The 2018 Heavies Awards - Fight of the Year - WINNER: Whittaker vs. Romero 2

2018's Fight of the Year?


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The 2018 Heavies Awards - Fight of the Year

What a year 2018 was for MMA fights! There have been some amazing fights this year and as always it's hard to pick just a few to vote on, but I've done my best to narrow them down into a decent list with the help of various sources. If I've missed any, let me know.. I also had more GIFs but the limits 20 per post, so I've had to remove a few. :(

Anyway, these are in no particular order.

Voting will be open for 5 days from the opening of this thread, so get your votes in before the 14th.

Thanks for voting!


Nominees

Robert Whittaker vs Yoel Romero II
Robert Whittaker def. Yoel Romero SD RD 5:00 UFC 225

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Ronaldo Souza vs Chris Weidman
Ronaldo Souza def. Chris Weidman KO R3 2:46 UFC 230


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Dustin Poirer vs Justin Gaethje
Dustin Poirier def. Justin Gaethje TKO R4 0:33 UFC on Fox 29

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Aung La N Sang vs Ken Hasegawa
Aung La N Sang def. Ken Hasegawa KO R5 3:13

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Tony Ferguson vs Anthony Pettis
Tony Ferguson def. Anthony Pettis TKO (Doctor Stoppage) R2 5:00 at UFC 229

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Rory MacDonald vs Douglas Lima
Rory MacDonald def. Douglas Lima vis UD R5 5:00 at Bellator 192

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Max Holloway vs Brian Ortega
Max Holloway def. Brian Ortega TKO (Doctor Stoppage) RD4 5:00 at UFC 231

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Zabit Magomedsharipov vs Kyle Bochniak
Zabit Maromedsharipov def. Kyle Bochniak UD R3 5:00 at UFC 223


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Jimi Manuwa vs Thiago Santos
Thiago Santos def. Jimi Manuwa KO R2 0:41 at UFC 231


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Yair Rodriguez vs Chan Sung Jung
Yair Rodriguez def. Chan Sung Jung KO R5 4:59 UFC Fight Night 139


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Peter Yan vs Jin Soo Son
Peter Yan def. Jin Soo Son UD R3 5:00 at UFC Fight Night: Hunt vs Oliynyk


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Conor McGregor vs Khabib Nurmagomedov


Khabib Nurmagomedov def. Conor McGregor SUB R4 3:03 at UFC 229


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Honorable Mentions


Rose Namajunas vs Joanna Jedzejzcyk II
Rose Namajunas def. Joanna Jedzejzcyk UD at UFC 223

Demetrious Johnson vs Henry Cejudo II
Henry Cejudo def. Demetrious Johnson UD R3 5:00 at UFC Fight Night 127


Calvin Kattor vs Shane Burgos

Calvin Kattor def. Shane Burgos TKO RD3 0:32 at UFC 220

Derrick Lewis vs Alexander Volkov
Derrick Lewis def. Alexander Volkov KO R3 0:41 at UFC 229

Angela Lee vs Mei Yamaguchi
Angela Lee def. Mei Yamaguchi UD R5 5:00 One Championship: Unstoppable Dreams

 
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Extra GIFS

Robert Whittaker vs Yoel Romero II
Robert Whittaker def. Yoel Romero SD RD 5:00 UFC 225

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Ronaldo Souza vs Chris Weidman

Ronaldo Souza def. Chris Weidman KO R3 2:46 UFC 230

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Dustin Poirier vs Justin Gaethje
Dustin Poirier def. Justin Gaethje TKO R4 0:33 UFC on Fox 29



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Aung La N Sang vs Ken Hasegawa
Aung La N Sang def. Ken Hasegawa KO R5 3:13

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Tony Ferguson vs Anthony Pettis

Tony Ferguson def. Anthony Pettis TKO (Doctor Stoppage) R2 5:00 at UFC 229

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Rory MacDonald vs Douglas Lima

Rory MacDonald def. Douglas Lima vis UD R5 5:00 at Bellator 192

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Max Holloway vs Brian Ortega
Max Holloway def. Brian Ortega TKO (Doctor Stoppage) RD4 5:00 at UFC 231

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Zabit Magomedsharipov vs Kyle Bochniak
Zabit Maromedsharipov def. Kyle Bochniak UD R3 5:00 at UFC 223


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Jimi Manuwa vs Thiago Santos
Thiago Santos def. Jimi Manuwa KO R2 0:41 at UFC 231


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Yair Rodriguez vs Chan Sung Jung
Yair Rodriguez def. Chan Sung Jung KO R5 4:59 UFC Fight Night 139




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Tough year to call, but I had to go with Yair VS Korean Zombie

24 minutes and 59 seconds of non stop action with lots of heart and technique both ways.

At the final second of the fight, Yair came from behind to steal the fight with literally the final strike in the final Second of the fight, and that too a beautifully placed and timed duck-in uppercut back-elbow.

When it happened and KZ went to the floor everyone was dumbfounded. We all had a WTF JUST HAPPENED look on our faces...from the announcers to the fans in the arena to us guys in the PBP thread.

Took us time to process it because it was so unreal. Couldn't have scripted it better in Rocky movie.

Yair VS KZ
Fight of the year!
 
Too many great fights this year . I have to go with Rob vs Yoel 2 because Rob was lighting up Yoel in the first two rounds then Yoel dropped Rob in the third and Rob fired back with kicks and elbows of his own . Rob was winning the fourth until Yoel wobbled him and it was the closest round of the contest the 5th was all Romero too with him nearly finishing Rob but Rob was still fighting back showing his heart of a champion. Yoel had a closed eye and Rob had a broken hand and they fought their heart off in that fight . Amazing contest by both of them wish Yoel wouldnt have missed weight.
I was rooting for Rob he is my favorite MW who is fighting in the UFC but i thought Yoel won it.


Holloway vs Ortega was a great fight with Ortega showing his iron chin and unbreakable will but it was too one-sided to be FOTY.
 
I think due to the magnitude of the Romero/Whittaker fight (a rematch, for the belt, both guys monsters) plus the fact that it delivered, that it was highly skilled, tightly contested, back and forth, even controversial decision edges out some of the other fights on the list, who might have been more action packed.
 
Whittaker-Romero II was amazing. I think it was the most competitive as well. FOTY needs to be back and forth IMO.
 
Tough one for me. I went for Pettis v Tony just because I actually thought Pettis looked a lot like his old self in that fight, and was still outmatched.
 
Tough year to call, but I had to go with Yair VS Korean Zombie

24 minutes and 59 seconds of non stop action with lots of heart and technique both ways.

At the final second of the fight, Yair came from behind to steal the fight with literally the final strike in the final Second of the fight, and that too a beautifully placed and timed duck-in uppercut back-elbow.

When it happened and KZ went to the floor everyone was dumbfounded. We all had a WTF JUST HAPPENED look on our faces...from the announcers to the fans in the arena to us guys in the PBP thread.

Took us time to process it because it was so unreal. Couldn't have scripted it better in Rocky movie.

Yair VS KZ
Fight of the year!

This.

KZ got slept by a fluke elbow and in literally the last second. No one should get put out by an elbow like that, but it happened, and Rodriguez stole the win right out from under KZ.
 
Tough call between Poirier-Gaethje and KZ-Yair. Probably have to go with Poirier-Gaethje.

Rose-Joanna 2 also deserves a mention imho.
 
Whittaker vs Romero 2 for me. Whittaker is always involved in classics. His fight with Gastelum could be FOTY material too.
 
Ferguson vs. Pettis for me - everything I enjoy in a short, sharp, brutal fight.
 
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