in MMA/Vale-Tudo history... I think we have a lot of guys to mention here. I start with one tough *******....Oleg Taktarov. His fights with Severn and Ruas (the first one, a robbery but he took some heavy leg kicks with an injured knee IIRC) were examples of his toughness.... This content is protected The old timers like Carlson Gracie deserve a mention as well.....
I recently saw the match in which he landed on his head, and he continued like never happened... this man is a monster
Maldonado has to be up there! Fedor for me. As already mentioned, the Randleman suplex was insane. Fedor's recuperative powers in his prime were unreal, but he loses points for being stunne by Fujita in the first place. So I'll take Hendo for 'best chin in MMA history'.
Fujita hits hard man... That shot would have put most guys out. Hendo has been dropped several times in his career, while Fedor was never dropped.
I'm saddened nobody said Bob Sapp. C'mon.. Guy is clearly a monster and tough as a brick wall. Oh wait, those were my impressions when I first saw him, but changed shortly after.
Big Nog is the obviously answer to this question. To take the punishment he did at that high of a level was insane. Espically considering he he didn't lose most of them.
I think that once you reach a certain level, it becomes meaningless to try to rank them. There are any number of guys who will fight until they are knocked unconscious, or until they are rendered physically unable to continue. (Broken arm, cuts to face, broken eye socket etc.) Even then, many guys will be keen to keep fighting. What you are really asking is, who is the most durable/stubborn fighter ever. Who can soak up the most punishment, not who is willing to soak up the most punishment. :good And for those saying Big Nog, no disrespect to the legend, but to be honest I am more impressed with the toughness of a guy like Maldonado a couple of weeks ago. That guy had no chance to win except by hail-mary Kongo-Barry style lottery punch, and he knew it. But he was keen to try his best to land that jackpot punch, no matter what the cost. He was a limited fighter who was totally outclassed and outgunned, took a horrific beating, and hung in there from sheer stubbornness. Different scenario for someone like Nog, who knows he's world class and knows he can submit anybody if they make just one mistake. He knows that even if Fedor is giving him a beating and is a better fighter, Fedor is not THAT much better and it's still a competitive matchup. A guy like Maldonado doesn't have that knowledge, doesn't have many good moments in the fight to keep his spirits up, and has to rely much more on sheer toughness to carry him through. :good :hat