SUMMARY
- The fight between Islam Makhachev and Alexander Volkanovski was considerably one of the most technical fights of 2023.
- The event took place in Miami, Florida, between the fiercest rivals, Alex Pereira and Israel Adesanya.
The UFC is looking forward to entering 2024. In 2023, there were big names of legendary candidates like Jon Jones, who made the glorious return inside the octagon. In this calendar year, the UFC held around 520 fights and 51 events, which is way more than expected.
Moreover, with the year-end, the company has entertained the fans with some truly spectacular fights. Most importantly, it has been another big year for UFC already, as it completed its 30th glorious year. Through these years, the UFC has introduced some of the greatest talents and titles and conducted fantastic events. On this note, let’s recap the five most thrilling fights of 2023.
5. UFC 284: Islam Makhachev vs. Alexander Volkanovski
The fight between Islam Makhachev and Alexander Volkanovski was considerably one of the most technical fights of 2023. The main event was held in Perth, Australia. Volkanovski, being an Aussie featherweight king, claimed two-division status when he challenged the Lightweight titleholder, Islam Makhachev.
In the open round of the fight, Alexander Volkanovksi showed off his deadliest strikes, and Islam Makhachev finished the round in a ground position. Later, Volkanovski coped and registered that the next two rounds were all in his favor before Makhachev dominated the fourth round of the fight. With that, Islam defended the title with a final scoreboard of (48–47, 48–47, 49–46).
Islam and Volk have some thoughts after watching their fight back 👀
(via @MAKHACHEVMMA @alexvolkanovski) pic.twitter.com/RmKgKlIAEm
— ESPN MMA (@espnmma) February 12, 2023
Both candidates took over the battle for the final round and gave a nail-biting moment to the fans and judges. In the first four minutes of the round, Volkanovski dropped the lightweight champion with a minute left on the clock. Lastly, ‘The Great’ pounded out Makhachev until the final warning of the fight. Post-match, both fighters were surprised and impressed by one another.
4. UFC 284: Geoff Neal vs. Shavkat Rakhmonov
The best fight UFC fans encountered went down at UFC 285 in Las Vegas, Nevada. On the undercard of Jon ‘Bones’ Jones, the Kazakh-based mixed martial artist Shavkat Rakhmonov and American Geoff Neal made the much-anticipated debut. Both MMA personalities delivered a challenging competition to each other, which was a thrilling turn-out breakthrough moment for Rakhmonov.
Being one of the most intriguing fighters on the planet, Rakhmonov cemented his high-level record. Looking to hold onto his 100% finishing streak intact, Shavkat got a dreadful push that led him to conquer the fight against top-ranked contender Geoff Neal.
SHAVKAT IS THE REAL DEAL! 🤯@Rakhmonov1994 stays undefeated at #UFC285!! pic.twitter.com/Dr1jVTZDkE
— UFC (@ufc) March 5, 2023
Throughout the match, the fight was taking on a pace of higher excitement as Neal’s sharp boxing skills gave Rakhmonov a lot of turnarounds. However, he struggled at range against his Kazakh foe, taking many kicks to the body and head.
During the end of the fight, when time was running out, Rakhmonov waved his comfort, and with certain limitations, he solely focused on his perfect record and finishing rate intact, while his battling expertise showed how superior he was.
3. UFC 286: Leon Edwards vs Kumaru Usman
Leon Edwards reclaimed the title in a rematch against Kumaru Usman at UFC 286. ‘Rocky’ remarkably cemented his victory with his first welterweight title defense along with his home fans in London. During the fight, Edwards edged out the round with a powerful body kick to Usman. Further, he also got to hear a warning from referee Herb Dean for unethically grabbing Kamaru’s glove.
However, the match took an unexpected turn when Edwards landed his strong knee in the second round after getting an early pause in action. The Nigerian guy got into his consciousness and bounced back with a flush right hand, followed by his very first takedown of the fight. Edwards lost a point for a fence grab in the third round.
The fight took a turn when both fighters were on their toes for the rest of the round, with Kumaru Usman edging out the round due to the point deduction from ‘Rocky’. Lastly, the final results were announced in favor of Edwards for successfully defending his title for the first time with a majority decision win (48-46, 48-46, 47-47) against Usman at UFC 286.
2. UFC 287: Alex Pereira vs. Israel Adesanya 2
The main event at UFC 287 was undoubtedly one of the most longstanding events in combat sports history. The event took place in Miami, Florida, between the fiercest rivals, Alex Pereira and Israel Adesanya. There is nothing much to define, as they have intense rivalries between them.
Israel Adesanya and Alex Pereria squared off inside the octagon for the second time. However, a former kickboxer had already defeated Adesanya three times in a row, including their history in kickboxing. Following the past three consecutive defeats, ‘Izzy’s fans predicted the fourth fight would not be any different.
ISRAEL ADESANYA KO’s ALEX PEREIRA IN THE SECOND ROUND TO REGAIN THE UFC MIDDLEWEIGHT CROWN 👑
🎥 @UFC | #UFC287pic.twitter.com/FEv75n15aZ
— The Athletic (@TheAthletic) April 9, 2023
However, he registered his victory with a vicious KO over Pereira in the second round of the UFC 287 main event. After the power-packed performance from Adesanya, several fans rated this KO as one of the most prominent KOs of ‘Izzy’ in 2023. Needless to say, it was the most devastating KO so far this year.
Apart from the rivalry, there is still sportsmanship alive that is leading the sport to new heights. Post-match, Adesanya lifted the mic to appreciate the greatness of Pereira.
1. UFC 291: Dustin Poirier vs. Justin Gaethje 2
American professional mixed martial artist Justin Gaethje claimed redemption against Dustin Poirier at UFC 291. Gaethje claimed a spectacular victory by delivering the best-timed head kick that led to a knockout at 1:00 of Round 2. This victory also led him to become the second-ever BMF Champion.
👊 𝕋𝕙𝕖 𝔹𝕄𝔽 👊
Justin Gaethje has KNOCKED OUT Dustin Poirier in the main event! 💪#UFC291 pic.twitter.com/TGQMDXN6xH
— UFC on TNT Sports (@ufcontnt) July 30, 2023
American fighters claimed his finishing move with a high-voltage kick through his right leg, which was executed cleverly with a hidden behind a punch. However, Poirier managed to block the kick partially with his arm, but the fast execution of Gaethje’s kick broke the defensive arms. This caused a big loss to ‘The Diamond’ and had to conclude the defeat against ‘The Highlight‘.
