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The octagon is set to hit Miami tonight for UFC 299, and the deep card looks like it could be one of the best of 2024.
UFC 299 features many big stars, but most notably, it features fighters who have become renowned for finishing their opponents violently. With any luck, fans will be treated to more nasty stoppages tonight, with a minimal number of fights set to go the distance.
On that note, here are five of the best finishes from the stars of UFC 299.
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#5. Kevin Holland vs. Jacare Souza – UFC 256
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Kevin Holland, who will welcome former Bellator standout Michael Page into the octagon tonight, has become well-known over the years for his unorthodox style. This style has led him to many highlight reel finishes in the octagon.
Perhaps the most notable finish produced by ‘The Trailblazer’, though, came when he faced grappling standout Jacare Souza at UFC 256 in late 2020.
Holland had already won four fights that year and was looking to tie a promotional record by winning his fifth. However, he was a huge underdog against the experienced Brazilian, who many expected would take Holland down and dominate him.
Indeed, Jacare did take Holland down early, but showing a ridiculous amount of confidence, ‘The Trailblazer’ began to talk trash at him from his back.
From there, Holland stunned fans by leaning up and nailing Jacare with a huge right hand. Sensing that his veteran foe was hurt, ‘The Trailblazer’ unloaded with more shots, and incredibly, despite being in a dominant position, Souza collapsed to his back.
Seconds later, Holland followed up with some more lethal shots and ended the fight there.
It was a truly insane finish, primarily because it was a widely accepted belief that finishing a foe with strikes from underneath is near-impossible, particularly against a grappler as good as Jacare. Unsurprisingly, it remains the signature stoppage of ‘The Trailblazer’.
#4. Petr Yan vs. Urijah Faber – UFC 245
While he will come into his fight with Song Yadong this weekend off a three-fight skid, back in 2019, Petr Yan was probably the hottest fighter in the UFC’s bantamweight division.
By the end of that year, the only thing missing from the ledger of ‘No Mercy’ was a victory over a real big name opponent. That changed at UFC 245, though.
Yan was matched with Urijah Faber in what always felt like a curious piece of matchmaking. ‘The California Kid’ was one of the promotion’s best-known 135 pound fighters, but he was also 40 and had only returned from retirement a few months before.
Nevertheless, Faber had looked great in taking out Ricky Simon in his return fight, and so he was pushed as the biggest test of Yan’s career to that point. Unfortunately for the veteran, the fight quickly turned into a violent massacre in favour of the Russian fighter.
After surviving the first round, Faber found himself knocked down on three occasions in the second. The fight probably should’ve been stopped when one of them also saw the veteran busted wide open.
Unfortunately, proceedings continued into the third, but the stanza didn’t last for long. Yan caught Faber with a clean left head kick in the first minute, knocking him silly and producing a merciful stoppage.
The brutality of the finish – and the fight in general – was scary, and still stands as an example of the damage Yan can do to opponents when he’s at his best.
#3. Dustin Poirier vs. Conor McGregor – UFC 257
One of the UFC’s biggest stars, Dustin Poirier has had an octagon career that dates all the way back to 2011. Unsurprisingly, ‘The Diamond’ has produced a litany of nasty finishes over the years.
The most famous one, of course, was produced by Poirier in January 2021. In the headline bout of UFC 257 – the first event to have fans in attendance since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic – he dispatched old rival Conor McGregor in wild fashion.
Given McGregor’s status as the UFC’s biggest star, it was no surprise that the fight was built as one of the biggest in a long time. It’s also fair to say, though, that the pressure was firmly on Poirier.
Not only was ‘The Diamond’ essentially the b-side in the big fight, but he was also knocked out by ‘The Notorious’ in 2014. Poirier had improved a lot in the six years that had passed, though, and after a close first round, he took over the fight entirely.
He used his low kicks – particularly to the calf – to soften McGregor up, and as the Irishman began to slow down, ‘The Diamond’ opened up.
He cracked McGregor with a left hand, and sensing that his opponent was hurt, Poirier poured it on with a huge barrage of punches. ‘The Notorious’ began to wilt, and Poirier continued to come forward, finally putting the Irishman down with a right hook that sealed the deal.
The win made Poirier the first fighter to stop McGregor with strikes and turned him into a genuine superstar in the process.
#2. Marlon Vera vs. Frankie Edgar – UFC 268
It’s probably fair to say that Marlon Vera, who will fight Sean O’Malley for the bantamweight title tonight, is one of the most lethal finishers in UFC history.
‘Chito’ has scored a bantamweight record 10 finishes in his octagon career, which dates back to late 2014. These finishes have included both submissions and strikes and have seen him dispatch top-level fighters, including O’Malley himself in their first bout.
However, it’s fair to say that the best finish on the ledger of the Ecuadorian fighter came when he fought legendary former lightweight titleholder Frankie Edgar in November 2021.
Most observers were picking ‘Chito’ to win the bout, reckoning Edgar was past his best, but few could’ve seen the violent nature of the finish coming. Remarkably, it wasn’t until the second round that Vera really began to hit his stride.
He struggled with ‘The Answer’ on the ground in the first round, but as the bout went on, his striking power began to tell. Edgar was wobbled on more than one occasion in the second round. In the third, ‘Chito’ finally put him away with a ruthless front kick to the jaw, channelling his inner Anderson Silva.
Although Vera landed some follow-up shots, Edgar was realistically done as soon as the kick landed. After the show, a photo of the legend’s contorted face right as he ate the strike went viral, turning ‘Chito’ into somewhat of a breakout star.
He hasn’t looked back since then and could climb to the top of the mountain if he can repeat the feat tonight.
#1. Sean O’Malley vs. Aljamain Sterling – UFC 292
Reigning UFC bantamweight champion Sean O’Malley has produced many flashy finishes since his octagon debut in 2017. Renowned for his unorthodox striking style, ‘Sugar’ boasts expert timing and brutal punching power, something that can often combine to produce truly explosive results.
With respect to his incredible 2020 knockout of Eddie Wineland, though, the best finish produced by O’Malley in the octagon saw him claim the 135 pound title he will attempt to defend tonight.
Many fans doubted him coming into his bout with Aljamain Sterling. After all, ‘The Funk Master’ was far more battle-tested, having beaten both Petr Yan and Henry Cejudo, while O’Malley’s only elite victory was a controversial decision over Yan in a fight that plenty thought he had lost.
However, after a relatively close – and uneventful – first round, ‘Sugar’ showed why his timing and reflexes gave him the ability to beat any opponent in the octagon.
Hoping to make things more exciting, Sterling decided to push the pace in the second stanza and pursued his challenger desperately, looking for either a takedown or a big shot. That approach led him to over-reach on a right hand attempt, and, sliding backwards in expert fashion, O’Malley saw an opening and countered.
He cracked ‘The Funk Master’ on the jaw with a clean right hand, dropping him face-first, and sealed the deal with a series of coffin nail hammer fists. The fight was instantly called off, and O’Malley had made it to the top of the UFC’s mountain in truly devastating fashion.
Only time will tell whether he can stay there, but nobody can ever argue with this classic finish.
