Sherdog’s Top 10: Canadian Mixed Martial Artists

Mike SloanSep 01, 2016
T.J. Grant

10. T.J. Grant

 He never received much fanfare or media hype, but before injuries derailed his career, Grant had established himself as one of the top lightweights in the world. Based in Halifax, Nova Scotia, he invested in jiu-jitsu and wrestling as a teenager, and those skills led to a successful MMA career. After cutting his teeth inside the Extreme Cage Combat, King of the Cage and TKO Major League MMA promotions, Grant received the call to the UFC in 2009.

Grant made his organizational debut at UFC 97, where he took a split decision from Pride Fighting Championships veteran Ryo Chonan. He went 2-3 across his next five appearances inside the Octagon, with decision losses to Dong Hyun Kim, Johny Hendricks and Ricardo Almeida sandwiched around wins over Kevin Burns and Julio Paulino. Grant then made the decision to drop to 155 pounds, and the move paid immediate dividends.

Following his defeat to Almeida at UFC 124, Grant rattled off consecutive victories against Shane Roller, Carlo Prater, Evan Dunham, Matt Wiman and Gray Maynard. His technical knockout on Maynard on May 25, 2013 made him the No. 1 contender for the UFC lightweight crown. However, Grant suffered a concussion while training for a showdown with then-champion Benson Henderson and has not fought since.

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