Top 5 upsets of 2021: The year of the underdogs like Juliana Pena and Dustin Poirier

This year has been crazy for the MMA community and the fans. This year has shown that champions are made. The craziest part about all this is that the champions that were made gave way to the underdogs, who totally dominated this year’s events. This was the year of best upsets ever.

Let’s take a look at the biggest upsets of the year 2021 which will make you believe in miracles.

5. Jan Blachowicz vs Israel Adesanya upset

The best fighter of the middleweight division was obviously expected to win this matchup. The attempt to move to the light heavyweight division made by ‘The Last Stylebender’ was crushed by the Polish fighter to cause a major upset.

Blachowicz knew that kickboxing was Adesanya’s strong point and avoided giving an advantage to him by getting into a kickboxing battle with him. Blachowicz engaged Adesanya and was successful in containing him, which Adesanya’s previous opponents couldn’t.

The win against Adesanya allowed Jan to retain his title. Adesanya redeemed himself with a win over Marvin Vettori later in the middleweight division.

Watch the highlights of Adesanya vs Blachowicz-

4. Beneil Daruish vs Tony Ferguson upset

Beneil Dariush surprised the entire crowd of the arena and even his opponent, Tony Ferguson, in a jam-packed stadium at the UFC 262. This main event was Micheal Chandler vs the current lightweight champion, Charles Oliveira.

Tony Ferguson entered the match with a losing streak and was looking sloppy before the match, but it was the manner in which Dariush won was most surprising. ‘El Cucuy’ was thoroughly disciplined by the Iranian.

It is definitely one of the biggest upsets of 2021. Ferguson seemed to be a ghost of himself as he merely landed 3 blows throughout the three-round match. He now has a three-match losing streak and Dariush has moved ahead with a winning streak of seven.

Watch the highlights of Dariush vs Ferguson here-

https://youtu.be/iks1AF5ACKk

3. Charles Oliveira vs Dustin Poirier upset

Perhaps one of the biggest upsets ever, Oliveira vs Poirier was just the cherry on the cake for the underdogs this year. The fight was the main event for the recently concluded UFC 269. Poirier landed a rear-naked chokehold on Poirier and he submitted.

Charles Oliveira retained his title and his dedication and training paid off. With his two continuous wins over Conor McGregor, Poirier sure was the people’s most obvious champion, but Oliveira decided to walk over Poirier’s parade and make it his year.

“I’m the world champion,” Oliveira said in his postfight interview. “I’m the man. They talk. I do it.” Oliveira was very happy after the victory and Poirier was left in tears, as his dreams to end the year perfectly went down the gutter after the loss.

Watch the highlights of Poirier vs Oliveira-

2. Dustin Poirier vs Conor McGregor 2 upset

A victory against Poirier earlier had made McGregor very chilled and relaxed. He has had a great career but the second fight against Poirier proved to be much more than just a piece of cake.

The fight was much more difficult than McGregor expected and he was facing a guy who was hellbent on taking revenge. Poirier stuck McGregor with a low kick that broke his leg and ‘The Notorious’ was immediately knocked out and taken for treatment. This was the first Knockout that McGregor faced in his career.

McGregor had come back from retirement for this fight after two years. He also was very vocal about his appreciation for Dustin Poirier. But as soon as the match began, both the fighters were trying their best to shut out the other. The win by Poirier was one of the biggest upsets of UFC.

Watch the highlights of Poirier vs McGregor here-

1. Julianna Pena vs Amanda Nunes upset

Probably the biggest upset of the year 2021, no one expected ‘The Queen’ to lose to a competitive newbie in Julianna Pena. But expect the unexpected, and Pena is the new champion of the bantamweight division.

Almost everyone was secretly hoping to see Nunes trash Pena and get a KO, but to their greatest surprise, Pena landed a rear chokehold on Nunes to seal the deal. Pena did what she said she would do, make Nunes surrender.

Everyone was skeptical of Pena’s abilities and experience, and if it was enough to defeat the undefeated champion of the women’s UFC. Now, the undefeated champion has lost both, the un and the bantamweight division title.

Watch the highlights of Nunes vs Pena here-

Also read- Top 5 fights for Nate Diaz in 2022