MMA in 2014: The 10 Best Fights

2013 gave us some of the best fights of all time in Jones vs. Gustafsson and Melendez vs. Sanchez, but 2014 was plagued with injuries for the UFC. Despite being hit with so many injuries and fight cancellations, the year featured some standout performances in MMA.  

Matt Brown and Robbie Lawler put on a five-round brawl in July.  Brown also had an epic scrap with the ultra-talented Erick Silva, and Lawler was involved in a close, all-time great welterweight title fight with Johny Hendricks.  

The very first main event of the year for the UFC between Tarec Saffiedine and Hyun Gyu Lim was a wild fight as well.  And who can forget about the slugfest between Abel Trujillo and Jaime Varner at UFC 169?  

Even though there was a lot of bad news in 2014, a few fighters put it all on the line and had some great encounters inside the cage.  

Let us take a look back at the 10 best fights of 2014.  

No. 10: Curran vs. Straus III, Bellator 112

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Coming into this fight, Straus was the Bellator featherweight champion.  He won the title from Curran in November of 2013 at Bellator 106.  By the time these two got in the cage for the third time, they knew each other well and had earned each other’s respect. 

The first round was a back-and-forth battle for position, against the fence and on the ground.  Both men had a few submission attempts, and Curran spent a good amount of time working from Straus’ back.  Most of the round was spend against the cage, with Curran landing some knees while clinched up.  In the final 20 seconds, Straus went for a guillotine, and the round ended with Curran doing a good job of defending it.

The second round was fought primarily on the feet.  Straus dropped Curran with a big left hand.  Curran implemented some good leg kicks, and Straus landed a few good straight punches.  There was a good exchange at the end of the round that cut Curran over his eye. 

The left hand of Straus found a home again in the third round, but his takedown attempt was stuffed by Curran, and back against the fence they went.  Straus finally got Curran down with two minutes left in the round and tried again for the guillotine, but Curran escaped. 

The fourth round saw more clinch work against the fence.  Neither fighter really pulled ahead, and it seemed as though they each had a counter for the other wherever the fight went.  It was a close fight, and going into the fifth round, the judges’ scorecards were all over the place.

In the final minute of the last round, Curran pulled off a rear-naked choke and got Straus to tap with 14 seconds left in the fight.  Two judges had the bout tied going into the fifth, so it could have been either man’s fight had it gone to the judges. 

No. 9: Saffiedine vs. Lim, UFC Fight Night: Saffiedine vs. Lim

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The first live event held on UFC Fight Pass featured the Octagon debut of Tarec Saffiedine.  He was coming off a yearlong layoff following his Strikeforce welterweight title victory over Nate Marquardt. 

Saffiedine opened up with a few hard leg kicks, but Lim used his nine-inch reach advantage to close the distance and land a flying knee.  Lim dropped Saffiedine with a straight right hand, but the Belgian got right back to his feet.  Lim started to time Saffiedine’s kicks and land his straight right hand.  Lim was active enough with his counters to win the first round. 

Saffiedine was able to land some big right hands in the second round that stumbled Lim, and he really started to put his strikes together.  There were a few good exchanges in the second round, where both fighters landed some hard shots.  By the end of the round, Lim’s leg was looking pretty mangled from the hard leg kicks of Saffiedine. 

He continued to outstrike Lim in the third round and took his opponent down after landing a nice combination.  He took Lim’s back, but Lim flipped him over and escaped back to his feet.  Lim’s leg started to buckle after each leg kick landed by Saffiedine, and the South Korean was visibly hurt by the toll the kicks were taking. 

Saffiedine even raised his hands in victory toward the end of the round when he landed a leg kick that made Lim collapse and grimace in pain.  The fight resumed, and Lim made it out of the round. 

Lim came out swinging hard in the fourth round but could barely stand due to the leg kicks.  Saffiedine stayed the course, continuing to target the leg, and when Lim would try to block strikes to his leg, the Belgian would go up top with his strikes.  Saffiedine dropped Lim midway through the round with a flying knee that landed perfectly. 

Saffiedine scrambled and went for a rear-naked choke before Lim escaped.  Saffiedine worked for a head-arm choke from full mount and continued to wear down his opponent on the ground. 

In the final round, Lim came out aggressively, looking to knock his opponent out.  He couldn’t get past the brutal leg kicks of Saffiedine, however.  Two judges gave the fifth round to Lim, but Saffiedine won the unanimous decision.  His technical striking and Lim's wild, brawling style made the UFC’s first five-round fight of 2014 one of the year’s best. 

No. 8: Caceres vs. Pettis, UFC on Fox 10

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The younger Pettis brother was undefeated going into UFC on Fox 10 and looking for his second win inside the Octagon.  Caceres would be his toughest test to date. 

In the first round, Pettis maintained control of the center of the cage, keeping Caceres at bay with quick jabs and an array of kicks.  Caceres stayed loose throughout but couldn’t really find his mark with his strikes. 

Pettis landed a nice straight left that briefly wobbled Caceres in the final minute.  Pettis looked to be on his way to victory, even rocking Caceres with a head kick in the final seconds of the round.

Caceres came out in the second round and immediately dropped Pettis with a big left hand.  He transitioned to Pettis’ back, but Pettis defended well and got back to his feet.  Caceres ran in with an uppercut but left himself open for Pettis to counter with punching combinations. 

Caceres attempted a 360-roundhouse kick, but it only grazed Pettis. Lots of kicks and knees landed from both fighters, and it was a great display of diverse striking. 

The two were both smiling heading into the final round.  Caceres attempted a high kick, but Pettis grabbed a hold of him and got a body-lock takedown, while Caceres tried to roll through and get a kimura on Pettis during the same sequence.

After a scramble for position on the ground, they got back to their feet, and Caceres landed a knee to the body.  In the final minute, Pettis went for a heel hook, but Caceres took his back and got a rear-naked choke that forced Pettis to tap, handing him his first professional loss.

No. 7: Dos Santos vs. Miocic, UFC on Fox 13

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This fight was billed as a No. 1 contender's fight in the UFC heavyweight division.  Dos Santos hadn’t fought since his October 2013 title fight loss to Cain Velasquez and was looking to bounce back into contention.  Miocic came in with a 6-1 UFC record, and a win over the former champion would have put him at the top of the heavyweight heap.

In the first round, Miocic pressured the former champion and shot for several takedowns.  He tagged Dos Santos several times and forced him backward against the fence for much of the round.  He landed the harder shots, which cut Dos Santos under his eye, but somehow all three judges inexplicably scored the first round for Cigano.

Miocic continued to push for takedowns in the second round, trying to tire out his opponent.  Dos Santos landed some good single strikes but was more tentative, throwing with less power than we’ve seen in the past.

Miocic worked against the fence and landed some good shots that continued to bust up the face of Dos Santos.  The Brazilian landed a few good jabs to the body of Miocic, but they weren’t enough to win the round, as the clinch work and a late takedown helped Miocic secure the frame on all three judges’ scorecards.

Miocic got a takedown in the first minute of the third round, but Dos Santos scrambled out and ate a big right hand for his trouble.  Halfway through the fight, both men were extremely tired.  Dos Santos was throwing big punches, but Miocic was able to get out of the way of most of them and absorb the ones that landed. 

Dos Santos dropped Miocic with a huge left, but he didn’t have the energy to finish the fight.  By the end of the round, they were both exhausted and bleeding from the face.  The judges had Dos Santos ahead two rounds to one going into the fourth round. 

Cigano seemed to have a bit more energy at the start of the fourth round and defended more takedown attempts from Miocic.  Dos Santos used his boxing to control the center of the cage, landing more punches to the body of Miocic. 

Miocic was visibly tired but landed some hard shots near the end of the round.  Dos Santos stuffed more takedown attempts from Miocic.  Cigano got Miocic to the ground in the final minute of the round, but Miocic got right back up. 

Both men looked thoroughly abused going into the last round.  It was another close round, as two judges scored it for Dos Santos and one gave it to Miocic.  In a fight that was supposed to determine a potential title challenger, it was the loser who actually came out looking better than the winner.

Dos Santos looked like a shell of his former self, and despite winning, he took another prolonged beating. Meanwhile, Miocic showed heart and perseverance against one of the best fighters in the heavyweight division. 

No. 6: Brown vs. Silva, UFC Fight Night: Brown vs. Silva

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This fight started off with a body-lock takedown by Erick Silva, which Brown immediately reversed.  Within the first minute, Silva landed a hard shot to the body of Brown that caused him to collapse, and it looked like this one was going to end early. 

He swarmed on Brown with punches and elbows and looked for a submission after taking Brown's back.  The Immortal somehow survived the early onslaught and escaped back to his feet with two minutes left in the round. 

Brown immediately attacked Silva and rocked him with punches and knees in the clinch.  Silva took some huge shots and gave up a takedown as the first round ended.  UFC commentators Jon Anik and Kenny Florian were yelling throughout nearly the entire round. It was one of the best first rounds in MMA history. 

The second round started with a flurry from Brown.  Silva fired back with a body kick.  Brown continued to pressure Silva and land elbows and knees.  The Brazilian endured an astonishing amount of punishment in this fight.

Silva never really regained the upper hand, and in the third round, Brown did what his corner told him to do and broke his opponent.  Two minutes into the round, Brown had Silva turtled up and poured on some ground-and-pound until Herb Dean waved it off.

No. 5: Trujillo vs. Varner, UFC 169

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This fight earned “Fight of the Night” honors at UFC 169, which isn’t common for fights that end in a knockout.  Abel Trujillo started the fight trying to end it.  He pretty much did nothing but throw big, looping hooks. 

Varner avoided the early onslaught for the most part but did get tagged by a few of Trujillo’s punches.  Varner was able to get the fight to the mat and went for a north-south choke. It looked like it was locked in, but Trujillo escaped.  They had a few wild exchanges as the round ended.

All hell broke loose in the second round.  Both guys decided to start swinging until one of them hit the mat.  First, Varner got rocked with a punch, then walked down Trujillo and dropped him with a series of hooks. 

Trujillo latched onto a single leg while he tried to recover.  When he got back to his feet, he decided to punch his way out of trouble, and it worked.  He ate some shots as Varner continued to pour it on, but a picture-perfect right hook from Trujillo landed and put Varner away.  

There you have it folks—2014’s version of Chris Leben vs. Wanderlei Silva spread out over two rounds. 

No. 4: Lawler vs. Brown, UFC on Fox 12

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Coming into this fight, Matt Brown was riding the best winning streak of his career, with seven straight wins inside the Octagon and all but one coming by KO/TKO.  This fight would determine who would challenge newly minted welterweight champion Johny Hendricks when he returned from a bicep injury.

This fight was a battle from bell to bell.  Lawler tagged Brown right out of the gate with some hard punches.  Brown landed some hard elbows in the clinch and took Lawler down.  Ruthless got back to his feet and worked for position against the fence.  He landed some hard shots that cut Brown but also ate some mean elbows.  It was a fast-paced, close round, and two of three judges scored it for Lawler.

Brown mixed up his strikes in the second round, scored a takedown and had Lawler in defensive mode for most of the frame.  Brown kept him guessing as to where his strikes would target, with body kicks, spinning backfists and front kicks.  The fight was effectively tied up going into the third round.

Brown went for a takedown right away in the third round, but Lawler landed some vicious elbows to the side of Brown’s head.  Lawler found a home for his left body kick and turned the fight around by controlling the center of the cage and landing often to the body. 

Brown landed some hard shots toward the end of the round, but Lawler had started to pick up steam.  Round 3 went to Ruthless. 

He continued to control the fight throughout the fourth and fifth rounds.  Brown scrapped, but Lawler landed the harder shots.  The fifth round was an absolute brawl, with Brown coming forward and attacking with everything he had. 

Lawler won the bout and went on to win the UFC welterweight title in his UFC 181 rematch with Hendricks.  This fight proved that Lawler and Brown are two of the hardest fighters to finish in the UFC. 

No. 3: Weidman vs. Machida, UFC 175

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Coming off two finishes of Anderson Silva to first win and then defend the UFC middleweight title, Chris Weidman's next challenger was former UFC light heavyweight champion Lyoto Machida at UFC 175 in July.  Machida is notorious for catching his opponents with devastating shots while they rush in, and Weidman’s style heavily involves forward pressure.

In the first round, Weidman opened up with some kicks and immediately started implementing his game plan of cutting off the cage.  He went for a single-leg takedown when Machida threw a kick of his own, but The Dragon sprung right up. 

Weidman pressured Machida and outstruck him throughout the first frame, immediately putting doubts in the minds of all those who thought Machida would be an unsolvable puzzle for the champion.

Weidman was in control throughout most of the second round and owned the center of the cage.  He kept Machida’s back against the fence, even as the challenger tried to time his strikes and move laterally.

Anywhere Machida went, Weidman was there to close off his options and keep him from finding his rhythm.  Weidman shot in and got Machida to the mat in the final minute of Round 2 and landed some ground-and-pound as the round ended.

Weidman took the center of the cage right away in Round 3.  It was becoming clear that Machida wasn’t going to be afforded the time to settle in and find the big shots that he had used to put guys away in the past. 

A big takedown by Weidman midway through the round allowed the champ to briefly take the challenger’s back before they resumed fighting on the feet.  Weidman blasted Machida with a punching combination that cut him open.  The champ was able to get two more takedowns and end the round by battering Machida with punches on the ground.

After three clear-cut rounds for Weidman, Machida came out in the fourth round more aggressive and willing to engage.  He took the center of the cage, fired of a few hard body kicks and got right back up when Weidman briefly dragged him to the mat. 

Machida landed a good left hook and had the champion bleeding from the mouth.  The Dragon picked up the pace and had Weidman moving backward, hurting the champion with a flurry of punches.  All three judges gave the fourth round to the challenger, who looked like he was finally finding his rhythm.

The challenger’s confidence was at its highest level at the start of the fifth round.  As Machida found his mark more and more with his strikes, it seemed possible that he could mount a comeback and put Weidman away, as the challenger was clearly the fresher man. 

Weidman fired back with a stiff elbow with two minutes left in the fight and got his fifth takedown of the fight.  He took Machida’s back and landed some good punches in the final minute.  In the final 10 seconds, Machida unloaded everything he had with a series of punches, kicks, elbows and knees right before the final buzzer. 

Machida took it to Weidman as the fight progressed, but it wasn’t enough to win the fight.  Weidman retained his title that night, but Machida was a legitimate test for the champion.  They might end up running it back in the future.

No. 2: Aldo vs. Mendes 2, UFC 179

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Jose Aldo won the first fight with Chad Mendes at UFC 142 by way of first-round knockout when Mendes shot in for a takedown in the final seconds of the round and ate a knee for his troubles.  Five wins (four by KO) later, Mendes was back in line for another shot at the UFC featherweight title. 

In the rematch, Aldo and Mendes went toe-to-toe for the full five rounds, in what was primarily a striking battle. 

In the first round, Aldo opened up with a few hard punching combinations and his patented leg kicks.  Mendes pressed forward and did his best to counter Aldo’s offense, landing some shots of his own.  He briefly got the champion down with a single-leg after eating a knee, but Aldo got right back to his feet.  

He dropped Mendes with a big left hook with 30 seconds left in the round and was able to get into full mount.  They got back to their feet, and Aldo continued to assault Mendes after the horn sounded; he actually dropped him with two punches that both landed after the round was over.

The second round was even, and both men were a bit tentative with their strikes.  Mendes switched stances often, and they both used feints to try and lure the other in.  Aldo pumped the jab often and was able to edge Mendes on the judges’ scorecards. 

Both fighters came out swinging in the third round.  Mendes landed a hard straight punch to the nose of Aldo, but the Brazilian landed a hard left hook.  There were less combinations thrown in this round and more hard shots meant to put the other away. 

The champion landed a clean overhand right that staggered and briefly dropped Mendes.  Aldo landed some more left hooks that forced Mendes to shoot for the takedown, but Aldo defended. 

Mendes had his best showing in the fourth round.  He was able to get in, land some punches and get back out before Aldo could counter.  He had Aldo bleeding from his left eye and backing up.  Mendes was the fresher fighter and the aggressor throughout the round. 

Round 4 would be the only round that would go to the challenger. 

Both men were tired going into the final round, and the rounds were all so close that it wasn’t entirely clear who had taken each frame.  Mendes landed a well-timed double-leg takedown, but the champ wall-walked his way back to his feet.  Aldo pulled ahead in the second half of the round with crisp combinations while Mendes was standing in front of him.

It was a close fight, and though Aldo retained his title, Mendes proved that he was still the second best featherweight in the UFC.

No. 1: Hendricks vs. Lawler, UFC 171

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This fight was significant because for the first time in six years, the UFC would have a new welterweight champion.  Georges St-Pierre narrowly defeated Johny Hendricks in November 2013 at UFC 167 and then vacated the title to take a hiatus from the sport. 

Enter Robbie Lawler. 

He had returned to the UFC in 2013 and won three straight.  With St-Pierre out of the picture, he was the contender that the welterweight division needed. 

In the first round, Lawler came out with a boxing-centric strategy, and Hendricks mixed in a variety of strikes and takedown attempts.  Hendricks was a bit more diverse and active, taking a close first round on all three judges’ scorecards.

Lawler was a bit more fluid at the start of the second round, but by the end of the frame he had retreated back to a forward-moving boxing style.  Hendricks diversified his strikes even further, throwing well-timed left leg kicks and knees and countering nearly all of Lawler’s advances.  Hendricks significantly out-landed Lawler in this round. Going into the third, he was up two rounds to none, with one judge even giving Hendricks a 10-8 scorecard for Round 2. 

The third round looked similar to previous two for the first two minutes or so.  An active and effective Hendricks was landing on Lawler at will.  As the round progressed, Lawler started to time the offense of Hendricks and buckled him with a clean left hand midway through.  Ruthless continued to find his target for the rest of the round and did not allow Hendricks to recover enough to win the round. 

Heading into the championship rounds, all three judges had the fight two rounds to one for Hendricks. 

Lawler had Hendricks in trouble within the first minute of the fourth round.  A barrage of punches and knees had Hendricks backing up.  Lawler continued to pepper Hendricks with punches to the head and body.  Hendricks tried to counter, but Lawler mostly avoided it.  Halfway through the round, Bigg Rigg was a bloody mess.  His eye was swollen, and blood was dripping down his face and torso. 

Lawler smiled as Hendricks landed a nice combination.  Lawler outstruck Hendricks en route to tying things up heading into the final round.

Hendricks spent the first two minutes working hard for the takedown against the fence before referee Dan Miragliotta separated them.  Back in the center, Hendricks landed a leg kick and shot in again.  Lawler fought it off, and both guys started swinging with bad intentions.  Finally, with one minute remaining, Hendricks got Lawler to the mat and up against the fence, and the fight stayed there until the final bell. 

It was a close fight, with both men putting on championship-level performances, kicking off what will likely be a storied trilogy.  This was the best welterweight title fight in UFC history, and the best MMA fight of 2014.