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[Qball1974]

Originally Posted by Fedorlei Gomipierre

I'm going to refer to fighters that never reached their maximum potential:
Brandon Vera
Kevin Jackson
Paulo Filho
Jorge Santiago-too willing to stand and bang when unnecessary
Jeremy Williams
Semmy Schilt
Dan Lauzon
Ricco Rodriguez- Limitless potential had he have stayed on the right path
Hayato Sakurai
Tommy Speer
Karo Parisyan
Joe Riggs
Drew Fickett

Ricco being my fav.

[d-low]

I thought of another one I didn't see listed here, Tyson Griffin. I thought Tyson looked awesome until the Evan Dunham fight then idk wtf happened. His fights leading up to that were awesome, only two losses were against Sherk and Frankie (both fights I had Tyson winning, but were very close). And the Hermes Franca fight, Tyson destroyed him, after that fight I was sure Tyson would get a title shot soon. Then the UFC schedules a fight with Evan Dunham which made no sense to me and he got picked apart and hasn't looked the same since. Now hes gone from the UFC....

[initial_zen]

I dont think he could have been a champion or contender, but pete sell lost so many fights that he should have won.. I felt bad for the guy. He would end up rocking the guy and nearly knocking them out, only to get finished himself.

[sonofsteven]

Lee Murray

[cnlclink]

I'm going out on a limb and saying Sammy Stout. He has beautiful talent but is just too slow and that seems to be a big hindrance to him. I like these other picks but Sam holds all the talent, the cardio, the chin but is lacking speed it seems.

[AnchorPunch]

Much like Stout, I'd actually say Lil Nog... I know people are high on him, but (especially in his UFC career) he's always seemed slower, less agressive, and poorly gameplanned. I think he's another fighter who's ranked by potential not by actual success.

Credit to Sakara whose Nog comment earlier got me thinking about this!

[dbader08]

Originally Posted by Fedorlei Gomipierre

Gouveia is an interesting name, becuase I too think he had alot to offer "once upon a time", especially if he made a hard run at 185, but I've always heard that his head wasn't fully into where it needed to be outside the cage to be at the high level inside it, and geez, now he's fighting down in Brazil at HW, where he looks physically dumpy at best. His MFC fights post UFC cut were also quite disappointing....

Yeah he had really good hands and bjj but I definitely agree with what you said about his mental issues. Seemed like he let his guard down a little too much and quit somewhat quick in some of his fights.

I have no desire to watch his lates HW fight lol

[joeodd2]

I always thought Marcus Jones could have been a real diamond in the rough, too bad he didn't like getting hit and had no striking defense whatsoever. The dude was strong as a bull and his ground game was really fucking good, especially for an absolute amateur. I remember one episode where they talked about him having to hold back his power because he'd hurt guys. Man what a waste.....Just imagine him getting some K1 level training and training under ceasar gracie or eddie bravo for a few years....man.

Melvin Gullard and Pat Barry. Those two are hometown fighters for me, and I always root for them. Melvin is always and underdog and counted out by most fans, and so is Pat. But Pat is such a great personality and seem like a really nice dude. I can't help but hope he can get the belt one day, same with Melvin. But they continue to entertain as well as disappoint......

Cung Le also makes my list, as well as Hector Lombard. Although I have high hopes for their next bout, I think Lombard especially goes on a tear. I hope they don't match Cung Le up against him anytime soon....

[Kimbo> Rampage]

Names that come to mind...

Rampage, BJ, Randallman, Fedor, Ninja...

Rampage has all the talent he could want... but has never completely primed himself... He has gone 100% in at various times, but not enough to get the most out of himself....

Fedor and BJ are great, but I feel they plateaued and became stagnant... only because they could and didnt want to change their ways... They will go down as all time greats, but still could have achieved more...

Originally Posted by Sakara=Excitement

I was watching the Cyborg vs Diaz SF title fight and was thinking that Cyborg has/had all the making to be a contender with his vicious leg kicks, wildman brawling style ala Wandy, but never seemed to but it all together.

Who else out there can you think of?

Good one... He always had the heart and aggression, but couldnt get it together.. He is banging Cyborg... you know, that has to keep him distracted... Odd that they have the same nickname, just like the nog twins.

[SOOFNUN]

I always thought everyone's favorite rumble Johnson could/should have been much better. If he would have ever figured out how to manage himself be would have done a lot more.