Mirko Filipovic built his legend on left high kicks. | Photo: Daniel Herbertson/Sherdog.com
6. Mirko Filipovic
“Right leg, hospital. Left leg, cemetery.”
That power and killer instinct served him well as a kickboxer. High-level fighters like Mike Bernardo, Sam Greco, Remy Bonjasky and Musashi fell beneath his cracking limbs, and predictably, less-skilled mixed martial artists were even more vulnerable to his devastating power. Igor Vovchanchyn was a vicious finisher in his own right, and “Cro Cop” put him down with a left high kick as if he had been shot. Ron Waterman fell to a vicious series of soccer kicks. Even the legendary Wanderlei Silva could not take a flush left high kick in the two fighters’ second meeting.
Whether it was a straight left, a body kick, soccer kicks or that trip to the cemetery courtesy of his left shin upside the dome, Filipovic in his prime was just flat-out scary. He has recently been re-signed to the UFC, but he has been past his once-terrifying peak for a long time now. One can only hope that newer fans can appreciate the killer he once was.
Number 5 » His dedication to brutal violence encompassed every phase of the fight. He could brutalize you with kicks at range, knock you out with punches in the pocket, knee you into oblivion in the clinch and soccer kick the living daylights out of even the toughest opponent on the ground. His killer instinct and ability to sense when an opponent was hurt might have been the best in the sport’s history.