This list was supposed to come out last month but due to a busy schedule it’s coming out now. So here are October’s best fights in retrospect:
10) The Ultimate Fighter: A Champion Will Be Crowned – Felice Herrig vs. Heather Jo Clark
This fight had a lot of bad blood going into it. Taking place in episode five, Team Pettis member Felice Herrig and Team Melendez member Heather Jo Clark had met each other in the cage before and had bad blood left over from said match. Both women had flaws going into the rematch as Herrig had a rather blunt and outgoing personality while Clark had been complaining of injuries leading up to the fight. Ultimately Herrig came away with a decision win. After the match Clark made peace with Herrig who accepted with no more conflict.
9) The Ultimate Fighter: Latin America – Marco Beltran vs. Guido Canetti
There had already been a bit of controversy in this inaugural season of The Ultimate Fighter: Latin America in terms of judges decisions. However, this was a bit more clear cut as to the judges decision. During the fight between Team Mexico’s Marco Beltran and Team Latin America’s Guido Canetti, Canetti actually made the mistake of kicking Beltran in the head while Belatran was on his back. Ultimately the judges scored the fight for Canetti, probably because earlier round went to Beltran. Even Cain Velasquez admit it Canetti should have won.
8) Bellator 127 – Rafael Silva vs. Rob Emerson
Bellator MMA had visited the Pechanga Resort & Casino multiple times but none of these past visits had as much controversy when it came to random drug testing. Four different fighters tested positive for anything from elevated testosterone to PEDs. Former TUF participant Rob Emerson was one such fighter when he faced former Bellator featherweight title challenger Rafael Silva. However, Silva seemed to prove that skill matters more than what’s put in one’s body. He controlled Emerson for all three rounds and was able to come away with a decision.
7) The Ultimate Fighter: A Champion Will Be Crowned – Carla Esparza vs. Angela Hill
There was nothing personal about this match in episode four of The Ultimate Fighter season 20. However, Team Melendez coach Gilbert Melendez felt that rookie and lowest seed Angela Hill was ranked far too low but would upset favorite Carla Esparza. Esparza herself was worried ring rust as she hadn’t fought in over a year prior to the start of the season. Ultimately Esparza took Hill down and was able to submit her within the first round. Esparza would go onto win the season while Hill would make a successful debut in the finale as well.
6) Bellator 127 – Fernando Gonzalez vs. Karo Parisyan
Again, this match took place at the controversial Bellator event with four positive banned substance tests. This time it was the winner in Fernando Gonzalez that came out on top of veteran Karo Parisyan. It was unfortunate considering Gonzalez was a replacement for the injured Marius Zaromskis. The actual match ended in a knockout for Gonzalez and was actually pretty impressive. For whatever reason, Gonzalez was only suspended for thirty days and his win remains the same along with only a $315 fine, basically a slap on the wrist.
5) UFC 179: Aldo vs. Mendes 2 – Phil Davis vs. Glover Teixeira – Upset of the Month
This was an upset as far as the betting odds go and it really wasn’t that far off. Going into this fight both Phil Davis and Glover Teixeira were coming off losses and were looking for a rebound win for another possible title run. Davis had just lost to Anthony Johnson and Teixeira had lost to Jon Jones. The actual match consisted of Davis taking down Teixeira down and controlling him for the most part. Davis came away with the win and again won in Brazil, something he’d done before against Lyoto Machida.
4) UFC 179: Aldo vs. Mendes 2 – Fabio Maldonado vs. Hans Stringer – Comeback of the Month
Leading into this match Hans Stringer was on the rise and Fabio Maldonado was coming off a loss to Stipe Miocic at heavyweight. Both men were looking to get into the title picture or at minimum into the rankings picture. The first round saw Stringer controlling Maldonado and at times almost finishing him. The second round started very similar until Maldonado found the right opportunity and was able to finish the fight. Considering the back and forth domination it was no wonder this was chosen as the comeback match of October.
3) UFC 179: Aldo vs. Mendes 2 – Wilson Reis vs. Scott Jorgensen – Submission of the Month
Both of these men were looking to make a statement at flyweight as they’d hit hard times at higher weight classes. Scott Jorgensen made it harder to do so when he failed to make weight by three pounds. Wilson Reis on the other hand was able to make said statement. He softened up Jorgensen with strikes and was able to take Jorgensen’s back. He than submitted Jorgensen and walked with the win.
2) The Ultimate Fighter: Latin America – Alejandro Perez vs. Guido Canetti – Knockout of the Month
Because of the controversy in his previous match, Guido Canetti had complained about the match and loosing unfairly. However, when his teammate Marlon Vera had a skin condition and was taken out of the competition, Canetti was given a second chance. He faced Team Mexico’s Alejandro Perez and came out aggressively. His reckless game plan however proved to be his undoing as Perez finally found a way to knock Canetti out. The knockout was in fact so bad that Canetti had to be taken out to an ambulance and from there to the hospital.
1) UFC 179: Aldo vs. Mendes 2 – Jose Aldo vs. Chad Mendes 2 – Fight of the Month
There had been a bit of anticipation leading up to this rematch. Because of the dethroning of Jose Aldo‘s teammate Renan Barao at bantamweight, Aldo swore revenge against Team Alpha Male by taking on TJ Dillashaw‘s teammate Chad Mendes. The two had faced off before with Aldo knockout out Mendes but since that time both men had gone undefeated. The match delivered as they went the full five round and was almost finished by both men at times. As controversial as the decision was the match was scored for Aldo who kept his title.