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.
You can still vote on the first seven polls;
Now that we’ve got that out of the way, let’s get onto the eighth and final poll – the best fight of the first half of 2012.
Check out the options and make your pick after the jump.
Demetrious Johnson vs. Ian McCall 1, UFC on FX 2 – The two flyweights put on an excellent, fast-paced bout that ended with a scoring debacles that robbed the fighters and fans of a fourth round.
Ben Henderson vs. Frankie Edgar, UFC 144 – Five full rounds of great action that earned Henderson the UFC lightweight title.
Gilbert Melendez vs. Josh Thomson, Strikeforce: Barnett vs. Cormier – Thomson came super close to pulling off the huge upset in an excellent bout. It didn’t quite live up to the first two, but was still full of entertainment.
Chan Sung Jung vs. Dustin Poirier, UFC on Fuel 3 – Absolutely insane action and near-finishes in a solid back-and-forth affair.
Diego Sanchez vs. Jake Ellenberger, UFC on Fuel 1 – Ellenberger controlled the first two rounds, but Sanchez reversed the tide and controlled the third. If it had been a five-round bout, who knows what would have happened.
Edson Barboza vs. Terry Etim, UFC 142 – Most people only remember the crazy ending, but the two men put on quite a bout before the spinning wheel kick landed.
Ronda Rousey vs. Miesha Tate, Strikeforce: Rousey vs. Tate – The bout might not have gone very deep but it was full of drama.
Evan Dunham vs. Nik Lentz, UFC on Fox 2 – The fighters threw down on the feet and scrambled all over the place before Nik’s eye got too damaged for the fight to continue.
Martin Kampmann vs. Thiago Alves, UFC on FX 2 – After a close first round, Alves took over in the second and third only to go for an ill-advised takedown that ended up costing him the fight.
Mark Hominick vs. Eddie Yagin, UFC 145 – Hominick got dropped twice but still put up a hell of a fight.
Last chance to vote, amigos.
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