10 UFC Fighters Who Lost To Surprising Opponents

If "Polish Princess" Karolina Kowalkiewicz's career had panned out like it was expected to, perhaps her win over Rose Namajunas would not have made this list. However, with "Thug Rose" now in her second reign as Women's Strawweight Champion and Kowalkiewicz unranked and currently on a four-fight losing streak, it suffices to say that this one qualifies.

At the time of their contest at UFC 201 in July of 2016, Kowalkiewicz was undefeated at 9-0, while Namajunas was at a less-remarkable 5-2. Despite the discrepancies in their records, these two burnt the entire arena down, putting on a back-and-forth war for three full rounds. In the end, it would be Kowalkiewicz who would earn the Split Decision victory, but they each walked away with a nice Fight of the Night bonus.

Following the bout, the two seemed to switch career trajectories. Namajunas twice bested the then-undefeated Strawweight Champion Joanna Jędrzejczyk (a feat that Kowalkiewicz herself could not achieve) and has won 5 out of her last 6 fights, the most recent of which being a 1:18 KO of then-Strawweight Champ Zhang Weili. Kowalkiewicz, meanwhile, would snap her undefeated streak in her bout with Jędrzejczyk, then lose 5 of her next 7 fights. As of right now, her last win came against Felice Herrig in April 2018.

Still, in spite of her hard times recently, Kowalkiewicz certainly has something to offer the world of MMA, so here's hoping her luck turns around soon.