5 latest finishes in UFC title fights

#4. Miesha Tate vs. Holly Holm – UFC women's bantamweight title – 3:30 in Round 5

Just moments remained when Miesha Tate choked out Holly Holm in their bantamweight title bout

When Holly Holm dethroned Ronda Rousey to claim the UFC bantamweight title in late 2015, most fans expected her to go on to have a dominant reign as champion. After all, Rousey had looked unbeatable, so how could anyone be expected to beat Holm in turn?

However, ‘The Preacher’s Daughter’ did not have a long reign as champion, and lost her title in her first defense against Miesha Tate just four months after her big victory. The fight wasn’t the most exciting, but it had a number of momentum swings – and featured a remarkably late finish, too.

Of the first four rounds of the bout, three clearly belonged to Holm, who used her striking skills to largely pick ‘Cupcake’ apart. The second round, however, saw Tate land a takedown and dominate the champion, coming close to a finish with a rear-naked choke attempt.

The stanza probably should’ve been a red flag to Holm, but in the fifth round, she made the error of backing up too close to the fence, allowing Tate to duck under a punch and take her down.

With less than two minutes remaining, ‘The Preacher’s Daughter’ probably thought she could survive. However, Tate had other ideas. After securing back control, she slapped on a rear-naked choke, and this time strangled Holm into unconsciousness.

The title win represented the pinnacle of Tate’s MMA career, and the fact that the finish came so late seemed somewhat poetic, too, given her rivalry with Rousey, who built her reputation on finishing her foes quickly.

---

#3. Kamaru Usman vs. Colby Covington – UFC welterweight title – 4:10 in Round 5

Less than a minute remained when Kamaru Usman knocked out Colby Covington in their title fight

Kamaru Usman’s 2019 welterweight title clash with Colby Covington was probably one of the biggest grudge matches in UFC history, built around a genuine dislike that was fueled by some controversial – some would say quasi-racist – insults from ‘Chaos’.

With that considered, for their bout to go the distance probably would’ve been somewhat of an anticlimax. So, the fact that ‘The Nigerian Nightmare’ was able to put his bitter rival away late in the fifth round definitely capped off the story perfectly.

The fight itself was a truly excellent one that saw both men exchange heavy punches from the off, with neither man really looking to use their famed wrestling games.

With Covington looking to pressure Usman with his volume striking and the champion using his stiff jab to keep ‘Chaos’ at bay, it was also a very difficult fight to call. In fact, by the fifth round, it was hard to say which man was ahead on the scorecards.

However, Usman was in no mood to let the judges decide the winner. With around a minute to go, ‘The Nigerian Nightmare’ cracked his rival with a right hand, and suddenly, Covington was forced on the retreat.

From there, the champion dropped him with another right hand, and when ‘Chaos’ got to his feet, he was sent crashing down with another. From there, the end was nigh as referee Marc Goddard stepped in.

The finish remains the latest in any UFC welterweight title fight, and while Usman had to go the distance to edge out Covington in their 2021 rematch, this performance probably still stands as his greatest.