10 Major UFC Signings That Failed Miserably

Back when the UFC and Pride were duking it out, trying to put on the best fight cards available, there was a loud contingent of mixed martial arts fans who believed that the Japanese promotion had the better heavyweight division. So when the UFC bought them out and took a bunch of the organisation's most dangerous big men over, many were curious to see the match-ups that would be made.

One of the first heavyweights to make the switch was vicious striker, Mirko Cro Cop. The Croatian had gained a reputation as a violent knockout artist during his time in the Japanese fight promotion, crushing his opponents with his devastating left head kick and leaving them motionless.

After a decent performance in his UFC debut against Eddie Sanchez, Cro Cop was set to face Brazilian jiu-jitsu black belt, Gabriel Gonzaga, in a title eliminator. With Randy Couture being the champion at the time, a battle between Cro Cop and The Natural was the sort of match-up MMA fans salivated over. However, Gonzaga had zero interest in delivering fans their dream fight. Instead, he gave us a historic moment in MMA history.

After getting smashed with elbows while on the ground, a visibly wobbly Cro Cop stumbled forward before being caught with a head kick by Gonzaga. Talk about getting a taste of your own medicine! Cro Cop was never quite the same after that bout and failed to ascend to the heights that many hoped when he joined the promotion.