Videos: The 15 Greatest Knockouts of 2008

#15: Junior Dos Santos uppercuts Fabricio Werdum directly out of the heavyweight top ten at UFC 90 (10/25/08)

#14: Shane Carwin forcibly ejects Christian Wellisch’s mouthpiece during his Octagon debut at UFC 84 (5/24/08)

#13: Yves Edwards’s daredevil hopping-knee against Edson Berto at EliteXC: Street Certified (2/16/08)

#12: James Irvin’s 8-second Superman-punch KO of Houston Alexander at UFC Fight Night 13 (4/2/08)

#11: Urijah Faber flies directly into the fist of Mike Brown in the upset KO of the year at WEC 36 (11/5/08); skip to 6:14 for the good stuff.

#10 (tie): Anthony Johnson sends Tommy Speer back to the farm at UFC Fight Night 13 (4/2/08); Anthony Johnson gets his revenge on Kevin Burns via head-kick at the TUF 8 Finale (12/13/08)

#9: The Dean of Mean gets Axe-Murdered at UFC 84 (5/24/08)

#8: Gegard Mousasi upkicks his way to a middleweight championship at the expense of Ronaldo “Jacare” Souza at DREAM.5 (9/23/08); check the replay at 4:20.

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Where Are They Now?

Several of the fighters behind 2008’s best knockouts went on to big things. Junior dos Santos, whose uppercut on Fabricio Werdum at UFC 90 opens this list, won the UFC heavyweight title in 2011. Shane Carwin became interim heavyweight champion in 2010. Others, like James Irvin, never quite fulfilled the promise of their highlight-reel moments.

2008 was a breakout year for MMA knockouts in general, with the UFC, EliteXC and Pride’s successors producing some of the most replayed finishes in the sport’s history.