Top 10 Global Knockouts of 2014

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Theo Michailidis vs. Corrin Eaton
British Challenge MMA 9
Dec. 6 | Colchester, England
Brian Knapp: Theo Michailidis introduced himself to the MMA masses on Dec. 6, when video of his breathtaking knockout against Corrin Eaton at British Challenge MMA 9 went viral. The final blow came out of nowhere. Eaton threatened with a standing arm-triangle choke early in a wild first round before transitioning to a takedown and follow-up ground-and-pound. He later cracked Michailidis with a jarring right hand and swarmed with wild haymakers to the head, along with knees and punches to the body. Referee Jason Cooledge showed restraint, though few could have argued had he called for the stoppage. Michailidis was in serious trouble and offering little in the way of return fire. Eaton eventually tired, allowing the Team Titan representative to regain his foothold in the match. Michailidis lured him into the center of the cage and detonated a spinning back elbow on his chin. Eaton collapsed to the mat 4:44 into round one, their fight having met its end in a glorious and violent instant.

Jordan Breen: Michailidis-Eaton is a fantastic watch, because not only is it a breathtaking and brutal knockout, but it's also a lovely comeback contained in one single round. Eaton puts the screws to Michailidis in a major way early on, nearly stopping him along the fence several times in a sustained fashion. Kudos to referee Jason Cooledge for this fight, as we would've been denied this highlight if he had jumped in when Eaton was flurrying. Michailidis did his part by firing back just enough, though, and more interestingly, almost all the strikes he landed to back Eaton up were standing elbows. Elbows were about the only thing he landed period until the salvo of knees that happened immediately before the knockout.

And, the elbow itself is just perfection. Michailidis times it perfectly, hits him square on the chin, the impact even quakes through Eaton's beautiful coif as he falls backwards, stiff as a board. It is perhaps the finest "Nestea Plunge" knockout pose this year, since when Damacio Page hit Brian Hall, Hall did some sort of insane unconscious worm while his body was falling backwards.

It's a testament to how damn good this knockout is that it even found an MMA audience. It happened on the same weekend as the outstanding UFC 181 bill, as well One FC 23, RFA 21 and Invicta FC 10, during the hottest part of the late-year calendar, yet instantly made the rounds on Twitter in spite of the MMA coverage being dedicated elsewhere. Even if Theo Michailidis never makes it any further than the regional circuit in the United Kingdom, he'll always be able to show his kids and grandkids the one time he snatched victory from the jaws of defeat with a spinning back elbow. You don't even have to know a thing about MMA to know that's outrageously neat.

It was a banner year for the spinning back elbow, too. Arguably the finest regional KO of the year came courtesy of one, as did arguably the best big-ticket MMA knockout, with Dong Hyun Kim's on John Hathaway inside the UFC. No longer consigned the list of impractical technical maneuvers, let's all give a big round of applause for the humble spinning back elbow.

Continue Reading » Top 10 Global Submissions of 2014