Highlights
The Submissions | 2024 UFC.com Awards
Showcasing 10 Of The Best Submissions To Grace The Octagon In 2024
The highly unofficial awards season continues with the best submissions of 2024 and how we saw them on fight night...
Khamzat Chimaev’s first fight in a year was a spectacular one, as he submitted former middleweight champion Robert Whittaker in less than four minutes.
Not surprisingly, Chimaev shot in for a takedown early, and then worked to take Whittaker’s back on the mat. Whittaker briefly scrambled out of trouble, but Chimaev was right back on him, and after working for a bit, he suddenly locked up a face crank that forced a tap out at 3:34 of the opening round.
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With the win, the No. 13-ranked Chimaev moves to 14-0. The No. 3-ranked Whittaker falls to 27-8.
2 - Paddy Pimblett defeats King Green by submission (triangle choke) at 3:22 of Round 1
Paddy Pimblett secured the biggest win of his UFC career on Saturday night and he did it in spectacular fashion, putting King Green to sleep with a lightning quick triangle choke.
After spending much of the frame pawing at each other from range, trading kicks and landing very little of substance, Green shot for a takedown and Pimblett instantly attacked. First, he looked for a guillotine, but as soon as he recognized it wasn’t there, Pimblett switched to the triangle choke and put Green to sleep.
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Just an outstanding showing from “Paddy the Baddy,” who remains unbeaten in the UFC and will find himself in the rankings when they update next week.
3 - Islam Makhachev defeats Dustin Poirier by submission (D’arce choke) at 2:42 of Round 5
Islam Makhachev remains the UFC lightweight champion after collecting a fifth-round submission win.
The champion put Poirier on the canvas quickly in the first, advancing to his back and staying there for the remainder of the round. Poirier defended well throughout, and the remainder of the fight was more scrappy and competitive, with the challenger doing well to defend takedowns while Makhachev was forced into the first bloody, grueling battle of his championship reign.
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With both men bloodied, but dialed in heading into the final round, Makhachev caused Poirier to stumble in the center of the Octagon midway through the round, and pounced. After momentarily looking for a guillotine choke, the champion switched off to a D’arce choke and quickly drew out the tap.
That’s now three consecutive successful title defenses and 14 straight wins for Makhachev, who continues to reign supreme in the lightweight division. He’s now tied with four others for the most consecutive successful title defenses in the division and sits two wins back of Anderson Silva’s record for consecutive UFC victories.
4 - Dricus Du Plessis defeats Israel Adesanya by submission (rear-naked choke) at 3:38 of Round 4
Dricus Du Plessis retained his middleweight title to close out UFC 305, finishing Israel Adesanya in the fourth round following an entertaining back-and-forth between the two rivals.
Each of the first three rounds were close and competitive, each man having their moments as the two traded blows. After Adesanya seemed to start gathering momentum in the third and early part of the fourth, “Stillknocks” connected with a left hand that clearly hurt Adesanya and chased him down from there, connecting with a couple more lefts before dragging him to the canvas, climbing on his back and quickly sinking in the choke.
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This was an impressive effort from the middleweight champion, who continues to be a marauding presence with an excellent ability to stay in the fight and capitalize on every opportunity that presents itself. He’s now 8-0 in the UFC and continues to stand atop the 185-pound weight class.
5 - Brian Ortega defeats Yair Rodriguez by submission (arm-triangle choke) at 0:58 of Round 3
Brian Ortega survived a hellacious opening round to secure a third-round submission win over Yair Rodriguez in the co-main event.
Rodriguez stunned Ortega almost straight away to start the fight, busting him up and chasing a finish in the first round. But the two-time title challenger endured and dominated the second, dragging Rodriguez to the canvas and opening a cut under his eye with strikes from top position. As soon as the third began, Ortega worked for another takedown, clamped onto an arm-triangle choke, and secured the tap.
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After multiple surgeries and more than three years without a victory, this is a massive moment for Ortega. He showed tremendous resilience to navigate the opening round onslaught, and put himself back into the championship mix by dispatching Rodriguez in Mexico City.
6 - Anthony Hernandez defeats Roman Kopylov by submission (rear-naked choke) at 3:23 of Round 2
Make it five straight for Anthony “Fluffy” Hernandez.
The unrelenting Californian middleweight took the best Roman Kopylov had to offer and kept coming forward, ultimately dragging the streaking Russian to the canvas and sinking in the rear-naked choke. Hernandez turned the tides in the second round after getting hit with multiple clean, heavy shots, smiling at Kopylov and waving him on, and from there, it was all Hernandez.
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After an uneven start to his UFC tenure, the skilled middleweight has now collected five straight wins, including three consecutive finishes. He’s on an outstanding run and should get another showcase opportunity next time out.
7 - Alexandre Pantoja defeats Kai Asakura by submission (rear-naked choke) at 2:05 of Round 2
Alexandre Pantoja is still your UFC flyweight champion, having submitted Kai Asakura in the second round to close out UFC 310.
The champion came out aggressively to start the fight, seeking to bring the action to Asakura. He stung the newcomer in the first and was happy to exchange through much of the first two rounds before jumping on Asakura’s back and sinking him to the canvas. From there, Pantoja attacked the choke and secured the finish.
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That’s now three consecutive successful title defenses for the Brazilian, and arguably the most impressive effort to date inside the Octagon. The American Top Team representative remains a cut above the competition in the 125-pound weight class, and heads into next year riding a seven-fight winning streak.
8 - Kayla Harrison defeats Holly Holm by submission (rear-naked choke) at 1:47 of Round 2
Kayla Harrison made an emphatic statement in her promotional debut, rag-dolling and battering former champion Holly Holm before securing the rear-naked choke finish early in the second round.
Holm looked to clinch with the gold medal-winning judoka in the first and it proved costly, as Harrison turned the second entanglement into an opportunity to gain top position and batter the divisional mainstay with punches and elbows through to the horn. In the second, the debuting force tossed Holm to the canvas, ultimately finding herself in back mount, where she fished the arm under the neck and secured the tap.
Just an absolutely dominant effort from the promotional newcomer, who moved to 17-1 with the win. Harrison is an absolute force in the Octagon, and an immediate title contender in the bantamweight division.
9 - Felipe Lima defeats Muhammad Naimov by submission (rear-naked choke) at 1:15 of Round 3
Welcome to the UFC, Felipe Lima!
The Brazilian newcomer did to Muhammad Naimov what Naimov did to Jamie Mullarkey just over a year ago, stepping in on short notice, up a division and securing a victory. After his head coach Andreas Michael lit a fire under him following the second round, the debuting talent took the fight to Naimov, attacking a rear-naked choke in a grappling entanglement, forcing Naimov to tap.
That’s now 13 consecutive wins for the 26-year-old prospect, who looked outstanding here and should instantly become a person of interest in the bantamweight division when he returns to his natural surroundings later this year.
10 - Jaqueline Amorim defeats Cory McKenna by submission (armbar) at 1:38 of Round 1
Jaqueline Amorim showcased her world-class Brazilian jiu jitsu skills on Saturday, making quick work of the returning Cory McKenna.
McKenna caught a kick and opted to engage with Amorim, who immediately attacked a triangle choke, adding an armbar into the mix as McKenna looked to slam her to the canvas. There was a brief moment of confusion, but the Brazilian stayed locked onto the arm, eventually drawing out the tap.
After dropping her promotional debut, Amorim has now earned consecutive submission wins to advance to 8-1 overall, maintaining her 100 percent finishing rate in the process.
Voters – Aziz Bawany, Juan Cardenas, Thomas Gerbasi, Christoph Goessing, Simon Head, E. Spencer Kyte, Steve Latrell, McKenzie Pavacich, Zac Pacleb, Ryan White