5 Most exciting UFC fighters to watch in the past decade (2010-2019)
The UFC has been home to some truly exciting fighters over the past decade, and thanks to them, we’ve seen an almost countless number of tremendous fights inside the Octagon. Some fighters, though, seem to guarantee fireworks each and every time they step into action, regardless of opposition or the stakes involved.
The following five fighters have put on some of the very best fights in the last ten years, with some of those bouts being widely considered amongst the very best in MMA history. Here are the five most exciting UFC fighters of the decade (2010-2019).
#5 Diego Sanchez
The winner of the inaugural season of The Ultimate Fighter way back in 2005, Diego Sanchez was arguably the UFC’s most exciting fighter in the previous decade (2000-2009) thanks to his classic encounters with the likes of Nick Diaz, Karo Parisyan and Clay Guida. But somehow – despite advancing in age and becoming less durable – ‘The Nightmare’ has remained relevant over the last ten years too and continues to excite every time he steps into the Octagon.
It’s been an up-and-down decade for the man from Albuquerque, New Mexico; he’s jumped between weight classes, ranging from 145lbs all the way up to 170lbs, and has put together a record of 8-9 since the turn of the decade, but for a fighter like Sanchez, wins and losses barely matter – it’s what happens in the fight that counts.
Diego’s wild fights with Martin Kampmann, Jake Ellenberger and Gilbert Melendez are all considered up there with the very best in the last decade, and it’s almost impossible to find him involved in anything but a barnburner; even at the age of 37 he was able to put on a tremendous fight in his victory over Mickey Gall this past March. Sanchez has now signed a new deal with the UFC – so it wouldn’t be a shock if he appears on a list like this in another ten years time, either!