5 fighters who turned their UFC debuts into highlight reels

For any fighter, even a champion in another organization, making your debut inside the UFC must be a nerve-racking ordeal. We’ve seen even tremendous fighters falter under the bright lights of the octagon.

For some fighters, though, making a big first impression in the UFC has somehow been easy, despite all the pressure that an octagon debut can provide.

The following five fighters not only impressed in their UFC debuts, but they also turned those debuts into highlight reel clips that made them into instant stars in the process.

Here are five fighters who turned their UFC debuts into highlight reels.

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#5. Alex Pereira vs. Andreas Michailidis – UFC 268

Alex Pereira blew UFC fans away with this flying knee in his octagon debut

The most recent entry onto our list came this past weekend at UFC 268, when middleweight prospect Alex Pereira exploded onto the UFC scene with a knockout of Andreas Michailidis.

Pereira had plenty of hype around him coming into his octagon debut, as he had been a multi-weight kickboxing champion with the GLORY organization, and had even knocked out current UFC middleweight champion Israel Adesanya in the kickboxing ring.

However, ‘Poatan’ was somewhat short on top-level MMA experience, and while Michailidis was not a top-ten ranked fighter in the UFC, he still looked like the toughest test for Pereira to date.

In the first round, Michailidis appeared determined to prove that the Brazilian kickboxing champion didn’t belong in the UFC. He took the fight to Pereira and managed to slow him up by using his clinch work, and was able to take the first round on most observers’ scorecards.

After that, it was clear that ‘Poatan’ needed to switch things up in order to win. As the second round began, he did just that, leaping out of his corner with a flying knee that landed cleanly, instantly switching the lights off for Michailidis.

The knockout was a brutal one, and was enough to earn Pereira a $50k bonus cheque. More to the point, it ensured that the hype around him would only continue to grow, giving him the chance to earn another fight with Adesanya at some point in the future.

#4. Todd Duffee vs. Tim Hague – UFC 102

Todd Duffee equalled a UFC record in his octagon debut

When heavyweight prospect Todd Duffee entered the octagon for the first time at UFC 102, it was clear from his walkout that he was in a hurry.

Duffee tore off his t-shirt as he headed towards his destination, a clash with Tim Hague, who had won his UFC debut against Pat Barry impressively.

Holding an unbeaten record of 5-0, as well as a win over UFC and PRIDE veteran Assuerio Silva, there were plenty of whispers that Duffee could become the next big thing in the heavyweight division.

Just seconds later, those whispers turned into genuine talk. Duffee walked to the center of the octagon, dropped Hague with a stiff jab, and finished him with a follow-up barrage.

The whole fight took just seven seconds, equalling the UFC’s record for fastest knockout in the process and left UFC fans thoroughly blown away, particularly when Duffee labeled Hague an “appetiser” and yelled to Dana White that he “wanted to eat now”.

Over the decade that has followed, Duffee never quite lived up to the hype that he caused upon his debut – he’s gone 3-2-1 in the UFC and there are questions over whether he’ll return to action – but this remains one of the most explosive debuts in the promotion’s history.

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#3. Stephen Thompson vs. Dan Stittgen – UFC 143

Stephen Thompson's UFC debut produced one of the best knockouts of 2012

When the UFC signed Stephen ‘Wonderboy’ Thompson in early 2012, the native of Simpsonville, South Carolina, brought quite the reputation with him.

A world class kickboxer and karateka, Thompson was ranked as the #1 fighter in Chuck Norris’ short-lived World Combat League, and he even held an unbeaten kickboxing record of 58-0.

However, with just five MMA fights to his name against low-level competition, there were questions over how well he could do in the octagon.

‘Wonderboy’ didn’t take long to answer those questions against fellow UFC debutant Dan Stittgen at UFC 143. Late in the first round, he caught Stittgen with a beautifully whipped ‘question mark’ head kick, folding him like a bad poker hand.

Thompson didn’t even need to follow up the kick with punches as it was immediately clear that Stittgen wasn’t getting up any time soon.

The win not only turned ‘Wonderboy’ into an overnight sensation in the UFC, but it also won him a $65k bonus, and would be widely recognized as one of the best knockouts of 2012.

#2. Michael Chandler vs. Dan Hooker – UFC 257

Michael Chandler crushed Dan Hooker in his UFC debut in February

Former Bellator MMA champions have endured mixed results inside the UFC, with the likes of Hector Lombard and Will Brooks struggling heavily while Eddie Alvarez was able to claim the UFC lightweight title.

So when the former Bellator lightweight kingpin Michael Chandler signed with the UFC to make his octagon debut against Dan Hooker, the pressure was on, particularly when the promotion made his fight the co-main event of a Conor McGregor-headlined pay-per-view.

However, showing no signs of any nerves or jitters, ‘Iron' quickly turned his UFC debut into a highlight reel for the ages, making him an instant star in the process.

After a brief feeling-out period, Chandler came flying forward with a leaping left hook that connected squarely with Hooker’s jaw, sending ‘The Hangman’ crashing down to the ground.

Hooker had survived serious punishment before, but this was a punch that could’ve dropped a rhino, and Chandler followed it up with another brutal barrage that immediately forced referee Marc Goddard to call the fight off.

The knockout was so good that it earned Chandler an instant shot at the vacant UFC lightweight title, and at the time of writing, it remains a high-end contender for 2021’s knockout of the year.

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#1. Anderson Silva vs. Chris Leben – UFC Fight Night 5

Anderson Silva blew UFC fans away with his debut win back in 2006

Probably the greatest example of a fighter who was able to turn his UFC debut into a highlight reel remains legendary former middleweight kingpin Anderson Silva.

When he signed with the UFC in 2006, Silva brought plenty of hype with him from his time in PRIDE and Cage Rage.

However, few fans expected him to adjust to the UFC’s higher level of competition so quickly, particularly when his debut saw him matched with the uber-tough Chris Leben.

Ignoring Leben’s pre-fight insults about sending Silva back to Japan “where the competition is easier”, ‘The Spider’ remained calm prior to the fight and then put on a show for the ages.

Literally every strike he threw landed cleanly on Leben, from a stiff one-two that dropped him to the fight-ending series of kicks and knees that left ‘The Crippler’ knocked out for the first time in his MMA career.

More to the point, despite facing one of the middleweight division’s heaviest hitters, Silva somehow didn’t even absorb a single strike in return.

The Brazilian’s performance left UFC fans in awe, and it was enough for the promotion to fast-track him straight into a UFC middleweight title shot.

Of course, the rest is history. For all of the accolades Silva went onto achieve, his UFC debut remains arguably his greatest highlight-reel fight.