5 of the best KOs this year, so far
By Anwesha Nag
3. Ismael Bonfim def. Terrance McKinney - UFC 283
The Bonfim brothers were the talk of the town ahead of their hyped debut at UFC 283 in Rio de Janeiro. Both the highly-praised siblings made statements in their first fights in the promotion. While Gabriel Bonfim snatched a first-round submission win over Mounir Lazzezz, his brother Ismael scored a Knockout of the Year contender against rising lightweight Terrance McKinney.
After an impressive performance on Dana White’s Contender Series, Ismael Bonfim carried the momentum into his UFC debut. McKinney got tagged multiple times in the first round. He powered through it, but could not land much offense of his own.
Halfway through Round 2, Bonfim knocked McKinney’s mouthpiece out with a well-connected punch, followed by a ridiculous flying knee right on the chin. McKinney was out cold and crashed face-first onto the canvas. He was up and under his own consciousness by the time Bruce Buffer read out the results.
The faceplanting KO became a talking point on MMA Twitter immediately, with pros also speculating about a bright future for Ismael Bonfim. Before the fight, McKinney posted a somewhat cheeky tweet, urging fans to ‘pray’ for Ismael Bonfim. He later deleted the tweet. However, he was respectful in defeat. He shared a picture of embracing Bonfim backstage after the fight.
“That’s the fight game. Respect. I hope I can still eat at the steakhouse tonight,” McKinney wrote.
Bonfim handed McKinney only the second loss of his UFC tenure. The first one was also a KO loss that came at the hands of Drew Dober. He’s 3-2 in the UFC at the moment, having picked up wins over Erick Gonzalez, Fares Ziam, and Matt Frevola.
Bonfim meanwhile, on top of being a DWCS alum, has Shooto Brazil and LFA pedigree. Despite an explosive debut, he has gone on to lose his second fight in the promotion to Benoit St. Denis earlier this month. The loss broke the 13-fight winning streak he had been maintaining since 2015. His last loss came against Renato Carneiro in July 2014.