From Jorge Masvidal to Conor McGregor’s here are the best knockouts from 2021


From Jorge Masvidal to Conor McGregor’s here are the best knockouts from 2021

Best knockout of 2021

It is the nature of man to assert complete dominance over his opponent and in MMA, this domination can be asserted by the means of a knockout. Knockouts are some of the most satisfying ways to end a match and give the fighter the bragging rights

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Which were the best knockouts of this year? Here is the list of some of the best UFC Knockouts of the year 2021

10. Terrance McKinney vs Matt Frevola

Terrance McKinney vs Matt Frevola
Terrance McKinney vs Matt Frevola

Fresh out of LFA, champion Terrance McKinney made a strong debut in the UFC with the fourth-fastest finish in the UFC with a seven-second knockout over Matt Frevola. It is considered to be the fastest knockout in the lightweight division. The fighters bumped their gloves and started the match as soon as the bell went off. McKinney landed a short and quick one-two on Fravola which instantly knocked him out. Watch the highlights of McKinney vs Fravola here-

9. Shane Burgos vs Edson Barboza knockout

Edson Barboza vs Shane Burgos knockout
Edson Barboza vs Shane Burgos knockout

Shane Burgos was looking strong in the first round of the fight against Edson Barboza. As the fight progressed, Burgos was seen struggling. The end of the fight was one of the most brutal fights in the history of UFC. After two continuous draining rounds, the third round turned out to be the decisive one. Barboza landed a deadly strike on Burgos, which seemed to be taken well by him, but after a few moments, Burgos collapsed to the canvas.

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It felt like my vision was slowly coming to a tunnel vision, my legs were getting slowly turned off. It was like somebody turning the volume down on the power button on my legs. I was bouncing and dipping down, and when I was dipping down I was trying to come back up fully, and I was slowly getting lower. I’m like, I can’t stand the f**k up, what the f**k is going on?” Burgos said what it felt like taking in the impact of the punch.

Watch the highlights of Barboza vs Burgos fight-

8. Rafael Fiziev vs Brad Riddell knockout

Brad Riddell vs Rafael Fiziev knockout
Brad Riddell vs Rafael Fiziev knockout

Being friends did not change the fact that one of them would have to win the match and that would mean either a quick knockout or a stretched-out submission. Rafael Fiziev went in for the first option.

Fiziev landed a wheel kick on Riddell that knocked him out cold. The first round went ahead as one would have expected. Light blows were exchanged and those were dodged. Both the fighters avoided landing any heavy blows on each other.

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The second round was more or less similar to the first one. Fiziev landed a nasty elbow which tore open an injury on Riddell’s eye. After that, the third round was a bit more eventful. Fiziev grew more aggressive and when he found an opening, landed a wheel kick that was one of the only thirteen ever landed in UFC history

Watch the Fiziev vs Riddell highlights-

7- Cory Sandhagen vs Frankie Edgar

Cory Sandhagen vs Frankie Edgar knockout
Cory Sandhagen vs Frankie Edgar knockout

If this list was about the most vicious and savage knockouts of the year, this knockout would have definitely topped the list by a long way. Cory Sandhagen sent a message to the leaders of the bantamweight division that he is the danger.

Edgar tried to put on pressure on Sandhagen with his signature pressing style, but Edgar proved to be too agile and cool-headed to crumble under the pressure. With a flying knee to the face, Sandhagen finished the fight and made a statement on the UFC bantamweight division.

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Watch the highlights of the Sandhagen vs Edgar fight here-

6- Micheal Chandler vs Dan Hooker knockout

Michael Chandler and Dan Hooker
Michael Chandler and Dan Hooker

Micheal Chandler made a debut in the UFC in the best possible manner. He won the match against the much more experienced Dan ‘The Hangman’ Hooker. Everyone was expecting Hooker to be the easy winner, given his hands-on experience in the UFC, but Chandler, a three-time Bellator MMA champion proved to be too heavy for him.

“I have to get something off my chest. I tell you all this is the greatest moment in my professional life,” Chandler said. “Conor McGregor, surprise surprise, there is a new king in the lightweight division!” The plan of action was excellent by Chandler. He hit a right hook to the body, which made Hooker lower his hands to guard his torso. Chandler then bought in the left hook to Hooker’s chin, which made him collapse. He then unloaded a barrage of punches on the downed Hooker, which sealed the win for him.

Watch the highlights of Chandler vs Hooker here-

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5- Francis Ngannou vs Stipe Miocic 2

Francis Ngannou vs Stipe Miocic knockout
Francis Ngannou vs Stipe Miocic knockout

The first bout took place in January of 2018 and Miocic completely shut down Ngannou in that battle. It took Ngannou 3 years of dedication and commitment to take down Miocic in the rematch bout. ‘The Predator’ defeated Miocic to become the top fighter of the UFC heavyweight division. The first round was uneventful and while it had some kicks to it, there was no decisive move from either party. Miocic’s plan of action was to use his legs as the main defense, which gave Ngannou the advantage in the round. The second round proved to be more entertaining as lots of blows were exchanged and dodged.

The overhand from Ngannou in the first few minutes especially proved to be the catalyst to start a great fight. The fight ended with a short right-left combo from Ngannou which knocked out Miocic cold to the canvas. The fight involving the No. 1 of the Heavyweight division and his oldest rival is sure to go down in history as one of the best fights of not only 2021, but also of the entire UFC history.

Watch the highlights of the Ngannou vs Miocic fight here-

4- Jiri Prochazka vs Dominick Reyes

Jiri Prochazka vs Dominick Reyes knockout
Jiri Prochazka vs Dominick Reyes knockout

A newcomer to the UFC light heavyweight championship, Czech MMA fighter Jiri Prochazka made a strong statement in the UFC with a strong spinning elbow knockout against Dominick Reyes in the second round of their fight.

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Reyes looked strong in the first round and was dominating on Prochazka. Once the newbie found the rhythm, it became increasingly difficult for Reyes to parry Jiri’s attacks. With a takedown, it seemed that Reyes had the match under control, but the Czech national was quick to get back on his feet.

In the second round, Reyes had Prochazka in a guillotine hold. It seemed that it was all over for Jiri, but he got out of the hold and struck Reyes with a spinning elbow, which instantly knocked out the two-time title contender.

Watch the highlights of Reyes vs Prochazka here-

3- Rose Namajunas vs Zhang Weili

Rose Namajunas vs Zhang Weili knockout
Rose Namajunas vs Zhang Weili knockout

The wonder lady of the strawweight division, Rose Namajunas follows a single motto. Float like a butterfly, sting like a wasp. It was quite evidently seen in her fight against Zhang Weili for the division title. She kept chanting “I’m the best” ever since her introductory interview before the match. It didn’t take long for her to prove that. The most awesome part about it is that the knockout was completed in the first round.

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Both the fighters took their time and moved about the arena, trying to find a flaw or a weak point in their opponents. Rose Namajunas made the first move and landed a heavy kick on Weili’s head which knocked her out immediately. A couple of hammer fists later, there was no doubt left about who the strawweight champion was.

Watch the highlights of Rose Namajunas vs Zhang Weili-

2- Dustin Poirier vs Conor McGregor 2

Conor McGregor vs Dustin Poirier Knockout
Conor McGregor vs Dustin Poirier Knockout

Among the many legendary battles, McGregor vs Poirier remains on the top. The rivalry is way too legendary to be ignored and the animosity towards each other continues to date. Both clashed first in 2014 when McGregor proved to be too much for Poirier. In the rematch that took place this year, Poirier made it a point to get his revenge. “I’m happy, but not surprised,” said Poirier, who was ravaged by McGregor in their first bout in September 2014. “I put in the work.”

Dustin is some fighter,” said McGregor, who made came back from retirement after a win over Donald Cerrone in January 2020. “I need activity. You don’t get away with being inactive in this business.” McGregor was first to make a move and got in Poirier’s face immediately as the round began. Poirier was quick and effective too, he scored a takedown in the first 30 seconds. McGregor was looking good in the starting minutes but was then held in a grapple. He broke free after hitting Poirier with a few kicks at the 90 seconds mark.

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Poirier started the second round with an explosive hitting strategy. McGregor was accurate with the strong punches and was scary because of his raw power. Poirier was not one to sit back. He unloaded a barrage of punches on McGregor and downed him to complete a perfect knockout.

Watch the highlights of Poirier vs McGregor in this video-

1- Kamaru Usman vs Jorge Masvidal 2

Kamaru Usman vs Jorge Masvidal knockout
Kamaru Usman vs Jorge Masvidal knockout

What happens when two of the best names in the welterweight division face off each other? There is obviously a great knockout waiting to happen. This is what happened in the fight of Kamaru Usman vs Jorge Masvidal.

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In the battle of the giants, Kamaru Usman proved to be the stronger one with a right hook perfectly timed to knock the living daylights out of his opponent Jorge Masvidal. In the main event of UFC 261, Usman proved that the match doesn’t need to go on until the result has to be decided by the judges.

The first round went in a typical fashion with both the sides exchanging heavy blows which were not enough to take down either. Usman landed a few heavy hits, but Masvidal shrugged them off. It was in the second round that Masvidal’s overconfidence proved to be his fall as a perfectly timed hook from Usman caught him square on the jaw and knocked him to the floor.

Watch the highlights of Usman vs Masvidal here-

Also read- McGregor vs Poirier to Covington vs Usman: Top 10 most epic UFC PPVs of 2021

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