Sherdog’s Top 10: MMA Upsets

Tra Telligman stunned Igor Vovchanchyn on short notice in March 2001. | Photo: Sherdog.com

3. Tra Telligman vs. Igor Vovchanchyn
Pride 13 “Collision Course” -- March 25, 2001
Saitama Super Arena | Saitama, Japan
At the time, Vovchanchyn was known as one of the best -- if not the best -- heavyweights in the world, and he had lost just once in his previous 42 bouts prior to facing Telligman. With fast hands, powerful knees and whipping kicks, the 5-foot-9 Ukrainian possessed knockout power aplenty.

Telligman, meanwhile, was a journeyman who was involved in a car accident as a child that left him without his right pectoral muscle and lung. The Lion’s Den member did not have much time to prepare for his feared opponent, as he took the bout on short notice after teammate Ken Shamrock withdrew from the contest due to a neck injury suffered in training.

While Telligman had notably fought and lost to Vitor Belfort and Pedro Rizzo in the UFC, it was his professional boxing experience that turned out to be his greatest ally. Using superior footwork and technique, “Trauma” outpointed Vovchanchyn over the course of three rounds in a victory that shocked the MMA community.

It would be Telligman’s final moment of glory; he competed twice more in the Octagon, losing again to Rizzo at UFC 43 and to Tim Sylvia at UFC 54. Vovchanchyn soldiered on for 16 more fights, but he never again achieved his previous level of dominance in posting a 10-6 record.

Number 2 » Werdum vs. Emelianenko