The World of MMA Has Provided Fans With Some Colourful Characters… Some are Appreciated More Than Others…
If you’re reading this then you’re obviously an MMA fan. This wonderful sport has provided us with some incredible icons over the years, some of whom are included in the list below. Before we go any further, we’ve got to make something clear: these fighters are all doing something right.
In the sanitized era of Reebok-deal UFC, it’s so difficult for an MMA fighter to rise above the brand and make a name for themselves. The very fact that we’re talking about these personalities below is a win for all of them. Of course, not all of them are fighters, nor are they all part of the UFC.
Take a look at the ten MMA personalities we’ve ranked as the most annoying in the sport today.
10: Joanna Jedrzejczyk
Sometimes you have to eat humble pie. It doesn’t matter how dominant you’ve been, the belt doesn’t stay with you forever. Joanna Jedrzejczyk is possibly the most brutal female champion we’ve seen in the UFC so far. She shredded the faces of her opponents and it was amazing.
But her reaction to losing to Rose Namajunas twice was poor and lost her a lot of fans. She blamed everything and everybody but herself, including her weight cut, her coaches and her environment. Instead of taking a look in the mirror, and accepting that she needed to work her way back up, she just kept digging a hole.
9: Kelvin Gastelum
We think Kelvin Gastelum is one of the most underrated fighters on the UFC roster today. Michael Bisping believes that people are sleeping on him potentially beating Israel Adesanya. With his knockout power and excellent technique, it’s definitely a possibility.
One thing is for sure though: walking around with a belt over your shoulder, when the champion has gone into hospital with a potentially life-threatening injury, is not a classy move. Wearing the flyweight’s strap all night is even dumber and puts him on this list.
8: Brock Lesnar:
Just go away. Can we stop hearing his name? The former UFC heavyweight champion and WWE stalwart might be an iconic figure, but he’s also a PED using cheat – as Mark Hunt will attest.
The very fact that he’s being linked to a title fight at all is concerning, especially considering his last valid win in the UFC came way back in 2010, against Shane Carwin. That’s almost literally ten years ago.
7: Dana White
The UFC president has definitely been a major player in the success of the promotion. There’s absolutely no denying that. However, his outspoken nature, combined with his consistent stubbornness and lack of inhibition about blatantly lying to the media makes him a very annoying figure.
He’s had feuds with so many people in the promotion that we’ve actually lost count.
6: James Gallagher
One of two teammates of Conor McGregor’s to make this list, Gallagher is, to be fair, one of the most exciting young fighters on the Bellator roster. The man from Donegal, Ireland, has attracted a lot of criticism for his similarities to McGregor.
His approach to trash talking opponents and even the way he stands at the weigh-ins have all been sneered by fans who were delighted to see him get knocked out by Ricky Bandejas in 2018. He’s still a young talent though, and came back in his last fight with a first-round win, so the talent is definitely there.
5: Conor McGregor
Of course, ‘The Notorious’ had to make this list. You probably either love him or hate him, but one thing is for sure: you can’t stop hearing about him. McGregor’s rapid rise through the ranks of the UFC was as much because of his ability to talk as for his fighting.
When he first became a star his way with words was wonderful, but as he got richer he’s lost his way, instead of getting cruder with his actions and trash talk. Many fans believe he went too far by taking aim at Khabib Nurmagamedov’s religion, wife, father, and country.
4: Jon Jones
Ok, listen: we’re not hating on Jon Jones. We actually think that he’s the greatest fighter to ever step into an octagon. Asterisk. See that’s the problem: ‘Bones’ is his own worst enemy and his career has been so stop-start over the past few years because of his own mistakes.
After failing drug tests and ensuring that the word ‘picogram’ has become a part of the vocabulary of all MMA fans, we have to listen to everybody’s opinions about whether or not he’s clean. And then there’s all the thanking God stuff after he wins. Man, just be the bad guy and stay clean.
3: Dillon Danis
Danis is either the biggest troll in MMA or else he’s just delusional. The Bellator fighter is most famous for being a close friend of Conor McGregor’s, and like James Gallagher has suffered because of his tendency to ride off of his SBG Ireland teammate’s coattails.
The New Yorker is a genuinely world-class no-gi Brazilian Jiu Jitsu talent, but he’s got one of the most irritating personalities in the game. He’s literally fought one journeyman by the name of Kyle Walker. No offence to either man, but who is that?
Hello Hello Africa he is here let’s go 🇳🇬🇳🇬🇳🇬🇳🇬 @USMAN84kg pic.twitter.com/UEe4jXydco
— Ali Abdelaziz (@AliAbdelaziz00) March 3, 2019
2: Ali Abdelaziz
For the first time, fans might actually agree with our top two picks for most annoying personality in MMA. Ali Abdelaziz is not a fighter. He’s a manager who likes to play with the big boys. The Egyptian is obviously very good at his job as he represents former and current champions like Khabib Nurmagamedov, Frankie Edgar, Kamaru Usman and Henry Cejudo.
His loud mouth and delight in being the centre of attention have seen fans turn against him though. Abdelaziz was branded a ‘rat’ by Conor McGregor, and the moniker has stuck. He’s still one of the most powerful figures in MMA right now though.
1: Colby Covington
Who else could it be? The Californian former interim welterweight champion has annoyed basically everybody inside and outside the UFC. He’s gone for the Chael Sonnen method of talking trash, but one thing that’s gone wrong for the American Top Team fighter is that he just doesn’t have the charm.
Instead, he’s had a boomerang chucked at his head by Fabricio Werdum, after Covington referred to all Brazilians as animals, incited anger from Kamaru Usman and Tyron Woodley, and even tried to video a confrontation in a casino with Dana White. The MAGA hat wearing wrestler is the figure almost all MMA fans love to hate.
