5 UFC finishes that needed a replay to make sense

Nothing gets a UFC crowd excited quite like a violent and explosive finish, and naturally, we’ve seen countless numbers of memorable ones over the years.

However, we’ve also seen finishes inside the UFC’s octagon that initially left the fans more confused than anything else – only for a replay to give a much better idea of what happened.

Some of these finishes are amongst the most well-regarded in the promotion’s history, making it even more bizarre that they appeared to cause nothing but confusion at first.

Here are five UFC finishes that needed replays to make sense.

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#5. Andrei Arlovski vs. Paul Buentello – UFC 55

Referee John McCarthy was the only person not baffled by Andrei Arlovski's KO of Paul Buentello

When Andrei Arlovski and Paul Buentello faced off at UFC 55 for the heavyweight title, most fans expected a stand-up brawl between two of the division’s hardest-hitting fighters. What they probably didn’t expect was for the bout to last just 15 seconds.

Initially at least, it looked like referee John McCarthy had made a major gaffe in stopping the action. It looked like he’d dived in right as Arlovski had shot in for a takedown, and while ‘The Pitbull’ began to celebrate by leaping around and screaming, the crowd in attendance quickly began a chant of “bullsh*t”.

However, things quickly became curious when the camera cut to a wobbly-looking Buentello staggering around the octagon with a cut around his eye. Evidently, something had happened to him.

The replay confirmed just that. In slow-motion, it quickly became clear that Arlovski had never shot for a takedown, as everyone initially suspected.

Instead, he’d slipped Buentello’s jab and landed a clean right-hand counter that switched the lights of ‘The Headhunter’ off immediately, and had then ducked forwards to avoid his falling body.

As soon as it became clear exactly what had happened, the fans immediately got behind Arlovski with cheers – while Joe Rogan, on commentary, stated that there was “no bullsh*t” in the punch that ended the fight.

He was right – the shot took expert timing as well as extreme power, and remains one of Arlovski’s signature knockouts over 15 years later.

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#4. Edson Barboza vs. Shane Burgos – UFC 262

Shane Burgos' delayed reaction to a big shot from Edson Barboza caused utter confusion

The featherweight bout between Edson Barboza and Shane Burgos at UFC 262 was always predicted to be a barnburner, and after two rounds of wild, back-and-forth action, it felt like all that the clash needed to be a true classic was a finish.

The third round provided that, but in such an odd way that viewers were more confused than thrilled, and comparisons were quickly drawn between Burgos and pro-wrestling legend Ric Flair.

Essentially, Barboza and ‘The Hurricane’ went toe to toe with strikes, before the Brazilian clocked Burgos with a left-right combination that appeared to land cleanly.

Somehow, it looked like Burgos’ chin would stand up to the shots – but after stepping backwards to attempt to reset, his legs suddenly gave way.

Completely discombobulated, the New Yorker collapsed to the ground, and Barboza quickly finished him with a few more shots, with referee Mike Beltran looking as baffled as everyone else as he stepped in.

What exactly happened? Essentially, a replay confirmed that the combination from Barboza landed perfectly, but rather than switching Burgos’ lights out instantly, it instead led to a wild delayed reaction that looked similar to the infamous ‘Flair Flop’, albeit backwards rather than face-first.

Once it became clear that Burgos hadn’t taken a dive or anything sinister, the crowd were quick to give both men their due – as were the UFC, who awarded them with $50k bonus cheques.

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#3. Anthony Pettis vs. Benson Henderson – UFC 164

Anthony Pettis surprised everyone with his armbar finish of Benson Henderson

In many ways, a submission is more of a clear-cut way to win in the UFC’s octagon than a knockout, purely because most of the time, it sees an opponent call off the fight themselves by tapping out.

Usually, though, fighters have to ensure that they don’t let go of a successful submission hold until the referee signals that they can – even if their opponent has tapped.

That wasn’t the case in the 2013 UFC lightweight title bout between champion Benson Henderson and challenger Anthony Pettis, though, resulting in a confusing finish that only became clear after a replay.

After a series of body kicks landed for Pettis, Henderson decided to take him down, only to find himself in trouble pretty quickly when ‘Showtime’ went for an armbar.

The hold didn’t look quite sunk, but with basically zero warning, Pettis suddenly released, leaping to his feet in celebration. The crowd were baffled as Henderson then stood up shaking his head, while referee Herb Dean hesitated a second before waving the bout off.

Announcers Mike Goldberg and Joe Rogan were also baffled, until a replay showed that the armbar was tighter than the original angle had suggested – and while Henderson hadn’t physically tapped out, he had definitely verbally submitted, resulting in Pettis letting go.

However, despite the ending of the bout clearly being conclusive, it still felt strange to see Pettis initially celebrating to very little fanfare – even if it was classy of Henderson to immediately admit that he’d submitted when Dean clearly didn’t realise that was the case.

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#2. Gray Maynard vs. Robert Emerson – TUF 5 Finale

The fight between Gray Maynard and Rob Emerson featured the most confusing finish in UFC history

The finish of the 2007 lightweight bout between TUF 5 veterans Gray Maynard and Rob Emerson remains one of the most unique in UFC history, as it’s probably the only example of a double knockout ever seen inside the octagon.

The bout also led to plenty of confusion, as well as one of the most unintentionally funny post-fight interviews in the promotion’s history, too.

Essentially, Maynard dominated the fight in all areas, and in the first round, appeared to hurt Emerson badly to the body with a series of punches on the ground.

‘The Saint’ came into the second round in clear pain, and within seconds, Maynard capitalised by lifting him up to deliver a big bodyslam. As the two men hit the ground, Emerson, clutching his ribs in agony, immediately tapped out.

Referee Steve Mazzagatti quickly stepped in, but in a bizarre scene, Maynard then rolled off Emerson’s body and looked dazed and confused in his own right.

Still, everyone believed he’d won the fight – until it was announced that Mazzagatti had declared the bout a No Contest, causing mass confusion.

That confusion continued until a replay revealed exactly what had happened. Essentially, Maynard had driven his own head into the canvas with the slam, knocking himself out in the process and justifying Mazzagatti’s decision.

However, ‘The Bully’ wasn’t buying it, and during his post-fight interview with Joe Rogan, continually denied that he was unconscious – despite the replay showing otherwise. The interview only added to the bizarre nature of the bout, which remains highly memorable to this day.

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#1. Yair Rodriguez vs. Chan Sung Jung – UFC Fight Night 139

Without a replay, it was nearly impossible to see how Yair Rodriguez had knocked out Chan Sung Jung

The featherweight bout between Yair Rodriguez and Chan Sung Jung is largely recognized as one of the most memorable in UFC history, primarily because of its wild finish, which seemed closer to something from a movie than a real-life fight.

The bout ended with literally a second remaining in the fifth and final round, as Jung was rendered unconscious by a wild elbow strike from a ducking ‘El Pantera’ as he came forward.

However, on first viewing, it was nearly impossible to pick out exactly what Rodriguez had done to leave Jung out cold as the buzzer signaled the end of the fight. For all intents and purposes, it looked like a sniper had taken out ‘The Korean Zombie’ from the stands.

Some fans, in fact, believed that the buzzer sounding would mean the fight would go to the judges’ scorecards.

However, the replays quickly confirmed the truth of what had happened. As Jung had closed in for one final brawl with his Mexican opponent, Rodriguez ducked, threw a back elbow in an upwards arc, and somehow caught ‘The Korean Zombie on the jaw, switching off his lights.

Quite how Rodriguez had pulled off this miracle knockout was anyone’s guess, but as soon as what he’d done became clear, the crowd erupted.

Even now, it’s hard to spot the final strike landing if the finish is viewed at normal speed and from the initial angle that aired on television – but unsurprisingly, the replays alone were enough to turn Rodriguez into a star.