safe to say that he was highly unlucky not to receive a title shot because of it.
Remarkably, prior to his winning run, ‘The Immortal’ appeared to be on the verge of being cut by the promotion. Prior to his win over Chris Cope in February 2012, Brown had lost four of his last five bouts, and was definitely skating on thin ice.
However, the win over Cope stirred something inside him, and suddenly, he seemed unstoppable. ‘The Immortal’ just kept on winning, defeating progressively tougher opponents like Mike Swick and Mike Pyle. When he brutally finished Erick Silva in his first headline bout, it seemed like a title shot was inevitable. Unfortunately, there was a hotter contender waiting for his own shot at then-champion Johny Hendricks in the form of Robbie Lawler.
Had Hendricks been healthy at the time, Brown may well have been granted a shot at his title. Instead, he ended up matched with Lawler in a #1 contender’s bout – and found himself outclassed en route to a decision loss.
Yes winner of Lawler vs Brown gets the next shot at the title
Coincidentally, Brown’s next bout actually came against Hendricks – who ended up losing the title to Lawler. But when ‘The Immortal’ was defeated again, any hopes he had of a title run went up in smoke, leaving his epic seven-fight win streak as a footnote in UFC history.
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