'%20x='0'%20y='0'%20height='100%25'%20width='100%25'%20%0A%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20xlink%3Ahref='data:image/jpg;base64,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'%3E%3C/image%3E%3C/svg%3E)
#2. Israel Adesanya – vs. Rob Wilkinson, UFC 221
On a handful of occasions, it quickly becomes clear that a UFC debutant is destined for greatness. And when that happens, the crowd in attendance for said debuts tend to realize too, and immediately treat the fighter like a megastar.
Trending
That’s exactly what happened to Israel Adesanya at UFC 221 in February 2018. ‘The Last Stylebender’ came into the UFC with a reputation as one of the flashiest middleweight strikers, but few people could’ve predicted quite how good he’d look.
Get the latest updates on One Championship Rankings at Sportskeeda and more
Sure, his opponent Rob Wilkinson was thoroughly overmatched and had never won in the UFC before, but to see Adesanya simply cut through him like a knife through butter was still remarkably impressive.
And when ‘The Last Stylebender’ cut a wild promo after the fight, proclaiming himself the new big dog in the UFC’s middleweight division, it was clear to everyone watching, and everyone in attendance at the Perth Arena, that a star had been born.
Unsurprisingly, Adesanya never looked back after his debut win, and less than two years later, he unseated Robert Whittaker for the UFC middleweight title. The rest, naturally, is history.
#1. Conor McGregor – vs. Marcus Brimage, UFC on Fuel: Mousasi vs. Latifi
While plenty of future UFC champions made their octagon debuts in preliminary bouts, few were able to turn themselves into a star with their first performance quite like Conor McGregor.
Few people outside of hardcore fans had heard of ‘The Notorious’ Irishman when he was signed by the UFC to face veteran Marcus Brimage on the undercard of March 2013’s Mousasi vs. Latifi card. That all changed very quickly.
Interest levels were ramped up when McGregor taunted Brimage during the weigh-in, but things quickly went ballistic when he took just over a minute to knock the TUF veteran out with a series of pinpoint punches.
The crowd in attendance at Stockholm’s Ericsson Globe Arena immediately went crazy for McGregor, who only cemented himself further as a star when he cut a charismatic post-fight promo, demanding “50 G’s” from UFC President Dana White.
Unsurprisingly, White obliged – awarding McGregor the bonus for the Knockout of the Night – and from there, the Irishman saw his stardom quickly rise to the point that two years later, he was arguably the biggest name in the UFC.
