5 UFC fights from 2021 that deserved more attention

#2. Drew Dober vs. Brad Riddell – UFC 263

Drew Dober and Brad Riddell went to war in one of 2021's most underrated fights at UFC 263

UFC 263 turned out to be one of 2021’s more memorable cards, featuring a main event between UFC middleweight champion Israel Adesanya and Marvin Vettori, an incredible UFC flyweight title bout and the big return of Nate Diaz.

All of that meant that one of 2021’s better fights went overlooked on the prelim card, as lightweights Brad Riddell and Drew Dober threw down in an exciting clash that went the distance.

There were always high hopes for this fight coming in, as Dober had been responsible for a number of the UFC’s wilder fights in recent years. Meanwhile, Riddell was coming off a trio of impressive wins using his nasty kickboxing game.

Despite Dober hurting Riddell early in the first round with his heavy hands, it would be ‘Quake’ who came out on top here, largely beating Dober to the punch with his superior technique. The native of New Zealand even landed some takedowns at points.

Of course, Dober was never fully out of the fight, as he continued to fire back at Riddell for all three rounds, making this bout a wildly exciting brawl.

Despite UFC 263 being such a stacked card, the two lightweights were rewarded for their efforts with the Fight of the Night bonus, even if their bout ended up being overlooked due to the crazy bouts later in the event.

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#1. Merab Dvalishvili vs. Marlon Moraes – UFC 266

Merab Dvalishvili's war with Marlon Moraes was a genuine classic UFC bout

UFC 266 was probably responsible for the best UFC fight of 2021 overall, as UFC featherweight champion Alexander Volkanovski and top contender Brian Ortega put on a five-round war that was instantly recognized as a classic.

However, despite also featuring incredible bouts involving the likes of Valentina Shevchenko and Nick Diaz, the fight that deserved more attention than it got was undoubtedly the bantamweight clash between Merab Dvalishvili and Marlon Moraes.

There was a lot at stake in the bout. Dvalishvili was looking to take the final step to the elite level at 135 pounds, while Moraes had his back to the wall after suffering two losses in a row.

Early on, it looked like ‘Magic’ would be able to get back on track. He took the fight to his Georgian opponent by dropping him with a brutal combination that looked to have him done. Somehow, ‘The Machine’ was able to survive, but when Moraes hurt him again, it looked only a matter of time before the fight would be stopped.

Incredibly, though, Dvalishvili was able to secure a takedown. From there, despite suffering serious damage, he turned the table and landed a series of bombs that hurt Moraes, allowing him to end the round on top.

The second round saw Dvalishvili pick up where he left off. After he was able to secure another takedown, he simply beat the hell out of Moraes until referee Keith Peterson had no option but to stop the fight.

The performance earned Dvalishvili a $50k bonus and a spot in the bantamweight top 10. Due to the incredible action that followed later at UFC 266, this classic bout was quickly and unfairly forgotten.