Sherdog’s Top 10: Inside Fighters

7. Cain Velasquez

The current UFC heavyweight is a fighter of many parts, boasting a strong pressure game at distance, slick chained takedowns and perhaps the most devastating top game in the sport today. One major component of Velasquez’s vicious run through the heavyweight elite, however, has been his sterling work in the clinch. It was at close range that he pounded Junior dos Santos for the better part of 50 minutes, a pair of performances unmatched in recent memory for their sheer brutality and dominance in the tie-ups.

The core of Velasquez’s success revolves around a simple position: the use of a strong under hook (occasionally an over hook) combined with unrelenting head pressure to pin the opponent against the cage, which leaves a hand free to punch to the body and head or alternatively to grab wrist control and leverage the opponent’s arm to create space for a knee to the body. There is nothing particularly complicated about this kind of positional grinding, but what makes Velasquez special there is the combination of his brutal strength, ability to generate power in small spaces and his endless gas tank. While his opponent tires from the constant stream of offense, Velasquez speeds up and keeps throwing, until eventually the final bell sounds or his adversary quits.

The champion is a grinder by nature, and nowhere does this appear more clearly than in his infighting game. Assuming he faces Fabricio Werdum upon his return from injury, it is difficult to imagine a more compelling matchup in the clinch.

Number 6 » Leaving aside his ridiculous physical strength, the Dutchman’s inside game showcases incredible diversity and skill. He throws some of the most mechanically perfect knees in the sport and transitions seamlessly between those strikes, Thai dumps, judo-style trips and throws and his ruthless standing guillotine.