Russian sports outlet "Na Sporte" compiled a ranking of the 10 worst title fights in UFC history, with input from 10 MMA journalists including Oleg Volodin, Grigory Stangrit, Vladimir Antonenko, and others. The author's personal selection was Israel Adesanya vs Yoel Romero from 2020, which ranked third on the final list. The fight featured almost no action, with zero takedowns in 25 minutes and strike totals of 48-40 overall and just 0-1 head strikes in the first round. The author criticized both fighters for their excessive caution, with Romero failing to pressure as the challenger and Adesanya mostly throwing low kicks from distance. The ranking also considered other lackluster title fights including Hill vs Teixeira, Jones vs Sonnen, and Velasquez vs Silva.
Russian sports outlet Na Sporte has published a ranking of the 10 worst title fights in UFC history, drawing on the votes and opinions of 10 MMA journalists including Oleg Volodin, Grigory Stangrit, and Vladimir Antonenko.
The centerpiece of the piece is the 2020 middleweight title fight between Israel Adesanya and Yoel Romero, which the article's author personally chose as the single worst and which landed third on the overall list. The numbers back up the criticism: across 25 minutes, neither fighter recorded a takedown, combined significant strikes totaled just 48 for Adesanya and 40 for Romero, and the first round produced a staggering zero-to-one ratio in head strikes landed. The author described both men as excessively cautious, with Romero failing to impose himself as the challenger and Adesanya content to throw low kicks from the outside.
Adesanya, now 36, carries a professional record of 24-6 and is currently ranked eighth in the UFC middleweight division. Fighting out of City Kickboxing in Nigeria, the six-foot-four southpaw-switch striker owns an 80-inch reach and averages 4.03 significant strikes per minute across his career, with a striking accuracy of 48 percent. His takedown output is virtually nonexistent at 0.05 per 15 minutes, which helps explain the tactical shape of that particular championship bout.
Why it matters
- The Adesanya-Romero fight has long been considered one of the most inert title fights in UFC history, and formal media rankings reinforce that reputation.
- Other contested bouts on the list, including Hill vs Teixeira, Jones vs Sonnen, and Velasquez vs Silva, suggest the ranking covers multiple divisions and eras.
- The exercise reflects growing engagement from Russian-language MMA media in shaping historical narratives around the sport.
