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In the world of the UFC, throwing a highlight-reel strike is always risky business. If it pays off, it can make a fighter look incredible – but if it goes wrong, it can make them look more than a little silly.
Over the years, we’ve seen countless numbers of highlight-reel strikes end fights in the UFC, but we’ve also seen attempts at them lead directly to a fighter’s downfall.
With that in mind, here are five times when highlight-reel strikes worked perfectly in the UFC – and five times when they backfired.
#5. Superman punch – Travis Browne vs. Stefan Struve – UFC 130
Largely popularized by former UFC welterweight champion Georges St-Pierre, when it lands, the superman punch can look like one of the most devastating strikes in MMA. However, over the years, it hasn’t actually led to that many knockouts.
Perhaps the best use of the strike, then, came in 2011’s heavyweight bout between Travis Browne and Stefan Struve. Coming into the fight, many fans questioned exactly how Browne – who stood at 6’7” – would deal with being the shorter man for once against the 7-foot ‘Skyscraper’, but it didn’t take him long to show them.
After a back-and-forth first round that saw Struve come relatively close with an anaconda choke, Browne was able to force the action back to the feet. Out of nowhere, he flew through the air with a brutal superman punch that bent the Dutchman backwards.
Struve was knocked silly by the shot and collapsed to the ground, and ‘Hapa’ didn’t even need to follow the shot up, as it was clear that ‘Skyscraper’ was more than done.
This remains an example of a highlight-reel strike that worked perfectly, as Browne needed to find a way to reach Struve’s chin, and picked the perfect shot to do so, earning himself the best KO of his career.
#4. Flying knee – James Irvin vs. Terry Martin – UFC 54
The flying knee is arguably one of the more common highlight-reel strikes utilized in the octagon, with at least one or two versions of the strike-ending fights seemingly every year. However, some flying knees simply resonate more than others, and one such example was James Irvin’s in his 2005 bout with Terry Martin.
‘The Sandman’ had come into the fight with his back to the wall after losing his UFC debut to Mike Kyle, but in his first bout at 205lbs, he was clearly struggling with the wrestling of Martin. The first round saw Irvin blanketed, and it looked like he was on his way to another defeat.
However, recognizing the need to change things up quickly, Irvin came into the second round with a look of determination on his face. As Martin came forward to dive in for another takedown, ‘The Sandman’ leapt through the air and caught him flush with a flying knee to the head.
Martin was knocked unconscious immediately, his body falling to the mat like he’d been shot, and Irvin didn’t even attempt to follow up. There was simply no need.
The victory gave ‘The Sandman’ a massive amount of hype, and while he didn’t really live up to the promise he showed with this win, it remains one of the UFC’s all-time great highlight-reel moments.
#3. Spinning backfist – Shonie Carter vs. Matt Serra – UFC 31
Over the years, we’ve seen a number of spinning backfist knockouts in the octagon, but the one that still stands out the most is the original, which was delivered way back in 2001 to future UFC welterweight champion Matt Serra by Shonie Carter.
The strike became so famous, in fact, that it largely defined the MMA career of ‘Mr International’, despite him participating in nearly 100 professional fights between 1997 and 2017.
Incredibly, the fight actually saw Carter catch ‘The Terror’ with not just one spinning backfist, but two. The first round of the bout saw ‘Mr International’ deck Serra with the strike after faking a kick, but the native of Long Island was able to recover well.
However, when Carter used the same strike again, right as Serra was lunging in for a takedown in the third round, ‘The Terror’ went down and was clearly unable to get back up, forcing the referee to step in.
The strike instantly put Carter’s name into the UFC’s history books, particularly as it took almost another decade before the spinning backfist produced another KO in the octagon. Incredibly, prior to that, the fighter who came the closest was ‘Mr International’ himself, in a rematch with Serra during the fourth season of The Ultimate Fighter!
#2. Spinning wheel kick – Edson Barboza vs. Terry Etim – UFC 142
When the UFC emerged in the early 1990s, the legitimate bouts that the promotion produced instantly meant that the kind of fights seen in movies starring the likes of Jean-Claude Van Damme looked unrealistic.
The fights seen in the octagon never saw the use of the kind of wild strikes that fans had seen in those movies, and it became a common belief that strikes like spinning wheel kicks simply didn’t work in real-life bouts.
However, those beliefs began to change as the caliber of athletes competing in the UFC improved over time, and by 2012, the spinning wheel kick had become a more commonly used strike, even if it didn’t tend to finish fights.
Lightweight star Edson Barboza, though, used the strike against Terry Etim in a way that not only knocked him out but left the British fighter completely discombobulated, looking as stiff as a corpse in a truly scary moment.
Their bout had moved into the third round and while it looked like ‘Junior’ was on his way to victory, it didn’t look like he’d be able to secure a finish. That was until he unleashed a spinning wheel kick from nowhere, catching Etim cleanly on the head and separating him from his consciousness immediately.
To say that viewers were blown away would be an understatement, and suddenly, there was no doubting the effectiveness of a Van Damme-style spinning wheel kick in the octagon any longer.
#1. Upwards elbow – Yair Rodriguez vs. Chan Sung Jung – UFC Fight Night 139
Yair Rodriguez, who faces off with Brian Ortega this weekend in one of the most intriguing featherweight bouts in a long time, has always been known as somewhat of an innovator inside the octagon.
However, few fans would've expected the highlight-reel strike he used to devastating effect in his 2018 clash with Chan Sung Jung, particularly as it had never been seen in the UFC before.
Not only this, but the strike – an upward elbow thrown as Rodriguez bent over at the waist – came in the final second of the fifth round of the bout, making it the joint-latest finish in the history of the promotion.
Prior to the shot, ‘El Pantera’ was arguably behind ‘The Korean Zombie’ on the scorecards after an epic brawl that saw Jung just about landing the better strikes. Clearly, Rodriguez must’ve realized this too – because as the clash approached its dying moments, he decided to throw caution to the wind.
As Jung closed in with a swarm of strikes, Rodriguez ducked down, threw his elbow, and connected firmly with the Korean’s jaw. Jung collapsed to the ground immediately, and just as the buzzer sounded, the referee waved off the bout.
The knockout remains arguably the most dramatic finish in UFC history, and it’s hardly a surprise that it is still seen as Rodriguez’s signature moment nearly four years later.
With a look at the highlight-reel strikes that worked perfectly out of the way, here are five attempted highlight-reel strikes that backfired badly on the fighters who threw them.
#5. Spinning backfist – Chael Sonnen vs. Anderson Silva – UFC 148
When a spinning backfist works perfectly, as it did for Shonie Carter against Matt Serra, it can produce a highlight reel for the ages. However, it’s safe to say that the strike is an inherently risky one to throw, primarily because it involves a fighter turning their back on their opponent for a split-second.
Chael Sonnen found that out the hard way in his UFC middleweight title rematch with Anderson Silva in 2012, and ended up producing a moment so iconic that it was even copied by WWE superstars CM Punk and Daniel Bryan shortly afterwards.
After winning the first round of the clash with his wrestling skills, ‘The American Gangster’ was confident coming into the second stanza and seemed more aggressive on the feet.
He closed the distance on Silva, backing him into the fence – but then threw an ill-timed spinning backfist that ‘The Spider’ easily dodged. The momentum of the missed strike caused Sonnen to stumble, and when he fell to the ground, it produced the opening Silva had been looking for.
‘The Spider’ drilled Sonnen in the chest with a brutal knee strike, and then swarmed him with a follow-up flurry, forcing referee Yves Lavigne to step in and save the challenger.
The sudden ending to the bout meant that it lacked the crazy drama of Silva and Sonnen’s first meeting, but it was no less memorable, largely due to Sonnen’s attempted highlight-reel strike going so badly.
#4. Jumping knee – Frank Mir vs. Brock Lesnar – UFC 100
Frank Mir’s heavyweight title unification rematch with Brock Lesnar in the headliner of UFC 100 was arguably the biggest fight the promotion had ever put together at that point, and so it made sense that Mir was looking for a highlight-reel finish.
He’d pulled one off in his first fight with the former WWE star, after all, forcing him to submit with a kneebar in the first round. This time, though, Lesnar was more seasoned and less reckless, and took the first round by planting Mir on his back and hammering him with a series of thudding punches.
Mir knew that he needed to switch things up in the second, and so after escaping an early takedown, he attacked with strikes, stunning Lesnar with a knee. He could’ve continued to unload with punches, but instead, he decided to attempt a jumping knee, and indeed, the strike landed flush on the jaw of ‘The Beast Incarnate’.
However, in doing so, Lesnar was able to grab hold of him, dumping him to the ground again. This time, there would be no escape for Mir, as he found himself stuck against the fence, eating brutal shots until referee Herb Dean was forced to step in.
Would Mir have won this bout had he not attempted the jumping knee? In all honesty, it was unlikely, as Lesnar had already taken the first round impressively – but the risk certainly didn’t pay off for Mir, and given the chance to re-do the fight, he’d probably avoid throwing it in the first place.
#3. Spinning back elbow – Dong Hyun Kim vs. Tyron Woodley – UFC Fight Night 48
In his early days with the UFC, Dong Hyun Kim gained a reputation as an effective but a somewhat dull fighter who tended to grind out his opponents over the distance. The reputation was probably the one thing keeping him from true welterweight title contention, and so in 2013, ‘Stun Gun’ changed things up.
The Korean began to take a far more reckless approach in his fights, and a wild knockout of Erick Silva in one of 2013’s best fights endeared him to the fans more than ever before. When he followed that win with a spinning elbow knockout of John Hathaway, it was hard not to get excited.
Unfortunately, Kim appeared to have bought into his reckless side a little too much for his own good. In his next fight – a top contender’s clash with Tyron Woodley – ‘Stun Gun’ came out more aggressively than ever before, and as the fight approached the minute mark, he decided to throw the same spinning elbow he’d used to stop Hathaway.
This time, though, Woodley was prepared for it. As Kim was in mid-spin, ‘The Chosen One’ countered with a crushing right hand behind the ear that separated the Korean from his equilibrium, sending him crashing down.
Before he could recover, Woodley was on him, and a couple more shots forced Leon Roberts to stop the fight. The defeat snapped Kim’s four-fight win streak, and knocked him straight out of title contention in the process – proving that ‘Stun Gun’ had simply taken one risk too many.
#2. Spinning wheel kick – Chris Weidman vs. Luke Rockhold – UFC 194
When Chris Weidman defended his UFC middleweight title against Luke Rockhold in December 2015, it felt like one of those fights where anything could happen. The one thing that nobody really expected was for Weidman to lose the fight after throwing a risky, low-percentage strike – something he’d never really done throughout his career.
Despite Rockhold’s lofty reputation, in the early going, it looked like the former Strikeforce champ was out of his depth against ‘The All-American’. Weidman bullied him around during the first round, outworking him in the clinch and taking him down more than once, too.
The second round was closer, with Rockhold landing some good shots of his own, and in the third, as the challenger began to land the cleaner blows again, Weidman decided to risk it all. He threw a spinning wheel kick that missed by miles and allowed Rockhold to tackle him to the ground, taking full mount in the process.
From there, the fight was essentially over. Rockhold beat the champion senseless for the remainder of the round, and the fight could easily have been stopped there – but instead, it went into the fourth round, where the challenger quickly took the badly hurt Weidman down and abused him until the bout was mercifully halted.
Quite how the fight would’ve gone had Weidman not thrown the risky strike remains a major question mark – but it’s probably fair to say that had he not attempted it, he would’ve stood a far better chance of retaining his title.
#1. Flying knee – Cat Zingano vs. Ronda Rousey – UFC 184
During the weigh-ins for her bout with Ronda Rousey for the UFC bantamweight title in early 2015, Cat Zingano uttered one memorable line, telling the fans to “watch this”. The line proved to be prophetic, but not in the way that ‘Alpha’ would’ve hoped.
Clearly too pumped up for her own good, Zingano seemed so desperate to take the fight to the dominant champion Rousey that she was chomping at the bit to fly out of her corner during the introductions.
Sure enough, as soon as the fight began, she charged across the octagon, and launched herself at ‘Rowdy’ in a flying knee attempt.
The strike landed, but only with a glance – and it was all the opening that Rousey needed. She clinched with Zingano, threw her onto her head, and transitioned directly into an armbar that forced the challenger to tap out.
The whole fight lasted just 14 seconds, and after it was over, Zingano appeared to be so crushed that it was hard to imagine her career ever bouncing back.
Indeed, she won just one more fight in the octagon before departing the promotion in 2019, and whether things would’ve been different had she not thrown such a reckless strike in her clash with Rousey is something to be debated to this day.
