Advertisement
If you have a new account but are having problems posting or verifying your account, please email us on hello@boards.ie for help. Thanks :)
Hello all! Please ensure that you are posting a new thread or question in the appropriate forum. The Feedback forum is overwhelmed with questions that are having to be moved elsewhere. If you need help to verify your account contact hello@boards.ie
Hi there,
There is an issue with role permissions that is being worked on at the moment.
If you are having trouble with access or permissions on regional forums please post here to get access: https://www.boards.ie/discussion/2058365403/you-do-not-have-permission-for-that#latest

Boards MMA Awards 2016

  • 12-12-2016 9:46pm
    #1
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 28,710 ✭✭✭✭


    I know we still have two events to go including a huge one on December 30th with UFC 207: Nunes v Rousey, but I thought it would be no harm in getting this posted.

    What a monumental year it has been. For example, such is the quality that the first card of the year on January 2nd featured a strong contender for Fight of the year in Lawler v Condit and feels like a lifetime ago. We've had Conor become two weight world champion after losing to and subsequently avenging a defeat to Nate Diaz, 8 title changes throughout the year (without even getting into the interim stuff), out of the cage scandals, the sale of the UFC, and two milestone events with UFC 200 and Madison Square Garden.

    Anyway, here's some categories to get us started (some of which are shamelessly robbed from other sources). Feel free to add or exclude your own.

    Fighter of the Year:
    Fight of the Year:
    Knockout of the Year:
    Submission of the Year:
    Event of the Year:
    Upset of the Year:
    Newcomer of the Year (must have made UFC debut in 2016):
    Comeback Fighter of the Year:
    Disappointment of the Year:
    Moment of the Year:
    Gym of the Year:
    Coach of the Year:


Comments

  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 3,135 ✭✭✭dashoonage


    Newcomer of the Year: wonderfullife.


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 735 ✭✭✭Django99


    Fighter of the Year: Miocic
    Fight of the Year: Swanson v Choi
    Knockout of the Year: Bisping v Rockhold
    Submission of the Year: Diaz v McGregor
    Event of the Year: 205
    Upset of the Year: Bisping v Rockhold
    Newcomer of the Year (must have made UFC debut in 2016): Lando Vannata
    Comeback Fighter of the Year: Bisping
    Disappointment of the Year: UFC 200
    Moment of the Year: "I'm not surprised mother****ers"
    Gym of the Year: Tough one none really had great years for all fighters, maybe SBG
    Coach of the Year: Same with this one most mixed good and bad, Kavanagh I suppose.


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 2,137 ✭✭✭TimRiggins


    Fighter of the Year: Michael Bisping (Maybe Cody or Cruz depending on who wins at UFC 207)
    Fight of the Year: Diaz v McGregor 2
    Knockout of the Year: Lando Vanatta v Makdessi
    Submission of the Year: Mackenzie Dern v Montana Steward
    Event of the Year: UFC 205
    Upset of the Year: Bisping KO'ing Rockhold
    Newcomer of the Year (must have made UFC debut in 2016): Lando Vanatta
    Comeback Fighter of the Year: Dominic Cruz
    Disappointment of the Year: Jon Jones in general
    Moment of the Year: McGregor beating Eddie
    Gym of the Year: Really tough one this, I'll go with ATT
    Coach of the Year: Matt Hume


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 28,710 ✭✭✭✭Paully D


    Barring anything too out of the ordinary happening over the next few weeks, mine are the below:

    Fighter of the Year: Michael Bisping is going to feature a bit for me in these awards and I'll start by giving him my nod for Fighter of the Year. This time last year he was set to face Mousasi in London in February 2016 in what was going to be a fight between two mid-ranked contenders. He ended up beating Anderson Silva in a Fight of the Year contender in that event, beat Rockhold on 2 weeks notice to win the title and although he didn't make it easy against an opponent he should have breezed past, he ultimately defended the title before the year was out. Not a bad year for The Count!

    Fight of the Year: Plenty of contenders here, for example Bisping/Silva, O'Connell/Bosse, Lawler/Condit (the list goes on) but Marco Polo Reyes against Dong Hyun Kim from UFC 199 is my pick. It was the first fight on what turned out to be a cracking card so doesn't quite get the attention it deserves, but what a war.

    Knockout of the Year: Yair Rodriguez v Andre Fili at UFC 197. Honourable mentions to Scott Askham's KO of Chris Dempsey and Ryan Bader's KO of Latifi.

    Submission of the Year: Ben Rothwell's go-go choke on Josh Barnett. To finish someone like Barnett like that on one of his own takedown attempts was something else.

    Event of the Year: There'll be a couple of hidden gems that I'm forgetting, but I'll go with UFC 205 for the overall impact.

    Upset of the Year: It has to be Bisping over Rockhold for me. Coming into a title fight on 2 weeks notice at 7 or 8/1 against someone who already beat him. Not many people even gave him a punchers chance.

    Newcomer of the Year: Probably the only one of these I need to wait on. If Mike Perry beats Alan Jouban on Saturday he'd get the nod here for me but if not I'd need to re-think it.

    Comeback Fighter of the Year: Difficult to pick against Cruz here. Nate Diaz is also worthy of a shout. Between December 2012 and December 2015 he had gone 1-3 in the UFC, but 2016 saw him have those 2 epic fights against McGregor, earn himself even more respect among the MMA community and add a fortune to his bank account after being in a relative no man's land prior.

    Disappointment of the Year: Inside the octagon, dos Anjos. In 2016 he went from having the biggest fight and payday of his life lined up to going 0-2, losing his title to Alvarez and looking like a shadow of the fighter who dismantled Cowboy this time last year. The ridiculous amount of interim belts and the downward spiral in a number of ways since the sale right up there too.

    Moment of the Year: The reaction of Bisping after he KO'd Rockhold.

    Gym of the Year: Very tough. Maybe Alliance with no real stand out. Cruz and Davis have both had strong years becoming champions in UFC and Bellator.

    Coach of the Year: With the above in mind, Eric Del Fierro though it must also be said again that I don't think there's any real stand out this year.


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 39,904 ✭✭✭✭Mellor


    Fighter of the Year: Toss up between the two European champs for me. But I'll have to give it to Conor for that win over Eddie. Joins a very small group of people to hold two titles. And made it look easy, in a much tougher era.
    Fight of the Year: McGregor v Diaz II (have to watch Cub v Choi yet)
    Knockout of the Year:
    Submission of the Year:
    I'll have to come back to these two.
    Event of the Year: UFC 205. The card that 200 should have been.
    Upset of the Year: Bisping v Rockhold. What a win for Mike. Much deserved.
    Newcomer of the Year (must have made UFC debut in 2016): Lando Vanatta. Two epic performances.
    Comeback Fighter of the Year:
    Disappointment of the Year: Jon Jones letting everyone down, again.
    Moment of the Year: Bisping def. Rockhold and Conor def. Eddie for me
    Gym of the Year: Too close at the top. No real stand out for me.
    Coach of the Year: Kavanagh and Hume tied.


  • Advertisement
  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 735 ✭✭✭Django99


    So far I'm the only one to mention Miocic as fighter of the year! And it's a no brainier for me. 3 first round KOs against 3 greats. Looked in trouble for about 5 seconds against Overeem but other than that not even a bit of doubt.

    Bisping second for me, mainly because two of his decisions were very close, and was very close to being finished in those fights too.

    Cruz again, one close decision and another against Faber who is not at the level he once was. Even if he beats Cody it's not a huge achievement as he is relatively green. If Cody were to knock out Cruz he'd be in with a shout.

    McGregor is 2-1 for the year so I couldn't include him. Again a close decision involved too and a fairly decisive loss against Diaz on short notice. Granted two superb follow up performances.

    If Rumble and DC had gone ahead and Rumble won by KO he'd be in with a shout, pity it didn't go ahead.

    But as I said, I can't look past what Miocic has done this year.


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 4,850 ✭✭✭Depp


    Fighter of the Year: Conor Mcgregor
    Fight of the Year: Conor McGregor-Eddie Alvarez
    Knockout of the Year: Conor McGregor-Eddie Alvarez
    Submission of the Year: Nate Diaz-Conor McGregor 1
    Event of the Year: UFC 205
    Upset of the Year: Nate Diaz-Conor McGregor 1
    Newcomer of the Year: Landon Vanatta
    Comeback Fighter of the Year: Conor McGregor
    Disappointment of the Year: Nate Diaz-Conor McGregor 1
    Moment of the Year: Conor McGregor-Eddie Alvarez
    Gym of the Year: SBG
    Coach of the Year: John Kavanagh

    deal with it :D


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 7,056 ✭✭✭darced


    This post has been deleted.


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 51,342 ✭✭✭✭That_Guy


    Fighter of the Year: CM Pu... *ahem* Conor McGregor. Has had an unbelievable year. A loss. A redemption and 2 titles.
    Fight of the Year: Lawler v Condit
    Knockout of the Year: Mark Hunt (KO) v Frank Mir 14G44ZZ.gif
    Submission of the Year: Ben Rothwell (Go Go Choke) v Josh Barnett
    Event of the Year: UFC 204
    Upset of the Year: Bisping beating Rockhold on a couple of weeks notice. Fairytale stuff.
    Newcomer of the Year (must have made UFC debut in 2016): Marc Diakiese looked right at home on his debut. Very exciting fighter.
    Comeback Fighter of the Year: Conor McGregor - Could have lost a lot of credibility in fighting Diaz again after getting subbed like that but I think he earned a whole new respect from those who like to hold a grudge against him.
    Disappointment of the Year: UFC 200. All of those great fights and it was such a dud. Close second is CM Punk. Just an absolute disaster.
    Moment of the Year: Tough one really. Conor winning the two belts is an unbelievable image. The scenes of Bisping winning that elusive belt BUT Cody Garbrandt cutting a promo at UFC 202 with Cruz in the Studio above him is sticking in my mind a lot. It was bloody brilliant.
    Gym of the Year: It's hard to single out one. Nobody really stands out.
    Coach of the Year: Matt Hume but again, it's hard to really pick an outstanding candidate.


  • Closed Accounts Posts: 7,683 ✭✭✭Subcomandante Marcos


    Fighter of the Year:As above, Conor, despite my lack of love for him.

    Fight of the Year: First event of the year, Condit vs Lawler for me. Epic 5 round War and feck all between them.

    Knockout of the Year: Yoel Romero flying knee into Weidman's face.

    Submission of the Year: Diaz on McGregor. Not just the RNC but his transitions were beautiful from sprawl to guillotine to sweep to knee on belly to mount to smash to choke, so fluid.

    Event of the Year: I'm going to give 206 the title because it was just a super exciting card. Jesus that card was a sleeper classic.

    Upset of the Year: Bisping vs Rockhold.

    Newcomer of the Year (must have made UFC debut in 2016): So are these MMA awards or UFC awards? Mike Perry either way.

    Comeback Fighter of the Year: Nate Diaz. This time last year he was still on a TUF contract and getting crap fights on Fox cards. Now he's one of the 3 most recognisable MMA fighter son the planet and a genuine contender at 155.

    Disappointment of the Year: UFC 200, terrible card over all.

    Moment of the Year: "I'm not surpised motherfu*kers!".

    Gym of the Year: This is a hard pick, the traditional strongholds have massively struggled. AMC Pankration because they have two dominant champions in 2 different organisations.

    Coach of the Year: Hume, probably, Just for how well he has progressed DJ and Bibiano Fernandes (who is probably the best BW outside of the UFC).


  • Advertisement
  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 12,870 ✭✭✭✭Dtp1979


    Depp wrote: »
    Fighter of the Year: Conor Mcgregor
    Fight of the Year: Conor McGregor-Eddie Alvarez
    Knockout of the Year: Conor McGregor-Eddie Alvarez
    Submission of the Year: Nate Diaz-Conor McGregor 1
    Event of the Year: UFC 205
    Upset of the Year: Nate Diaz-Conor McGregor 1
    Newcomer of the Year: Landon Vanatta
    Comeback Fighter of the Year: Conor McGregor
    Disappointment of the Year: Nate Diaz-Conor McGregor 1
    Moment of the Year: Conor McGregor-Eddie Alvarez
    Gym of the Year: SBG
    Coach of the Year: John Kavanagh

    deal with it :D

    Now gamebred, copy and paste


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 6,451 ✭✭✭Wrongway1985


    Fighter of the Year: Michael Bisping had be for me incredible story from winning against the Middleweight GOAT to a champ on a bout taken on 2 weeks notice against an opponent who had defeated him previously to then defending against the man who inflicted his most memorable loss. Stipe comes closest he was never getting the nod from me anyway he was set on that path initially by downgrading that UFC Dublin card.

    Fight of the Year: Lawler v Condit. Honourable mentions Mcgregor Diaz 2, Joanna v Claudia 2

    Knockout of the Year: Easily the hardest to choose for me but I'll give it to Hendo v Lombard vicious back elbow in a fight the ref could've easily waved off in Lombards favour. Honorable mentions Rumble blitzing through a guy in Glover who is known for his durability in all of 13 seconds, Ryan Bader vicious knee to beat Latifi just for the sheer shock of seeing Bader get a win in that way as in not by Decision :D .

    Submission of the Year: Chas Skelly jumping front kick from the opening bell to set up and then finish via an anaconda choke vs Maximo Blanco in under 20 seconds. Honourable mention: Ben Rothwell

    Event of the Year: UFC 199 squashed between a stacked UFC 198 (which ended up playing out average) and a much anticipated UFC 200 (which well ya know) this card blew them away from top to bottom the prelims kicked off with Polo Reyes v Dong Hyun Kim crazy fight and ending with the Bisping KO of Rockhold scenes! everything else in between included Ortega down against Guida only to finish him with a knee with 20 seconds left on the clock,Poirier destroying Bobby Green,the Henderson KO that I've chosen as KO of the year. Honourable mentions FN: Alvarez v RDA (on the same week as UFC 200 and weakest of the 3 events set that week on paper but turned out to be a very enjoyable fight card a hard one to top for the bigger stars...and overall they didn't. Kicked off with 5 subs in a row, then a number of close fights and ending with a new champion being crowned also the last time we saw Joe Duffy in the octagon who also picked up a sub, UFC 205 Not much that hasn't been said a card that actually delivered on MMAs debut in MSG.

    Upset of the Year: Back to back losses for Holly Holm.

    Newcomer of the Year (must have made UFC debut in 2016): Should be allowed this one as it's not even a year to the day...yet after all someone mentioned Mcgregor with 2 belts the FW one wasn't even won this year and he didn't see 2016 out with it :rolleyes: anyway it's Francis Ngannou I'm going with first UFC fight December 19 on the last card of 2015, has won 3 in a row since and a guy who gives some hope for the future of the HW division. Honorable mention Mike Perry particularly if he wins Saturday /or if I'm not allowed Ngannou :D.

    Comeback Fighter of the Year: Cowboy Cerrone bouncing back with 4 KOs in a divison up after failing miserably in title showdown with RDA.

    Disappointment of the Year: UFC 200 not just the event itself but lots of things connected with it, unnecessary interim title fight, Main event falling off twice,Jon Jones,downfall of Miesha Tate from weightcut struggle to losing belt leading to eventual retirement, Gastelum Hendricks several boards users joked here how someone would be sure to miss weight Gastelum delivered,Brock Lesnar "I'm a white-boy and jacked deal with it" -> USADA currently dealing with Brock Lesnar. Theres likely more but I'll stop there I think I've elaborated enough.

    Moment of the Year: Conor dispatching Eddie Alvarez and making him look very limited to become 2 weight world champ.

    Gym of the Year: ATT possibly

    Coach of the Year: No stand out I'll say Jason Parillo if even for the bizarre folded arms celebration :D

    I will add I have not yet watched UFC 206.


  • Banned (with Prison Access) Posts: 7,269 ✭✭✭Gamebred


    As above im way too biased to give my answers, also ive watched every single card bar 201 when I was on holiday so ive forgotten most of what I've seen,


    Anyways this is my photo of year




    CzhhV-vWEAAdjWq.jpg


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 2,135 ✭✭✭finglashoop


    Fighter of the Year: cerrone
    Fight of the Year: condit v lawlor
    Knockout of the Year: cerrones ko combo v Story
    Submission of the Year: can i just put maia here?
    Event of the Year: 205
    Upset of the Year: bisping rockhold
    Newcomer of the Year (must have made UFC debut in 2016): lando vanatta
    Comeback Fighter of the Year: did dominick cruz comeback in 2016? It would be him as it looks like he never misses a beat when hes after been out
    Disappointment of the Year: the sale of the ufc -
    Moment of the Year: mcgregors dismantling of alvarez
    Gym of the Year: dont have one tbh probably bispings gum as he has looked much better this year striking wise
    Coach of the Year: bispings striking coach-parilo.


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 1,864 ✭✭✭empacher


    Fighter of the Year:
    McGregor Making UFC history, between being a dual weight champ, and breaking ppv and gate records.

    Fight of the Year:
    Carlos Condit and Robbie Lawlor at UFC 195

    Knockout of the Year:
    Donald Cerrone's KO of Rick Story. The combo that set it up was beautifull.

    Submission of the Year:

    Donald Cerrone submitting Olivera, the transitions after the takedown, and how quickly he locked it in.

    Event of the Year:
    UFC 205, so many top quality fights.

    Upset of the Year:

    Diaz beating Mcgregor

    Newcomer of the Year (must have made UFC debut in 2016):

    Comeback Fighter of the Year:

    Has to be Domnick Cruz, 2 years off and he came back fresh and free of ring rust.

    Disappointment of the Year:

    Moment of the Year:

    For me it was seeing Mcgregor become a two weight champion.

    Gym of the Year:

    Coach of the Year:


    Boards Poster of the Year:
    Added in my own category, Going to give this to Wonderfulllife. He's only being in the forum for 10 months (1 post), but really only 4 months ( which he's posted a massive 1116 times:eek:)

    I've only managed 250 odd posts in 7 years :rolleyes:



    Anyways have a good christmas guys, heres to another year of good fights.


  • Closed Accounts Posts: 6,924 ✭✭✭wonderfullife


    Fighter of the Year: Conor McGregor (as long as Cody loses to Dominick...if he wins I'm splitting it)

    Fight of the Year: McGregor v Alvarez.

    How you judge the fight of the year depends on the prism you view it through. The stakes and stage could not have been higher. UFC re-entrance into NY, sold-out MSG with gate and attendance record, audacity of the week (mink coat and basketball shots on the floor of the Knicks), the realisation of a promise made 3 years ago when he had no right to promise 2 belts.

    When you factor all of the above into the equation, to deliver a near-flawless performance against a consensus top-3 lightweight of all-time, it shades it for me over Carlos-Robbie, Conor-Diaz and Choi-Swanson.

    Knockout of the Year: Conor again (v Alvarez).

    Cerrones was beautiful, Lando's head kick was awesome, Krylov beautiful, Rumble just raw power piercing Glover's guard..... but the finishing sequence that put Eddie away was beautiful.

    Conor is known for his counter-striking but not renowned for his combinations. And most certainly not known for having a right hand. He showed he could do it all. From the punch whizzing an inch from his face to the cobra-like first counter left, finding the right through Eddie's pierced guard, a sweet home for the left on the temple and the final right on his way down. It was a moving target at every step of the sequence and he landed flush.

    (For the record, it was classed as a straight KO because Eddie was unable to defend himself)

    Submission of the Year: Mackenzie Dern's modified Imanari choke against Montana Stewart. The whole sequence from rubber guard to submission was a thing of beauty and I think any other answer is just wrong lol.

    Event of the Year: UFC 205. It may not have delivered in the same way UFC 189 delivered in terms of the overall card, but it had a similar feel and stakes to it.

    Upset of the Year: McColgan-Queally. Ok, ok, a lot of you predicted it and most won't even consider it an upset. But Queally was on the verge of his UFC signature and was expected to have far too much experience and know-how to stifle and shut down McColgan. Instead, Joe came out arms wide and shell-shocked Peter for the first 2 rounds. Ok, Queally mounted a comeback, too little too late. It marked McColgan out as a serious prospect.


    Newcomer of the Year (must have made UFC debut in 2016): There's one standout contender (Lando Vannata) despite going 1-1. Other names to throw into the mix - Mark Diakese being one.

    I'm going to split the award between Mickey Gall and CM Punk.

    Gall because he has been electric and flawless in his 2 performances both on and off the mic. His interview after the Punk fight was McGregor-esque - he showed some humility, some bravado and some wrestling heel stuff with his call-out of Sage.

    Punk because he persevered through a long-road to make the walk, likely knowing he was going to get his head ripped off. That takes stones. Luckily, he got submitted quick and despite the embarrassment, he gave a beautiful post-fight speech.

    Comeback Fighter of the Year: No other choice - Dominick Cruz. Amazing performances after such a long lay-off. Ok, the Dillashaw fight was close but in truth TJ was chasing shadows for much of the fight and he thoroughly destroyed Urijah.

    Disappointment of the Year: Paddy Holohan forced into an early retirement due to a blood disorder. Immensely likeable both as a fighter and a human being. Was gutted for him and remain gutted for him. But his loss is SBG's gain and he will prove to be just as important as Owen Roddy in his support of JK and SBG.

    Moment of the Year: Meeting Conor and John and texting Ariel Helwani for hours talking about life ...Ah no. For me, it's without question Miesha Tate getting her hands on UFC gold at 196. She has been a pioneer for womens MMA, fighting since 2007 constantly in the shadows of Ronda Rousey in later years.

    She has done as much, if not more, for the sport of womens MMA as Rousey and i firmly believe without the likes of Miesha there would have been no Ronda.

    Nobody can take that moment away from her, even if she lost the belt in her next fight.

    Gym of the Year: Well, it's been a terrible year for many gyms.

    ATT, for example, suffered a dreadful run with losses for Glover, Pickett, Poirier, Lombard and obviously Robbie Lawler.

    Nova Uniao have been in decline since USADA (coincidence or not).

    Tristar are lacking in stars.

    AKA lost their belts with Rockhold and Liam McGeary and DC didn't defend his belt once.

    I could continue but I suppose it comes down to this:

    SBG Ireland don't deserve the gym of the year award if you base it on the strength of the depth of their roster. Artem is 2-1 for the year in the UFC, Charlie 0-1, Conor 2-1, Aisling kept out through injury, Gunni is 1-0 and there must be serious questions on how much longer they can claim him as an SBG Fighter because he conducted most of the Tumenov and Kim camps in Mjolnir.

    However, on the cumulative basis of positive results on the local scene and the historic achievement of Conor, and the fact that almost all of the talent has been nurtured from day 1, i think they shade it.

    Coach of the Year: Jason Parillo deserves a huge shout for his work with Bisping and Cyborg. Hasn't been stellar years for Greg Jackson, Firas Zahabi....... Matt Hume had a great year. I won't go through them all.

    I'm going to go with Owen Roddy.

    John has done wonderful things and he is, without doubt, the head honcho. I've given him enough praise over 2016 so i'm going to highlight Owen.

    I strongly feel the striking of the entire SBG Ireland entity has improved. You look at Artem recently, Conor's performance against Alvarez, you look at Dave Fogarty's strong showing in the amateurs, you see Ryan Curtis sharp combinations, everywhere you look there's a steady improvement in striking and I feel he gets nowhere near the credit he deserves.

    It can't have been easy being so close to his dreams and having to hang it up and give all his energy to helping others.


    Honorary Award: Shared between Axwell and Boards MMA Forum.

    Axwell has a thankless task in here, particularly on fight nights, but increasingly outside of fight nights. A lot of people get their kicks out of slating Conor and when Conor does so well, they turn their attention to his "nut-huggers" like myself, Gamebred and others. It usually goes tit-for-tat and multiple deletions, yellow and red cards.

    It's an unpaid, thankless task and he has been good to me on a personal level.

    He deserves all our thanks and I'd almost suggest chipping in maybe 2 or 3 euro each to buy him something. If anyone is up for that.

    Lastly, the Boards MMA Forum.

    My first post in here was Dec 2015 but I lurked it for years building up the confidence to speak. It can be scary to even try with the knowledge possessed by stalwarts such as Mellor.

    The ratio of good people:trolls in here is still not bad. There are so many genuine good guys and girls. Sure, we disagree on lots of stuff but that's the nature of a forum and generally for every "Is Conor going to wrestle Brock Lesnar" day, we have 2 days of good discussion.

    My username is taken from the film It's a Wonderful Life. I chose it because of the message of someone feeling like they have nothing to live for and being convinced they do.

    The closing segment of that film has Auld Lang Syne in the background, and ends with George reading an inscription on a book written by his Guardian Angel (Clarence), it says:

    Dear George,

    Remember no man is a failure who has friends,

    Thank you for the wings,
    Love,
    Clarence






    George was going to commit suicide until his Guardian Angel Clarence jumped in first and George, instead, jumped in to save him. Clarence got his wings back and was able to fly away.


    Dear MMA Forum,

    Remember my inbox is always open. You have a friend.

    Thank you for my wings,
    Love,
    Dan


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 1,066 ✭✭✭thewheel2.0


    Disappointment of the Year: Paddy Holohan forced into an early retirement due to a blood disorder. Immensely likeable both as a fighter and a human being. Was gutted for him and remain gutted for him. But his loss is SBG's gain and he will prove to be just as important as Owen Roddy in his support of JK and SBG.

    Excellent shout. Feels longer than a year too! Paddy seemed like such a gentlemen. I'm not super knowledgeable about BJJ but the back and forth battle between him and Smolka was amazing to watch.

    He is badly missed.


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 45 InstantMMA


    Fighter of the Year: Conor McGregor
    Fight of the Year: McGregor vs Diaz II
    Knockout of the Year: Paige vanZant vs Bec Rawlings
    Submission of the Year: Chas Skelly
    Event of the Year: UFC 205
    Upset of the Year: Bisping vs Rockhold
    Newcomer of the Year (must have made UFC debut in 2016): CM Punk
    Comeback Fighter of the Year: To be Ronda Rousey?
    Disappointment of the Year: Jon Jones
    Moment of the Year: Conor McGregor winning two belts/ "Thanks for the cheese" and the events that followed
    Gym of the Year: Too hard to pick
    Coach of the Year: John Kavanagh


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 1,230 ✭✭✭fitzparker


    Fighter of the Year: Mcgregor - can it be anyone else???
    Fight of the Year: Mcgregor v Diaz 2 (No Words) / Joanna v Gadelha (JJ nearly getting knocked out inside 10 seconds to finishing the 5th like she could go another 40 rounds
    Knockout of the Year: Woodley v Lawler - waited for his moment and took it with both hands
    Submission of the Year: diaz v mcgregor - might get stick but made him snap into reality for MCG V Diaz 2 and he came back beautiful as he has ever been
    Event of the Year: 205 - for the fights and history
    Upset of the Year: Bisping v rockhold
    Newcomer of the Year (must have made UFC debut in 2016): Mike perry/Micky Gall

    Comeback Fighter of the Year: Cowboy - from being KO challenging for belt, then goes 4-0 at WW
    Disappointment of the Year: drugs
    Moment of the Year: Stipe beating Werdum in Brazil
    Gym of the Year: Ido Portal school of movement and pool noodles

    Coach of the Year: As per wonderful life Roddy


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 14,810 ✭✭✭✭jimmii


    Fighter of the Year: Bisping
    Fight of the Year: Choi v Swanson
    Knockout of the Year: Hunt (v Mir)
    Submission of the Year: Dern (v Stewart)
    Event of the Year: 205
    Upset of the Year: Bisping (v Rockhold)
    Newcomer of the Year (must have made UFC debut in 2016): Diakiese
    Comeback Fighter of the Year: Cerrone
    Disappointment of the Year: Jon "The Let Down" Jones
    Moment of the Year: McGregor winning Lightweight belt
    Gym of the Year: ATT
    Coach of the Year: Liborio


  • Advertisement
  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 6,583 ✭✭✭Swashbuckler


    Fighter of the Year: Hard one to call. Between Bisping and Conor but purely for the fact he made history it has to be Conor. Moved up a weight class and made the champion look like an amateur. The most complete performance from Conor ive seen.
    Fight of the Year: Until lately it was easily Condit v Lawler but Choi v Swanson was an incredible fight. Condit Lawler edges it purely because of what was at stake.
    Knockout of the Year: Again Conors ko of Alvarez was beautiful as was Cowboys beautiful combo vs Story. Hmmm.........Cowboy....marginally.
    Submission of the Year: Diaz purely because of what it meant. Was incredible to watch....and sickening. Haha.
    Event of the Year: Easily 205.
    Upset of the Year: Easily Bisping beating Rockhold.
    Newcomer of the Year (must have made UFC debut in 2016): Perry has been a bit of a revelation but ill go with Vannata purely based off his incredible ko last weekend.
    Comeback Fighter of the Year: Is there any debate? Has to be Cruz right? Disappointment of the Year: There was a few. Conor being pulled from 200. The many failed drugs tests. Jones being Jones. Stitch and Burt getting the sack (not sure was that this year). But for me it was not being able to get a hotdog at 4am at the ppv in Manchester Arena and my taxi not arriving to drop us back to the airport. Pricks.
    Moment of the Year: Who the f*ck is that guy.............But seriously there was a few. Was great seeing Cruz back. Diaz submitting Conor was huge. Bisping landing that left hook on Luke. But really its probably Conor getting that second belt.
    Gym of the Year: Been a bit of a sh*t year for any sort of dominant gym. I have no idea.
    Coach of the Year: Eddie Alvarez's squealing wife gave some decent instructions cageside against Conor. Seriously. How annpying was that. For me it's hard to see past John Kavanagh. The changes in Conor from the Diaz loss to now are pretty remarkable. Team effort but John is at the helm there.

    Lots of Conor related highlights but it was that kind of year wasn't it?


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 2,137 ✭✭✭TimRiggins


    Fighter of the Year: Hard one to call. Between Bisping and Conor but purely for the fact he made history it has to be Conor. Moved up a weight class and made the champion look like an amateur. The most complete performance from Conor ive seen.
    Fight of the Year: Until lately it was easily Condit v Lawler but Choi v Swanson was an incredible fight. Condit Lawler edges it purely because of what was at stake.
    Knockout of the Year: Again Conors ko of Alvarez was beautiful as was Cowboys beautiful combo vs Story. Hmmm.........Cowboy....marginally.
    Submission of the Year: Diaz purely because of what it meant. Was incredible to watch....and sickening. Haha.
    Event of the Year: Easily 205.
    Upset of the Year: Easily Bisping beating Rockhold.
    Newcomer of the Year (must have made UFC debut in 2016): Perry has been a bit of a revelation but ill go with Vannata purely based off his incredible ko last weekend.
    Comeback Fighter of the Year: Is there any debate? Has to be Cruz right? Disappointment of the Year: There was a few. Conor being pulled from 200. The many failed drugs tests. Jones being Jones. Stitch and Burt getting the sack (not sure was that this year). But for me it was not being able to get a hotdog at 4am at the ppv in Manchester Arena and my taxi not arriving to drop us back to the airport. Pricks.
    Moment of the Year: Who the f*ck is that guy.............But seriously there was a few. Was great seeing Cruz back. Diaz submitting Conor was huge. Bisping landing that left hook on Luke. But really its probably Conor getting that second belt.
    Gym of the Year: Been a bit of a sh*t year for any sort of dominant gym. I have no idea.
    Coach of the Year: Eddie Alvarez's squealing wife gave some decent instructions cageside against Conor. Seriously. How annpying was that. For me it's hard to see past John Kavanagh. The changes in Conor from the Diaz loss to now are pretty remarkable. Team effort but John is at the helm there.

    Lots of Conor related highlights but it was that kind of year wasn't it?

    Forgot to post this on here. After the fight she went f**king nuts. She was shouting and roaring at the Octagon losing her sh!t until security eventually took her out.


  • Moderators, Computer Games Moderators Posts: 10,462 Mod ✭✭✭✭Axwell


    Honorary Award: Shared between Axwell and Boards MMA Forum.

    Cheers for the mention Wonderfulife! No need for any sort of whip around, I mod here by choice at the end of the day. Good to see you back on the forum, have a great Christmas.


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 3,964 ✭✭✭Podge2k7


    Fighter of the Year: Conor McGregor
    Fight of the Year: Reyes vs Kim
    Knockout of the Year: Conor McGregor vs Eddie Alvarez
    Submission of the Year: Nate Diaz vs Conor McGregor
    Event of the Year: UFC 199. The Reyes vs Kim fight, last 10 seconds of holloway vs lamas, hendos sick back elbow, bispings ko.
    Upset of the Year: Bisping vs Rockhold
    Newcomer of the Year (must have made UFC debut in 2016): Marc Diakiese
    Comeback Fighter of the Year: Dominick Cruz
    Disappointment of the Year: Jon Jones
    Moment of the Year: McGregor winning the LW strap.


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 6,902 ✭✭✭MagicIRL


    Fighter of the Year: Conor McGregor. Think it has to be; 2 division champ and has just turned the game on its head.

    Fight of the Year: Lawler vs Condit. 5 rounds that came down to a split decision for the now-former champion. Brilliant.

    Knockout of the Year: McGregor vs Alvarez. After all the talk by Alvarez about Conor's "rockaway" punch, how he trained for this and that, to watch McGregor go out and repeatedly plant him with combinations was just insane. A man widley considered to be one of the best LW fighters in MMA was made to look like an amateur in every sense of the word.

    Submission of the Year: Damian Maia's rear Naked Choke on Carlos Condit. The submission was seen on probably all UFC cards this year, but the way he passed his guard and just smothered him to secure it was beautiful. There was nothing Condit could do to stop the slow moving train that was Maia. The submission was inevitable from the moment his back was on the mat.

    Event of the Year:

    Upset of the Year: Rockhold vs Bisping II. The arrogance of Rockhold before the fight and the sweet retribution for Bisping afterwards.

    Newcomer of the Year (must have made UFC debut in 2016):

    Comeback Fighter of the Year: Dominick Cruz. Has to be. Out for 2 years with ACLs in both knees repaired, and he comes back to pick right up where he left off.

    Disappointment of the Year: Jon Jones. Goes to rehab. Is a "better person", fails another drug test, suspended again. Appears on Joe Rogans podcast; cements himself as MMAs biggest dickhead.

    Moment of the Year: A lot of people have said McGregor winning the LW belt, and that would be my pick too, so I'll just go with something else to keep the thread fresh.

    Daniel Cormier backstage after Jon Jones fails his drugtest and has his fight scrapped. To watch the agony and torment on Cormiers face as he is given the news was just heartbreaking. Then to hear him wanting to sign waivers, anything, so he could fight Jones was brilliant. The fight meant so much to DC and showed how much of a true fighter he is. He didn't care about it, he just wanted to fight. :cool:


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 6,564 ✭✭✭EagererBeaver


    Fighter of the Year: Michael Bisping
    Fight of the Year: Polo Reyes - Kim
    Knockout of the Year: Rumble Johnson vs Glover
    Submission of the Year: Ben Rothwell vs Barnett
    Event of the Year: UFC 205
    Upset of the Year: Bisping vs Rockhold II
    Newcomer of the Year: Lando Vannatta
    Comeback Fighter of the Year: Dominick Cruz (assuming he wins next week!)
    Disappointment of the Year: Rafael Dos Anjos/Holly Holm
    Moment of the Year:Bisping on top of the cage clearly screaming "**** you" and pointing wildly/ecstatically at a still woozy Rockhold.

    Close calls:

    Knockout - Cowboy vs Story

    Newcomer - Mickey Gall

    Disappointment - Jones. UFC 200. Aldo.

    Moment - who the **** is that guy, Holloway V Lamas final ten seconds.


Advertisement