SCRAPP! FIGHT MAGAZINE
August - 2015
31
#5 – Anthony “Rumble” Johnson
Formerly a welterweight, Johnson has now
found a home in the light heavyweight di-
vision and he is thriving. While he may be
coming off of a submission loss against
Daniel Cormier for the vacant UFC light
heavyweight title, make no mistake, very
few fighters want to be in the Octagon with
Johnson.
He has his flaws and there are holes in his
game, but between his raw athleticism and
explosive power Johnson can stop anyone at
any time. Just ask Alexander Gustafsson; a
top light heavyweight contender who John-
son rag dolled and dominated in front of his
home crowd.
#4 – Melvin Manhoef
Between his chiseled physique and his icy
stare, Manhoef just looks like a terrifying in-
dividual; then he steps into the ring or cage
and that intimidation factor goes up 10 fold.
A brutally powerful kickboxer with unreal
knockout power, Manhoef gives new mean-
ing to the phrase “throws strikes with bad
intentions”.
With 27 of his 29 career MMA wins coming
by knockout, Manhoef is a destroyer. While
he pays the price from time to time with his
throw caution to the wind style, his fearless
attacks will strike fear into his opponents’
hearts.
#3 – Mark Hunt
Unlike Johnson and Manhoef, Hunt doesn’t
have an imposing physical presence; grant-
ed he’s a big guy but not scary by any stretch
of the imagination. However, when it comes
to aura few fighters in the sport are as in-
timidating as Hunt.
Known for having an iron chin and one
punch knockout power, Hunt’s opponents
always know that no matter what the cir-
cumstance is, if Hunt is on his feet, he can
end the fight in the blink of an eye.
#2 – Rousimar Palhares
Physically imposing and downright danger-
ous in the cage, WSOF welterweight cham-
pion Palhares.
makes this list because of his history for
holding submissions too long. Palhares’ ag-
gressive submission attacks make him dan-
gerous enough, but that fact that his op-
ponents never know if he is going to hold
them for far too long, makes him the most
intimidating male fighter in MMA today.
The sad thing is that one of these days Pal-
hares is really going to hurt someone and
it will end up being a completely avoidable
injury. While everyone else on this list is in-
timidating in their own right, none of them
are out to maim other fighters like Palhares.
#1 – Ronda Rousey
A dynamic grappler with a flawless submis-
sion game and now a viciously powerful
striking game, UFC women’s bantamweight
champion is the most intimidating fighter in
the sport today; regardless of gender. Even
though her opponents will talk a big game
heading into the fights, no one has truly
challenged her yet.
Rousey doesn’t just win fights, she demor-
alizes her opponents with her dominance.
To put it into perspective, her last three title
defenses have lasted a total of 64 seconds.
What makes Rousey even more intimidating
is her drive and determination to get even
better. She is clearly the best female fight-
er in the sport today and she hasn’t even
reached her technical ceiling.
