Make your pick for the 2018’s best fight in Bloody Elbow’s Year-End Awards.
It’s back!
Over the next few days, Bloody Elbow is going to ask for your opinion on some of the best things that have happened in the MMA world over the course of 2018. There will be a total of eight different categories you’ll be asked to vote on. For the sake of simplicity we’re going to stick with high-level and relevant MMA stuff in these posts. While I’m sure there was a ludicrous knockout in an unscheduled MMA event at The Lumberyard strip club in Des Moines, or an insane pancreas lock submission on an obscure ZST! card in Japan, let’s just stick to stuff a lot of us have seen, okay? (If that spiel looked familiar, it’s because I’ve used the same one for eight years in a row. Originality? What originality?)
It’s pretty simple. I’ll post 5-10 options in a category, you vote for what you think was the best. If you think I left something really important off my list, post it in the comments and we can add it to the poll if it’s deemed worthy. I can almost guarantee you won’t like all my suggestions, but narrowing down these lists is tough.
Now that we’ve got that out of the way, let’s get onto the eighth and final poll – the best fight of the year. MMA fans were lucky to see so many great fights in 2017, and here are the ten I thought rose above the rest.
Before that though, if you haven’t yet, go back and vote on the first two categories – Best Submission, Biggest Robbery, Biggest Upset, Newcomer of the Year, Event of the Year, and Best Fighter.
Yair Rodriguez vs. Chan Sung Jung, UFC Denver
The fight with possibly the greatest ending in UFC history. The Korean Zombie was literally a second away from victory in a five-round war – and then he was asleep, courtesy of a crazy Yair elbow.
Yoel Romero vs. Robert Whittaker 2, UFC 225
Bobby Knuckles managed to do it again. Despite being badly hurt for probably half the fight, Whittaker showed off some crazy perseverance in grinding out a split decision victory to keep his middleweight title.
Thiago Santos vs. Jimi Manuwa, UFC 231
What a back-and-forth war. The first round was one of the best of the year, before Santos dusted Manuwa early in the second.
Zabit Magomedsharipov vs. Kyle Bochniak, UFC 223
This one was one-sided, but featured some great grit and action. Bochniak never took a step back, and Zabit showed off an impressive array of techniques. Bochniak made the final horn, but the victory went to his opponent.
Jacare Souza vs. Chris Weidman, UFC 230
A slugfest isn’t exactly what people expected out of this one. Weidman hurt Jacare multiple times over the first two and a half rounds, but Jacare rebounded and flattened Weidman with a huge shot. Some horrible reffing overshadowed the finish, but Jacare did take home the thrilling W.
Max Holloway vs. Brian Ortega, UFC 231
Ortega got beaten badly, but man, what a fight. Holloway looked as crisp as ever despite a long layoff, and Ortega had his moments in the second and third rounds. Holloway got down to business in the fourth though, taking it to Ortega and bloodying him up so badly that he couldn’t answer the bell for the fifth round.
Dustin Poirier vs. Justin Gaethje, UFC on Fox 29
It’s a Justin Gaethje fight. You know what to expect. Same goes for Poirier. The two men spent 15 full minutes beating the holy hell out of each other, with each feeling the effects at different times. Poirier stood tall in the fourth though, putting Gaethje on the chicken legs and eventually finishing him in the first minute.
Tony Ferguson vs. Anthony Pettis, UFC 229
If only an injury didn’t rob us of the final stanza. The first round was a hell of a war, but the second is where it got truly crazy. Pettis had El Cucuy badly hurt twice, but that didn’t stop either man from busting out flashy moves. Oh, and there was a boatload of blood. Unfortunately Pettis badly broke his hand and his corner rightfully stopped it, giving Ferguson the win.
Douglas Lima vs. Rory MacDonald, Bellator 192
By far the best Bellator fight of the year, and five rounds of attrition. MacDonald got off to the quick start. Lima evened it up going into the final round. Both men were beaten down. But Rory showed off his well-rounded skills by planting Lima on his back for the whole fifth, taking the win and keeping his title.
Eddie Alvarez vs. Dustin Poirier 2, UFC on Fox 30
The first bout was action-packed. The second one might have managed to top it, only due to Eddie’s indomitable will to survive. While Alvarez had his moments, Poirier had far more of them and had his opponent badly hurt for a long time in the second round. Alvarez was seemingly out on his feet for what felt like forever, but he continued to fight and stay in it. Eventually Poirier overwhelmed him and took the win, but it was quite a sight to behold.