Top 10 MMA Beatdowns!

"Styles make fights" seems to be the general consensus for cutthroat action and competitive fights. Well, the same cannot be entirely true for all fights. Every now and then, a poor clash of styles allows fights to be one sided, allowing one fighter to deliver a tremendous can of whoop ass to the other. After a valiant effort to scour for the best ass whoopings, here are my top ten beat downs in PRIDE Fighting Championships/Ultimate Fighting Championships. An article by Masson Liang

Honorable mention:
Mirko "Cro Cop" Filipovic vs. Yoshihisa Yamamoto
Mirko "Cro Cop" Filipovic vs. Hidehiko Yoshida
Mirko "Cro Cop" Filipovic vs. Igor Vovchanchyn
Fedor "The Last Emperor" Emelianeko vs. Antonio Rodrigo "Minotauro" Nogueira
Wanderlei "The Axe Murderer" Silva vs. Kazushi Sakuraba I, II
Wanderlei "The Axe Murderer" Silva vs. Yuki Kondo
Igor Vovchanchyn vs. Enson Inoue

10. GSP vs. Sherk
Before this fight, I would've never imagined someone brutally overpowering Sherk (besides Matt Hughes). That is exactly what former welterweight champion Georges "Rush" St. Pierre did at UFC 56. Throughout the course of the fight, GSP completely neutralized Sherk's greatest weapon: his take downs. With Sherk's take downs out of the picture, St. Pierre picked Sherk apart on the feet and was able to take Sherk down for some casual ground and pound action. GSP almost made Sherk look silly through the rounds as it was called to a stop after what must have, to Sherk, seemed like a never ending onslaught of punches and elbows by "Rush." Georges walked away nearly unscathed for a TKO victory in under three minutes of the second round.

9. Anderson "The Spider" Silva vs. Chris "I Got Crippled" Leben
Anderson Silva figured he'd take a stab outside of "Japan's easy competition," as Leben so foolishly put it. It just so happened that Leben was the first in Silva's cross hairs for his UFC debut. Leben's heavy hands got him nowhere as Silva gave him zero chance whatsoever. Silva did what he does best and threw a series of punches, kicks and knees and took out Leben with ease for the lightning quick knockout victory, lasting only 49 seconds. Silva was 9 for 9 with his strikes during this bout.

8. Matt Hughes vs. Royce Gracie
This fight was not just another classic beatdown, it also showed a sharp contrast of new school MMA versus the old school. UFC Hall of Famer Royce Gracie, known to win over larger opponents in his early UFC days, failed to do so against Hughes. After a fairly slow start, the match quickly erupted as Hughes took Royce's back and began his lesson on the evolution of mixed martial arts. At one point, Hughes secured an armbar but let it go out of respect and proceeded to pound away on Royce's head for the TKO victory at 4:39 of round number one. Not only was this an utter domination of the UFC Hall of Famer, but it truly showed fans the evolution that MMA has benefited from over the years.

7. Fedor "The Russian Emperor" Emelianenko vs. Gary Goodridge
From start to finish, this fight was painfully one sided for the Russian Emperor. It looked like a Rodney King video except Fedor stood in for the entire squad of LAPD officers. Fedor kicked off the match by greeting Goodridge's face with what looked like twelve vicious hooks and eight uppercuts to the body. Fedor quickly took it to the ground and showed Goodridge why his ground-and-pound is considered to be the best in the business, as he took the easy win in 1:09 of the first round.

6. Anderson "The Spider" Silva vs. Rich "Ace" Franklin
Coming into this fight, everyone knew Anderson Silva brought a much more polished striking arsenal over the current UFC middleweight champ, Rich "Ace" Franklin. But nobody expected the outcome to be this barbaric. Anderson Silva, a Brazilian Muay Thai champion and PRIDE veteran, outclassed Franklin from the start of the match. Silva blasted away at Franklin's face with punches and kicks only to set-up a barrage of knees that sent Franklin back 32 years into his fetal position. Silva walked away with the win and the belt in under three minutes of the first round. After the rearrangement given to Franklin's nose/face, Anderson Silva gave Picasso a run for his money.

5. Mauricio "Shogun" Rua vs. Quinton "Rampage" Jackson
This fight should certainly quiet naysayers who question why Shogun is ranked as the top light-heavyweight in MMA today. Shogun completely out struck current UFC light heavyweight champion Quinton Jackson in the same fashion as his famed teammate Wanderlei Silva did. Shogun even found the opportunity to throw one of his flamboyant flying kicks to the head. All in all, Shogun completely dismantled Jackson, teeing off whenever he pleased, even breaking Jackson's ribs. At the tender age of 23, Shogun so elegantly showcased Chute Boxe's most feared striking point (the knees) as he knocked out the UFC
champ in just under five minutes into the first round.

4. Fedor "The Russian Emperor" Emelianenko vs. Mark "The Hammer" Coleman II
Out of the other performances, this was without a doubt one of the more painful ones to watch. It looked like a classic school yard brawl as Fedor made a human punching bag out of Coleman. Outside of holding Fedor on the ring's post and ropes, Coleman just had no answer for the mighty Russian. Fedor dictated the fight the entire time and decided he wanted to go home and watch some TV a minute into the 2nd round as he finished Coleman off with a flawlessly executed arm bar. It was not till after the submission where the most painful part came in. A battered and beat down Coleman sobbed as his two daughters joined him in the ring.

3. Ricardo Arona vs. Kazushi Sakuraba
Ricardo Arona shattered one of Japan's greatest idols in this bout, which took place at PRIDE Critical Countdown 2005. All of Sakuraba's take down attempts were met with a downpour of knees and strikes from the merciless Arona. Sakuraba had a few decent exchanges on the feet, but Arona had the advantage on the feet and ground throughout the majority of the match. In the end, Sakuraba's heart of a lion was not enough to carry him through this one (though it allowed him to endure a wealth of punishment) and the fight was called to a stop at the end of the second round. Ricardo Arona made Kazushi Sakuraba's face look like one of Jackson Pollack's greatest accomplishments to date and Sakuraba's bloodied up face is still seen floating around Sherdog threads dedicated to most battered faces in a fight.

2. Randy Couture vs. Tito Ortiz
Leave it up to Randy for the most awe-inspiring wins. Captain America, yet again, shocked the world in his fight against Tito Ortiz for the light heavyweight belt. Couture proved to his fans that a decision win doesn't automatically label a fight as boring. Couture overpowered Tito round after round, as he neutralized Ortiz's take down attempts. A superb Greco-Roman wrestler, Couture utilized his skills dominating Tito in the clinch every chance possible. Couture made a rag-doll out of Tito and punished the "bad boy" with a good ol' fashion spanking in the 5th round. Randy "The Natural" Couture ultimately won the title by a lopsided unanimous decision and again proved that age is nothing but a number.

1. Randy "The Natural" Couture vs. Tim "The Maine-iac" Sylvia
This fight was not only a complete 25 minute domination of the "giant," but it bordered as one of the greatest fights in history. Couture crawled out of retirement at the age of 44, came off of a brutal knockout loss from Chuck Liddell and became the first five-time champion in UFC history after beating Sylvia for the HW title. The UFC hall of famer started the fight out with a thunderous right hand that sent Sylvia straight to the canvas wondering where the hell he was. The rest is history, literally. Couture was relentless on the feet and on the ground as he imposed his will on the giant. "The Natural" pounded his way to victory for a unanimous decision that sent the crowd roaring.

The Lianger