Top 5 Biggest Upsets in UFC of 2023

Over the years UFC has witnessed several upset defeats which shocked the MMA world. People may remember Conor McGregor’s first defeat in the company against Nate Diaz at UFC 196. It won’t be wrong to say that this is one of the biggest upsets in the history of the UFC.

Well, UFC fans have also witnessed several such upsets this year. A few reigning champions have lost their titles to their underdog rivals this year as well. With 2023 finally nearing its end, here’s a collection of the top 5 in-octagon upsets that UFC fans witnessed this year.

5. Dustin Poirier vs Justin Gaethje – UFC 291

The first fight between the touted UFC lightweights, Justin Gaethje and Dustin Poirier at UFC on Fox 29, proved to be a barn burner. However, Gaethje couldn’t stand Poirier’s heavy strikes post the third round. ‘The Diamond’ earned a superb TKO victory over the current ‘BMF’ of the UFC early in the fourth round, which made him the favorite in their UFC 291 showdown for the coveted ‘BMF’ title.

But, ‘The Highlight’ landed a vicious head kick right at the beginning of the second round that knocked Poirier out cold. Although Gaethje was a good match for Poirier and had enough to gain a victory, fans didn’t expect him to knock ‘The Diamond’ out so early in the bout. Hence, it’s safe to say that the UFC 291 main event presented one of the major upsets of this year.

4. Aljamain Sterling vs. Sean O’Malley – UFC 292

The in-octagon altercation between the former UFC bantamweight king, Aljamain Sterling, and the current champ, Sean O’Malley after UFC 288, clarified the fact that the UFC 292 bout between the two will be an enthralling one. Well, apart from the excitement, their UFC 292 main event fight also shocked a large chunk of fans. Despite, Sugar’s awesome striking, a lot of them predicted that Sterling would decimate O’Malley due to his superior ground game.

But after a lackluster first round, O’Malley landed a brutal right hook on Sterling early in the second round, which drove him to the floor. ‘Sugar’ rushed and finished the fight with a barrage of heavy strikes on the grounded ‘Funk Master’. A lot of fans also believed that O’Malley could get the better of Sterling. But how he finished ‘Funk Master’ pretty early in the bout may be termed as one of the major upsets of this year.

3. Dricus du Plessis vs. Robert Whittaker – UFC 290

The noted former UFC middleweight champ, Robert Whittaker has proven his might several times inside the octagon. This is why most fans picked him as the favorite for the UFC middleweight title shot eliminator at UFC 290. His rival, Dricus du Plessis, has also showcased a few commendable in-octagon performances. Still, UFC fans and pundits didn’t see him matching the caliber of Whittaker.

But, the South African started proving everyone wrong right from the first round. Du Plessis even scored a takedown on Whittaker in the first round. Both were seen landing several blows on each other in the second round as well. But it was a right jab from du Plessis that knocked Whittaker down to the canvas. Despite getting up, the Australian couldn’t prevent himself from du Plessis’s rush and lost the bout via a TKO. Needless to say, only a handful of fans may have expected du Plessis to win the bout. Hence, it was indeed one of the biggest upsets of the year.

2. Islam Makhachev vs Alexander Volkanovski – UFC 294

The main event of UFC 284 put up an enthralling show for the fans. The noted UFC featherweight king, Alexander Volkanovski, presented a tough challenge to the UFC lightweight champ, Islam Makhachev, despite losing the bout via a unanimous decision. This is why several fans predicted another close affair between the two when they locked horns at UFC 294.

But, most fans may know that ‘Volk’ had accepted the fight on a notice of just 11 days. His lack of strategy somewhere became apparent in the fight. ‘Volk’ was waiting too long before throwing his strikes. This provided Makhachev with an opportunity to put pressure on him. At the 3-minute mark in the first round, Makhachev struck his rival with a vicious head kick driving him to the floor. He also finished the fight with a few more strikes with ‘Volk’ on the cage wall. Although ‘The Great’ had picked up a defeat previously against Makhachev, the way in which he lost this fight wasn’t anything short of a major upset.

1. Israel Adesanya vs Sean Strickland – UFC 293

Most fans would happily accept the UFC 293 main event to be the biggest upset of the year so far. The noted former UFC middleweight champ, Israel Adesanya, stepped into the octagon as a massive -650 favorite compared to his rival, Sean Strickland who was rated as a +450 underdog. But the fight showcased the exact opposite scenario. Strickland’s awesome performance made the hugely favorite ‘Izzy’ look like the underdog.

‘Tarzan’ even scored a knockdown on ‘The Last Stylebender’ in the very first round of the fight. But the crowd still expected Adesanya to come back stronger in the following rounds. However, they were severely disappointed by ‘Izzy’s’ performance on the night. The clock kept ticking, but Adesanya failed to land any heavy strike on Strickland that could have him in trouble.

The ending minutes of the final round became rather humiliating for the defending champ as the challenger walked him down and threw strikes at him while trash-talking. The bout ended with a unanimous decision victory for Strickland, causing a huge upset to the entire UFC universe, probably the biggest of the year.

Most fans may know that the last UFC PPV of this year, UFC 296, is scheduled for 16 December. The Leon Edwards vs. Colby Covington headlining event also has several other exciting fights on the card. But, looking at the shocking upsets that we have witnessed this year, it won’t be pretty surprising if we witness another similar incident at UFC 296.