Tony Ferguson, B.J. Penn and the longest losing skids in UFC history (2024)

Tony Ferguson, B.J. Penn and the longest losing skids in UFC history (1)

Mike Bohn

August 6, 2024 11:16 am ET

For every fight in the UFC with a winner, there is also a loser. And unfortunately for some, the losses happen more regularly than others. And for an even more finite group, the losses happen at a rate that seemingly can’t be stopped.

The sport of MMA is far more tolerable of defeat than what has been exhibited over the history of boxing. There used to be a time when back-to-back UFC losses were enough to be cut from the roster without much explanation required. Three-in-a-row? That would be a death sentence.

In some instances, however, fighters will get a longer leash. Some because of personal accolades or star power, some because of circumstance, but any time the losses have hit half-a-dozen or longer, it’s always because of something outside the norm.

These are the stories behind the longest losing skids to ever take place under the UFC banner.

* * * *

6 –Elvis Sinosic

Tony Ferguson, B.J. Penn and the longest losing skids in UFC history (2)

Elvis Sinosic

Elvis Sinosic is a trailblazer in his own right as the first Australian-born fighter to compete for a UFC title. He made that bit of history when he unsuccessfully challenged Tito Ortiz for the light heavyweight belt in his second promotional at UFC 32 in June 2001.

That was the high of Sinosic’s UFC run. He would drop another pair of fights afterward, marking his departure from the roster. Sinosic worked his way back, but would drop back-to-back bouts in his second stint. He won twice outside the UFC to get one final call back against Michael Bisping at UFC 70 in April 2007, but would suffer a TKO defeat to close out his rough tenure.

Sinosic’s losing skid is the most disjointed on the list, having taken place over three stints and just under six years. However, it stood alone as the record for a number of years.

Sinosic’s MMA record: 7-11-2
Sinosic’s UFC record: 1-6
Consecutive UFC losses: Six

6 –Phil Baroni

Tony Ferguson, B.J. Penn and the longest losing skids in UFC history (3)

Phil Baroni

Similar to Sinosic, the octagon struggles of Phil Baroni came over multiple stints with the promotion and many years.

Baroni made his debut at UFC 30 in February 2001 in what was just his second MMA fight. He would start 3-1 in the UFC, including one of the great punching flurry knockouts in history against Dave Menne at UFC 39. The excitement around “The New York Bad Ass” would fizzle, however, with four straight losses, leading to his departure.

Baroni remade his name overseas under the PRIDE FC banner, and would eventually return to UFC in June 2009 after its purchase and absorption of Strikeforce. He dropped back-to-back fights to Brad Tavares and Amir Sadollah, bringing his overall UFC losing skid to six fights and marking the end of his days inside the octagon.

Baroni’s MMA record: 16-19
Baroni’s UFC record: 3-7
Consecutive UFC losses: Six

6 –Hector Lombard

Tony Ferguson, B.J. Penn and the longest losing skids in UFC history (4)

Hector Lombard

After a decorated run outside the UFC that included a stint as Bellator middleweight champion, Hector Lombard finally came to the promotion in July 2022. Things looked on the up for him after winning three of his first five bouts with the company against the likes of Jake Shields and Nate Marquardt, but then the result took a sharp turn.

Lombard’s win over Josh Burkman at UFC 182 in January 2015 was flipped to a no contest after he tested positive for a banned substance, and when he returned 14 months later, the defeats stacked up. He would lose six consecutive fights from March 2016 to September 2018, including an all-time highlight-reel knockout from Dan Henderson’s elbow at UFC 199.

Lombard’s MMA record: 34-11-1 with three no contests
Lombard’s UFC record: 3-8
Consecutive UFC losses: Six

7 – B.J. Penn

Tony Ferguson, B.J. Penn and the longest losing skids in UFC history (5)

B.J. Penn

B.J. Penn is simultaneously a UFC Hall of Famer, one of the most talented and accomplished fighters to ever grace the octagon, and the first to lose seven consecutive fights with the company.

What distinguishes Penn from everyone else on the list before him, however, is the level of competition his defeats came against. “The Prodigy” was nothing if not stubborn when it came to only fighting the best, and that was a catalyst in one of the sadder endings to a legendary career.

Although Penn’s losses earlier in his career are a crucial part of his story, his highs overshadowed them for many years. It started to get bad in October 2011, though, when he got dished out a brutal beatdown from Nick Diaz at UFC 137.

Penn would spend another nearly eight years trying to find victory again, but to no avail. The loss to Diaz was followed by Rory MacDonald, Franke Edgar, Yair Rodriguez, Denis Siver, Ryan Hall and, finally, Clay Guida, to set the record for longest losing skid in UFC history. And that record stood alone for nearly half a decade.

Penn’s MMA record: 16-14-2
Penn’s UFC record: 12-13-1
Consecutive UFC losses: Seven

8 –Tony Ferguson

Tony Ferguson, B.J. Penn and the longest losing skids in UFC history (6)

Tony Ferguson

Penn finally got himself some company in the dubious annals of history courtesy of Tony Ferguson, who also has the unique element to his story of going from the longest winning streak in UFC lightweight history at the time to a record-tying all-time skid.

Ferguson was arguably the best lightweight in the world around 2017-2018, but despite beating all the competition in front of him, he never got the chance to truly prove it. He had a brief run with the interim belt, but injuries, fight cancellations (particularly with Khabib Nurmagomedov) and other politics plagued Ferguson. Then the COVID-19 pandemic hit, and he hasn’t won since.

“El Cucuy” put together a 12-fight winning streak at 155 pounds, then in the UFC’s first event back after the pandemic hit, Ferguson fought Justin Gaethje for another interim belt at UFC 249 in May 2022. Whether he was impacted by a highly-criticized double weight cut prior to the event, or just simply was battered by the better man in Gaethje, the magic of Ferguson has never come back after that night.

Similar to Penn, Ferguson’s losing streak has been counterbalanced by the outrageous level of competition. His record-tying run of defeats came to Gaethje, Charles Oliveira, Beneil Dariush, Michael Chandler, Nate Diaz, King Green, Paddy Pimblett. and Michael Chiesa.

No fighter on the list comes close to Ferguson in terms of the timespan in which the losses happened. Unfortunately for anyone who merely looks at the number of consecutive defeats on paper, they will see Ferguson alone in the history books.

Ferguson’s MMA record: 25-11
Ferguson’s UFC record: 15-9
Consecutive UFC losses: Eight

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Tony Ferguson, B.J. Penn and the longest losing skids in UFC history (2024)

FAQs

What was the bloodiest fight in UFC history BJ Penn? ›

To this day, the fight against Joe Stevenson at UFC 80 stands for one of his finest performances. Right from the start, Penn began dominating the fight. With less than a minute left in the opening round, he landed a nasty elbow that opened up Stevenson's brow!

How many fights did BJ Penn lose? ›

BJ Penn Record: 16-14-2
W/LFighterEvent
lossBJ Penn Frankie EdgarThe Ultimate Fighter: Team Edgar vs. Team Penn Finale Jul. 06, 2014
lossBJ Penn Rory MacDonaldUFC on FOX: Henderson vs Diaz Dec. 08, 2012
lossBJ Penn Nick DiazUFC 137: Penn vs Diaz Oct. 29, 2011
drawBJ Penn Jon FitchUFC 127: Penn vs Fitch Feb. 26, 2011
24 more rows

What's the most losses in UFC history? ›

Jeremy Stephens, a well-known lightweightand featherweight fighter in MMA, has gained a reputation for himself through his long and decorated career. Despite his experience and success, Stephens now holds the record for the most losses in UFC history, with 18 losses on his record.

Who is the deadliest man in UFC? ›

In the early part of his UFC career, Shamrock was named "The World's Most Dangerous Man" by ABC News in a special called "The World's Most Dangerous Things". The moniker has stuck as his nickname. Ken is considered one of the top 10 greatest mixed martial arts fighters of all time by Inside MMA Magazine.

Who has the hardest punch in UFC history? ›

Hall recorded a score of 208,901. To put that into perspective, Pereira recently hit 191,796 whereas Ngannou's score was 129,161; Hall's score is almost 80,000 more than that.

Who is the greatest UFC fighter of all time? ›

Top 10 greatest UFC fighters of all time ranked from Conor McGregor to Jon Jones and 'GOAT' with perfect record
  • Conor McGregor (22-6) ...
  • Stipe Miocic (20-4) ...
  • Khabib Nurmagomedov (29-0) ...
  • Amanda Nunes (23-5) ...
  • Demetrious Johnson 25-4-1. ...
  • Anderson Silva (34-11 1NC) ...
  • Georges St-Pierre (26-2) ...
  • Jon Jones (27-1 1NC)
Apr 30, 2024

How fast did BJ Penn get his black belt? ›

His nickname, The Prodigy originates prior to him competing in mixed martial arts, from accomplishing his extraordinary feat in the sport of Brazilian Jiu Jitsu (earning his black belt in just under three years and winning the black belt division in the World Jiu-Jitsu Championship only three weeks later).

Why was BJ Penn released from the UFC? ›

In the documents, Shealen Uaiwa accused Penn of physical, verbal and sexual abuse over the course of their 10-year relationship. Penn, perhaps the best lightweight mixed martial arts fighter of all time, retired in 2014 and was inducted into the UFC Hall of Fame in 2015.

Who lost 20 percent of his blood in UFC? ›

Rafa Garcia Jr. is an American-Mexican MMA fighter.

What was the most popular fight in UFC history? ›

Ranking The Most Watched UFC Fights
RankingDateResult
1October 6, 2018Nurmagomedov (Submission)
T-2August 20, 2016McGregor (Decision)
T-2January 23, 2021Poirer (KO)
4July 10, 2021Poirer (TKO)
6 more rows
Jul 18, 2024

What is the bloodiest UFC fight ever? ›

  • Penn vs. Stevenson. UFC 80. BJ Penn wins via Submission, Rear Naked Choke Jan 2008.
  • Sobral vs. Heath. UFC 74. ...
  • Penn vs. Sanchez. UFC 107. ...
  • Stojnić vs. Struve. UFC 99. ...
  • Marquardt vs. Sonnen. UFC 109. ...
  • Koscheck vs. Lytle. UFC 86. ...
  • Arona vs. Sakuraba. Pride Critical Countdown 2005. ...
  • Goulet vs. Hieron. UFC Fight Night 2.

What was the worst fight in UFC history? ›

  • Silva vs. Maia. UFC 112. Anderson Silva wins via Decision, Unanimous Apr 2010.
  • Severn vs. Shamrock II. UFC 9. Dan Severn wins via Decision, Split May 1996.
  • Silva vs. Leites. UFC 97. ...
  • Starnes vs. Quarry. UFC 83. ...
  • Shamrock vs. Gracie II. UFC 5. ...
  • Sonnen vs. Filho II. WEC 36. ...
  • Sylvia vs. Arlovski III. UFC 61. ...
  • Guida vs. Maynard. UFC on FX 4.

How did BJ Penn lose? ›

Penn lost the fight via a heel hook submission in the first round. Penn faced Clay Guida on May 11, 2019, at UFC 237. He lost the fight by unanimous decision. On July 26, 2019, news surfaced that Penn was expected to face Nik Lentz in a grudge match, at a UFC event to be determined.

What was the biggest fight in UFC history? ›

The marketing slogan for UFC 229 was “The World Is Watching”, and it couldn't have been more perfect, as it's still the biggest fight in UFC history to this day.

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