Author: Bill Jackson

2011 MMA Wrap-Up: Top 10 Submissions of the Year

As fighters continue to evolve in this sport, you see less and less submission wins at the elite level of MMA. Everyone knows how to defend the classic submissions we have grown accustomed to witnessing over the years; avoiding them has become the stan…

As fighters continue to evolve in this sport, you see less and less submission wins at the elite level of MMA. Everyone knows how to defend the classic submissions we have grown accustomed to witnessing over the years; avoiding them has become the standard.

It seems like when a fighter is forced to tap to a submission, he receives more criticism for letting it happen than his opponent receives praise for applying the technique.

While the submissions may be less frequent in this knowledgeable new age of MMA, when they do happen, they are spectacular.

For me, submitting an opponent when they are rocked is one thing. Submitting your foe solely with craft and patience is another. When it happens, it can be mesmerizing.

Here are the top 10 submissions that stick out in my mind from 2011.

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2011 MMA Wrap-Up: Top 10 Knockouts of the Year

Just a couple of years ago, compiling a list like this one was a much more simple process. When a devastating knockout took place, it stuck in the minds of fans and stayed there.These days, it seems like something spectacularly brutal happens every wee…

Just a couple of years ago, compiling a list like this one was a much more simple process. When a devastating knockout took place, it stuck in the minds of fans and stayed there.

These days, it seems like something spectacularly brutal happens every weekend, only to get buried under more violence seven days later.

Of course, more televised fights is never a reason to complain, but it’s hard not to get jaded by seeing a steady stream of hard trauma and forget how devastating these blows really are. Many times one hit is all it takes to drastically change a fighter’s whole career.

There was a long list of eye-catching knockouts this year—and there’s still one UFC event to take place before 2012—but these 10 stick out in my mind as the best of 2011.

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UFC 136: A Look Back at the TUF 5 All-Stars

For me, The Ultimate Fighter season five was the best season the show ever put out.It was stacked with legitimate prospects, entertaining personalities, two very entertaining coaches—Jens Pulver and B.J. Penn, who actually fought at the season fi…

For me, The Ultimate Fighter season five was the best season the show ever put out.

It was stacked with legitimate prospects, entertaining personalities, two very entertaining coaches—Jens Pulver and B.J. Penn, who actually fought at the season finale—and it took place right after the UFC brought back the 155-pound division.

Penn would go on to become the division’s champion after besting Pulver.

A testament to how good the season was is the contestants’ success after the show. And with two of them fighting this Saturday at UFC 136, it seems like a good time to take a look at the best of the bunch from season five.

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UFC 136: The 5 Most Pivotal Rematches in UFC History

Considering how many talented and eye-catching lightweight contenders there are in the UFC, the highly-anticipated third fight between lightweight champion Frankie Edgar and proven No. 1 contender Gray Maynard couldn’t come soon enough.Edgar and Maynar…

Considering how many talented and eye-catching lightweight contenders there are in the UFC, the highly-anticipated third fight between lightweight champion Frankie Edgar and proven No. 1 contender Gray Maynard couldn’t come soon enough.

Edgar and Maynard fought to a draw in one of the best fights of the year, ironically on the first day of the year. Since then, the lightweight division has been gridlocked. For the top-10 at 155-pounds, the division is about to change; a new challenger will be needed.

Whether Edgar and Maynard meet for a fourth time or not, it will not be any time in the near future. The UFC needs some fresh new matchups at lightweight, and there will be no shortage of those.

But, with such a meaningful rematch approaching that will change the look of the division for the foreseeable future, I find myself reflecting on previous rematches that had a similar effect. Fights that represented a fork in the road and created a new era.

If Edgar wins, he will have defended his title three time against the hardest competition after winning it in one of the biggest upsets of all time.

If Maynard takes it, the UFC will have a new champion and one that made his UFC debut on the reality show The Ultimate Fighter.

It should be a fight to remember and could easily be included in this list some time down the road. But for now, here are the five most pivotal rematches in UFC history, prior to Saturday night.

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