...OH, ONE MORE THING - PLEASE BOOKMARK US & VISIT DAILY!
By: Brad Walker MMATorch Columnist
This is a column about some active, and some no longer active fighters who deserve to be in the UFC Hall of Fame. After the recent announcement that Forrest Griffin and Stephan Bonnar will be inducted this summer, I decided to set out to decide who has actually earned the honor. Here in no particular order are 10 fighters who I believe should be enshrined in the UFC's Hall of Fame!
Brock Lesnar
UFC Record: 4-3
Titles Held: 1
Brock Lesnar's primary power for the UFC was his ability to draw obscene amounts of pay-per-view buys each time that he fought, topping the one million mark more than once. Lesnar brought a new breed of athlete to the heavyweight division; he was the super athlete with freakish speed and size, and he was dominant until he found out his weakness. Lesnar's sheer size and wrestling prowess made him a beast, running over the likes of Heath Herring, Randy Couture, and Frank Mir before squeaking past Shane Carwin. He is the prototype for what you want physically from a heavyweight fighter in athleticism, size, and probably at least some pieces of his mental makeup, because he knew he was a bad ass. Brock should be on most lists for deserving members, just for how he changed the heavyweight division from old guys and tall guys to new uber athletes.
Bas Rutten
UFC Record: 2-0
Titles Held: 1
Sure, Bas wasn't around the UFC for very long due to the terrible state of his knees and he was past the twilight of his career, but he still made an impact. Although you may look back nowadays and see his title fight and wonder how he won off of his back, Bas is truly one of the biggest legends in the sport. Rutten rang bells in numerous countries and held the UFC Heavyweight Championship, which he relinquished upon retiring. The liver shot is still credited to him widely, the Bas Rutten special, and he continues to co-host Inside MMA on AXS TV and does color commentary at many events. The fact that he did voice over work for UFC Undisputed 3 gives me hope that he's at the very least in consideration for now.
Rich Franklin
UFC Record: 14-6
Titles Held: 1
Rich Franklin was the prototype of a perfect middleweight until the arrival of Anderson Silva, and to this day continues to fight, occasionally picking up a big win. He still has gas in the tank to entertain the fans, but one has to wonder if Rich “Ace” Franklin is going to be bronzed and honored when he walks away from competition. He is one of the best middleweights of all time, and to this very day holds some of the best highlights in the division, and sport. Franklin will sadly be most remembered as the guy who got his face caved in by Anderson Silva, but we can't forget what he's given to the sport. Franklin was the first dominant champion during an era of constantly short title reigns, and he is one of the best middleweights of all time.
Pat Miletich
UFC Record: 8-2
Titles Held: 1
Sure, Miletich didn't exactly beat and destroy high level names during his time in UFC, but damn was he fun to watch in his day. He was old school as old school gets and made guys like my friend Shonie Carter and an in his prime John Alessio quake in their boots. His highlight reel head kick KO of Carter may be one of the most defining moments of his career, but Miletich is still one of the originators of having a well-rounded game in the cage. He continues to train fighters to this day, and like Rutten has found a home in the broadcasting aspect of the sport. If one were to point to the originators of the sport, Miletich would have to be named among them.
B.J. Penn
UFC Record: 12-8-2
Titles Held: 2
A two division champion, I really don't think I would have to say anything here to clarify why B.J. Penn is the ultimate UFC Hall of Famer right now. Penn has dominated so many elite opponents, such as Kenny Florian, Sean Sherk, Joe Stevenson, Matt Hughes, and the great Jens Pulver. Nobody has a resume like that anymore, and once Penn hang's up his gloves it goes without saying that he is a shoe in for the HOF. Very few people can even think to attempt to achieve the things Penn has in his career, much less even get the chance to do it. Penn will forever go down as one of the best accomplished UFC fighters of all time, and is well deserving of a spot in the Hall of Fame.
Dan Henderson
UFC Record: 6-4
Titles Held: 0
Now let me clear this up; I am not counting Pride titles that were unified, or Strikeforce titles that have the value of a discarded diaper. Henderson has highlight reeled so many people in his career that if you were to remove his massacre of Michael Bisping from the UFC highlight reel, people would still stop and say "WE WANT HENDO!" Henderson is truly one of the most accomplished fighters in the sport, and although he can't pick up a win of late, he is still one of the greatest ever. His UFC resume might be lacking but his prior credentials should be taken into account, along with the fact that he was a two division champion in Pride when they had more talent than the UFC did. Hendo is on the brink of retirement these days, and I expect to see him immortalized as soon as he crosses that line.
Wanderlei Silva
UFC Record: 5-7
Titles Held: 0
Wanderlei hasn't held any titles in the UFC, or picked up a lot of wins, or done much of anything really, but damn is he fun to watch. He came out of Pride scorching hot and has reminded us constantly why he is one of the most exciting fighters in the history of the sport. His hands have dynamite in them and his chin has taken a ton of shots during his career. Silva is an all-time great, similar to Henderson where his Pride abilities should be taken into account with his present stature in the sport. This should be an easy call for Dana White who has repeatedly marked his fandom of Wandy – let's just hope it pays off.
Evan Tanner
UFC Record: 11-6
Titles Held: 1
Evan Tanner is perhaps the saddest story on this list, simply because as he was preparing to make another run for the title he passed away. Tanner was a beast in the earlier days of the UFC and routinely made guys like Phil Baroni, David Tyrell, and Robbie Lawler look silly with his skill set. I remember watching Tanner many times and thinking to myself 'this guy has it all,' and now sadly we don't get a chance to see him fight today's stars. Tanner was a middleweight champion before being a middleweight champion was cool, and brought the quiet guy in the back of the room vibe to his cage presence. Once that bell rang though he was a cold blooded killer, we can only hope that one day the UFC takes his legacy and makes it more prominent.
Jens Pulver
UFC Record: 6-1-1
Titles held: 1
I hope more people remember Jens Pulver as the fighter he was rather than the fighter he has become at this point in time. Pulver was the original lightweight dominator, defeating B.J. Penn, Dennis Hallman, and Caol Uno all in their prime, as well as winning the UFC Lightweight Title. He soon departed for Pride and forfeited the title, which lead to a whole different perspective on his career. Pulver is a bonafide legend and we can't let someone who fought this well in the UFC go unnoticed any longer. He was the original Little Evil, and he should be on that list of elite fighters who graced and dominated the UFC cage.
Vitor Belfort
UFC Record: 12-6
Titles Held: 1
I bet a lot of you are already inwardly complaining about TRT and blah blah, but let's just look at who this man has beaten in the UFC cage and we can agree that even before the TRT he was a beast. Randy Couture, Michael Bisping, Luke Rockhold, Marvin Eastman, Wanderlei Silva, and Tank Abbot all fall into the category of people he has wiped the mat with. Belfort was ‘The Phenom' in his prime and is showing us presently that he isn't ready to give up that stigma of being the best. He has UFC title aspirations once again this late in his career and I couldn't be happier for him, but the UFC hall of fame should be calling his name. Belfort is truly one of the best fighters ever in MMA, and now we are all privies to seeing him crush modern day talent.
Thank you for reading – who would you put into the UFC hall of fame? Let me know, and follow me on Twitter @BradMMATorch
(Attention MMATorch app users: Make sure to upgrade to the latest edition of the MMATorch app on your iPhone, iPad, or Android device!)
Jamie Penick, editor-in-chief
(mmatorcheditor@gmail.com)
STAFF COLUMNISTS: Shawn Ennis - Jason Amadi
Frank Hyden - Rich Hansen
Chris Park - Matt Pelkey
Interested in joining MMATorch's writing team? Send idea for a theme to your column (for Specialist section) or area of interest (i.e. TV Reporter) along with a sample of writing to mmatorch@gmail.com.
