The 15 Greatest Knockouts in ‘The Ultimate Fighter’ History

Seven years. Fifteen seasons. The Ultimate Fighter has been a part of our lives for nearly a decade, ladies and gentlemen, and not only is it still going strong, but it has spread at the rate of your average zombie apocalypse. With the first international installment of the hit reality show already under way, TUF has seemingly evolved beyond its counterparts, transcending even that of the sport in it’s ability to excite, and often inspire its audience. Sure, the next season of Jersey Shore will feature a piss drunk pregnant woman and a ~~possible~~ probable cokehead and will therefore rule the ratings from here to eternity, but The Ultimate Fighter has something better to bring to the table than fabricated drama. Mainly, sweet ass knockouts.

Seven years of sweet ass knockouts, to be precise. That’s the entire length of Tommy Callahan’s college career.

With these knockouts, we’ve seen underdogs pull off upsets, loudmouths get their comeuppance, and the emergence of future superstars. So in honor of what has already been a KO-ridden season of TUF, we decided to watch every season back to back, and determine the BEST knockout from its respective season. Enjoy.

Season 15 – James Vick vs. Daron Cruickshank

We imagine many of you would prefer to have Justin Lawrence’s KO of Christiano Marcello snag the top spot for this year’s brief (albeit brutal) list of knockouts. But the simple matter is, James Vick’s sorta-knee-sorta-kick knockout of Daron Cruickshank earns its place for a multitude of reasons, the first being how unexpected it was. Not many of us had picked Vick to come out victorious after seeing how diverse a striking attack Cruickshank showcased in his preliminary match. Add to that the first couple minutes of the fight, which were completely controlled by said diverse striking attack, and Cruickshank seemed all but destined to advance. Then he got cocky, went for a takedown, and was promptly knocked the fuck out.

These are the costs of hubris.

Season 14 – Diego Brandao vs. Jesse Newell

Diego Brandao blew through TUF 14 in more devastating fashion than the monsoon that wrecked the set of Apocalypse Now. The main problem we had when deciding upon last season’s top KO wasn’t figuring out who deserved it, but rather which one of Brandao’s deserved it. Was it his steamrolling of Steve Siler? Or maybe his beatdown of Bryan Caraway? The correct answer was actually his flying forearm KO of that poor albino bastard Jesse Newell in episode 1. Our reasoning; it was eerily reminiscent of Dan Henderson’s “‘Amurica” KO of Michael Bisping at UFC 100, something that opposing coach Jason “Mayhem” Miller couldn’t help but notice himself. And anything that makes us recall perhaps the single most glorious moment in MMA history will always gets its just deserves here at CP.

Season 13 – Tony Ferguson vs. Justin Edwards

Speaking of TUF competitors who made mincemeat out of their opponents, Tony Ferguson had perhaps the most dominant run of any winner in the show’s history, knocking out all four of his opponents en route to the coveted glass plaque. But none were more impressive than his preliminary match upkick KO of Justin Edwards, because honestly, how often do you see an upkick KO? It remains Renzo Gracie’s greatest highlight, and the same goes for Ferguson. His knockout of Ramsey Nijem at the TUF 13 Finale may have earned him the ~~gold~~ glass, but this kick earned him the CagePotato glory, which is arguably a greater achievement. Arguably.

Season 12 – Cody McKenzie vs. Marc Stevens

We know, we know. This was not a knockout. In fact, in all of season 12, there were only three knockouts. And of those three knockouts, there was only one legitimate KO, and believe it or not, it was the first fight of the season–Marc Stevens’ 13 second preliminary fight trouncing of T.J. O’Brien. The other two (T)KO victories came courtesy of body shot specialist Nam Phan, over Mike Budnik and Cody McKenzie, and in neither case was the victim actually separated from their consciousness.

But it was Cody McKenzie’s 16 second technical submission victory over Marc Stevens that tops them all, and we don’t care if it defies the laws set forth by the title of this article. Not to over exaggerate, but it was easily the greatest moment in TUF history, bar none. The twelfth season of The Ultimate Fighter served as little more than a highlight reel for Josh Koscheck’s douchebaggery and aggressive homosexuality, and the only man to continually shut down Koscheck’s empty threats was Alaskan guillotine specialist Cody McKenzie. Needless to say, when McKenzie was matched up against Stevens, a former training partner of Koscheck, shit got real. Koscheck talked trash, Stevens talked even more trash, and McKenzie quietly put him to sleep with his patented “McKenzietine” in less time than it takes the average person to complete a yawn. Watching our boy Fraggle angrily applying lip balm was more satisfying then any of the true knockouts from TUF 12, and probably the most legit ___out of the season.

Season 11 – Brad Tavares vs. Jordan Smith

Much like season 12, season 11 of The Ultimate Fighter did not have many knockouts to write home about. That said, the knee/straight right combo that Brad Tavares unleashed on Jordan Smith in their preliminary matchup was a thing of beauty. Smith crashed to the canvas like a narcoleptic goat just 37 seconds into the fight, and Tavares secured a spot in the house. He would ride that momentum all the way to the semifinals, where he would be defeated by eventual season winner Court McGee. Despite the setback, he would still manage to plaster Phil Baroni out of the UFC at UFC 125, so that’s some consolation, right? RIGHT?!

Season 10 – Roy Nelson vs. Brendan Schaub

From the moment we found out that former IFL heavyweight champion Roy Nelson was cast on TUF 10, he was heavily (get it?) favored to win it all. Throughout his run on the show, his combination of experience and pure girth helped him roll past Kimbo Slice, Justin Wren, and James McSweeney, setting him up for a finale showdown against fellow KO artist Brendan Schaub. Once again, Nelson’s experience, along with his heavy hands, would prove to be his deadliest weapons. True to his nickname “The Hybrid” would start off strong, only to break down near the end of the first round compliments of a “Big Country” overhand right. Just goes to show that VW bus will always overpower a Prius.

Season 9 – Nick Osipczak vs. Mark Miller

TUF 9 was the first and only season in the show’s history to feature a nation vs. nation setup, and what better two to pair against each another than the greatest rivalry in the history of modern man? Unfortunately, the show did not play out quite like the good ol’ US of A would have hoped, with two Brits snagging both spots in the lightweight finale and winning the welterweight finale as well. Worse than that was the episode 4 fight between IFL vet Mark “The Meat Missle” Miller and Nick Osipczak. Dana White picked Miller to win, and Team Henderson striking coach Cyrille Diabate assured Miller that “Slick” wasn’t much of a kicker. AMERICA HAD THIS IN THE BAG. But alas, both men were wrong, and Osipczak wrecked Miller with a head kick at the end of the second round. As we watched Miller go face down, dreaming of baseball and apple pie, we collectively lowered our flags to half mast, for behind us lied yet another fallen soldier in this bloody, endless war.

Season 8 – Ryan Bader vs. Vinny Magalhaes

In the classic battle of striker vs. grappler, hard hitting wrestler Ryan Bader squared off against submission whiz Vinny Magalhaes in the light heavyweight finals. The fight was over before it started, when a wild overhand right had Vinny looking for a way out early, and Bader, the gentlemen that he is, offered it via a few follow up punches to his downed opponent. It remains the second fastest finish in TUF Finale history, just behind Mac Danzig’s hundredth straight rear-naked choke victory over Tommy Speer the season before, and paved the way for what has been a rather successful UFC run for Bader, who has only dropped losses to current champ Jon Jones (guillotine) and former champ Tito Ortiz (flukeotine).

Season 7 – Matt Riddle vs. Dan Simmler

Literally defining the phrase “the punch heard round the world,” Matt Riddle‘s second round knockout of Dan Simmler in their season 7 preliminary matchup was undoubtedly the most brutal knockout in the show’s history. Not only did it shatter Simmler’s jaw, but in the moments afterward, his bloodcurdling moans of agony rang throughout the TUF gym, mimicking the sound a whale makes when it is harpooned in the testicles. It was probably one of the only moments in TUF history that caused its viewers to collectively shudder in abhorrence. You know, aside from that whole semen eating incident on season 8 and Jon Tuck’s broken toe from season 15.

Season 6 – Tommy Speer vs. George Sotiropoulos

Chalk this one up to pure shock factor. In their respective runs through season six of TUF, George Sotiropoulos proved to be a submission whiz with equally as deadly hands, where as Tommy Speer looked more like an innocent, ginger deer caught in the headlights, content to ride out lay-n-pray based decisions to the finals. When these two met in the semifinals, however, Speer quickly proved that he had more tools in his arsenal than he had previously showcased, KO’ing “G-Sots” with a wicked right hook that put his lights out instantaneously. Though Speer would suffer the shortest loss in TUF Finale history to Mac Danzig, and an even shorter one to Anthony Johnson, no one can take away the shocking upset that earned him his place in the finals.

Season 5- TIE: Gabe Rudiger vs. His Weight and Andy Wang vs. The Correct Gameplan

Fact: The Ultimate Fighter 5 did not provide one legit knockout over the entire course of its season. Fact: Gabe Rudgier’s inability to make weight and Andy Wang’s horrendous gameplan against Brandon Melendez knocked them both out of the tournament. Fact: both were f**king hilarious to watch unfold, and provided more for the MMA community than all of their fights combined.

Honorable mention: Gray Maynard knocking himself in his TUF 5 Finale match against Rob Emerson.

Season 4- Scott Smith vs. Pete Sell

Our feelings regarding Sell vs. Smith can best be described in this comic portrayal of the fight itself.

Season 3– Rory Singer vs. Solomon Hutcherson

You probably don’t remember this knockout from all the way back in season three, mainly because you probably don’t remember Rory Singer or Solomon Hutcherson at all. Neither man has fought in over two years, and neither lasted very long on the show, but that doesn’t take away from the fact that Singer’s starching of Hutcherson nearly surpasses Griffin/Shogun II as the nastiest case of one fighter bouncing his opponent’s head off the canvas like a basketball that we have ever witnessed. Talk about ground and pound.

Season 2- Josh Burkman vs. Sammy Morgan

After breaking his arm in his match against Melvin Guillard, Josh “The People’s Warrior” Burkman was replaced by Jason Von Flue and vacated the TUF house before we ever really learned a thing about him. Most of us thought he would fade into obscurity, but lo and behold, Burkman would put the kibosh to that notion (and Sammy Morgan’s skull) when he returned for the second season finale. It took him just twenty-one seconds to deliver a slam that KO’d Morgan’s UFC aspirations into oblivion, and a trio of unnecessary follow up elbows sealed the deal. Burkman would continue to fight under the UFC banner for three more years, and Morgan would move on to become cannon fodder for the likes of Cung Le, Paul Daley, and Duane Ludwig.

Season 1- Mike Swick vs. Alex Schoenauer

You guys remember Mike “Quick” Swick, right? After getting subbed in his semifinal match by a certain CagePotato regular, we didn’t hear much from Swick until his TUF 1 Finale match against Alex Schoenauer. Regardless of what anyone tells you, THIS is the fight that spawned his nickname. It took exactly twenty seconds for Swick to land nearly 300,000 punches and hand Schoenauer the first loss of his professional career. Sweet baby Jesus was it a ferocious one. We’ve categorized a lot of knockouts here at CP, but Swick’s KO may just be the first of a future “slow-mo KO” tribute. Only time will tell. Speaking of time, where the hell has Mike Swick been these past few years?

What do you guys think? Are any of our choices brash, ignorant, or just plain incorrect?Let us know in the comments section.

-J. Jones