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Although it seems like this is always the case when it comes to UFC fight retrospectives, 2022 was one hell of a year in terms of the quality of the fights. And given the sheer volume of memorable moments, 2022 exceeded our wildest UFC predictions. In fact, even the most eagle-eyed of UFC sports betting analysts couldn’t have predicted how incredibly some of these fights ended.
In terms of memorable moments, 2022 had it all – everything from shock championship upsets to violent brawls and high-level trilogy fights was on display. But out of the 511 fights the UFC put on in 2022, which were the most memorable?
Teixeira vs Procházka
One of the greatest matches put on in 2022 – and which could make a strong case for being one of the greatest fights ever – was the bout between Jiří Procházka and the light-heavyweight champion Glover Teixeira.
Teixeira is truly a fan favorite and had just won the belt in spectacular fashion, despite being in his forties! However, he had his work cut out for him when he agreed to face off against the Czech phenom Procházka, who is one of the most agile and exciting fighters on the UFC roster.
This fight quickly turned into a battle of epic proportions, with both fighters coming close to finishing it on multiple occasions. Procházka eventually forced Teixeira to tap out deep into the fifth round, at 4:32, which saw him earn the championship strap for the first time.
Burns vs Chimaev
Another epic brawl that took everyone by surprise in 2022 was the fight between Khamzat Chimaev and Gilbert Burns.
Going into the fight, Chimaev’s stock was at an all-time high and many were writing Gilbert Burns off pretty much immediately. Much of this was linked to his recent loss against the former champ Kamaru Usman, who had handily beaten Burns.
Despite this, Burns put up an absolutely incredible fight. And far from dominating him, Chimaev looked out of his depth at times. This was a true back-and-forth fight and although neither fighter was ever in a position to end it, it did see both fighters going at pretty much full clip for all three rounds.
Chimaev eventually went on to win the fight on a narrow decision, although despite getting the victory, his stock actually appeared to go down. Chimaev went from looking unstoppable going into the fight to looking beatable on numerous occasions, which is perhaps the biggest takeaway from this historic brawl.
Moreno vs Figueiredo III
In the world of professional martial arts, trilogy fights are a rare and special thing. And fortunately for UFC fans, the trilogy fight between the Brazilian and Mexican champions more than delivered.
After a gruelling, well-matched battle, Figueiredo just managed to clinch a five-round, unanimous decision over his long-time rival Moreno. This saw him reclaiming his flyweight title once again, which put these two champs on an even footing in terms of wins against each other.
While the trilogy fight was an epic battle for the ages on its own merits, it will also be remembered as the fight that set up their fourth matchup – an even rarer event in combat sports – which saw Moreno reclaiming the belt. I’m not sure we will ever again see such evenly matched opponents go at it in the octagon!
Poirier vs Chandler
There was significant interest in this matchup between the former interim champ Dustin Poirier and the former Bellator champ Michael Chandler, and thankfully for the fans, this fight well and truly delivered.
The opening round got off to an absolutely blistering pace and looked like it could have ended at any moment. Both fighters managed to land massive blows and spent the first five minutes trading punches. Chandler also mixed in some excellent takedowns, with Poirier looking as dangerous as ever on the ground.
Although only a three-round fight, every second was incredibly intense. After 10 minutes of back-and-forth blows, Poirier managed to get in a rear naked choke to force the tap from Chandler.
Gane vs Tuivasa
Since two of the brightest, most exciting new talents in the heavyweight division were involved, there was a massive amount of hype going into the interim title bout between Ciryl Gane and Tai Tuivasa.
This debut event in Gane’s hometown more than delivered in terms of action, with the fight giving Tuivasa plenty of opportunities to ‘swang and bang’. It also gave Gane the opportunity to show off his technical prowess, with the lightness of the Frenchman on his feet contrasting with Tuivasa’s heavy-footed style.
After a relatively sedate first round, the hard-hitting heavyweights really went at it from the second. Following a number of wild exchanges in which Tuivasa almost put Gane out on his feet, the Frenchman eventually put Tuivasa away.
