Timber!

Paul Daley over Scott Smith, Strikeforce: Henderson vs Babalu

Ex-UFC welterweight Paul Daley possibly bagged himself ‘Knockout of the Year’ for the 2011 World MMA Awards, just three days after the 2010 ceremony. The brick-fisted Brit took out fellow slugger Scott Smith at 2:09 of the first in Strikeforce in December. After Daley fired off three hard left hooks, Smith attempted to answer with a straight right that was countered perfectly by a solid, swinging left; it had the American falling rigidly, face first into the canvas.

Hear No Evil

Pablo Garza, TUF 12 Finale

Aside from being all levels of awesome, Pablo Garza’s flying knee knockout of Fredson Paixao at the TUF 12 Finale produced an ungodly sound. The grim thwack Garza’s leg produced as it connected with Paixao’s face made a noise like cracking a joint of meat with a baseball bat. The ending proved once again just how explosive the UFC’s new weight classes are going to be – and in the organization’s first-ever featherweight bout. Plus it’s not all bad for the 5’6” Paixao, he still has his fantastic selection of nicknames: ‘Magical Genie’, ‘Creepy Elf’ and ‘Death Troll’.

Goldfinger

Alistair Overeem, Dynamite!! 2010

It took Alistair Overeem 19 seconds to become the most pimped-out man in MMA; knocking out former UFC upstart Todd Duffee at Dynamite!! 2010 for the Dream heavyweight strap. He adds it to his K-1 World Grand Prix belt, the most prestigious in all the land of stand-up, and the Strikeforce heavyweight title. No man has ever held so many legitimate championships at one time, a feat that reportedly entitles him to Guinness World Record status.

Are You Talking To Me?

Stefan Struve, UFC 124

Proving the power of the Internet forums and blog interviews, Sean McCorkle managed to trash-talk his way from the first bout of the UFC 119 prelims to the co-main event of UFC 124 opposite Stefan Struve. Unfortunately for McCorkle, coming out with lines aimed at the ‘Skyscraper’ like, “If I were homophobic I would be terrified of Stefan Struve,” couldn’t help him in the cage. Instead, a significantly fired up Struve ground ‘n’ pounded his way to a first-round winner’s check.

Dance Dance Revolution

Clay Guida, UFC 125

‘The Carpenter’ is known for his Duracell-powered fight style, and gaseous inter-round releases, but Guida truly dumbfounded Takanori Gomi and everyone watching in the pair’s UFC 125 fight by manically skipping side to side while his hair swung hypnotically. Perhaps he and 135lb champ Dominick Cruz, who’s actually more unceasingly active on his feet, have found a niche for a ‘UFC boxercise’ aerobic fitness DVD. It’d give Dana White a chance to revisit his pre-presidency days, too.

Big Things, Small Packages

Frankie Edgar vs. Gray Maynard, UFC 125

Great competitors though they both are, there wasn’t a great deal of excitement for the Frankie Edgar vs Gray Maynard rematch, even with a title belt. Most expected a dull wrestlefest: what fans got was an edge-of-seat five-rounder with enough ebb, flow and drama to script a Rocky finale. While a draw satisfied no one (least of all incumbent number-one contender Anthony Pettis), if the rematch is anywhere near as riveting no one will ever doubt the potential of the wrestler-on-wrestler bout again.

Karma Chameleon

Shinya Aoki, Dynamite!! 2010

You could say colorfully attired Japanese lightweight Shinya Aoki deserved the brutal knockout from kickboxer Yuichiro Nagashima’s right knee on New Year’s Eve. Aoki (a masterful grappler) gave Nagashima (a cross-dressing K-1 fighter) the slip via some dishonorable means for the K-1-rules first round of their mixed-fight matchup. Aoki drew boos for illegal double-legs, clinching for extended periods and time wasting after ridiculous flying drop kicks; all to survive until the MMA-rules second stanza. What then should have been a grappling clinic saw Aoki shoot in for a lazy takedown, take a solid knee and end up out cold on his back being cradled by the referee.

Right Leg Green, Left Hand Blue

Nick Pace, TUF 12 Finale

Few people looked more surprised than Will Campuzano when he found himself tapping to Nick Pace’s wacky reverse gogoplata-type submission at the TUF 12 Finale in December. No one seemed to realize Pace was attempting a sub when he flew his right shin over Campuzano’s neck, then reached under the throat with his right hand to make a gable grip with his left above the ankle for extra leverage. Unfortunately, as he missed weight for the UFC’s first bantamweight fight, Pace’s ‘Pace Choke’ was overlooked for ‘Submission of the Night’.

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