8 of the best UFC knockouts of 2024 [UPDATED MAY]

As 2024 charges forward, a new chapter in the UFC's storied saga unfolds every Saturday night - be it in the known grounds of the UFC APEX or a packed arena in a faraway city. With every Fight Night and pay-per-view event, the promotion keeps on delivering a vivid mix of exhilarating fights and mediocre matchups.

Sometimes the anticipated matchups end in a snooze fest; other times an unexpected booking shines through as the 'Fight of the Night, earning the participants the much-coveted $50,000 bonus. But what fans look forward to most in every UFC fight is an unforgettable knockout.

A knockout, abbreviated to KO, is any legal strike or combination of strikes that renders the opponent incapable of continuing to fight. In MMA terms, it is often labeled as 'shutting the lights out' for fun. A technical knockout or TKO, meanwhile, is when the referee intervenes and decides that one of the fighters cannot safely continue the fight.

The intervention usually takes place when the losing party seems to be unable to defend themselves or is visibly falling unconscious.

There are some other variations of TKO as well, such as the doctor's stoppage which takes place when the cage-side physician deems a fighter unfit to continue. The corner stoppage is another type of TKO, when the coaches or other cornermen throw in the towel, metaphorically speaking, to protect their fighter.

There is another form of knockout which is rare in the UFC or MMA in general but not unheard of - the double knockout. In a double KO, both combatants land blows and lose consciousness temporarily at the same time, rendering them unable to continue simultaneously. In such cases, there is no winner. The match is declared a draw.

2024 has seen its fair share of exciting knockouts inside the UFC Octagon. The following is a curated list of the eight best inside the Octagon so far.

This story will be updated throughout the year, please check back often.

1. Max Holloway's knockout of the century at UFC 300

It's a no-brainer who would top this list of best knockouts of 2024 and there's no recency bias here. The literal last-second knockout of Justin Gaethje at the hands of Max Holloway was as cool as could possibly be. The BMF title fight served as the fan favorite match-up at UFC 300 on April 13 and delivered in every way we wanted and more.

2. Alex Pereira strikes again, defends light heavyweight title at UFC 300

Alex Pereira might not be human. His ending sequence of former champion Jamahall Hill will be studied and debated for years to come. Hill landed a low blow on Pereira and the referee came forward to halt the fight for a foul break. Pereira waved him off without taking his eyes off Hill and then landed a wild combination dropping Hill and finishing him with ground and pound to defend his title in the main event at UFC 300.

3. Ilia Topuria dethroned Alexander Volkanovski to become new featherweight king

A changing of the guard occurred at UFC 298 when the young and hungry contender became the new featherweight champion. It didn't take Ilia Topuria long to drop and maul the former GOAT of the division in a shocker of a main event. With the win, Topuria became the first UFC champion from Spain and Georgia. Remarkable moment with a remarkable finish.

4. Dustin Poirier defies the odds, earns title shot with knockout at UFC 299

Everyone counted Dustin Poirier out at UFC 299. But Poirier proved all the doubters wrong by defeating Benoit Saint-Denis via a beautiful second round TKO. The win earned Poirier another shot at the lightweight title, which he will fight for later this year.

5. Magomed Ankalaev reintroduces himself with a brutal knockout of Johnny Walker

After two dissappointing showings in his last appearances including a draw and a no contest, Magomed Ankalaev reintroduced himself to the UFC fans with a second round knockout over fan favorite, Johnny Walker.

6. Vinicius Oliveira's flying knee debut knockout

Vinicius Oliveira had one of the best UFC debuts in recent memory. The DWCS signee secured an insane knockout when he landed a flying knee in the third round of his fight with Benardo Sopaj. The win earned him two post fight bonuses (FOTN and POTN). He'll be fighting on the Conor McGregor card in June.

7. Esteban Ribovics just announced himself with a brutal knockout of Terrance McKinney at UFC St. Louis

Esteban Ribovics earned his first official UFC finish when he knocked out Terrance McKinney at UFC St. Louis on May 11. Ribovics was signed to the UFC after several first round knockouts, including a TKO in his DWCS fight. Now he's shown the big time audience what he can do too.

8. Robelis Despaigne is a heavyweight force after UFC debut KO

Robelis Despaigne was a highly touted prospect coming into his UFC debut at UFC 299. He proved exactly why when he earned his fifth first-rounf knockout in a row versus Josh Parisian. Watch the moment below.

HONORABLE MENTION

We wouldn't consider this knockout one o the best but it was pretty wild. Jacob Malkoun won his fight via knockout after Andre Petroski knocked himself out going in for a takedown. Ouch on so many levels.

Stay tuned for more knockouts soon.