With another action-packed year of MMA in the books, MMA Junkie takes a look at the best knockouts from January to December. Here are the top five and winner of MMA Junkie’s “Knockout of the Year” award for 2019.
At the bottom of the post, let us know if we got it right by voting on your choice for “Knockout of the Year.”
* * * *
Honorable mentions
6. Niko Price def. James Vick at UFC on ESPN+ 19
Known for his creative violence, Niko Price (13-3 MMA, 5-3 UFC) did not disappoint in his welterweight matchup against James Vick (13-4 MMA, 9-4 UFC) in October, scoring a knockout with a rarely-successful technique at the top level.
After absorbing some hard shots from Vick on the canvas, Price improvised and sent his foot toward the chin of Vick. A bone-chilling thud sounded as his foot hit Vick flush on the face. Vick’s bloody, unconscious body crumpled onto Price, who landed a few short shots to his already out opponent, and the fight was stopped in less than two minutes.
5. Douglas Lima def. Michael Page at Bellator 221
Douglas Lima (32-7 MMA, 14-3 BMMA) respected Michael Page (17-1 MMA, 13-1 BMMA) in the lead-up to their Bellator welterweight grand prix semifinal matchup in May, but the former two-time champion felt strongly that his experience and striking power would make a difference, and he was right.
Lima gave “MVP” a rude welcome to a new level of competition when he scored an absolutely sickening knockout to make the grand prix final. The Brazilian set it up when he dropped Page with a perfectly timed low kick. As Page attempted to stand up, Lima uncorked a beautiful left hand that landed clean and brought an end to Page’s unbeaten run in MMA.
#Bellator221 • • • @bellatormma4. Davy Gallon def. Ross Pearson at “MTK MMA: Probellum”
Ross Pearson (20-17) had a rude welcome back to MMA from his retirement courtesy of the unheralded Davy Gallon (18-7-2), who in November delivered what could go down as an all-time knockout to occur outside of a major organization.
The lightweight fight was relatively competitive for more than two rounds. In the closing stages of the third, though, Gallon went airborne and unleashed a rolling thunder kick. The heel landed flush on Pearson’s face, and “The Ultimate Fighter 9” winner was immediately knocked out in a shocking finish.
#Probellum1 • 
@probellum3. Valentina Shevchenko def. Jessica Eye at UFC 238
Valentina Shevchenko (16-2 MMA, 7-2 UFC) got her UFC women’s flyweight title reign off to a good start in June, when she made an example of overmatched challenger Jessica Eye (15-7 MMA, 5-6 UFC) with a brutal knockout.
Shevchenko kept her firm grip on the 125-pound strap when, as one of the biggest betting favorites in UFC title history, “The Bullet” delivered a highlight-reel head kick knockout of Eye in the second round of the contest. Eye was down on the canvas for quite some time after the kick connected, but fortunately came out OK.
2. Anthony Pettis def. Stephen Thompson at UFC on ESPN+ 6
Former UFC and WEC lightweight champ Anthony Pettis (22-9 MMA, 9-8 UFC) made a splash in his welterweight debut in March when he upset former title challenger Stephen Thompson (15-4-1 MMA, 10-4-1 UFC) with a brutal knockout.
After getting picked apart and bloodied for the majority of two rounds, Pettis showed his trademark “Showtime” creativity when he bounced off the octagon fence and proceeded to take off with a superman hook punch that caught Thompson completely off guard and put his lights out for the first time in his career.
* * * *
Winner: Jorge Masvidal def. Ben Askren at UFC 239
The most hyped grudge match heading into UFC 239 in July ended in the fastest and perhaps most violent knockout in the history of the UFC.
Veteran welterweight Jorge Masvidal (35-13 MMA, 12-6 UFC) used a hellacious flying knee coming out of the gate to knock Ben Askren (19-2 MMA, 1-2 UFC) cold.
The time of the stoppage officially was at the 0:05 mark of the opening round. That beat, by one-second, Duane Ludwig’s record, set in a victory over Jonathan Goulet in 2006.
“I really wanted to beat his ass for 14 minutes and 30 seconds, but it didn’t happen, so back to business,” Masvidal said.
Masvidal, with his hands behind his back, came out at an odd angle and charged at Askren, who attempted to duck under it.
Instead, the knee landed flush on Askren’s ear, knocking him stiff to the mat. Masvidal landed two more punches to the clearly unconscious Askren before the referee could step in and wave things off.
Masvidal taunted Askren as doctors rushed into the cage to attend to his foe, with whom he had engaged in quite a bit of trash talk leading up to the fight.
“That dude was talking wild, man,” Masvidal said. “I have to show you there’s consequences sometimes, there’s some bad (expletive) out there.”
The victory was by far the biggest in the career of Masvidal, a longtime presence on the scene who is finally breaking through to the top. It also marked the first career loss for Askren, the former Bellator and ONE welterweight titleholder. After regaining consciousness, Askren left the cage under his own power.
Also see:
MMA Junkie's 2019 'Knockout of the Year': Jorge Masvidal's flying knee