Over the next few days, Bloody Elbow is going to ask for your opinion on some of the best things that have happened in the MMA world over the first half of 2012. There will be a total of eight different categories you’ll be asked to vote on. For simplicity’s sake we’re going to stick with high-level and relevant MMA stuff in these posts. While I’m sure there was a ludicrous knockout in an unscheduled MMA event at The Lumberyard strip club in Des Moines, or an insane pancreas lock submission on an obscure ZST! card in Japan, let’s just stick to stuff a lot of us have seen, okay? (If that spiel looked familiar, it’s because I just lifted it from last year’s awards post.)
It’s pretty simple. I’ll post five or ten options in a category, you vote for what you think was the best. If you think I left something really important off my list, post it in the comments and we can add it to the poll if it’s deemed worthy. I can almost guarantee you won’t like all my suggestions, but narrowing down these lists is tough.
Now that we’ve got that out of the way, let’s get onto the seventh poll – the best knockout of the first half of 2012.
Check out the options and make your pick after the jump.
Stephen Thompson vs. Dan Stittgen, UFC 143 – Wonderboy came in the UFC with quite a karate resume, and showed it off with an amazing head kick KO that Stittgen didn’t even see coming.
Pat Curran vs. Joe Warren, Bellator 60 – Curran landed a ton of flying knees and big shots that probably should have stopped the fight, but then he landed another monster shot that put Warren to sleep and earned Curran the Bellator featherweight title.
Anthony Pettis vs. Joe Lauzon, UFC 144 – A monster head kick floored Lauzon early, and it was over a few seconds after that.
Junior dos Santos vs. Frank Mir, UFC 146 – JDS flattened Mir with a right that send Mir falling backwards like a tree. Apparently that wasn’t enough for the ref and Mir decided to try and get up, so Dos Santos landed a humorous and deadly hammerfist square to the face that ended Mir’s night.
Siyar Bahadurzada vs. Paulo Thiago, UFC on Fuel 2 – After 40 seconds of nothing, Siyar landed a short right that put Thiago out cold. One of the best one-punch KO’s you’ll see, even though it didn’t look that brutal at first.
Ben Rothwell vs. Brendan Schaub, UFC 145 – Schaub was in control, beating Rothwell up against the fence. Out of nowhere Big Ben flattened Schaub with a right and followed it up with a few shots on the ground that had Schaub praying to the heavens.
Edson Barboza vs. Terry Etim, UFC 142 – The spinning wheel kick head ’round the world. The kick was nominated for an ESPY for best play.
Mike Pyle vs. Josh Neer, UFC on FX 3 – It seemed like Neer was coming on near the end of the round, but Pyle ended things with a monsterous right hook that put Neer flat on his face, out cold.
Nick Denis vs. Joseph Sandoval, UFC on FX 1 – It’s not very often that you see a guy get knocked out with standing elbows, but that’s exactly what happened here. In 22 seconds to be exact.
Zorobabel Moreira vs. Roger Huerta, One FC 4 – Huerta appeared to be done already and was lying prone on his stomach. The referee let the bout continue though, and Moreira leveled El Matador with one of the most vicious soccer kicks to the face you’ll ever see.
About the author
