Sherdog’s Top 10: Coolest Moves

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8. Barboza’s Wheel Kick
UFC 142 “Aldo vs. Mendes”
Jan. 14, 2012 | Rio de Janeiro
Blessed with unreal explosiveness and blinding speed, Brazilian muay Thai specialist Edson Barboza was marked early in his career for a bright and violent future. He demolished his first opponent in the UFC and went to a contentious decision with Ross Pearson; and although a fight with Anthony Njokuani in March 2011 was close, a last-second wheel kick that nearly decapitated the American showed the true extent of Barboza’s talent.

He was matched up with Terry Etim in the UFC’s second trip to Brazil. It was not thought to be a competitive booking -- Barboza was a substantial favorite at -270 -- but the veteran Etim was nobody’s tomato can, and he made the first few minutes interesting by pushing a quick pace, forcing Barboza to fight off his back foot and partially neutralizing the Brazilian’s devastating low kicks with shots to the leg of his own.

By the second round, however, Barboza’s power and willingness to patiently beat up Etim’s legs and body was starting to tell. Each thudding low kick knocked Etim off-balance and reduced his mobility, while Barboza’s precision and speed were obviously becoming too much for the overmatched Englishman to handle.

UFC analyst Joe Rogan summed up Etim’s dilemma perfectly, as he was clearly down two rounds and gamely trying to walk down Barboza: “Do you want to take a chance and risk getting knocked out?” Rogan asked. Before the longtime color commentator could finish his sentence, Barboza had spun, rotated his body and whipped his right foot around in a wheel-like arc that connected squarely with Etim’s jaw. The Englishman dropped to the canvas, stiff as a board, and the fight was over.

Since then, the wheel kick has become a more common sight -- Ricardo Lamas threw them futilely against Jose Aldo and Vitor Belfort knocked out Luke Rockhold with one, for example -- but Barboza was the first to do it and do it right.

Number 7 » Flying Front Kick