5 UFC fights that were finished in the first round
One of the biggest attractions in the sport of Mixed Martial Arts is that of a knockout or a submission. The unbridled adrenaline rush that a stoppage victory brings to the viewers, is often times one of the best things about combat sports.
With the UFC being the world's premier MMA promotion, we as fans often see elite fighters engage in high-level combat, only for one combatant to viciously stop another either with a KO/TKO or by making them submit. On that note, if said stoppage victory comes in the very first round of the fight, it's generally considered to be the cherry on top, so to speak.
Ergo, debates and discussions about UFC fights that ended in the very first round, have always been a hot topic in the MMA community. Today, we take a special look at a few UFC fights that ended in the first round...
#5 Daniel Cormier vs Stipe Miocic
Daniel Cormier went into his fight against Stipe Miocic as the betting underdog. The former held the UFC Light Heavyweight Title, whereas the latter possessed the UFC Heavyweight Championship. The vast majority of combat sports fans and experts believed that Miocic would have a huge advantage in the striking department over DC.
Well, the fight went way different than what most of us had expected, as Miocic ended up briefly out-grappling Cormier, and the latter ended the fight via strikes in Round 1. During their brief bout at UFC 226, both Cormier and Miocic caught each other with several decent strikes.
Nevertheless, during a clinch exchange in the middle of the Octagon, Cormier masterfully had the under-hook to his foe. And with Miocic primarily focused on the grappling realm at that moment, Cormier sneaked in a huge overhand right on the Heavyweight Champion's chin.
A few follow-up punches later, Cormier was the new UFC Heavyweight Champion as well as the Light-Heavyweight titlist, becoming only the second man after Conor McGregor to simultaneously hold two UFC belts in different weight classes at the same time...