Sherdog’s Top 10: MMA’s Greatest Overachievers

2. Forrest Griffin

Griffin cracks his first Sherdog Top 10 list, and it's as a runner-up, being only a few points behind first place. Griffin looked to be a solid fighter when he was first cast on “The Ultimate Fighter.” He had good size and physical strength, with average athleticism. In terms of skills, he was OK in every aspect: wrestling, submissions and striking. Still, he wasn't overwhelming in any regard, and had been both outgrappled and outstruck, by Jeremy Horn of all people, when he appeared on the show. As the finale proved, there genuinely wasn't that much separating him from Stephan Bonnar at that point, a fighter who didn't achieve a tenth of what Griffin did. Contrary to his easygoing persona on the show, Griffin proved to be a very dedicated martial artist, both hardworking and intelligent. A little over a year after the TUF finale, Griffin rematched Bonnar but this time there was no drama, thrashing his rival over 15 minutes for an easy decision victory. Griffin then pulled off some huge upsets against some of the greatest light heavyweight and middleweight champions ever, first submitting Mauricio Rua with 15 seconds left in the fight, defeating Rich Franklin by decision, twice defeating Tito Ortiz by judges' verdict to win their trilogy, and most significantly, using a smart gameplan and plenty of leg kicks to defeat Quinton Jackson and become the UFC light heavyweight champion. That's an incredible string of victories against vastly more talented foes and an incredible level of overachievement.

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