TWIST MY ARM WILL YOU?

Joe Lauzon, UFC Live 4: Kongo vs Barry

Never thought a kimura could look as though it had wrenched a man’s shoulder entirely over itself? Then you didn’t see UFC lightweight Joe Lauzon almost twist Brit Curt Warburton’s arm more or less off his torso at UFC Live 4. After dropping and then swarming Warburton with strikes in the first round, Lauzon grabbed the Wolfslair fighter’s arm, threw him into his guard then cranked the limb up to 11. Warburton looked in significant pain after tapping to the hold – the full extension of which isn’t shown here. Ouch.

SURPRISE

Tito Ortiz, UFC 132

Wow. No really, wow. A man doesn’t win a fight in nearly five years then submits a top-10 light heavyweight prospect who was supposed to have the fight all but won. Seeing Tito Ortiz thrust his imaginary shovel into the invisible Octagon dirt at UFC 132, as he performed his famous-again gravedigger victory routine after he guillotined Ryan Bader, was just like old times. Everyone expected Tito Ortiz to be reading off a crumpled note full of retirement thank yous post fight, not cashing his win bonus. Upsets aren’t the exclusive domain of young guns, kids.

BEST SHOWBOATING

Michael Johnson, UFC Live 4: Kongo vs Barry

Not since Rashad Evans’ UFC 88 mock heart attack after knocking out Chuck Liddell in 2008 has the Octagon seen the kind of post-fight bravado displayed by Michael Johnson at UFC Live 4. After TKO’ing the vowel-endowed Edward Faaloloto at 4:42 of the first, the TUF 12 runner-up dropped his arms by his sides and swaggered out a low strut across the Octagon before throwing a pose to finish. While it might not have been the most respectful thing to do it looked more than a little slick.

SWING FOR THE FENCES

Cheick Kongo, UFC Live 4: Kongo vs Barry

You couldn’t come closer to losing than Cheick Kongo did at UFC Live 4. Dropped a generous handful of times by a relentless Pat Barry, Kongo’s final stand saw him land a heavy right, while in retreat, followed by a full-power uppercut which folded Barry onto the Octagon canvas for one of the sport’s most unlikely comebacks ever. While the FO office couldn’t agree whether the Kongo-Barry rollercoaster bested the famous Scott Smith ‘Hail Mary’ KO over Pete Sell (which he threw while doubled over in pain) at the TUF 4 Finale in 2006, this one has a legitimate shot at the 2011 World MMA Awards for ‘Knockout of the Year’.

KICK TO DE LIVER!

Tatsuya Mizuno, Dream Japan GP Final

OK, it was more knee than kick, but a fighter crumbling to the canvas after forceful leg-on-liver contact will always bring to mind former Pride and Dream commentator Bas Rutten’s much-quoted line. Japanese light heavyweight Tatsuya Mizuno would have made the UFC and Pancrase veteran proud at July’s Dream event when he threw an explosive knee (one of many prior) to Trevor Prangley’s torso. The strike buckled the South African to the canvas and kept him there, giving Mizuno a knockout victory at 4:41 of the first round. Rarer than a Chris Leben takedown, body-strike finishes are to be savored.

BIEBER FEVER

Justin Bieber, UFC 132

You know that sinking feeling when your younger sibling picks up your favorite band’s CD and declares a passion for it? Did you feel it again when you spied 17-year-old pop singer Justin Bieber sitting Octagon-side with Dana White at UFC 132? Thought so. But you can’t under-estimate Bieber power, whose father is a full-blown legit MMA fan. He can both make young girls cry at a flash of his dimples, and crash UFC president Dana White’s BlackBerry. A Bieber-nator tweet about his UFC 132 seats next to DW sent so much traffic to White’s Twitter account his phone tapped out. In all seriousness, if Bieber can do that with one tweet, who knows what his UFC interest could do for MMA’s popularity?

ALL THAT’S GOLD DOES NOT GLITTER

Ronnie Mann and Pat Curran, Bellator 46

One day before the highly dramatic UFC Live 4, the smaller scale featherweight tournament at Bellator 46 in Florida produced more-than-equal goods in fine style. If a crushing knockout from British featherweight hope Ronnie Mann wasn’t enough, Pat Curran’s ironic submission finish surely was. Mann let rip a sweet right-uppercut, left-hook combo then ground ‘n’ pound finish to switch off Adam Schindler’s lights, while main eventer Curran scored a rare Peruvian neck-tie tapout over Peruvian national Luis Palomino. Bellator’s warriors don’t always get the big-league dollar, but they more than get the job done.

HARSHEST BEATDOWN

Gegard Mousasi, Dream Japan GP Final

Former FO World MMA Awards ‘European Fighter of the Year’ Gegard Mousasi might be able to find competitive opponents on US shores in Keith Jardine and ‘King Mo’ Lawal, but not so in Japan. At Dream’s Japan GP Final in July, the 31-3-2 all-rounder Mousasi was provided with the 4-1 Olympic silver medalist judoka Hiroshi Izumi. The Dutch-Armenian easily handled the soft-wasted Izumi, managing to break Izumi’s nose and knock out his false teeth in just three-and-a-half minutes of a one-sided TKO win. Add that to two 2010 Dream first-round finishes and ‘The Armenian Assassin’ might be needing some higher-quality Japan fodder.

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