1. Fedor Emelianenko
When “The Last Emperor” was the king of MMA and ruled the heavyweight division in Pride Fighting Championships, he carried an aura of invincibility about him. He spoke in hushed tones, rarely changed his stoic expressions and did virtually everything right in the heat of combat. Even after captured Pride gold and scored repeated wins over the cream of the crop, Emelianenko barely broke a smile. He walked to the ring to classical music and always had a calm but serious look on his face, his often expressionless mask hiding a ferocious competitor behind it.
Emelianenko’s portly physique was nothing about which to write home, either. There was no muscle tone, no tattoos, no wild hairdos. MMA observers even joked that he was some sort of cybernetic being. Emelianenko went on a 28-fight unbeaten streak from April 6, 2001 until Nov. 7, 2009 -- a run of historic success that included victories against Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira (twice), Mirko Filipovic, Mark Hunt, Matt Lindland and former UFC champions Mark Coleman (twice), Kevin Randleman, Tim Sylvia and Andrei Arlovski. He remained quite unassuming through it all, so much so that most people still do not know his voice when they hear it.