Who got “Punked” in 2021?
The made up stat that took the world by storm last year is back. For those not keeping up, a fighter can be considered “Punked” when they register zero knockdowns, significant strikes, takedowns or submission attempts in a UFC fight, much like CM Punk in his ill fated and often mocked UFC/MMA debut. In 2020, there were 10 different fighters who lost while being “Punked,” but this year that number fell to seven. There was also somehow a fighter who was “Punked” in victory, which seems unlikely to happen again. To the list…
Aalon Cruz vs. Uros Medic
I am hesitant to even write about this one since Google Drive always tries to autocorrect Aalon into Salon, but in these trying times we must all try to persevere. Cruz looked great on the third season of DWCS as he landed 132 significant strikes and finished Steven Nguyen in the third round with a flying knee. However, it was an entirely different story in the UFC. He made his promotional debut against Spike Carlyle in 2020 and managed only two significant strikes before defeat. Cruz returned last March and was “Punked” by Medic.
In the fight, Medic landed 45 significant strikes and a knockdown in only 100 seconds. After three fights in UFC/DWCS, Medic is landing 10.53 significant strikes per minute, but he is coming off a first-round submission loss against Jalin Turner.
Fabio Cherant vs. Alonzo Menifield
Cherant actually fought on the exact same episode of DWCS as Cruz. Unlike Cruz, he was outlander 44 to seven of significant strikes and lost via flying knee against Aleksa Camur. Nearly two years later, he made his UFC debut against Menifield. Cherant failed on his only significant strike attempt, allowed a takedown and submitted via Von Flue choke. The “Water Buffalo” returned to the UFC this past August and suffered a knockout against William Knight.
Menifield carried the momentum of this punking into a decision victory over veteran Ed Herman in August. However, he finished the year 2-1 after dropping a decision against Knight in early December.
Victor Rodriguez vs. Bruno Silva
Silva needed only six significant strikes to score a knockdown and stop Rodriguez in exactly one minute. In his previous outing, Rodriguez managed only six significant strikes himself before being stopped by Adrian Yanez.
The UFC run for Silva began with a pair of losses and a no contest. However, in his last two fights, he has outlanded his opponents 43 to 17 and averaged 6.72 knockdowns per 15 minutes of fight time.
Matt Frevola vs. Terrance McKinney
McKinney still received a call from the UFC despite losing on the third season of DWCS. He made the most of the opportunity as he stopped Frevola in only seven seconds and with only four significant strikes. At the time Frevola had a 3-2-1 record in the UFC/DWCS, but McKinney was able to quick up the Punk and the quickest finish in the promotion in 2021.
Jeremy Stephens vs. Mateusz Gamrot
While Stephens has picked up his fair share of quick finishes in his UFC career, he has never actually “Punked” an opponent. The same can’t be said for Gamrot. In their fight from July, Gamrot was able to collect an early takedown and submit the veteran in 65 seconds. Stephens was able to land two insignificant strikes on the ground, but he failed to even register a significant attempt. He is now riding a six-fight winless streak.
Serghei Spivac vs. Tom Aspinall
Spivac started 2021 with a pair of victories over Jared Vanderaa and Aleksei Oleinik. However, that momentum came to a halt in a major way against Aspinall. The heavyweight prospect landed 16 significant strikes, scored a knockdown and stopped the fight in only 150 seconds. In his four-fight UFC career, Aspinall has landed 7.19 significant strikes per minute and only former heavyweight champion Andrei Arlovski has made it out of the first round.
Li Jingliang vs. Khamzat Chimaev
Chimaev started his career with two “Punks” in 2020. He then returned from an extensive hiatus this year and put another one on the board against Jingliang. He has absorbed only one significant strike in four fights. The only other currently ranked fighter with three “Punks” on their result is Derek Brunson who punked Brian Houston, Ed Herman and Roan Carneiro.
The victorious Punk!
Uriah Hall vs. Chris Weidman
Hall was able to defeat Weidman without landing a single significant strike. Weidman threw a leg kick, which was checked. That check broke Weidman’s leg and effectively ended the fight via injury. While it was certainly a rare finish, it is also probably one that everyone would like to forget.