Jon Anik responds after Tim Simpson questions Israel Adesanya's absence from the commentator's iconic knockout list
Jon Anik agreed with Tim Simpson's claim that Israel Adesanya's knockout win at UFC 287 was among the best in promotional history.
At UFC 300, Max Holloway made history with a last-second knockout win against Justin Gaethje to become the new BMF champion. The shocking ending of Holloway vs. Gaethje has quickly been considered one of the greatest finishes inside the octagon by the MMA community.
Anik called for fans' opinions on X by comparing Holloway's knockout at UFC 300 to three other legendary finishes. The UFC commentator had this to say:
"How do you rank these knockouts? -Anderson Silva v. Vitor Belfort -Leon Edwards v. Kamaru Usman -Conor McGregor v. Jose Aldo -Max Holloway v. Justin Gaethje And what am I missing? #UFC300"
Anik's X post was shared on ESPN MMA's Instagram page, leading to thousands of added opinions. Simpson, the manager of Israel Adesanya, mentioned in the comment section that Adesanya's highlight-reel knockout against the current light-heavyweight champion Alex Pereira in the UFC 287 main event should be an option:
"Missing @stylebender in Miami! @jon_anik"
Anik replied by paying tribute to Adesanya's revenge-seeking knockout in April 2023 and said:
"@timsimpson 100%. Might be No. 1..."
Check out ESPN MMA's Instagram post of Anik's viral question below:
Fans argue if Israel Adesanya's knockout win against Alex Pereira is more iconic than Conor McGregor's against Jose Aldo
It's difficult to determine the greatest knockout in UFC history, as several factors must be considered - the opponent's skill level, the fight's stakes, and unpredictability.
With that said the most common response on the previously mentioned Instagram post was Conor McGregor's 13-second knockout against Jose Aldo. In December 2015, McGregor backed up his trash talk about unexpectedly sleeping Aldo to become the new UFC featherweight champion.
Based on Jon Anik's Instagram comment, he believes Israel Adesanya's win at UFC 287 could compete with McGregor vs Aldo. Adesanya's highlight-reel finish can be compared with McGregor's, as the boxes for the factors above are checked (world-class opponent, title fight, and unexpected).
Yet, McGregor's finish in the UFC 194 main event is arguably superior. 'The Notorious' became a mainstream superstar that night and capped off one of the most memorable fight weeks in MMA history.
Watch McGregor knock out Aldo below: