mma / Columns
The 411 MMA Year-End Awards: Part Seven – The Best Fights of 2016
Welcome back to the MMA Top 5, year-end awards edition! What we are going to is take a topic and all the writers here on 411 MMA will have the ability to give us their Top 5 on said topic, and the end, based on where all of these topics rank on people’s list, we will create an overall Top 5 list. It looks a little like this…
1st – 5
2nd – 4
3rd – 3
4th – 2
5th – 1
At the end we tally the scores and get our overall top 5! It’s highly non-official and final, like WAMMA. From best and worst fight to best fighter and KO of the year, the staff will come together to share out best. Thanks for joining us, and lets get down to work.
5. Joanna Jedrzejczyk vs. Claudia Gadelha – The Ultimate Fighter season 23 Finale
4. Dominick Cruz vs. TJ Dillashaw – UFC Fight Night 81
3. Doo Ho Choi vs. Cub Swanson – UFC 206
2. Robbie Lawler vs. Carlos Condit – UFC 195
1. Dominick Cruz vz. Cody Garbrandt – UFC 207 – I spent the entire year convinced that nothing was going to supplant Lawler vs. Condit, that fight was such a display of heart, violence, momentum swings, just a tremendous war. Then the second to last UFC fight of the year finally takes the top spot for me. This fight was everything I love about the sport. The technique, the movement, the timing going back and forth, the violence they both brought, the heart and determination, the shifts in strategy, there is absolutely nothing about this fight I don’t like and while I don’t want an immediate rematch I do sincerely hope we get this fight a second time in 2017 because this was just so good.
5. Tyron Woodley vs. Stephen Thompson – UFC 205
4. Cub Swanson vs. Doo Ho Choi – UFC 206
3. Nate Diaz vs. Conor McGregor – UFC 202
2. Dominick Cruz vs. Cody Garbrandt – UFC 207
1. Robbie Lawler vs. Carlos Condit – UFC 195 – MMA is evolving. We’ve gone from specialist to the true fusion of disciplines and it was evident in 2016. Fights like Dominick Cruz vs. Cody Garbrandt echo mixed martial arts’ transcendence from one-trick-ponies to two fighters able to display skill—brilliant technique—in multiple aspects of the game; from striking to wrestling to submission grappling and all the nuts and bolts (timing, accuracy, etc.) in-between. A multitude of fights showcased brilliance and beauty only appreciated by those with a true love for every aspect of the sport. But, sometimes, pure violence and brutality win you over. If there is one thing far from changing in this sport, it is those moments where it’s not about technique, timing, or easing into a grappling or striking sequence (exchange). In those moments, we see human nature at its bare minimum and at its most potential—surviving and the will to overcome and defy odds. And though, in those instances we are still prone to beautiful displays of craft, it is heart, will, and determination, which provide the everlasting show, the memory. This is what Robbie Lawler vs. Carlos Condit represents. We witnessed beautiful skill but, ultimately, the fight barreled down to the heart. Both fighters unloaded everything in their arsenal and when it boiled down, threw caution to the wind. It was beautiful, violent, and unrelenting; a recipe for an unforgettable fight. For this reason, Lawler and Condit edge out all others for the fight of the year.
5. Joanna Jedrzejczyk vs. Claudia Gadelha II – The Ultimate Fighter 23 Finale
4. Donald Cerrone vs. Matt Brown – UFC 206
3. Robbie Lawler vs. Carlos Condit – UFC 195
2. Dominick Cruz vs. Cody Garbrandt – UFC 207
1. Cub Swanson vs. Doo Ho Choi – UFC 206 – Cub Swanson is a guy that isn’t going to be your top title contender, he got close, but what he’s great for is a balls to the wall fight or a spectacular finish. Cub Swanson & Doo Ho Choi delivered a beautiful exercise in violence. Sometimes I just want to watch two dudes throwing bombs until they can’t anymore.
5. Nate Diaz vs. Conor McGregor – UFC 202 (8/20/16)
4. Dong Hyun Kim vs. Marco Polo Reyes – UFC 199 (6/4/16)
3. Tony Ferguson vs. Lando Vannata – UFC Fight Night (7/13/16)
2. Anderson Silva vs. Michael Bisping – UFC Fight Night (2/27/16)
1. Cub Swanson vs. Doo Ho Choi – UFC 206 (12/10/16) – If Doo Ho Choi’s 12-fight win streak was to come to an end, it sure happened in as memorable a way possible last month. Cub Swanson and Choi brawled for three rounds, going back and forth with strikes until one tired out, then the other took over, rinse and repeat. In spite of both men expending so much energy through rounds one and two, the final five minutes displayed what the sport is about – reaching deep within yourself and fighting on (or if there’s nothing there…not). Swanson and Choi brawled until the final bell in such a way that left you wondering how the hell both men were still standing and throwing big punches.
5. Donald Cerrone vs. Matt Brown – UFC 206
4. Joanna Jedrzejczyk vs. Claudia Gadelha II – The Ultimate Fighter 23 Finale
3. Cub Swanson vs. Doo Ho Choi – UFC 206
2. Dominick Cruz vs. Cody Garbrandt – UFC 207
1. Robbie Lawler vs. Carlos Condit – UFC 195 – This was a hell of a fight. Both men gave everything they had and left everything in the cage. It was a back and forth war. Lawler showed a bit of the problems he has in the past. Sometimes he’s a slow starter. However, once he flips the switch, the dude is an absolute savage. On some level, I’m a little heart broken for Condit because he came closer than he ever has to the UFC title, only to fall short yet again. Still, it was a dramatic fight, and an outstanding fight for both guys. In my humble opinion, neither Lawler or Condit nearly get the love or respect from the fans they deserve for some of their outstanding performances in the Octagon. Let’s not forget, in 2013, the fans branded Condit as a coward for his fine performance against Nick Diaz that he won for not making it a dog fight and basically not fighting like an idiot against Nick Diaz.
5. Nate Diaz vs. Conor McGregor – UFC 202
4. Donald Cerrone vs. Matt Brown – UFC 206
3. Dominick Cruz vs. Cody Garbrandt – UFC 207
2. Robbie Lawler vs. Carlos Condit – UFC 19
1. Cub Swanson vs. Doo Ho Choi – UFC 206 – There are times where I watch the fights, and there are times where I just don’t care; but then you get fights like Cub Swanson vs. Doo Ho Choi at UFC 206, and I just can’t take my eyes off of it. Two guys, throwing with everything they have, not only battling each other but also battling exhaustion. I love technical fights, I love slick jiu jitsu & counter grappling but I will never turn down two fighters looking to destroy each other. This was that, a big old car wreck that I just couldn’t stop watching.
5. Nate Diaz vs. Conor McGregor – UFC 202 – 5 points
4. Donald Cerrone vs. Matt Brown – UFC 206 – 6 points
3. Robbie Lawler vs. Carlos Condit – UFC 195 – 18 points
2. Dominick Cruz vs. Cody Garbrandt – UFC 207 – 20 points
1. Doo Ho Choi vs. Cub Swanson – UFC 206 – 23 points
THE 2016 411 MMA AWARDS:
* The Biggest Stories of 2016: Zuffa Sells UFC to WME-IMG for $4 BILLION – 29 points
* The Most Disappointing Fighters of 2016: Johny Hendricks – 28 points
* The Breakout Fighters of 2016: Cody Garbrandt – 25 points
* The Worst Fights of 2016: Kimbo Slice vs. Dada 5000 – Bellator 149 – 25 points
* The Best Submissions of 2016: Mackenzie Dern’s Imanari choke vs. Montana Stewart – LFC 61 – 20 points
* The Best Knockouts of 2016: Yair Rodriguez vs. Andre Fili – UFC 197 – 18 points
* The Best Fights of 2016: Doo Ho Choi vs. Cub Swanson – UFC 206 – 23 points
* Fighter of the Year: TO BE DETERMINED (January 27th)
