In today’s society the term ‘professional athlete’ is thrown around so loosely that it is almost ubiquitous and people have become desensitized to just how special and unique it is to be a professional athlete. Furthermore, to reach the pinnacle of a sport and compete at the highest level is even more special, i.e. fighting in the UFC, playing football in the NFL, playing basketball in the NBA, etc.
To put things into perspective, let’s take a look at the numbers provided by the NCAA: out of the nearly 8 million students participating in high school athletics only 480,000 will go on to compete for an NCAA college, that is 6%; furthermore, out of those student athletes roughly 2% (.12% of high school athletes) will go on to participate in athletics at a professional level. It is very easy to deduce then that the probability of an athlete competing in the Olympics is incredibly small and to actually medal is even less; statistically speaking the percentage is so small it is negligible.
4) Ronda Rousey
The first woman in U.S. Olympic history to medal in Judo, Ronda Rousey earned a bronze medal at the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing, China and she also paved the way for women in the sport of mixed martial arts becoming the first ever women’s UFC bantamweight champion with a record of 12-0 before losing her belt to Holly Holm.
3) Yoel Romero
Yoel Romero has taken the middleweight division by storm in the UFC compiling seven straight wins with five by way of knockout with his last fight being a split decision win over arguably the number one contender in the division Ronaldo Jacare Souza. Romero also represented his home country of Cuba in Athens, Greece at the 2004 Olympics winning a silver medal in Freestyle wrestling.
2) Sara McMann
At UFC 170, Sara McMann earned herself a title shot against the woman credited for putting the spotlight on women’s mma, Ronda Rousey and did so by compiling a professional record of seven wins and zero losses. Although she lost that championship fight, her athletic ability and prowess cannot be denied as she previously stood on the podium at the 2004 Olympic Games in Athens, Greece earning herself a silver medal in Freestyle wrestling.
1) Henry Cejudo
Henry Cejudo is the only active Olympic gold medalist on the UFC roster having taken home the gold in Freestyle wrestling at the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing, China. His UFC career hasn’t been too shabby either with his only loss being in a championship fight to, arguably, the best pound-for-pound fighter in the history of the sport Demetrius Johnson.
