My Very Own 2021 UFC Awards
Another fantastic year has concluded for the UFC, providing us with more spectacular fights, shocking upsets and crazy knockouts. In a year where fans finally returned to arenas, 2021 was a crucial period for the company, and they passed with flying colours.
With lots of categories to get through, it is important to remember that these awards/winners are purely my own choice and opinions based on who is worthy.
Male Fighter of The Year - KAMARU USMAN
This was a very difficult choice between the Welterweight champion and Charles Oliveira, the Lightweight champion. The latter's impressive victory over Dustin Poirier only a couple of weeks ago almost tempted me to choose him, but I feel like Usman deserves this award still.
3 title defences against 3 top contenders in Gilbert Burns, Jorge Masvidal and Colby Covington is a challenge any fighter would find difficult, but Kamaru smashed it.
After overcoming adversity in the first round against his former training partner Burns, he dominated the next two, ultimately securing the victory, showcasing massive strides in his striking ability.
His striking again would soon come to fruition as he KO'd Jorge Masvidal in his own backyard at UFC 261. A brutal straight right caught Gamebred flush and Usman became the first man to knockout Jorge.
The final fight of 2021 for Usman was against bitter rival Colby Covington. After winning the first fight at UFC 245, the two men both went to war once again in a fight for the ages. Back and forth as you'd expect, it did not disappoint in the slightest, with Usman coming away the deserved winner.
Female Fighter of The Year - Rose Namajunas
Beating Zhang Weili twice in 2021 makes Rose the rightful winner of this award. With Weili looking unstoppable until the first fight, it made it even sweeter for Namajunas when she KO'd the champ in the first round. Then she defended her newly gained belt in a rematch at UFC 268. As well rounded a fighter you will find, Rose has everything as a champion and a rematch with Carla Esparza is pending, with the champ looking to get revenge after a defeat first time round.
Coach of The Year - Trevor Wittman
Whilst on the topic of the two fighters above, it is only right that we applaud their coach too. Wittman has guided these two champions, as well as Justin Gaethje, to great success this year. Arguably the best in the game at what he does, Wittman has 3 of the best fighters on the planet under his wing.
6 wins out of 6 for Trevor and his 3 fighters is perfection. With all of them fights being entertainment value too, it is hard to fault Trevor Wittman this year.
KO of The Year - Ignacio Bahamondes vs Roosevelt Roberts
5 seconds left of the fight, a spinning wheel kick KO by the Chilean secured him the victory in sensational fashion. A very rare type of knockout makes this even sweeter, all you need to do is watch it and realise just how good it is.
He knocks Roberts out cold too.
(BT Sport, 2021)
Submission of The Year - Islam Makhachev vs Dan Hooker (Kimura)
The Russian proved doubters wrong when he submitted Dan Hooker inside 3 minutes. Despite taking the fight on a few weeks notice, Hooker always had a chance, it just wasn;t meant to be though. Islam was too much, diving in for the takedown and asserting his suffocating grappling style early on. Soon enough, Makhachev got hold of an arm and locked in the Kimura for a quick victory against someone as quality as Dan Hooker.
Shout to Anthony Hernandez and his shocking guillotine sub over BJJ legend Rodolfo Vieira.
Debut of The Year - Michael Chandler
Coming in with a reputation of amazing fights, I'd say there were relatively high expectations for the American. He certainly delivered, knocking out Dan Hooker in the first round at UFC 257. Just a few months later, he almost finished Charles Oliveira to become the Lightweight champion, however, he couldn't quite get the finish and was ultimately TKO'd the following round. Then came an absolute war with Gaethje at UFC 268, it has been quite a year for Chandler, even if he did come out with a 1-2 record he can hold his head high as he has earned a lot of respect from fighters and the community itself.
Upset of The Year - Julianna Pena submitting Amanda Nunes
It's still difficult to comprehend what happened at UFC 269. Amanda Nunes got hounded by Julianna Pena and got dragged into a dogfight. I didn't expect anything like what occurred, but it just goes to show that absolutely anything can happen in MMA.
After a tough first round, Pena showed some intention and agression, pulling Nunes into a scrappy close quarters battle. With the champion constantly throwing big energy sapping shots, it allowed Pena to stick behind the jab and throw neat little combos to put the Brazilian off balance. It was now clear that the tide had turned, then Pena clinched Nunes against the fence, took her down and locked in the choke with minimal difficulty.
A complete shock to MMA fans. With the odds stacked against Pena too, it was even crazier to see how she took apart The Lioness and took her belt.
Fight of The Year - Petr Yan vs Cory Sandhagen
I was going to pick Justin Gaethje vs Michael Chandler, but my personal favourite was Yan vs Sandhagen at UFC 267.
Not your typical brawling war, this was a technical battle for 25 minutes between 2 of the best strikers on the planet, not just the Bantamweight division. With the interim belt on the line too, this fight was everything I expected it to be.
The first two rounds were going great for Sandhagen. Switching stances, exposing Yan's high guard through body work, catching him with clean shots and doing what he needed to do against someone as difficult as Yan. However, as he always does, Yan grew as the fight went on. He just seems to transform effortlessly and starts to dominate the fight. My personal favourite moment of the fight was Yan's spinning backfist and left hand which dropped Cory.
As I eluded to previously, it wasn't a typical slobberknocker, it was a preicse and technical striking affair, something that I find just as entertaining as a scrappy war. It wouldn't surprise me if these two fought again in the future, but for now, I want to see Yan regain that belt and show again why he is P4P one of the best on the planet.
Event of The Year - UFC 261
The return of full capacity crowds was a monumental moment for the UFC in 2021 and the card delivered on another scale. You had Usman vs Masvidal, Rose vs Zhang and Shevchenko vs Andrade. The other fights didn't necessarily have tons of star power like UFC 268 for example, but the fights were exceptional all round and it was a perfect card for the return of fans, which is why it has my pick for event of the year.
Performance of The Year - Jan Blachowicz vs Israel Adesanya
On his quest for greatness, Israel Adesanya made the move up to 205lbs in an attempt to become the double champ. In his way was the newly crowned Light-Heavyweight champ Jan Blachowicz. With the middleweight champion coming in as the betting favourite, many people were surprised to see the Pole put on a dominant performance against Izzy.
What is so impressive about this performance is the way Jan incorporates efficient striking and offensive wrestling to suffocate Adesanya and not allow him to get into his flow state. We all know that Israel is one of the best strikers in the world, but he just couldn't get going against Blachowicz.
The move up to LHW was the wrong choice in my opinion, Jan had a clear weight advantage which he used smartly to tire out the lighter man. Jan also hung out and outstruck Adesanya, something which many found hard to believe. Despite the UFC's biased commentary, I thought it was clear who was winning the majority of the fight. Those takedowns and the ground and pound which followed capped a smart performance by Blachowicz.
Breakthrough Fighter of The Year - Tom Aspinall
After two quick-fire victories to kick off his UFC career in 2020, this year was even better for the Brit. A second round submission of Andrei Arlovski and a first round knockout of Serghei Spivac gave Aspinall the number 10 ranking at heavyweight.
His fight against Arlovski was just as impressive as the win against Spivac, The Pitbull is known for beating up and comers in the division, proving to be no pushover. However, Aspinall dominated on the feet in the first round, then shot in deep for a takedown, taking the American's back and submitting him via rear naked choke.
Blessed with brilliant speed and movement, Aspinall is part of a new generation of heavyweights that offer a unique skillset. Combined with his BJJ background, Aspinall can certainly go all the way to the top.
Comeback against the year - Charles Oliveira vs Michael Chandler
A fight for the vacant Lightweight strap was the scene of an amazing comeback. In the first round, Michael Chandler caught and dropped Charles Oliviera right at the end of the round. On the verge of finishing him, it looked like Chandler smelt blood and would go for the finish straight into the second. It was Oliveira though, who got the finish. A right cross and left hook combo dropped Iron Mike, some knees and further punches along the cage was enough for Dan Miragliotta to call the fight off.
From one extreme to another, it was a rollercoaster of emotions within just 6 minutes. Overcoming adversity like Charles did proves championship material right there. On the verge of being finished to finishing the fight himself, never count Oliveira out.
Just like that, another year is over. As usual, the beginning of 2022 is full of great fights and events. Stay tuned for more analysis, opinions and breakdowns.
Cam
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