Anderson Silva and Nick Diaz are some of MMA's action heroes. Both having had long runs on the top with Silva in the UFC, and Diaz in Strikeforce, a matchup with the two never seemed like it could happen until it was officially announced for January of 2015.
The matchup promised fireworks, as both fighters are considered some of the most entertaining fighters in MMA history. Despite this, we would go on to get a lackluster fight in which neither man wanted to lead, the most entertaining moment was not a moment in where a strike was thrown, it was Diaz laying down and taunting Silva in round one.
It was a fight where against all odds, it managed to be lackluster. Unfortunately, that's far from an uncommon occurrence.
10 Thiago Santos vs Alexander Rakic (UFC 259)
Heading into UFC 259, Thiago Santos vs Alexander Rakic was considered one of the best fights on the card. Santos, the former title challenger who has literally never been in a boring fight, was coming off a fight of the year contender against Glover Teixeira in his last fight. Rakic on the other hand had been rising up through the division destroying all competition, this one had all the signs of a barnburner heading in.
Instead, what we got was a lot of circling with neither fighter landing much of anything. It was a fight that was so uneventful, that Daniel Cormier went on record saying that he thought both fighters should've lost. At the end of the 15-minute contest, Rakic was declared the winner, however, the real winner was the fans for the fact that the fight was over.
9 Anderson Silva vs Demian Maia (UFC 112)
The main event of UFC 112 was the battle of Brazil, as longtime champion Anderson Silva defended his belt against jiu-jitsu ace Demian Maia. Maia took the fight on short notice following an injury to the original challenger, Vitor Belfort. While not expected to be as exciting as the Silva/Belfort matchup, the style matchup of Silva/Maia had fans intrigued.
Silva came out aggressive in round one, insulting and taunting Maia. However, that would be the most exciting moment of the fight. Silva then decided to let the jiu-jitsu fighter in Maia lead the dance, and predictably not much happened as a result. It was Silva's sixth title defense but it was one to forget.
8 CM Punk vs Mike Jackson (UFC 225)
It's difficult to set a fight like this, and somehow still shock fans with how poor it is, but that's exactly what happened. CM Punk's sophomore effort in the UFC was against fellow 0-1 fighter Mike Jackson, on paper it seemed even. Until you realize that Jackson is 4-0 as a pro-boxer, and had multiple amateur fights, compared to Punk's sole fight against Mickey Gall at UFC 203.
With all that in mind, it's not surprising that Jackson dominated Punk. However, the way it went down was shocking. After Punk gassed out in round one, Jackson chose to grapple with Punk and seemingly "carry" the former WWE champion to the scorecards. Mid-fight, UFC commentator Joe Rogan openly speculated if Jackson was paid off to take the fight to the judges, not a good look.
Oh, and despite winning the fight easily on the cards, the win was overturned to a no-contest years later because Jackson tested positive for marijuana.
7 Israel Adesanya vs Yoel Romero (UFC 248)
UFC 248 was the last UFC card with fans due to the coronavirus pandemic for over a year, and it left a sour taste in fans' mouths in the main part due to the card's main event, as Israel Adesanya took on Yoel Romero. On paper, it seemed like a fight of the year contender. Adesanya was looking to make his first title defense, Romero was coming off a fight of the year contender against Paulo Costa, it seemed perfect.
Instead, what we got was Romero doing a whole lot of nothing for five rounds, while Adesanya was content to leg-kick his way to a unanimous decision victory to retain his belt.
6 Daniel Cormier vs Anderson Silva (UFC 200)
UFC 200 was supposed to be a monumental event for the UFC, but come fight night it was a cobbled-together card due to many issues, none bigger than headliner Jon Jones testing positive for performance-enhancing-drugs on fight week. However, the UFC was able to still find an opponent for light-heavyweight champion Daniel Cormier, and it was none other than former middleweight champion Anderson Silva.
All the hype of one of the goats in Silva stepping in on short notice was soon lost once the fight started, as the larger Cormier just wrestled Silva for the next 15 minutes with little activity.
5 Tyron Woodley vs Demian Maia (UFC 214)
Tyron Woodley's third title defense against Demian Maia at UFC 214 didn't have the highest of expectations going in, and yet it still continued to amaze, for the wrong reasons. Woodley was coming off a lackluster title defense against Stephen Thompson earlier in the year, but the Maia fight would make the Thompson fight look like Rocky V style street fight.
Woodley and Maia would set the record for the fewest strikes thrown in a UFC title fight, as Woodley would retain his welterweight strap via unanimous decision.
4 Valentina Shevchenko vs Liz Carmouche 2 (UFC Fight Night 156)
Valentina Shevchenko met Liz Carmouche in a rematch at UFC Fight Night 156, with Shevchenko putting her UFC flyweight title on the line. The two met on the regional scene years ago, with Carmouche winning via TKO in the second round, this rematch however would not feature anything close to a finish.
Shevchenko and Carmouche would circle for five rounds, with Shevchenko being slightly more active and ultimately winning the bout via decision after 25 merciful minutes.
3 Frank Mir vs Mirko Cro Cop (UFC 119)
When Frank Mir and Mirko Cro Cop met at UFC 119, it had all the hallmarks of a classic. Former UFC heavyweight champion takes on a PRIDE legend, it made perfect sense.
Instead, what we got was two and a half rounds of nothing. The boos poured on until the last minute of the third round, which saw Mir knockout Cro Cop with a knee, the one exciting moment of the fight. The fight was so bad, that despite it being the sole knockout on the card, the fight was not awarded the KO of the Night bonus.
2 Francis Ngannou vs Derrick Lewis (UFC 226)
This one still hurts.
Francis Ngannou vs Derrick Lewis at UFC 226 was set to be a battle between the UFCs' biggest heavy hitters, the two nearly got into a fight at the weigh-ins, it seemed like the fight was destined to be an epic clash between two of the hardest-hitting heavyweights on the planet.
Instead what we got was arguably the worst fight in UFC's long and illustrious history. Neither man would engage and after 15 minutes worth of a cascade of boos and fan boredom, Lewis was given the unanimous decision win.
1 Anderson Silva vs Nick Diaz (UFC 183)
Anderson Silva vs Nick Diaz was one of the most anticipated fights of 2015, the longtime UFC middleweight champion returning from injury to take on the longtime Strikeforce middleweight champion, who was also returning from a hiatus.
In the end, fights struggle to be entertaining when neither man wants to lead, and that was the case here. The fight wasn't the worst of all time, but it's one of the most disappointing. The disappointing fight would have a disappointing follow-up as well, as both men failed drug tests post-fight (to be fair, Diaz failed for marijuana while Silva failed for steroids).