5 UFC fighters who won a bout with the least number of strikes
UFC fights are usually full of bloody action and gnarly injuries. Fighters enter the octagon to seriously hurt their opponents and/or to stop them as quickly as possible. In order to execute such a plan, MMA fighters put their seasoned skillsets at work, be it striking, grappling, or jiu-jitsu.
However, as fighters involved in most bouts are at a similar skill level, fights usually go the full distance before a winner is announced. It is a rare occurrence when a UFC athlete stuns the audience, stopping a fight with a ruthless grip-lock or a fiery knockout. In cases that are harder to come by, a fight is ended by injury stoppages. In such instances, fans witness a winner who didn't have to throw many, or in some cases, any strikes.
Here, we look at five UFC fighters who won a bout with the least number of strikes:
#5 - Conor McGregor vs Jose Aldo - UFC 194
This was Conor McGregor's seventh fight in the UFC, and his biggest at the time. After tearing through his previous six opponents with straight wins, McGregor was to taking UFC featherweight champion Jose Aldo at UFC 194. He had insulted Aldo throughout all their media world tours, infuriating the UFC champion.
Coming in at UFC 194, Jose Aldo was visibly irked and desperate to unload on Conor McGregor. The 'Notorious', however, had an idea of what was to come. After official weigh-ins and a subsequent face-off between the two, McGregor revealed that he had sensed Aldo's gameplan for UFC 194. He told the media:
"I felt when we stared down, I felt his right hand twitching, which was a subtle tell for me. He (Jose Aldo) is ready to unload that right hand, and I feel that could be a downfall for him. If he lets that right hand go, I will not be there."
At UFC 194, Conor McGregor knocked out Jose Aldo in 13 seconds of round one, handing the Brazilian the biggest defeat of his career. It took the Irishman only five strikes to KO Aldo, two of which came after 'Scarface' was knocked down.
McGregor drew first blood with a jab and a lateral knee-kick. It was then that Aldo shot in to unload with his right hook, but McGregor dodged it and countered with a left hook that flattened the defending champion. As Aldo went straight to the ground, McGregor sealed his win with two hammerfists, taking his total number of strikes to five.