5 of the best one-round fights in UFC history
There’s nothing better than a lengthy war in the UFC’s octagon, such as the recent clash between Michael Chandler and Justin Gaethje. However there's also something to be said for a great fight that doesn’t last that long.
Over the years, we’ve seen a number of tremendous fights inside the UFC that somehow ended in the first round, usually with some serious violence.
Until this day, UFC President @DanaWhite references the rematch between Matt Hughes and Frank Trigg as his favorite fight of all time.
A bout that took place 13 years ago today.
Sometimes these fights featured wild exchanges while others saw insane comebacks, but either way, they were among the most entertaining clashes in UFC history.
With this in mind, here are five of the best one-round fights in UFC history.
#5: Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira vs. Frank Mir – UFC 140
Frank Mir’s first clash with Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira at UFC 92 in December 2008, was a memorable one for a number of reasons.
It represented the culmination of Mir’s comeback following a serious leg injury, and it was also the first time Nogueira had ever been stopped by strikes.
However, for as good as that fight was, their second one, which took place in December 2011 at UFC 140, was far superior. A decade on, it remains one of the UFC’s greatest-ever one-round fights.
Early on, the fight looked like it would belong to Nogueira. Unlike in their first bout, ‘Minotauro’ looked sharper than Mir on the feet, and when he rocked his opponent with a stiff jab, it looked like the beginning of the end.
However, rather than attempt to finish Mir off standing, Nogueira decided to drop for a guillotine to look for a submission.
It turned out to be a huge mistake. Mir was somehow able to scramble free of the hold, and after a wild exchange of positions, he rolled through and locked Nogueira’s arm up in a tight kimura.
What is the Greatest Submission of All-Time?
#7 Seed: Frank Mir and Minotauro Nogueira met in a clash of BJJ heavyweights for an unforgettable back-and-forth ground war that ended in a win by Kimura for Frank Mir - and a painful loss for Big Nog. https://t.co/4ZHqnpDbz3
‘Minotauro’ attempted to fight the hold, only for Mir to apply more torque, snapping his arm entirely in a sick visual. The stoppage was academic, making Mir the first man to submit Nogueira in a fight too.
Featuring a wild comeback and one of the best grappling exchanges in UFC heavyweight history, this was a stone-cold one-round classic.