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 best UFC debut of all time is _____________
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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.
#5. Alex Pereira vs. Andreas Michailidis – UFC 268
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.
ALEX PEREIRA LADIES AND GENTLEMEN! THE FLYING KNEE! 🤯
#UFC268 https://t.co/mccIRJfztJ
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.