In 2024, Esteban Ribovics not only had a ‘Fight of the Year’ contender but also found himself on the shortlist for ‘Knockout of the Year’ – and it’s not difficult to see why.
Predicting the outcome of UFC fights remains a tricky task; however, fans understand there are certain scraps that are almost guaranteed to end in some type of a finish – Esteban Ribovics vs Terrance McKinney was one of those bouts.
As ‘El Gringo’ prepares for his long-awaited return to action at UFC Vegas 103, Bloody Elbow is taking a quick trip down memory lane to the viral head kick KO that put the Argentinian on the lightweight map.
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Esteban Ribovics’ viral head kick knockout remains a thing of beauty
In May 2024, the UFC returned to St. Louis, Missouri, for a Fight Night card headlined by heavy-handed heavyweights Derrick Lewis and Rodrigo Nascimento.
That main event was widely expected to end with a flush KO, which it did, although ‘The Black Beast’ was forced to concede that the best finish of the night was scored by ‘El Gringo’.
Round one of Ribovics vs McKinney opened with both men throwing lightning-quick combinations, with Ribovics attempting a slick punch-to-kick combo that barely missed McKinney’s chin.
The American was able to land several jabs in response that snapped Ribovics’ head back but as he retreated towards the octagon fence, the Argentinian would once again try that punch-to-kick combo.
This time, the head kick landed perfectly on the side of McKinney’s jaw; with the fan-favorite finisher sent crashing to the canvas – unconscious from the moment it connected.
Despite the KO going viral online, Dana White did not offer Ribovics a $50K bonus; a move that frustrated and confused the Argentinian.
“I couldn’t believe it,” he told MMA Junkie in Spanish, simply asking “What more do I need to do?
“I’m not going to say it was a boring event up until that point because there were good fights, but there wasn’t the excitement of a knockout like that until my fight.
“Obviously, I was a little disappointed, but other good things will come from this knockout. I’m sure I’ll get more opportunities to prove I deserve a bonus.”
‘El Gringo’ did indeed earn a $50K post-fight bonus in his next bout; a Fight of the Year contender at UFC 306.
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Esteban Ribovics returns to action this weekend at UFC Vegas 103
Esteban Ribovics returns to the octagon this coming weekend on the main card of UFC Fight Night: Kape vs Almabayev – which goes down from The Apex on Saturday, March 1.
‘El Gringo’ faces popular 17-5 lightweight prospect Nasrat Haqparast in what is currently scheduled to be the third-to-last fight on the card.
Since dropping consecutive decisions to Dan Hooker in 2021 and Bobby Green in 2022, Haqparast has gone on an impressive four-fight winning streak that includes three decision wins and a nasty TKO of his own against Jamie Mullarkey.
Ribovics is the bookie’s favorite in that lightweight scrap, with around 83% of Tapology Community Picks going in favor of the Argentinian – the prevailing prediction is a Ribovics decision win.
Ribovics vs Haqparast leads into Cody Brundage vs Julian Marquez in the co-main event, before the night is rounded out by flyweight contenders Manel Kape and Asu Almabayev.