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2023 was undoubtedly an excellent year for the UFC, and one of the best things about it was the number of brutal knockouts produced.
Interestingly, 2023 also saw the UFC’s fighters unleash some seriously quick knockouts, with some taking seconds to dispatch their foes. Sure, nobody pulled off one to rival Jorge Masvidal’s rapid finish of Ben Askren in 2019, but a few came close.
Here are the five fastest UFC knockouts of 2023.
#5. Jim Miller vs. Jesse Butler – UFC on ESPN 46 (23 seconds)
In his prime, Jim Miller was best known for his slick grappling skills. In fact, the native of New Jersey is tied with Demian Maia for the second-most submission wins in UFC history, behind only the great Charles Oliveira.
However, as his career has gone on, Miller’s striking has become arguably more dangerous than his grappling, and in fact, three of his last four wins have come via KO.
Perhaps his best knockout came in June 2023, though, as he starched late-notice foe Jesse Butler in just 23 seconds. Not only was this the fastest knockout of his career – and one of the fastest of the year – but it also allowed him to extend his record of wins in the octagon to 25.
The fight saw Butler, probably knowing his gas tank wasn’t overly deep, swinging heavy early on. However, he failed to connect, and Miller instead landed a left hand that dropped the debutant.
Butler collapsed to the ground in a heap, and an additional uppercut from Miller was simply academic.
Quite how much longer the veteran can keep ticking remains to be seen, but while he’s capable of scoring knockouts like this, there’s no doubt that he still deserves his spot on the lightweight roster.
#4. Denise Gomes vs. Yazmin Jauregui – UFC 290 (20 seconds)
Incredibly, UFC 290, which took place in July, featured four under-one-minute knockouts.
Two qualify for this list, and the slower of the two, which saw Denise Gomes take out the favoured Yazmin Jauregui, still only took 20 seconds.
Coming into the bout, Mexico’s Jauregui not only boasted a 10-0 record, but also held two victories inside the octagon, too. Gomes, on the other hand, had gone 1-1 since her promotional debut.
Despite this, Gomes wasted no time as the fight began, hurting Jauregui with a pair of right hands that dropped her to the ground.
The Mexican attempted to recover, but Gomes kept on coming with her strikes, dropped her again, and then followed up with some nasty strikes that forced ref Jason Herzog to step in.
Sure, it’s arguable that the ending flurry was a little sloppy, but that didn’t really matter. Gomes had still scored a rapid knockout, breaking the record for the fastest finish in strawweight history, and she also deservedly earned herself a $50k bonus, too.
#3. Terrance McKinney vs. Brendan Marotte – UFC Fight Night 230 (20 seconds)
Lightweight contender Terrance McKinney had a mixed 2023, winning two fights but also losing two as well. ‘T. Wrecks’ was also on the wrong end of one of the best knockouts of the year, when Ismael Bonfim turned out his lights with a beautiful flying knee in January.
However, it’s arguable that McKinney made up for that by scoring the third-fastest knockout of the year in October. Featuring on one of the year’s least-anticipated Fight Night events, ‘T. Wrecks’ stole the show in devastating fashion.
Initially booked to face Chris Duncan, McKinney instead found himself faced with newcomer Brendan Marotte, who took the bout on just five days’ notice.
Evidently, ‘T. Wrecks’ didn’t want to leave anything to chance. Channeling Bonfim, he came shooting out of the blocks with a clean knee to the head, dropping Marotte to the ground.
From there, before the newcomer could recover, McKinney pounced on him and quickly put him away with a series of violent punches.
Remarkably, the win somehow didn’t earn ‘T. Wrecks’ a $50k performance bonus, a decision that felt bizarre given his win was one of just three KO finishes on the 11-fight card.
However, it meant that McKinney ended 2023 with a bang, and he’ll look to follow that up in 2024.
#2. Jesus Aguilar vs. Shannon Ross – UFC 290 (17 seconds)
The afore-mentioned UFC 290 saw four bouts end via knockout in under a minute, but the fastest finish of the night was produced by Jesus Aguilar in the event’s second fight.
The Mexican flyweight was probably fighting for his octagon career, as he’d lost his promotional debut earlier in the year in one-sided fashion. Facing another fighter coming off a loss in Australia’s Shannon Ross, it was clear that neither man could afford to fight conservatively.
Sure enough, the two men exchanged kicks before Aguilar nailed Ross with a massive overhand right, turning his lights out instantly. In a scary scene, Ross’s head bounced off the canvas as he hit the deck, and thankfully, Aguilar knew that he didn’t need to follow with any additional strikes.
The event turned out to be one of the best of the year, with a number of memorable moments, but the fact that Aguilar wasn’t given an official performance bonus was baffling.
Still, for him to finish things in just 17 seconds was definitely enough to make it a very good night for him.
#1. Bryan Battle vs. Gabe Green – UFC on ABC 4 (14 seconds)
The fastest knockout of 2023 was produced by TUF 29 champion Bryan Battle. He stole the show during the UFC’s May visit to Charlotte, North Carolina, by dispatching Gabe Green in just 14 seconds, extending his octagon record to 4-1.
Interestingly, Battle was rewarded for his efforts with a $50k bonus despite missing the welterweight cut-off for the bout, instead coming in three pounds heavy.
Usually, the promotion refuses to award bonuses to fighters who miss weight, meaning that Battle must’ve impressed Dana White and company in unheard-of fashion.
If that was the case, it was hardly surprising given the quality of the knockout he produced.
Green actually came out on the attack in the opening seconds, but Battle stayed calm, protected himself, and then countered with a picture-perfect right hand that instantly short-circuited his foe.
Green fell to the ground, and Battle’s follow-up shots were entirely unnecessary as referee Wayne Spinola was already on his way to dive in.
This was a pretty amazing knockout to end what was a wild fight, and to make things even better for Battle, he’d produced it in front of his hometown fans, too.
