Sherdog’s Top 10: MMA’s Greatest Overachievers

Welcome again folks, this time to Sherdog’s list of the biggest overachievers in mixed martial arts history. This was compiled as an average of many different Sherdog contributors' lists, and I will note where my own views deviated considerably. Personally though, the appeal of any such list isn't the exact ordering, or who was included or excluded, but the actual discussion of each entry. Anyone can come up with a list with no further commentary and it's no more “right” than another. However, the best such lists have entertaining and informative explanations, which is a goal I hope to accomplish.

Now, a word about criteria, which are especially relevant for this list. For me, overachieving has a very specific definition, related to our list of MMA’s greatest underachievers. I consider what a fighter with average work ethic, intelligence and desire would have achieved with the same natural skills and abilities and subtract that from what the fighter in question achieved. For every fighter on this list, their accomplishments are vastly superior to what one would expect from their raw talent alone. Raw talent includes purely physical aspects like size, strength, and athleticism as well as the specific skills they brought when they began in MMA. I pay particular attention to wins over foes who exceeded them in those areas. I believe other voters used a similar rubric, though there was huge variance and a wide variety of fighters receiving votes.

Without further ado, let us begin.

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