KNOCKOUT OF THE YEAR: Rashad Evans vs. Chuck Liddell at UFC 88
“My coach Mike Winklejohn, we went over that overhand right over and over again. He said man that’s the punch that’s going to put Chuck down. He said it was going to hit and it happened just the way he said it would happen.” – Rashad Evans
The UFC desperately wanted a Chuck Liddell victory. The company had a bonafide blockbuster on its hands following Forrest Griffin’s upset victory over Quinton “Rampage” Jackson. All Chuck needed to do was get by “Sugar” Rashad Evans.
Evans exemplified the perfect style for Liddell – a wrestling-based fighter without significant knockout power in his hands. “The Iceman” perfected the art of staying on his feet and getting off his back if taken to the floor. The fight seemed to play itself out on paper; Evans would land takedowns throughout the fight, but over the course of fifteen minutes, Liddell would find a knockout blow.
Instead, Evans completed his transformation from lay ‘n’ pray wrestler to dangerous well-rounded mixed martial artist. The first round unfolded as everyone expected. Liddell stalked the younger Evans for the entire five minutes. Round two continued that pattern for the first minute and a half.
Then it happened.
Evans quit backpedaling, feinted a left hand, and blasted the UFC posterboy with an explosive overhand right. His lights turned off, Liddell’s lifeless body crumpled to the canvas. A stunned Atlanta crowd fell silent in the wake of Evans’ demolition job.
The beauty of the knockout can be found in the sheer violence of the imagery. In slow motion replay, we see Rashad goad Liddell into throwing his right hand, completely exposing his chin in the process. Your heart rate rises in anticipation as Evans loads his own right. The suspense builds to crescendo as Evans draws forward the punch that built Liddell’s career.
It lands with picture perfect accuracy, whipping Liddell’s head clear across his body. We’re spared additional theatrics as Evans’ followup left hook wistfully passes by Liddell’s skull. Liddell had been knocked out just over a year earlier by Jackson, but the shot of his bruised and swollen face resting in the hands of officials adds a particular touch of brutality that escaped Jackson’s triumph.
Evans launched himself into superstardom – all in one punch.
2nd PLACE: Quinton Jackson vs. Wanderlei Silva at UFC 92
3rd PLACE: Josh Koscheck vs. Yoshiyuki Yoshida at UFC Fight Night: Fight for the Troops