Lyoto Machida-The closest thing to Bruce Lee today

[Barack Obama]

Lyoto Machida is arguably the best fighter in the world. It's not just because he wins fights. It's how he wins fights. He hardly ever gets hit... Ever. This guy's statistics are ridiculous.

These are the hit percentages that his opponents had against him:
Rashad Evans: 3-of-21 (14.28%)
Thiago Silva: 2-of-9 (22.22%)
Tito Ortiz: 13-of-46 (28.26%)
Thierry Sokoudjou: 3-of-19 (15.79%)
Kazuhiro Nakamura: 11-of-27 (40.74%)
David Heath: 6-of-41 (14.63%)
Sam Hoger: 8-of-42 (19.05%)
Vernon White: 4-of-52 (7.69%)
Dimitri Wanderley: 11-of-42 (26.19%)
B.J. Penn: 28-of-49 (57.14%)
Sam Greco: 7-of-16 (43.75%)
Michael McDonald: 0-of-1 (0.00%)
Rich Franklin: 6-of-19 (31.58%)
Stephan Bonnar: 6-of-28 (21.43%)
Total: 108-of-412 (26.21%)

Penn had the most success. White threw the most strikes but had the lowest percentage of all opponents who attempted at least two.

I couldn't find any data on his first career fight which was against Kengo Watanabe.

Takedowns Attempted: 20-of-29 (68.96%)
Takedowns Defended: 8-of-41 (19.51%)

He's landed 20 of 29 takedowns that he has attempted while only being taken down eight times by opponents during their 41 attempts.

Total Guard Passes For: 48
Total Guard Passes Against: 3

He landed 13 against Sam Hoger alone. The only fighters to pass Machida's guard are Hoger, Penn, and Nakamura. One each. The furthest anyone has gotten in Machida's guard was to half-guard. And that was Penn, from what I could find.

Submission Attempts For: 7
Submission Attempts Against: 5

He attempted four against Sokoudjou alone. Ortiz and Sokoudjou each notched two against Machida while Greco had the other.

Total Dominance Rating: 2845-561

That's a 5-to-1 advantage. Think about that. Penn had the most success against him (150).

Has there ever been a fighter in MMA history, not just UFC history, that has dominated opponents as much as Machida has in all aspects?

[xioaxioa]

Wow, just look at those numbers! I wish I knew how to read them.... Still he is no Bruce Lee.

[Hand Banana]

Bruce Lee was an actor so is he the closet to the Actor Bruce Lee?

[xXD3THKLOKXx]

Bruce Lee was an actor so is he the closet to the Actor Bruce Lee?

Bruce Lee was also quite possibly one of the greatest martial artist of all time. He was a world renown fighter and only took up acting as a side project. Anyway, although Machida is extremely skilled I would think the real talents of martial arts and hand-to-hand combat do not take part in professional fighting.

[kuroihikari]

Yeah, although Bruce Lee did fight a lot, he didn't fight in ranked matches during his prime.

Besides, Lyoto Machida is a submission artist. I don't see Bruce Lee even trying to go for a submission.

[Ariolander]

I think Lyoto Machida is the only man alive that stands a chance at even touching Bruce Lee... He probably wouldn't win but can probably touch him... which is more than anyone else can do.

[Barack Obama]

Bruce Lee was an actor so is he the closet to the Actor Bruce Lee?

Bruce Lee invented his own fighting style that was practical compared to other martial arts. He is known as the father of mixed martial arts. Like someone posted before, acting was just something to make money. The way he trained and fought was unparalleled back then.

You should read about Bruce Lee. The stuff he invented was amazing. If it wasn't for him, Dana White along with all the other MMA fighters probably wouldn't have a job right now.

He is closest to the mixed martial artist, Bruce Lee.