MMA: 2020 in Retrospect – Looking back at the MMA world during our 365-day misadventure

BY MARCEL MARIAK

2020 has been quite a ride. A year that began with high hopes and punny new year’s resolutions like, “I’m going to have 20-20 vision for my life”, quickly became a veritable runaway train. This past annum was a bit like getting a new toy for Christmas as a kid: it was all fun and games until you read the ominous fine print, “BATTERIES NOT IN-CLUDED, ADULT ASSEMBLY REQUIRED.”

Thankfully, while we sat in lockdown at home, watching weeks turn into months and besieging the snack cabinet, the MMA world kept spinning. And while the year might have been a disappointment, the world of combat sports never failed to entertain. Here are a few top highlights from the year we’re so happily leaving in the history books!

McGregor v. Cowboy Cerrone: January 18th
Remember a time before masks, quarantine, and social-distancing? Me neither. But believe it or not, this was our reality at one point. The UFC 246 main event featured the Notorious Conor McGregor stepping into the octagon with Donald (Cowboy) Cerrone. The fight took place in Las Vegas before a crowd of over 19 thousand cheering fans. In true Notorious fashion, McGregor promptly dispatched his foe in only 40 seconds. Conor came out swinging, immediately broke Cerrone’s nose with shoulder strikes, landed a head kick to send Cowboy to the ground, and finished him with precise ground strikes.

Despite his famous upsets, social controversies, and uncanny proficiency at throwing dollies through bus windows, Conor McGregor continues to put on a show nearly two decades after his professional MMA debut.

The Knockout Heard Around the World: October 11th
If you keep up with the UFC, you’ve undoubtedly seen this spectacular KO. Typically, fighting in real-life is less flashy than the choreography in action movies. Combat is chaos; even the best fighters in the world often look clumsy in the ring. This time though, Joaquin Buckley landed a knockout that put Hollywood fight scenes to shame! When Impa Kasanganay caught his foe’s high kick, Buckley decided to channel his in-ner dragon and unleash a spinning back kick that briefly sent his opponent to an alter-nate universe. The stunning knockout instantly went viral and was named a strong contender for Knockout of the Year!

The Heartbreaking Retirement of an MMA Star: October 24th
Every fighter on the UFC roster is a highly disciplined warrior. They train every day to forge their minds and bodies into efficient, agile, and powerful human weapons. De-spite this, some fighters stand out amongst their peers. They are considered the high-est echelon of combat sports athletes; names such as Conor McGregor, Tony Fergu-son, and Amanda Nunes come to mind. Among the elite, though, there is one warrior who strikes fear into the hearts of his competitors: Khabib Nurmagomedov. The Rus-sian combat sambo champion and MMA fighter made an impact in the combat sports world after his emphatic victory over Conor McGregor. Instantly, he went from being a rising star to becoming a household name in MMA. His strength, resilience, and unbe-lievable grappling skills captivated fans as he conquered rival after rival.

Until the pandemic, Khabib was supposed to defend his UFC Lightweight Champion title from Tony Ferguson. Sadly, an unfortunate string of health issues from both fight-ers caused the showdown to eventually be cancelled. Ferguson would instead be fac-ing Justin Gaethje in an interim title fight. While the two fighters were preparing to face off, Khabib’s life was turned upside down by the death of his father, who had trained the young warrior from childhood. Many doubted if Khabib would ever step back into the ring, but he agreed to one final title defence against Justin Gaethje. The fight went as you might expect: Khabib dominated throughout the bout and finished the fight with a submission. The real highlight of the night happened after the final bell. Nurma-gomedov broke into tears over his father’s death and announced that he would be re-tiring from the UFC.

Needless to say, 2020 has been quite a rollercoaster: the type of rollercoaster that in-conveniently takes a scenic detour through the pits of fire and brimstone. Neverthe-less, we got out of it in one piece; with a couple of fun MMA experiences and enough stockpiled toilet paper to create a new form of currency. Hopefully, 2021 will be better.