Conor McGregor, Israel Adesanya and more: 5 UFC fighters who mastered the art of counter-striking
While many fans love to see a wild brawl inside the UFC’s octagon, there’s also something allure in seeing a truly excellent counter-striker in action.
Over the years, we’ve seen a number of fighters in the UFC master the art of counter-striking, with many of them using their skills to claim gold in the octagon.
It’s not always a foolproof gameplan. Counter-striking requires perfect timing and reflexes, after all. However, it can definitely be used to massive effect against aggressive opponents.
Here are five UFC fighters who mastered the art of counter-striking.
#5. Chuck Liddell – former UFC light heavyweight champion
Former UFC light heavyweight champion Chuck Liddell had an image that portrayed him as a wild brawler. In fact, ‘The Iceman’ was one of the best counter-strikers of his generation and was more cerebral than some observers gave him credit for.
While many of his best punches were looping hooks, Liddell was brilliant at being able to throw them while going backwards. That ability made him able to catch aggressive fighters as they came forward at him.
Liddell did rely on his iron chin a little too much at times, as he was always willing to take a shot from his foe in order to give a heavier one back. That ended up catching up with him at the end of his career, as he suffered some bad knockout losses.
However, in his prime, his counter-punching skills were fantastic. His win over Renato ‘Babalu’ Sobral in 2006, for instance, saw him catch his opponent with a counter uppercut that was so quick that the cameras barely picked it up.
Even his light heavyweight title win over Randy Couture came via a beautiful counter right hook after ‘The Natural’ got over-aggressive following an errant eye poke.
#OnThisDay in UFC history - 'The Iceman' @ChuckLiddell defeated 'The Natural' to become the LHW champion 👀 https://t.co/EBIYoUV4PH
Overall, Liddell possessed everything required to be a world-class counter-striker, including expert timing and reflexes. Those skills took him to the top.
#4. Israel Adesanya – current UFC middleweight champion
Right now, it’s arguable that the best counter-striker in the UFC is current middleweight champion Israel Adesanya. Other fighters in his division might hit harder than ‘The Last Stylebender’, but none of them possess the perfect timing and pinpoint accuracy that he does.
Adesanya’s octagon debut in 2018 saw him easily dispatch the overmatched Rob Wilkinson. While he was able to be the aggressor in that fight, he quickly changed tactics when he faced more dangerous foes like Derek Brunson and Brad Tavares.
Both men were made to look silly by ‘The Last Stylebender’, with Brunson in particular looking like he was trying to fight a ghost. He missed on big shots as Adesanya simply used his angles and timing to cut him to shreds on the counter.
Perhaps his greatest display of counter-striking, though, came against Robert Whittaker in the bout that saw him claim middleweight gold.
A consummate striker in his own right, ‘The Reaper’ tried to get aggressive with Adesanya. He simply found himself chasing shadows, as ‘The Last Stylebender’ was able to avoid all of his big shots before putting him away with a left hand in the second round.
Naija stand up! HE'S DONE IT!
@Stylebender finishes Whittaker in the 2nd round! Wow! #UFC243 https://t.co/IS1f8lL8Lt
Whether Adesanya’s counter-striking skills can carry him to a win over another excellent striker in Alex Pereira in his next bout remains to be seen. For now, at least, it’s safe to label him the best counter-striker in the promotion.
#3. Lyoto Machida – former UFC light heavyweight champion
It seems hard to believe now, but when Lyoto Machida first arrived in the UFC in 2007, he was largely viewed as a dull fighter to watch. That was primarily because he just didn’t seem at all aggressive.
However, that reputation quickly changed when ‘The Dragon’ began to destroy opponents such as Thiago Silva and Rameau Thierry Sokoudjou inside the octagon. He did so with a unique blend of counter-striking based upon his background as a karate expert.
Machida would fight from a traditional martial arts stance, legs wide apart, which allowed him to bounce in and out of range without really taking shots from his opponents.
When they got frustrated and really opened up, he then had the ability to spring in, catching them with anything from heavy punches to sneaky foot-sweeps that would often put them on the mat.
By 2009, everyone knew exactly what Machida was going to do in the octagon, but they just couldn’t find a way to stop him. That year saw him dispatch Rashad Evans with some more of his trademark counter striking, winning the light heavyweight title in the process.
@lyotomachidafw10 years ago today, we entered the Machida Era 🐉 @lyotomachidafw https://t.co/ebQIvxfVw0
Machida’s later years saw him become more vulnerable. That was largely because his reflexes slowed somewhat, but his karate-based counter-striking style still inspired later successful fighters like Stephen Thompson and Henry Cejudo – making him a counter-striking legend of the octagon.
#2. Conor McGregor – former UFC lightweight and featherweight champion
It’s probably fair to suggest that these days, Conor McGregor's eschewed his counter-striking style in favor of a more straight-ahead boxing game. However, in his prime, the Irishman was an absolutely fantastic counter-striker who used his skills to climb to the top of the UFC.
At his best, ‘The Notorious’ essentially blended the karate-based style of Lyoto Machida, with the wide stance and ability to spring in and out of range, with the back-foot brutal punching power of Chuck Liddell. It was a remarkably effective
During his rise to fame, a run that saw him take out some great strikers in their own right like Dustin Poirier and Dennis Siver, fans and pundits alike were wowed by the movement and footwork of the Irishman.
McGregor’s famous adage that “precision beats power, and timing beats speed” seemed to ring true, never more so than when he caught Jose Aldo, one of the greatest strikers in UFC history, with a clean left hand counter that put him out cold to win the featherweight title in 2015.
Conor McGregor vs Jose Aldo at UFC 194 on December 12, 2015 in Las Vegas, NV. #DWCOTD https://t.co/1h4KEjafRs
When ‘The Notorious’ then used those counter-striking skills to completely dummy Eddie Alvarez and claim the lightweight title, it looked like he had the ability to rule over the promotion for years.
While that hasn’t quite happened, it’s safe to say that at his best, McGregor was a one-of-a-kind counter-striker with as impressive a skill-set as anyone had ever seen in the octagon.
#1. Anderson Silva – former UFC middleweight champion
While the likes of Conor McGregor and Chuck Liddell were great counter-strikers at their best, and Israel Adesanya carries the torch for the style well today, it’s probably safe to say that the greatest counter-striker in UFC history is legendary former middleweight champion Anderson Silva.
Realistically, ‘The Spider’ was deadly from any position. He was more than capable of submitting foes on the ground and could also take them out with aggression on the feet, particularly from the clinch.
However, it was his counter-striking that really wowed the fans. Some of his performances even drew comparisons to the movie The Matrix in the sense that Silva appeared to be operating on a completely different plane of movement to his opponents.
The way that he took out an onrushing Forrest Griffin with a jab that was essentially slung from his waist is still a jaw-dropper to this day, while his counterpunch knockout of Yushin Okami was almost just as impressive.
That Forest Griffin KO never gets old.
Anderson Silva at his best 🔥
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Essentially, ‘The Spider’ had unparalleled timing and reflexes. At his peak, he was able to make near-impossible things look completely easy.
Often, his opponents didn’t seem to know what had hit them, and sometimes even the fans couldn’t see his shots coming – adding up to make him the UFC’s greatest-ever counter-striker.