The 5 worst UFC shows of the decade (2010-2019)
The UFC has put on some landmark events during this decade (2010-2019), with shows like UFC 205, UFC 229 and UFC 166 being considered among the best MMA shows of all time, while also drawing millions of dollars on pay-per-view.
Unfortunately, for every great UFC show this decade, there have also been some pretty bad efforts too. The promotion’s free-TV ‘Fight Night’ shows are always a bit of a coin flip depending on the card, but when the UFC are expecting people to pay to watch their shows, fans expect to see the best – and that hasn’t always been the case.
Here are the 5 worst ‘numbered’ UFC shows of the decade (2010-2019).
#5 UFC 127: Penn vs. Fitch (2011)
This was the UFC’s second-ever show in Australia, and while the first one was one of the best cards of 2010, this one was almost certainly the worst of 2011. Entirely lacking in name value, the main event featured a strange Welterweight pairing of BJ Penn and Jon Fitch, with the co-main event seeing Michael Bisping taking on journeyman Jorge Rivera in a grudge match.
The event started slowly and gradually got worse; Aussie native Kyle Noke submitted Chris Camozzi in an opener that was at least rescued by a hot crowd. But Brian Ebersole’s victory over Chris Lytle was unmemorable in every possible way, as was Dennis Siver’s slow, striking-based decision over local hero George Sotiropoulos.
That was enough to turn the crowd off, and when Bisping vs. Rivera turned into an angry, foul-filled match that ended with ‘The Count’ spitting on the cornermen of his beaten foe, it was clear that the event needed saving by its main event.
Unfortunately, Penn and Fitch couldn’t deliver; ‘The Prodigy’ surprisingly outwrestled Fitch to win the first round, but then gassed out and allowed the Indiana native to grind him down for the next two rounds, before the whole thing was rendered largely pointless when the judges declared it a majority draw.
2011 was a fantastic year for the UFC, with plenty of classic shows, but unfortunately, UFC 127 missed the mark by a considerable amount.