The scariest fighter in MMA history…

Chael Sonnen talks about the scariest fighter in MMA history on this episode of Beyond the Fight
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All things UFC and MMA with the undefeated Bad Guy, Chael Sonnen. UFC Champions, Jon Jones, Conor McGregor, Colby Covington, Khamzat Chimaev, the MMA hour and commentary on the latest UFC news, UFC Champions in 2022, UFC knockouts and finishes.

[@Ms.Fowlbwahhh]

The scariest fighter was Chael P. Sonnen. Jon Jones broke his own toe on purpose just to find a way out of the fight against Chael.

[@theywouldnthavetocensormei9231]

Jon's toe is the only part of his body that has any sense, because it was trying to run away.

[@theywouldnthavetocensormei9231]

@youngeazy762 fake news, Chael is undefeated and undisputed, never even lost a round.

[@amo5743]

@young eazy must be a different chael

[@traebonay5928]

Dislocated

[@JoePetrolia]

Chael P. also beat up 5 guys in one night defending the honor of Mrs. Sonnen.

[@albertabadboy]

Don’t forget about Mirko Cro Cop and/or Fedor both intimidating scary presence at one point in time Mirko Cro Cop was a very intimidating guy in Japan also can never forget the reign of Fedor, and then also the rumours of who it was tied to in Russia

[@colecampbell1906]

how could you leave out Rousimar Palhares? He had mf's terrified of fighting him because he'd ruin their life by destroying their legs. Literally got kicked out of the UFC for winning a fight lol. Just wouldn't let go when he was told to, even if that's unfair we can't say that's not a scary mf to fight.

[@Rocket4ce]

Fedor on steroids.

[@El-VULTURE.LOCO13]

Sonnen fought fedor and he still says Cain

[@jonb2756]

I would argue TRT Vitor was the scariest.

[@apg7757]

The TRT Vitor trifecta: 1. Luscious mohawk/mullet 2. Win via left head kick KO 3. Post fight speech about Jesus and family

[@jesustrevino5302]

Jon beat him

[@chadzard4]

@@jesustrevino5302 Yeah but Jon beat almost everyone and TRT Belfort put up a good fight.

[@redknight9740]

@@chadzard4 almost arm barred him

[@z4bando421]

@@redknight9740 that just made Jon mad

[@hamslicemcdooogle8080]

1:23 “he’s got the strength, he’s got the conditioning, he’s got the murder case… He’s. Got. Everything.”

[@jonb2756]

*attempted

[@jessejames2546]

Phil Baroni coming in hot

[@theywouldnthavetocensormei9231]

@@jessejames2546 lmao, beat me to it.

[@mmareality6956]

Shooting case not murder !! Due some research casual

[@hamslicemcdooogle8080]

@@mmareality6956 I mean I’m not trying to kick a man while he’s down, shit on him for having a stupid plan and being a terrible shot, but if you insist then ok “attempted murder”.

[@christophergibbs6608]

The way Rampage would flip the switch was truly scary

[@studogable]

Yeah, but he's such a goofy bastard that it takes the edge off just a little. If Rampage had worked on his game the way other elite fighters of the era did, he might have been up there.

[@z4bando421]

@@studogable Rampage won a title in UFC and Pride. He literally made it to the very top of MMA at the time, and was one of the first superstars of the sport. What more do you want?

[@lgq704]

But when he couldn't intimidate someone, it usually didn't work out too well for him.

[@studogable]

@@z4bando421 to paraphrase Mark Coleman, "I was the best, but then they all improved and I didn't". By the time Jackson coached TUF against Evans, the sport had passed him by.

[@africanlyricsworld8208]

Cain Velasquez was the one who made me begin watching MMA, I saw the beating he put on Big Foot and Dos Santos, it was hell Scary to see and I was intrigued to watch MMA

[@bobafett3855]

Him and bigfoot made snow angels out of blood on that mat

[@suhailshaikh8529]

@@bobafett3855 as scary as what blaydes did to overeem

[@civilwarwasaninsidejob7405]

Sea Level Cain one of the mythical fighters

[@tommcelroy2276]

Wanderlei in the Pride days. Bald like Lex Luthor, named Axe Murderer, Rolling his fists, from Brazil, potential attack in the elevator or warm up room, teammates waiting to jump in ring. Cain seemed like a nice guy outside the cage.

[@jamesbyerly766]

100%

[@theywouldnthavetocensormei9231]

Wanderlei looked like he would actually beat someone to death if it weren't for the referee and the world watching him.

[@markstanke984]

Mirko Cro Cop was a killer. When he split wanderleis head open in their second fight was insane.

[@natel9019]

Roided the fuck out. Look at all the killers he fought and I still feel sorry for them. Lol fucking animal.

[@88Cardey]

Wanderlei or Shogun in the Pride days... Those head stomps and soccer kicks by both guys were something else. I remember Shogun trying a Bruce lee style double foot stomp to someone's face and he missed by a hair, it looked like it would've ended the guy.

[@RealJesseONFIRE]

Agree…Cain in prime is the scariest dude you could have standing across from you. All day.

[@somethingclever4563]

Other than Francis after the Overeem fight, I agree

[@bluecollarboys6294]

Yep

[@PoopythePlumber]

At the time sure but now it has to be Francis

[@colecampbell1906]

not a chance tbh. Rousimar Palhares was by far the scariest dude you could ever have to fight. You're likely to get ruined for life from that fight, I don't think Cain ever ruined anyone permanently like that. And the scariest thing about it is, even with referees trying to stop it, you aren't safe, he'll still snap your leg because he was fucked in the head lol. UFC kicked him out for WINNING his fights lol.

[@suhailshaikh8529]

@@somethingclever4563 don't forget what Lewis did to blaydes

[@markstanke984]

Cro Cop in pride was a murder, legit assassin with his striking. the most beautiful straight left hand, and the most legendary highlights of head kick KO against some of the scariest dudes imaginable.

[@jfmsnation]

The Francis that fought Stipe the second time. That dude looked like a horror movie villain. After he stuffed the takedown and you realized Stipe wasn't going to be able to wrestle him everyone watching knew what time it was.

[@theywouldnthavetocensormei9231]

I still think Stipe has a better chance than people give him credit for, if they were to ever have a trilogy fight. People act like Francis' win completely deletes Stipe's, I don't think it's that simple, he's shown his ability to adapt and adjust before, just like Francis adapted in the 2nd fight. Too bad it's been so long and Stipe isn't getting younger, it's not looking too likely that'll ever even happen, and there's so many other factors at play even if it did.

[@sallgoodman2323]

You guys are both right.

[@bitmantv3660]

Dana was like - “get the doctors ready”

[@ExposingFootballFallacies]

Agreed that fight was an extermination

[@__JASON__.]

Stipe is the only man so far that ive seen was able to briefly wobble Ngannou with a punch and stop him right in his tracks for a split second. But sadly it didn't matter what Stipe did that night , it wasn't gonna be enough and that night marked his execution. It was inevitable.

[@TheJordan1960]

Cain in his prime was the whole package!

[@trevorgoodman4895]

The most scared I was watching a fight was seeing Shane Carwin on motionless Frank Mir's back landing many hard undefended punches. The only time I shouted at the TV 4 times, "Stop the fight. Stop the fight. Stop the fight. STOP THE FIGHT!"

[@jeo630]

Palhares was the scariest. Ripping knees apart after the tap back when leg attacks were still uncommon.

[@dustinsmith9375]

Going just off appearance only….Alexander Emelianenko

[@mikehuff9793]

Either Aleksander or Fedor, really..CroCop is the only one to come close to their stoicism. But I love Aleksander’s “stare downs” as he tries to remember if he turned the toaster oven off when the left the hotel; or contemplating where to eat that night. They both have the “just another day at the office” look…but Aleksander’s comes with a slight smirk…like he’s already dismissed you, knows he’s won and is just deciding how tired he is at that moment and how quickly it’s gonna end.🤣

[@amo5743]

"cain was younger than me" damn he must age fast

[@ethanhanson6526]

Scariest fighter right now is Alex Pereira. He has a stoic, confident and quiet demeanor. The way Pereira fights, his persistence and ability to take hits. Pereira took Izzy’s best shots and gave the impression like he was almost made of metal. To be that assured and calm during fights can be unnerving for the opponent.

[@thumbsuckerjoe]

I think he might even be my number 1 for scariest. Something about how stone cold he is, along with is cultural traditions and the fact that he's absolutely massive and nukes people is terrifying.

[@jesseartrip790]

I don’t comment much but scary? Prime Shane Carwin. During his championship run, he was terrifying.

[@Karate_Jon]

Shane tko'ing Frank Mir. "Damn. Carwin just killed a guy."

[@afishl1]

Another name nobody is mentioning, was probably Rousimar Palhares… only because he kept trying to break limbs after people were tapping, they had to ban him, people were legit scared to fight him because of that

[@claytondiersen2224]

He came to my mind right away

[@michael95621]

I came here looking for this answer. Don't get me wrong all of those guys are scary, but something is uniquely terrifying about a guy who continues to break your limb after you've tapped and are screaming.

[@theywouldnthavetocensormei9231]

This may sound a little crazy, because by today's standards he really wasn't very good, but I think Tank Abbott is up there. He was fighting in a time where people weren't cross trained, there were a lot of guys who really didn't know anything about striking beyond just a garden variety bar fight, and he's swinging those sledgehammers around. Some of his KOs were genuinely scary.

[@theywouldnthavetocensormei9231]

@@nicholasdecato4207 he made Matua go stiff and do that dead cockroach pose, that's still to this day one of the most brutal KOs in MMA history. And the guy that got folded up like a lawn chair from a hook in clinch range.

[@haydnlovie3855]

U fkd that up wen u underrate Cain and overrate tank I was a tank fan but he nothing compared 2 Cain

[@theywouldnthavetocensormei9231]

@youngeazy762 as I said, he wasn't very good by today's standards. But compared to some guy with a moderate level of experience only in one discipline, who probably only trained for a few weeks before the fight, he was pretty goddamn terrifying.

[@saucegotti9416]

No way you say Cain isn’t that good but then mention tank. Cain would beat the breaks off tank on any given day.

[@theywouldnthavetocensormei9231]

@@saucegotti9416 when did I ever say Cain isn't that good? Is this meant as a specific reply to someone else?

[@youngclueless7364]

Ofc he was gonna be scary, his parents literally named him 'Cain' after all lmao

[@spartan_a1176]

Cain Velasquez was the whole reason I got into UFC in the first place and my first PPV buy from the ufc when he fought Brock

[@butterschunkmcdonalds5333]

As far as stepping into the cage with them, Rumble Johnson was always the scariest guy to me. Everybody knows the kind of power he possessed but it really was other worldly, Easily the most powerful & Effective use of the uppercut I’ve ever seen, Was lifting people off their feet with that punch, Literally. As far as looks go, Cyborg Santos def looks the part, Even if he’s not actually that great lol

[@studogable]

Well-said, mate.

[@johno30197]

Gain is the epitome of the fighting game he will forever be held in high reguard as one of the all time great HW..

[@PoopythePlumber]

It’s Gane

[@theywouldnthavetocensormei9231]

@@PoopythePlumber no no no, Gain. He Cain and Gane's illegitimate lovechild. Not to be confused with the laundry detergent, he's a lot scarier than that.

[@bikibaws]

Nick on his win streak was intimidating and funny in a good way.

[@briscoesjug1026]

"Can't let you get close ' The Goat

[@socialmediaego]

Dillion Danis pulled out the KSI fight lol

[@Jamesfrancosdog]

And nobody is surprised 😂

[@Nerd7267]

I agree, not to take away from the lighter weights but it’s just that lighter weights, Cain was very scary at prime very focused.

[@gordonsmith5589]

Brock is the scariest without a doubt. Cain was always so calm and businesslike. Brock was wild and crazy!

[@pvazquez4]

Calm under that pressure is scary bud. Being wild and crazy is not out of the ordinary when you go into battle (I assume).

[@kennethnoisewater8170]

I had the same answer as Chael. Cain popped in my head right when I saw the question.

[@Pluto-qw4gg]

Fedor was scary in fact, he wasn't trying to be scary, or anything else.

[@Karate_Jon]

Javier did the same thing to my coach/professor. He did the 1000 head kicks on the heavy bag and was then on the team. Cool shit!

[@mikevee9145]

Shane Carwin. Every time that guy fought, I thought his opponent might not make it out alive.

[@Razear]

Cain's look is the archetype of a tough guy. Robbie Lawler has that same intimidating expression. For Francis, I think the fear stems more from his power than his appearance, even though he's obviously a very imposing guy.

[@Eezier]

“Go”- Yoel Romeo.

[@irfy-nator7270]

Bout time somebody gave the terminator his props

[@BOZ_11]

francis did NOT face Cain, when Cain was Cain

[@lancerichards7073]

The cane that rematched Junior twice was scary he was like Jason Voorhees. In there👺🎃

[@miggs80]

I’d say Pride Wanderlei is the scariest. He was the most violent fighter ever.

[@uncircumcisedcircus]

Fedor, Overeem, Vitor, Rumble and Hector Lombard in that order.

[@theDavidChannel1]

Fedor. Was scary 20 years ago, still scary today.

[@sergiocubillos3317]

Chael, I would say Don Frye. I've seen footage of him looking at his opponents across the ring. Pretty scary to me!

[@M.G.R1an]

I second this Chael 👍🏼

[@executivelifehacks6747]

I wonder if Chael read my comments on Henry Cejudo's channel about adding a "KO Power" (maybe as Thunder) to his Technnique Tactics Threshold analysis. Henry said that Theshold is more trainable than KO Power. I said that both are mostly genetic, and at higher weight classes Threshold (cardio) is the exception e.g. Cain Velasquez, at lower levels Thunder is the exception (Conor, Cody Garbrandt, Cejudo). If so, honored.

[@zappasaves]

Have to say Fedor. Scary Russian who would almost definitely change your brain in 10 minutes or less.

[@theywouldnthavetocensormei9231]

Yea and he had the combination of technical grappling skills and scary punch power.

[@jamesbyerly766]

Yeah it was more like in like 1 minute lol Fedor was awesome

[@suhailshaikh8529]

Wonder how fedor would have done against Cain jds and stipe

[@khairt1731]

Facts!! I've been following Cains success to the top, before he became a contender. Cain came in PUNISHING people from the start. He even punished Brock Lesnar.

[@wendellreeves3993]

Honorable mention to Rumble Johnson

[@Satori_MMA]

Thank you uncle chael

[@yallmad3043]

He has the look, the relentlessness, the violence, the resilience. The scariest man of the modern times Cain Velasquez

[@willasia3229]

Rousimar Palhares when he was tearing acl's or Cris Cyborg... specifically when she beat Gina

[@marcfalsetti9381]

Vitor Belfort had the Look, the Rep and some Stories also.

[@Chorik_Wits]

Cain beating Bigfoot Silva is prolly the scariest I’ve seen someone in the ring

[@andyazfishing7179]

You can tell by the comments how many people saw the JRE crocop face off short

[@magnoliamike]

Rampage was pretty scary

[@bajjanitor]

There's some solid suggestions in the comment suggestion with Palhares and the explosive and hard-hitting wrestlers in Lesnar, Randleman and Rumble. But the man I think tops everyone is Bas Rutten. He was scary in so many areas and so skilled that I don't think you could avoid getting fucked up by him if he felt like it. And he also happen to be quite crazy so he did feel like hurting people quite often, which resulted in an odd obsession with hitting people in the liver. I think his 'resumé of shit I wouldn't want done to me' tops everyone mentioned here: TKO (Leg Kicks) Submission (Neck Crank) Submission (Ankle Lock) KO (Knee) KO (Punch to the Body) TKO (Doctor Stoppage) Submission (Toe Hold) Submission (Kneebar) Submission (Inverted Heel Hook) Technical Submission (Arm-Triangle Choke) KO (Knee to the Body) TKO (Knee Injury)

[@Wolftaktik79]

SOME Scary fighters in their time...Royce Gracie, Wanderlei Silva, Vitor Belfort, Igor Vovchanchyn, Mirko Cro Cop, Bas Rutten.

[@boojeboy1]

Chael....I’ve been watching MMA for a loooong time. I’ve never seen anyone beat the bejeezus out of someone like Caine did to Ben Rothwell. It was like watching a mugging. Of course he had other phenomenal performances of bad-assery, but that fight in particular set a new standard for taking someone out to the wood shed.

[@SoupErrScar]

First time I saw Cain was the beatdown he put on Jake O'Brien waaaay back in the day. I knew then Cain was special. But when I saw what he did to the likes of Big Nog, Brock, Bigfoot and JDS... now that was straight up nightmare fuel. Scary dude indeed.

[@chadzard4]

That one rematch with JDS was a straight blood bath at the end holy shit.

[@chronichols2551]

Phil Baroni is the new scariest former MMA fighter. Dude is a straight killer...

[@jmcdonald6063]

I agree brownpride in his prime was something else

[@Davidortiztx]

Feels like pereira is entering that same group of guys

[@0ak3nshi3ld88]

If he were the scariest, that dude wouldn't have lived. Now in court lol

[@GSTR03]

Yoel and honestly a good shout is khazmat rn

[@lekcindr]

I'm sure it's been talked about prior but I don't remember a whole lot of buzz about this fight but Cain vs. Fedor woulda been a great one imo. If for no other reason it would've been the battle of the silent killers. It woulda been two guys who hardly said a word to each other in the build up just going in there to see who's the better man.

[@tiagopariol]

Velasquez was The Real Deal … The Real Boogie man himself in his prime.

[@SOLORANKGAMING]

there was blood everywhere when cain fought this grueling fights nonstop .hes even tasting the blood lol

[@somethingclever4563]

Other than Ngannou after the Overeem fight, I agree

[@apg7757]

Yoel Romero with Yamasaki as your ref

[@yessr7535]

Currently Alex Pereira is the scariest by far, that dude looks like he would murder a whole village and not blink an eye

[@DJ-ex8qh]

Fedor and Cro Cop. Those guys are killers

[@djandtown]

anthony rumble johnson was scary to quick descent wrestling and had scary knock out power in both hands & feet Jon Jones some what held it pre first suspension but not so much after the first suspension but Francis prob holds that scariest fighter at the moment

[@Michael-kb2gk]

"Cain was younger than me". But the great Chael took that personal and is now younger than Cain.

[@The1emersonukno]

I'm probably going Fedor

[@donavonhoward114]

Cardio Cain, Ngannou, Lesnar, Wanderlei, Cro Cop, Fedor, Liddell, Lyoto Machida, Ken Shamrock, Vitor Belfort, Bas Rutten, Mark Coleman, Kevin Randleman, Rampage Jackson, Amanda Nunez, Cris Cyborg, and Joanna Jedrzejczyk are all intimidating fighters that made other fighters doubt themselves in the ring. Every one of those fighters had that fire in their souls.

[@TerranceTerranceTerrance]

Cain and Chuck Liddell for me.. there was just a coldness you got with those guy inside and outside the octagon.

[@makuIa]

chael: Who’s the scariest fighter? me: I think you’ll be surprised chael: I think you’d be surprised…. me: Ok

[@jamessimpson710]

Lee Murray comes to mind

[@not-hard-to-find]

Sea Level Cain is an absolute beast.

[@charliesinnott9840]

Tank and Kimbo are on the list

[@jerrylokey9940]

Respect for this comment

[@lekcindr]

If we're not doing lb. for lb. then it would have to be a heavy weight i'd think. if we're doing pound for pound and talking all mma not just ufc, then Vanderlei Silva in his prime would have to rank pretty high. The current heavy weight champ would be right up there as well I would think. Maybe for a small blip in time Tank Abbot? Who else would be honorable mentions?

[@tonybowen455]

I'd vote Rousimar Palhares. Ending on a positive note, I think there's people saying cain would clean off the mats even after he was champ.

[@Sirvanic]

Prime Axemurderer, prime Lawler, Palhares or Bigfoot Silva during first Hunt fight.

[@natel9019]

“Cain at sea level”

[@PDaddy0120]

Tony Ferguson and Chuck Liddell for me and now Alex Periera

[@JwatersMMA]

It's real hard. Different types of scary, I'd be scared of Anthony Johnson putting me to bed whenever he felt like it. But I'd be scared of a prime Ferguson shredding my face apart with elbows and just unrelentlessness. I'd also be scared of Gaethje/Barboza/Aldo leg kicks. Different fears. Cain is scary as a big guy I cannot exhaust that just keeps going, but I would feel at least a bit comfortable knowing he is a big guy and I might be able to outskill him and just simply outmanoeuver a bigger man. I think when you're Pettis looking across the octagon at a long, lanky, carved out of stone lean, Tony Ferguson with a huge smile, your blood running down his head onto his chest and back. Just for the match to resume and Tony come toward you with glee and an even bigger smile. That, to me, is far more horrifying than a big guy that's got fitness like every other average size MMArtist. Or a big guy that has abnormal strength like Brock. There's always big guys that have bit strength grrr, but physics are a bitch and if you use them well with an appropriate amount of body muscle you can beat majority of big guys. I find those demons far scarier. Nate The Train Landwehr comes to mind too, will take a beating the just start dog fighting you until you're beaten, bruised and just helpless

[@IllinoisNicky]

Both scary af but with francis you think can a bullet even stop this dude? Lol

[@Randleplex]

Cain was something else. Remember that fight against Bigfoot, where he left Bigfoot laying in a pool of his own blood? Beyond savage. I'll add 2 names to this list as well. Rousimar Palhares, because ref or no ref, the dude was gonna try to end your career. 100% mental patient. The other one I'll add is TUF era Uriah Hall. That spinning kick he landed on Adam Cella was so nasty, they were trying to wake Adam up while he was convulsing on the ground. You could hear a pin drop, anyone who saw it live thought Hall killed him. Then there was the guy prior, Dylan Andrews, who Uriah TKO'd while in guard. That was the last good TUF season, I wish Chael would talk more about it.

[@colecampbell1906]

Finally someone else knows what they're talking about lol, Rousimar was by far the most terrifying guy in the sport. I'd rather fight Francis than deal with that 170'er. At least I won't still be fucked up a year later with Francis.

[@marcethier4362]

Chael I think you are correct. The nightmare is you're tired and they're not. Cain is the monster that lives there.

[@feebypeels2883]

Rousimar Palhares. I'd rather get KO'd than get my knee ripped apart.

[@charlesbrown4483]

My answer would be a three way tie: Fedor, Wanderlei and Don Frye.

[@tomassali8870]

I agreed Chael 👍

[@imrsw1713]

I had a dream that I got into a fight with Chael Sonnen and woke up with a black eye

[@bobsagett]

Cain doesn’t have friends, he has family

[@nicolasmorales4182]

I though you were going to say Pavlov

[@Mattlock52]

Lee Murray outside of the ring

[@dann536]

Finally a video I get to agree with Chael! Cain hit brock so hard he literally rolled half way across the octagon! Cain is the heavyweight goat, his actions outside out the octagon only solidify this! A true legend , man and champion!

[@mmareality6956]

No he' didn't Brock just don't like to get hit !

[@dann536]

@@ElCoco1984 how many years had cain been out injured with a destroyed back at that point?

[@suhailshaikh8529]

@@ElCoco1984 werdum too

[@drron5608]

Its laughable that he would choose mighty mouse hes 5'3" 135 pounds i was that in middle school it has to b a LHW or HW like Lesnar francis or jones

[@mattbulfin4220]

Toqueño. Dude seemed legit trying to cripple every opponent, tap be damned. To me that’s scarier than getting knocked out. Was actually happy when he got booted from the UFC, just seemed off.

[@jwr3289]

Melvin Manhoef was always the one who I felt was the most intimidating in his day, swinging to take heads off, I don't remember him going to many decisions

[@andrewdoucette8090]

I know he lost this fight, but watching him leg kick Robbie like a man swinging a ball bat is scary

[@robertmulder7939]

Great argument