Who got “Punked” in 2020?
Back in 2016, a 37-year-old fighter with no professional or amateur MMA experience made his debut in the Octagon. Due to a high level of notoriety gained in what Wikipedia describes as “athletic theatrical performance,” he was able to skip the line and walk straight into the UFC. The promotion thought it would be prudent to match this novice against a skilled grappler who had been competitive in no-gi against the likes of Gordon Ryan.
The fight was hardly a contest. Mickey Gall finished CM Punk via rear-naked choke in a little over two minutes. Punk failed to land a single knockdown, significant strike, takedown or submission attempt. The zeroes across the stat sheet actually sum up the performance quite well.
From that day forward, fighters who ended up with similar zeroes could be considered “punked.” This actually happens a lot more often than one would think. In the UFC in 2020, there were 10 fighters who suffered a similar fate.
Donald Cerrone vs. Conor McGregor
The UFC kicked off 2020 with a high profile match between Cerrone and McGregor. Despite his years of experience and impressive resume, Cerrone failed to land a single strike against the former champion. McGregor landed 19 significant strikes and finished the fight in only 40 seconds. His +28.5 striking differential was the highest of any fight in 2020.
Jose Quinonez vs. Sean O’Malley
O’Malley’s return from a 2018 injury got off to a hot start with a first-round stoppage over Quinonez. He landed 18 significant strikes in a little over two minutes while absorbing none. Quinonez returned to action this past month. Against Louis Smolka he managed to land 43 significant strikes but ultimately fell via second-round knockout.
Anthony Hernandez vs. Kevin Holland
Holland ended 2019 after a loss against Brendan Allen. However, he got back on track in a big way against Hernandez. Holland landed 14 significant strikes and a knockdown in only 39 seconds. This left Hernandez with little opportunity to register stats and left him “punked.”
Rhys McKee vs. Khamzat Chimaev
There should not be much of an argument about breakout fighter of 2020. After allowing John Phillips to land only a single significant strike in his UFC debut, Chimaev “punked” his next two opponent in the Octagon. The run started against Rhys McKee where he landed 40 significant strikes, all of the ground, and finished the fight in a little over three minutes.
Gerald Meerschaert vs. Khamzat Chimaev
While Chimaev showed off his ground striking ability against McKee, he showcased an entirely different part of his game against Meerschaert. He needed only two standing significant strikes to drop Meerschaert. Two more on the ground handed him the finish in only 17 seconds.
TJ Laramie vs. Darrick Minner
After losing on The Contenders Series and in his UFC debut, Minner needed a win against Laramie this past September. He not only won, but he also “punked” his opponent. Minner landed 15 significant strikes, absorbed none and finished Laramie with a guillotine choke in only 52 seconds.
Jeff Hughes vs. Juan Espino
The only Senegalese wrestling veteran in UFC history adding another distinction to his resume in 2020. Espino prevented Hughes from registering a single stat. Instead, he landed 10 significant strikes and finished with a neck crank from side control in the first round.
Jacob Malkoun vs. Phillip Hawes
After bouncing around TUF, WSOF, DWCS and Bellator, Hawes appears to have found a home in the UFC in 2020. He made his mark with an 18-second victory over Malkoun. In the process, Hawes landed seven significant strikes and a knockdown.
Malcolm Gordon vs. Su Mudaerji
Mudaerjii showed off why so many hardcore MMA fans were excited when he signed with the UFC. He had a flawless performance against Gordon where he landed nine significant strikes and a knockdown and finished in only 44 seconds. In the process he forced Gordon to miss all six of his significant strike attempts.
Matt Wiman vs. Jordan Leavitt
Wiman has not really looked like himself since returning to the Octagon in 2019. That should take nothing away from Leavitt. He needed only 22 seconds to defeat Wiman via slam. He tied Frank Shamrock for the second fastest slam knockout in UFC history. The only slam came in 2005 when Josh Burkman finished Sammy Morgan in only 21 seconds.
