David Terrell fought for UFC gold at age 26. | Photo: Jeff Sherwood/Sherdog.com
3. David Terrell
To the casual observer, Terrell came from seemingly out of nowhere, beating respected veteran Matt Lindland in his UFC debut at age 26 before challenging the late Evan Tanner for the vacant middleweight crown in his very next bout. The reality was that Terrell had been fighting off the grid for quite some time before he burst upon the scene in the Octagon.
“As for weaknesses at the time, I really didn’t see any weaknesses,” Gracie told Sherdog.com in 2011. “He didn’t know the art of jiu-jitsu at the time, but you could tell David could do something.”
Terrell, who became Gracie’s first black belt, began fighting illegally on the underground circuit at the age of 19, usually for free. By the time the Californian began to earn some recognition for himself -- he his professional debut against then 33-fight veteran Vernon White -- he had paid his dues.
Almost as quickly as he arrived, Terrell was gone. Distracted by personal issues in his showdown with Tanner, “The Soul Assassin” admittedly gave up in the middle of the bout. Haunted by the loss, Terrell spent the better part of a year in seclusion. He would return to submit Scott Smith with a rear-naked choke at UFC 59, but that would be it. These days, Terrell is happy running his gym, the Nor-Cal Fighting Alliance, and playing the role of family man. That does not mean he has not contemplated what might have been.
“I knew I could have been a world champion. It sucks. I just gave up [against Tanner] and just laid there. I beat myself, and for me to beat myself like that, it will probably always haunt me,” Terrell said.
Number 2 » Unblemished but Untested