5 UFC fights that were finished in the first round

One of the biggest attractions in the sport of Mixed Martial Arts is that of a knockout or a submission. The unbridled adrenaline rush that a stoppage victory brings to the viewers, is often times one of the best things about combat sports.

With the UFC being the world's premier MMA promotion, we as fans often see elite fighters engage in high-level combat, only for one combatant to viciously stop another either with a KO/TKO or by making them submit. On that note, if said stoppage victory comes in the very first round of the fight, it's generally considered to be the cherry on top, so to speak.

Ergo, debates and discussions about UFC fights that ended in the very first round, have always been a hot topic in the MMA community. Today, we take a special look at a few UFC fights that ended in the first round...

#5 Daniel Cormier vs Stipe Miocic

Daniel Cormier went into his fight against Stipe Miocic as the betting underdog. The former held the UFC Light Heavyweight Title, whereas the latter possessed the UFC Heavyweight Championship. The vast majority of combat sports fans and experts believed that Miocic would have a huge advantage in the striking department over DC.

Well, the fight went way different than what most of us had expected, as Miocic ended up briefly out-grappling Cormier, and the latter ended the fight via strikes in Round 1. During their brief bout at UFC 226, both Cormier and Miocic caught each other with several decent strikes.

Nevertheless, during a clinch exchange in the middle of the Octagon, Cormier masterfully had the under-hook to his foe. And with Miocic primarily focused on the grappling realm at that moment, Cormier sneaked in a huge overhand right on the Heavyweight Champion's chin.

A few follow-up punches later, Cormier was the new UFC Heavyweight Champion as well as the Light-Heavyweight titlist, becoming only the second man after Conor McGregor to simultaneously hold two UFC belts in different weight classes at the same time...

#4 Anthony Johnson vs Glover Teixeira

Rumble was a terrifying individual in the UFC

Anthony Johnson is regarded by many as one of the most terrifying athletes to have ever graced the UFC's famed Octagon. 'Rumble' possessed KO power that would knock anyone out on a given day, irrespective of how great and technical the opponent may be.

Johnson faced then-top contender Glover Teixeira at UFC 202 in 2016, and most fighters expected the latter to take this fight to the mat at the earliest and submit the former. Nevertheless, Johnson made sure the fight didn't get out the first minute, let alone the first round, catching his Brazilian foe with a picture-perfect right uppercut.

The uppercut put Teixeira out on his feet, and after the latter's unconscious body fell to the mat, Johnson followed up with a few scary ground strikes, as the referee thankfully rescued the downed veteran. Rumble's 13-second KO of Teixeira has gone down in history as one of the scariest KOs of all time.

#3 Junior dos Santos vs Cain Velasquez 1

JDS knocked out Velasquez in Round 1 back in 2011

At one point of time, or rather should I say during a significant stretch of time, Cain Velasquez and Junior dos Santos were widely regarded as the two greatest Heavyweights in all of Mixed Martial Arts. JDS and Velasquez would go on to engage in one of the most entertaining MMA trilogies of all time.

Dos Santos won the first bout, whereas Velasquez ended up winning the second and third fights. JDS challenged then-UFC Heavyweight Champion Velasquez for the title in 2011 and caught the latter with a beautiful overhand right in Round 1.

It only took Dos Santos a little more than 1 minute to KO Velasquez, and win the UFC Heavyweight Championship. The beauty of the aforementioned KO was in the fact that JDS set it up wonderfully, first jabbing to the body, feinting, and then cracking his foe with the thunderous right hand...

#2 Tyron Woodley vs Robbie Lawler

Tyron Woodley annihilated Robbie Lawler at UFC 201

Back in 2016, Tyron Woodley challenged Robbie Lawler for the latter's UFC Welterweight Championship. Woodley and Lawler did battle at UFC 201, and when it was all said and done, we witnessed the former coming out on top.

Woodley started off his fight against Lawler extremely cautious, adding a lot of feints and footwork over the course of their brief bout. Additionally, Woodley also managed to get Lawler to the fence and threatened the takedown, only for them to resume their striking battle.

It was then that Woodley's feints and explosive footwork proved to be the difference, as he caught Lawler with a perfect straight right on the chin, taking down the latter like a sack of potatoes. Woodley wasted no time in following up with ground strikes and ended up wrecking Lawler with a barrage of well-placed right hands on the head.

Just like that Woodley captured the UFC Welterweight Title with a masterful first-round KO of legendary KO artist Robbie Lawler.

#1 Ronda Rousey vs Cat Zingano

Ronda Rousey made a name for herself as a prolific finisher

Back in 2015, Cat Zingano was regarded by many as the one who'd probably dethrone then-UFC Bantamweight Champion Ronda Rousey. Zingano was coming off a pair of huge TKO wins against Miesha Tate and Amanda Nunes. However, she was also dealing with a few issues in her life outside the Octagon at the time.

The lead-up to their UFC 184 fight featured a ton of respect on part of both competitors for one another. At the time, experts believed that Zingano may perhaps be at a disadvantage due to her battle with serious knee injury issues as well as her coach/husband's suicide.

Nevertheless, 'Alpha Cat's' Muay Thai and wrestling were so very deadly, that a select few members of the MMA world truly believed that she could end up stopping Rousey.

The fight got underway, and Zingano opened up with a flying knee. In response to which, Rousey trapped her foe in a straight armbar -- securing the submission finish in about 14 seconds of the very first round.

Which first-round UFC finishes were you impressed with the most? Sound off in the comments!