The UFC kicked off the month in Paris for their first-ever event in France. A week later, it returned to Las Vegas for two shows – UFC 279 at the T-Mobile Arena and UFC Vegas 60 at the Apex the weekend after. All three fight cards culminated in finishes and comprised some truly memorable knockouts.
On that note, here are the five best knockouts of September 2022.
#5. Ciryl Gane def. Tai Tuivasa – UFC Paris
Ciryl Gane suffered the first loss of his professional career earlier this year when he came up short against former teammate Francis Ngannou in a title unification bout. ‘Bon Gamin’ returned to the octagon in emphatic fashion in the main event of the first-ever UFC event in France.
Gane took on surging heavyweight Tai Tuivasa, who was coming off a five-fight win streak comprising just as many knockouts. Tuivasa’s undeniable power was on full display in the second round as the Australian floored his French counterpart with a thunderous right hand.
Gane rallied after the knockdown and slammed numerous body-kicks into Tuivasa’s torso towards the end of the round.
In the third frame, the former interim champion wisely committed with the body-kicks, to the extent that Tuivasa just couldn’t take any more. The Australian was forced to drop his hands halfway through the third round and Gane capitalized, swarming his opponent with a barrage of strikes to finish the fight.
#4. Thiago Motta def. Cameron VanCamp - UFC Vegas 60
In the immediate aftermath of UFC Vegas 60, which fetaured three spectacular and bloody bouts, Thiago Motta’s impressive performance in the first fight of the night largely flew under the radar.
Going into his fight against Cameron VanCamp on the preliminary card, Motta was in need of a win if he was to solidify his place on the roster. In his promotional debut earlier this year, the 29-year-old Brazilian was convincingly beaten and finished by 39-year-old veteran Jim Miller.
Eager to open his account in the big leagues, Motta bounced back in style, knocking VanCamp out cold in the very first round of their bout.
A teammate of MMA legend Jose Aldo, Motta advanced his professional record to 13-4 with his win over VanCamp. ‘Iron’ will be looking to carry his momentum into his next outing and compile a win streak when he returns to the octagon, potentially adding to his highlight reel along the way.
#3. Abus Magomedov def. Dustin Stoltzfus - UFC Paris
The UFC’s middleweight division has seemingly grown stagnant in recent years, while under the dominance of 185-pound kingpin Israel Adesanya. ‘The Last Stylebender’ has cleaned out the top five and as such, the promotion has been quite aggressive with pushing fresh contenders up the ladder, as they did with Alex Pereira.
Another notable middleweight to keep an eye on is Abus Magomedov, who made his promotional debut at the inaugural UFC Paris event. The 32-year-old Russian viciously knocked out Dustin Stoltzfus just 19 seconds into their bout.
With just a front kick, an uppercut, and a few follow-up hooks, Magomedov made a resounding statement to kick off his UFC career.
Having fought in notable promotions like the PFL and KSW, and with 30 fights under his belt already, Abus Magomedov is primed to ascend the rankings. He has tasted defeat just once in the last seven years and could make things very interesting in the middleweight top 15.
Magomedov is an incredibly entertaining fighter as well, with 20 of his 25 wins coming via finishes, including 14 knockouts and six submissions. While he is primarily a striker, he has trained in combat sambo and wrestling previously. He is no slouch on the ground, making him a tricky stylistic matchup for the current champion.
#2. Irene Aldana vs. Macy Chiasson - UFC 279
While the next knockout on our list isn’t the most explosive finish of the month by any means, the rarity of the fight-ending sequence puts Irene Aldana’s hard-fought win over Macy Chiasson among September’s best.
Aldana was inside the women’s bantamweight top five going into the bout and was looking to defend her position against Chiasson, who sat at No.10. The Mexican contender picked up her second win on the bounce, claiming the first-ever up-kick body-shot KO in promotional history.
Irene Aldana clearly won the first round, picking apart her American counterpart in the striking exchanges. Macy Chiasson bounced back in the second, taking Aldana down and landing vicious ground-and-pound strikes while attempting a few submissions.
Seemingly tied at 1-1 going into the final frame, Chiasson landed another takedown and if she’d maintained position, could’ve potentially come away with a decision win. However, out of nowhere, Aldana landed a liver shot with an up-kick from the bottom position, which appeared to shut Chiasson down as we’ve seen regular body shots do in the past.
It was a shocking end to an evenly contested bout and goes to show that you never know what to expect in this sport.
#1. Joe Pyfer def. Alen Amedovski - UFC Vegas 60
Among the biggest breakout stars of the recently concluded season of Dana White’s Contender Series is Joe Pyfer, who was the only fighter to earn a contract in the first episode of season 6.
Pyfer made his full promotional debut just a few weeks later, taking on Alen Amedovski at UFC Vegas 60. The Philadelphia native made light work of his opponent, putting him to sleep a little over a minute into their middleweight scrap.
After a tetchy opening minute, Pyfer faked an uppercut and followed up with a powerful straight right which sent Amedovski crashing to the canvas, prompting the referee to intervene. ‘Bodybagz’ certainly lived up to the hype en route to picking up his seventh career knockout victory.
Pyfer has undeniable fight-ending power in his fists, and at just 26, could turn out to be a championship caliber fighter in the coming years.
0 votes
