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The UFC is a sporting promotion, but it also prides itself on entertaining the fans. For the most part, any fight in the octagon involving two great athletes is fun to watch.
Over the years, though, the UFC has also produced fights that, for several reasons, were difficult to watch.
Some of these fights were tough to watch because of the state of one of the fighters, while others simply saw a beating drag on for far too long. Either way, it's safe to say that most fans would not want to sit through them again.
Here are five UFC fights that became hard to watch.
#5. Nick Diaz vs. Robbie Lawler - UFC 266
The first meeting between Nick Diaz and Robbie Lawler, which took place over two decades ago in April 2004, remains one of the greatest fights in octagon history.
The two young welterweights went toe-to-toe for two rounds, with Diaz getting into Lawler's head by absorbing his biggest punches and countering back. The Stockton-based fighter eventually dropped 'Ruthless' face-first, becoming the first man to knock him out.
By the time the two rivals rematched at UFC 266, though, over 17 years had passed.
While Lawler was miles past his best at that stage and was on the edge of retirement, he still looked in his prime compared to Diaz.
Diaz had not fought in over six years, and it was easy to see. He didn't look close to being in his best shape and looked plodding and flat-footed from the opening moments of the bout.
By the second round, it was clear that Diaz was in trouble, and Lawler happily pot-shotted him, with shots to the body in particular causing the Californian grief.
Diaz was able to survive the stanza, but by that stage, the fight had become tricky to watch. The former StrikeForce champ was once known for his relentless attacks, and less than ten minutes in, he was completely wilting.
The fight was finally stopped in the third round when Diaz was dropped with a salvo of strikes and could not get back to his feet. Despite the ending being anticlimactic, nobody was complaining.
Realistically, Diaz appeared to have no business fighting at UFC 266, and that made this bout an extremely difficult one to watch.
#4. Jonathan Goulet vs. Jay Hieron - UFC Fight Night 2
Blood being spilled in the octagon is hardly a rarity in the UFC, and most fights end with at least one of the combatants being busted open at some stage.
However, on the odd occasion, we've seen fights that ended up being so gory that they became downright difficult to watch.
One of these fights took place in October 2005 and has never been aired on UFC programming due to its gory nature. It only became available to watch online a couple of years after it'd happened. It saw welterweights Jay Hieron and Jonathan Goulet squaring off.
After a forgettable first round that saw Hieron use his takedowns and wrestling to control Goulet, 'The Road Warrior' turned the tables early in the second. He landed a knee to the forehead of Hieron as the wrestler shot in and split him wide open instantly.
Within seconds, the bout was halted for a doctor to check Hieron over, but remarkably, proceedings were allowed to continue.
Moments later, both men and the mat itself were plastered in blood, and the octagon had essentially turned into the set of an extremely gory horror movie.
Veteran cut-man 'Stitch' Duran later stated that when Hieron's cut leaked through a covering of vaseline and adrenaline chloride, things were serious.
Incredibly, though, the bout made it into the third round, when the doctor finally decided to advise referee Jon Schorle to stop things due to Hieron's blood loss.
'The Thoroughbred' was fine after receiving some post-fight stitches, of course, but that didn't make this fight any easier to watch.
#3. Petr Yan vs. Urijah Faber - UFC 245
When Nick Diaz returned in 2021 from what was essentially a self-imposed retirement, nobody knew what to expect.
The same was said for Urijah Faber when he returned to action in 2019. 'The California Kid' had hung up his gloves in 2016, but announced a comeback three years later, at the age of 40.
Fans were thrilled when Faber then needed just 46 seconds to knock out Ricky Simon, looking better than ever.
Unfortunately, the prize that 'The California Kid' earned for his win was a meeting with the bantamweight division's most dangerous prospect, Petr Yan.
Their fight took place a couple of months later, and it didn't take long for Yan to show that Faber probably should've stayed retired. He picked the veteran apart, living up to his 'No Mercy' nickname by battering him from pillar to post.
The bout had already become disturbing to watch by the final moments of the first round when Yan staggered Faber with an elbow, but worse was to come.
'The California Kid' was dropped twice in the second round, and how he managed to survive was anyone's guess. Nobody needed to see him come out for the third, but Yan didn't need much longer, turning his lights out with a head kick just seconds in.
It was a terrifying showing for Yan, but for longtime fans who respected Faber, it was one of the hardest fights to watch in UFC history.
#2. Cain Velasquez vs. Junior Dos Santos - UFC 166
In most cases, UFC title fights pit two closely matched fighters against one another, and usually, they are competitive fights.
Sure, some title fights end suddenly, but to see a drawn-out, one-sided beating with gold on the line tends to be rare.
However, when they do happen, they're often disturbing to watch, and that was the case with the trilogy bout between Cain Velasquez and Junior Dos Santos in 2013.
The two men had already fought for the heavyweight title twice before, with Dos Santos winning the first clash and Velasquez the second. However, despite the latter fight being relatively comfortable for Velasquez, nobody could've seen what would happen in the trilogy fight coming.
After a relatively slow start, Velasquez began to systematically destroy 'JDS', battering him with punches in the clinch and never giving him any room whatsoever to breathe.
The damage to the Brazilian's face quickly became clear for all to see, as he appeared to be transforming into Frankenstein's monster further in each round.
Quite how he survived the third round - where he appeared to have been knocked out twice - was anyone's guess, but by that point, the fight had become genuinely difficult to watch.
Eventually, the bout came to a violent end in the fifth round when Dos Santos essentially collapsed on a failed guillotine attempt, his body simply not allowing him to go any further.
The fight was an epic one from Velasquez's point of view, but while it affirmed him as the world's top heavyweight, it was still a tough watch. Realistically, 'JDS' was never the same again.
#1. Tony Ferguson vs. Justin Gaethje - UFC 249
It's arguable that the hardest fight to watch in UFC history also marked the end of a dominant run for one of the lightweight division's true greats.
UFC 249 should've been a coming-out party of sorts for Tony Ferguson. 'El Cucuy' was riding a ridiculous 12-fight win streak and was all set to challenge Khabib Nurmagomedov for the 155-pound title in the headliner.
However, the COVID-19 pandemic then struck, and the event was postponed. When the promotion was able to re-book it, the restrictions meant that Nurmagomedov was not able to get into the US.
Rather than wait for 'The Eagle', Ferguson instead agreed to take an interim title bout with the dangerous Justin Gaethje, renowned as the division's heaviest hitter.
Still, 'El Cucuy' had dominated plenty of heavy hitters before, and most fans figured he'd have a little problem with 'The Highlight'.
Unfortunately, things didn't work out that way. A far more measured and less wild Gaethje landed booming punches on Ferguson from the off, and despite 'El Cucuy' dropping him in the second with an uppercut, the momentum only appeared to be heading in one direction.
As the fight went on, it quickly became apparent that Ferguson was not going to win, as he continually ate brutal shots from Gaethje. However, it also became apparent that he wasn't going to quit, either.
By the fifth and final round, the bout had become a difficult watch. A confused-looking Ferguson was still absorbing punches and had taken to shaking his head in an apparent reflex reaction of some kind.
When the referee stepped in when a stumbling Ferguson appeared to be out on his feet, it felt like mercy. The damage had been done, though, and since this beatdown, 'El Cucuy' has lost a further six fights.
Not only was this hard to watch at the time, but it's also become even harder since, knowing what would happen to Ferguson afterward.
