There are several methods for a fighter to gain popularity among UFC and combat fans.
Fighters like Chael Sonnen and Conor McGregor have established outrageous personalities that command the public’s attention. Meanwhile, fighters like Dan Hooker, Kevin Holland, and Donald Cerrone win over MMA fans with their “anyone, anywhere, anytime” mindsets.
However, the ability to finish bouts is undoubtedly the most natural method for developing a fighter’s status. Finishes are popular with fans, promoters, and matchmakers. So much so that in the UFC, $50,000 bonuses are sometimes paid to fighters who dispatch their opponent in spectacular ways. Having said that, these are the top five finishers in the UFC.
Valentina Shevchenko
Valentina Shevchenko, regardless of gender, has positioned herself as one of the top fighters in the UFC in recent years. So far, the longtime martial artist has had an outstanding career. The Kyrgyzstani superstar is one of the world’s most dominant champions, having successfully defended her flyweight championship six times.
Shevchenko competed at bantamweight for over half her career before moving up to 125 pounds. Despite being plainly small, ‘Bullet’ developed as one of the top bantamweight fighters, defeating Holly Holm and Julianna Pena.
Her dominant bantamweight streak predated the UFC’s flyweight division entirely. When the division was finally formed, she earned a championship opportunity by defeating Priscila Cachoeira and then defeated Joanna Jedrzejczyk for the vacant gold. Since then, she’s been defending her title.
Khamzat Chimaev
Khamzat Chimaev is, without a doubt, the most exciting prospect in the UFC. Chimaev has a 6-0 professional record before joining the world’s top MMA company. His six victories were all via KO/TKO or submission.
With a pair of impressive performances in Abu Dhabi in 2020, the Chechen-born Swedish sensation created ripples in the MMA community. In his promotional debut, he choked out John Phillips and won a TKO against Rhys McKee just 10 days later.
Chimaev then hired Gerald Meerschaert barely two months later. ‘Borz’ knocked out Meerschaert 17 seconds into the fight, cementing himself as one of the most interesting prospects in years.
Charles Oliviera
After winning the UFC lightweight title at UFC 262 in May last year, the 32-year-old year old Oliveira, followed that up with a win at UFC 269 against Dustin Poitier in December 21. He is currently on an 11-fight winning streak and has a career record of 33-8.
His last wins have been against formidable names like Gathje, Tony Ferguson and Chandler establishing the current UFC champion as a top contender in the lightweight division after Khabib Nurmagomedov retired. He will be facing off with Islam Makhachev on October 22nd at UFC 280 event for the vacant lightweight title.
And Makhachev is no underdog either. He is 22-1 in his career and has bagged 10 victories in a row including a first-round win over Bobby Green.
With all these great stats from the two it is without a doubt that the match is going to be not only a tough one but also an entertaining one. If you like to bet on who will win that match or any other UFC match, you can get more valuable tips here: https://www.thesportsgeek.com/picks
Derrick Lewis
Derrick Lewis holds the record for the most knockout victories in UFC history (13). He is tied with Frank Mir for the most heavyweight category finishes.
Lewis is one of the team’s most popular and entertaining fighters. His great sense of humor, energy, and propensity for jaw-dropping knockouts have earned him a considerable following.
‘The Black Beast’ has defeated Alexey Oleynik, Shamil Abdurakhimov, Alexander Volkov, Travis Browne, Marcin Tybura, Curt Blaydes, and Chris Daukaus during his stint in the promotion.
His KO victory against Blaydes last year was one of the most devastating knockouts in heavyweight division history. His most recent victory over Daukaus propelled the Houston native to the top of the list of most KO victories.