5 UFC title fights that failed to inspire the interest of the fans
The UFC is undoubtedly the world’s greatest MMA promotion. When it puts title fights together, the likes of Dana White fully expect the fans to be excited. However, that isn’t always the case.
Over the years, we’ve seen the UFC put together a number of title bouts, which, for various reasons, simply fail to excite the fans.
#Silva vs #Leites: They're running out of challengers. Another cake walk. Spider KO in 1. It never gets to the ground.
Sometimes this is due to a lack of interest in the champion, while other times it’s more down to a perceived lame-duck challenger. On occasion, it’s a mix of both. Regardless, it’s always a disappointment to the promotion when it happens.
With that in mind, here are five UFC title bouts that failed to excite the fans.
#5. Demetrious Johnson vs. Chris Cariaso – UFC 178
When the bouts for UFC 178 were initially confirmed, fans immediately looked upon the show as one of the most loaded in the promotion’s history.
Not only did the headliner feature a fight between light heavyweight champion Jon Jones and top contender Daniel Cormier in the culmination of one of the biggest feuds in the promotion, but the likes of Conor McGregor, Eddie Alvarez, Donald Cerrone and Amanda Nunes all featured on the undercard.
Unfortunately, when Jones was sidelined with an injury, the UFC were forced to change their plans and pull the headline bout. They did find a title fight to replace it, but to say it wasn’t a like-for-like replacement would be an understatement.
Did any fans really want to see a flyweight title bout between Demetrious Johnson and Chris Cariaso? In all honesty, it was doubtful.
Not only had ‘Mighty Mouse’ struggled to capture the imagination of the fans at the time despite his incredible skills, but Cariaso felt like the very definition of a weak challenger. He was just 3-2 in his most recent bouts and had never really beaten a top fighter.
Sure enough, the title bout was massively overshadowed by the great fights that came before it; most notably McGregor’s clash with Dustin Poirier. While it was a serviceable bout that saw Johnson win via submission, many fans had already departed the arena by the time it began.
The Hit List: The Top 5 moments from UFC 178: Johnson vs. Cariaso foxs.pt/1uwkLEG http://t.co/iRX5FrgNow