Sherdog’s Top 10: Greatest Punchers

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6. Vitor Belfort

Belfort, MMA’s original phenom, is also its original puncher. Sure, there were fighters who dropped bombs before Belfort did so in the UFC in 1997, but nobody had thrown leather with quite so much style, explosiveness or raw, shocking force. He simply overwhelmed outmatched fighters like Scott Ferrozzo and David Abbott with his quickness and power and left them slumped on the canvas to pick up the pieces. Even Wanderlei Silva, a rightly famed puncher in his own right, had no answer for Belfort’s ridiculous hand speed and aggressiveness.

“Old Vitor” vs. “New Vitor” vs. “Old-New Vitor” vs. “Old Lion” vs. “Young Dinosaur” is an endless stream of semantic nonsense from the colorful Brazilian and a generation of commentators, but Belfort’s game has indeed evolved many times over his 18 years in the sport. The ferocious puncher became a cautious wrestle-grappler, a more polished but still powerful striker, an up-and-down, unreliable fighter who looked to be at the end of his tether and finally a patient and refined knockout artist with a slick kicking game.

Even Belfort’s most recent incarnation, the one that has knocked out three consecutive opponents with shins and heels to the dome, still relies on that ridiculous left hand. Opponents have to account for the threat of the left hand, and when they start slipping their head to the side, the left round kick comes up high to catch them, as the unfortunate Michael Bisping discovered. If they circle away from Belfort’s power side, they risk running straight into the wheel kick, as Luke Rockhold did.

That legendary left put away Matt Lindland, Yoshihiro Akiyama and many others, but Belfort also has some pop in his right: A short hook put down a charging Dan Henderson in their rematch before the final head kick. No matter how much he has evolved, however, Belfort remains a puncher at heart and one with the physical gifts and great depth of skill necessary to make that a viable strategy.

Number 5 » He packs undeniable force in his squat, surprisingly explosive frame, but few fighters have more clever tools for setting up their kill shots. He is an absolute master of manipulating rhythm and speed, showing his opponent first a probing and then a sharp jab and later whipping a vicious left hook-right cross combination at full speed. He throws a lovely straight right to the body to move his opponent’s hands up and down and melds his slips and head movement together seamlessly with his angles and counters as he wades into the pocket.