Sherdog’s Top 10: Undeserved Title Shots

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6. Elvis Sinosic vs. Tito Ortiz
UFC 32 “Showdown in the Meadowlands” | June 29, 2001 -- East Rutherford, N.J.

Imagine the outrage on message boards and forums today if a journeyman like Sinosic headlined an event that required the spending of one’s hard-earned paycheck. Judging by the 11,000 plus who filled the Continental Airlines Arena for UFC 32, the masses were not too disappointed with the matchup. Perhaps that was more a testament to Ortiz’s drawing power than anything else.

How exactly did the promotion arrive at a point where Sinosic -- he was 3-3-1 before his Octagon debut -- was deemed worthy of sharing marquee billing with the polarizing Ortiz? First, “The King of Rock N Rumble” impressed UFC officials with a hard-nosed effort in a five-round unanimous decision loss to Frank Shamrock at a K-1 event. Then, the Australian shocked veteran Jeremy Horn with a triangle armbar in his debut with the Las Vegas-based promotion at UFC 30. That was enough to earn him a showdown with Ortiz, a budding superstar in the burgeoning organization.

Sinosic’s decision to pull guard early in the fight was ill-advised at best, and Ortiz capitalized by riding his trademark ground-and-pound to a first-round technical knockout. It was just the beginning of a steady decline for Sinosic, who would never again taste victory in three separate Octagon stints. Ortiz, of course, is a UFC hall of famer, and it is probably safe to say he could have achieved those same heights without having ever faced Sinosic.

Number 5 » Hunt vs. Emelianenko