Over the last few decades we’ve seen some very polarizing personalities emerge in this sport. Some men choose to express themselves precisely as they would behind closed doors; some men opt to project specific images in the hopes of drawing more fan interest. The protagonist personality surfaces just as often as the antagonistic, but it seems the genuine individuals are the true crowd pleasers; even drunken fans can detect a bogus façade.

So who captivates fanatic followers the most in today’s MMA landscape? Do you see your favorite fighter on this list?  If not let us know below in the comments! 

2011 was unquestionably one of the greatest years in the short existence of mixed martial arts. The UFC has continued to grow and expand, Bellator has begun to find a stable foothold and produce stars, and Strikeforce will continue to air on Showtime, handled as a completely separate entity from the UFC, despite the fact that Zuffa now owns the promotion. Although the Japanese scene continues to struggle, MMA has caught like wildfire in the United States, and only promises to reach more households worldwide as time unfolds, which could certainly see a turn-around for promotions based in Japan.

The Strikeforce/UFC’s Continual Merger: Dana White has made it abundantly clear that Strikeforce isn’t going anywhere. However, White and the UFC have been importing some of their sister promotion’s finer talents, like Alistair Overeem, Nick Diaz and Fabricio Werdum, to name just a few. With the influx of new talent in the UFC, the depth of each division slowly swells, making for some intriguing scenarios and a pool of potential match ups that we would not be privy to if not for Zuffa’s purchase of Strikeforce. Gone are the days of champions “cleaning out the division”, there’s now plenty of new talent to factor into the equation, and it’s going to make for some truly fascinating matches come 2012.

We’ve played witness to some stunning career declines this year. Former champions have fallen left and right, while proposed “prospects” have run into brick walls when making the leap to the big leagues. I suppose that’s the nature of the beast, as combat sports aren’t often associated with overtly lengthy reigns as “top dog”. The business is brutal, and it takes a toll on both the body and the mind. In fact, in regards to mixed martial arts, a successful 10 year career is a damn respectable accomplishment. Some manage to surpass that, while some strive but come up short. Here now, is a look at some of the most noteworthy career declines of 2011.

 B.J. Penn

In a sport known for its excessive violence and countless alpha male personalities, it’s nice to discover a fighter who possesses a genuinely kind heart and endearing attitude away from the cage. It’s not the most common of occurrences, but it does happen every now and then, and one need only look to heavyweight champion Junior dos Santos for proof.

This year fans got the chance to see plenty of dos Santos’s personality shine through, as he coached the thirteenth season of “The Ultimate Fighter”, opposite former heavyweight champion, Brock Lesnar. During the shows airing dos Santos proved himself a caring coach with a big heart and an understanding of the fighter’s mindset. He also showcased a great sense of humor (at one point Ramsey Nijem even dry humped dos Santos while engaging in some friendly banter, to which dos Santos simply pushed Nijem off, all the while laughing heartily) and a desire to connect with the shows contestants. In regards to pure personality, JDS is the most approachable and likeable man to ever coach on the popular reality show.

Like our “Submission of the Year” piece, there were numerous knockout finishes in 2011 to illuminate, and picking a decisive winner of this little title, is no easy task. There were flashy finishes, unforeseen finishes, and a few outrageously brutal finishes.

Bellator played host to a number of spectacular knockouts this year, including Alexis Vila’s one punch leveling of promotional ace, Joe Warren, Pat Curran’s perfectly placed right high kick finish of Marlon Sandro and Patricky Freire’s well-timed flying knee that left Toby Imada in another dimension. It was a stellar year for the promotion, as I’m just skimming the surface of Bellator knockouts.

As is the case with just about any full contact sport in existence, the competing favorite is likely to emerge victorious over opposition a good eight of ten times. Even in a sport as erratic as mixed martial arts, the odds makers tend to do their homework, and usually make the right picks. However, when the cycle is broken by the resilient underdog, it’s an amazing sensation, and it echoes in the memory.

In the last 18 years many a favorite has fallen at the hands of the unsuspecting challenger; the man ushered into the cage to become little more than another tally in the favored participants win column. Sometimes upsets are squeezed out on the score cards, sometimes they arrive in fast, dramatic fashion, and now and then an unforeseen variable alters the outcome of a fight. When it comes to the truly memorable upsets, there are a few that just cannot be forgotten.

This year saw a string of MMA fighters execute some amazing submissions. The massive Richard Hale caught Nik Fekete overlooking his submission prowess and locked on a tight inverted triangle choke that put the talented wrestler to sleep at Bellator 38. Chan Sung Jung, or as most now know him, “The Korean Zombie” pulled off one of the most rare submissions you’ll see in the sport, as he applied the powerful “Twister” to an unsuspecting Leonard Garcia at UFC Fight Night 24; it was hands down one of the most brilliant finishes in the history of the sport.

But the spectacular finishes weren’t confined to American based cages, or promotions for that matter. Russian fans were witness to a remarkable modified gogoplata that Vinny Magalhaes pulled out of thin air, cranking the neck of Red Devil product, Viktor Nemkov and forcing the submission, and he did it all from the mount! Shinya Aoki also kept his Japanese fans more than appeased, as he finished his first three fights of 2011 with his patented neck crank. Perhaps Vinny and Shinya should book a lunch and juggle submission dialogue.

This year offered an assortment of spectacular fights. Many a men engaged in highly memorable duels, and while fights like Frankie Edgar versus Gray Maynard III, Nick Diaz versus Paul Daley, and Jose Aldo versus Mark Hominick are certainly worthy of such recognition, one fight took place this year that stands head and shoulders above the rest of the pack.

At UFC 139 two longtime veterans met for the first time, despite traveling similar career courses for years: Dan “Hendo” Henderson and Mauricio “Shogun” Rua. These two engaged in a war to be remembered. For five full rounds, both men utilized every tool in their repertoire, which led to a frenetic bout that saw plenty of action on the feet, as well as some solid ground work.

Written By: Dennis Fratella

About a week ago I wrote an article on what encompassed the journey of the loser of this heavyweight battle that’s getting ready to go down tomorrow night. Rather than make a prediction then, I wanted to save it for now, because I really needed time to make up my mind not only for the headliner, but also the undercard as well. I think this card—at least these three fights I’m writing about, have to be some of the most well matched fights I’ve seen in some time.

I came to what will likely be—the bitter truths of these 3 fights I’m going to review in this article, and I found that we’re going to have a heavyweight brawl, a coin flip, and a wrestling match.

2011 proved a few very interesting things: veteran fighters with countless years of experience are still capable of evolving and remaining relevant, and the new breed of uber athletic fighters are every bit as frightening as their physique’s and potential ceilings would indicate. From the rejuvenation of Dan Henderson, to the otherworldly resilience of Frankie Edgar to the mesmerizing performances offered forth from Jon Jones, it’s been a great year for mixed martial arts, and these three particular men not only turned heads, but turned in remarkable years that command acknowledgement.

Nick Diaz