Season 13 – Tony Ferguson vs. Justin Edwards

Speaking of TUF competitors who made mincemeat out of their opponents, Tony Ferguson had perhaps the most dominant run of any winner in the show’s history, knocking out all four of his opponents en route to the coveted glass plaque. But none were more impressive than his preliminary match upkick KO of Justin Edwards, because honestly, how often do you see an upkick KO? It remains Renzo Gracie’s greatest highlight, and the same goes for Ferguson. His knockout of Ramsey Nijem at the TUF 13 Finale may have earned him the gold glass, but this kick earned him the CagePotato glory, which is arguably a greater achievement. Arguably.

Season 12 – Cody McKenzie vs. Marc Stevens

We know, we know. This was not a knockout. In fact, in all of season 12, there were only three knockouts. And of those three knockouts, there was only one legitimate KO, and believe it or not, it was the first fight of the season–Marc Stevens’ 13 second preliminary fight trouncing of T.J. O’Brien. The other two (T)KO victories came courtesy of body shot specialist Nam Phan, over Mike Budnik and Cody McKenzie, and in neither case was the victim actually separated from their consciousness.

But it was Cody McKenzie’s 16 second technical submission victory over Marc Stevens that tops them all, and we don’t care if it defies the laws set forth by the title of this article. Not to over exaggerate, but it was easily the greatest moment in TUF history, bar none. The twelfth season of The Ultimate Fighter served as little more than a highlight reel for Josh Koscheck’s douchebaggery and aggressive homosexuality, and the only man to continually shut down Koscheck’s empty threats was Alaskan guillotine specialist Cody McKenzie. Needless to say, when McKenzie was matched up against Stevens, a former training partner of Koscheck, shit got real. Koscheck talked trash, Stevens talked even more trash, and McKenzie quietly put him to sleep with his patented “McKenzietine” in less time than it takes the average person to complete a yawn. Watching our boy Fraggle angrily applying lip balm was more satisfying then any of the true knockouts from TUF 12, and probably the most legit  ___out of the season.

Season 11 – Brad Tavares vs. Jordan Smith

Much like season 12, season 11 of The Ultimate Fighter did not have many knockouts to write home about. That said, the knee/straight right combo that Brad Tavares unleashed on Jordan Smith in their preliminary matchup was a thing of beauty. Smith crashed to the canvas like a narcoleptic goat just 37 seconds into the fight, and Tavares secured a spot in the house. He would ride that momentum all the way to the semifinals, where he would be defeated by eventual season winner Court McGee. Despite the setback, he would still manage to plaster Phil Baroni out of the UFC at UFC 125, so that’s some consolation, right? RIGHT?!

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