7. UFC 199: Rockhold vs. Bisping 2
By the time UFC 199 was booked with champion [autotag]Luke Rockhold[/autotag] set to defend his title in a rematch against former champion Chris Weidman, it felt like British contender [autotag]Michael Bisping[/autotag] might not ever get his shot at the gold.
Time after time he fell at the final hurdle in his quest to get to a title shot. But, after a career-defining win over Anderson Silva in London, Weidman pulled out of the event with injury Bisping was ready for his chance and, when it came on just two weeks’ notice, he grabbed it with both hands.
Leaving a movie set in Canada and heading to the West Coast, Bisping arrived for fight week in Los Angeles relaxed but ready. Despite his comprehensive submission loss to Rockhold earlier in his career, he was adamant he had the champion’s number, and so it proved as he finished Rockhold to capture the middleweight title.
Bisping’s first-round knockout win over Rockhold headlined an excellent night of fights at “The Forum.” Urijah Faber and Dominick Cruz went toe to toe in the final chapter of their longstanding rivalry, and there was that moment when Max Holloway pointed to the ground against Ricardo Lamas. Dan Henderson added another brutal knockout to his long list of finishes, while Dustin Poirier kicked off the main card with an impressive stoppage win of his own.
But don’t restrict your viewing to the main card for this one. Six of the eight prelims delivered exciting finishes, with the bout between Polo Reyes and Dong Hyun Kim delivering one of the UFC’s great unsung fights, and one of the best fights to kick off a UFC card.
Next up: The craziest fight card you might not have seen.