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The UFC had many incredible bantamweight fights in 2021. In recent years, the bantamweight division in MMA has developed into one of the most talented in the sport. In the UFC, it can be argued that the bantamweight division could soon surpass the lightweight division in terms of popularity.
There have been many notable fighters that’ve moved to 135lbs in the past few years. Former UFC champions Jose Aldo and Frankie Edgar have moved down a weight-class while Henry Cejudo has moved up.
2021 provided a glimpse into what looks to be a bright future for Sean O’Malley. In addition, fans saw a return to form for former UFC bantamweight champion Dominick Cruz and former featherweight champion Aldo.
On the women’s side, a new champion was crowned in arguably the biggest upset on the final pay-per-view of the year. This list will look at the top 5 UFC bantamweight fights of 2021.
#5. Jose Aldo vs. Rob Font – UFC on ESPN 31
Kicking off this list is the bout between Jose Aldo and Rob Font. Aldo is regarded as one of the greatest featherweights of all time. Although he experienced a rough start at bantamweight, suffering back-to-back losses, he turned things around in 2021.
Aldo and Font had an opportunity to distance themselves from the rest of the top 5 with an impressive win. Font was riding a four-fight winning streak, while Aldo won back-to-back fights for the first time since 2019.
Aldo vs. Font was a great main event for UFC on ESPN 31. Font did a good job landing his combinations. Aldo responded with powerful strikes to the body and dropped Font on a few occasions. Aldo began using more leg-kicks in the third-round and then took over with his grappling. The fight went the distance and Aldo picked up the unanimous decision win.
#4. Marlon Moraes vs. Merab Dvalishvili – UFC 266
Another bantamweight fight that belongs on this list is Merab Dvalishvili vs. Marlon Moraes. The bout headlined the prelims for UFC 266 and featured a wild sequence in the first round.
Moraes came out and landed powerful leg-kicks, which led to Dvalishvili taking him down. Moraes got back to his feet and dropped him with a left hook, and followed it up with a flurry of strikes. Even after Dvalishvili recovered, Moraes continued pouring on the strikes, but was still unable to finish him.
The resilient Dvalishvili then took Moraes down and landed an onslaught of hammer fists before the round came to a close.
In the second round, Dvalishvili picked up where he left off and connected with a right hand that stunned Moraes. He then continued controlling Moraes on the ground before picking up the TKO win following unanswered ground strikes.
#3. T.J. Dillashaw vs. Cory Sandhagen – UFC Vegas 32
Another bantamweight fight that belongs on this list is T.J. Dillashaw vs. Cory Sandhagen from UFC Vegas 32. Understandably, most of the talk in the leadup to the fight surrounded Dillashaw’s return to the octagon.
The former UFC bantamweight champion had been serving a two-year USADA suspension following his loss to Henry Cejudo. Many wondered how he’d perform after a long layoff from the sport and if there would be any rust.
Sandhagen was in top form after back-to-back highlight-reel knockouts of Moraes and Frankie Edgar. His movements and creative offense caused a lot of problems for Dillashaw, who had a deep cut on his right eyebrow.
The fight went the distance and there was plenty of controversy as Dillashaw was awarded the split-decision win. Many felt Sandhagen won the fight based on his significant strikes. Dillashaw did control him on the fence and the ground, so that was likely the deciding factor.
#2. Amanda Nunes vs. Julianna Pena – UFC 269
This was one of the biggest upsets in UFC history. For months, former TUF winner Julianna Pena was adamant that she’d be the one to defeat Amanda Nunes. Pena’s confidence was on full display during the pre-fight press conferences and her interviews leading up to the fight.
Based on what transpired in the first round, it seemed inevitable that Nunes would retain her title against the underdog Pena. She dropped her twice and ended the round with ground control. In the second round, Pena went after Nunes and the two began swinging at each other.
Pena got the upper hand and connected with a combination that stunned Nunes. The challenger immediately took advantage and took Nunes down to the ground and submitted her with a rear-naked choke. The crowd erupted as ‘The Venezuelan Vixen’ became the new UFC women’s bantamweight champion.
#1. Petr Yan vs. Cory Sandhagen – UFC 266
Petr Yan and Cory Sandhagen two fought for the interim UFC bantamweight championship, with the winner getting a title-shot against current champion Aljamain Sterling.
Similar to his bout with Dillashaw, Sandhagen had success with his strikes in the first round. Sandhagen changing his stance also made his striking unpredictable and forced Yan to take risks at times. Sandhagen proved to be a difficult opponent to deal with because of the way he moves in the octagon.
If Yan wasn’t careful, he would find himself on the receiving end of one of Sandhagen’s highlight-reel knockouts. Although Sandhagen won the first-round, Yan would get better with each round after.
The former champion found success after he began landing more leg-kicks on Sandhagen. Yan won the fight by unanimous decision and became the interim-UFC bantamweight champion. Yan vs. Sandhagen didn’t disappoint and was awarded Fight of the Night.
