Best UFC knockouts of February: A look back at some of the wildest finishes of the month
Jacobe Smith may have an early contender for Knockout of the Year
Everyone knows there is no more exciting moment in combat sports than a knockout. Looking back at the action in the UFC Octagon in February, we identified the five best knockouts of the month.
Across 53 fights in the month, 15 ended by knockout or TKO. That means 28% of UFC fights in February ended by a form of knockout, and each one gave fans that jolt of excitement.
From a Road to UFC tournament clinching knee to some of the nastiest ground and pound you'll ever see, there were plenty of great moments to pick from in our quest to identify the best knockouts of February.
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Let's dive right in and see which stoppages made the cut.
No. 5 -- Keiichiro Nakamura def. Sebastian Szalay (UFC 325, Feb. 1)
We are bending the rules a little with the first entrant on our list, as UFC 325 took place on Jan. 31 in the United States, but it was Feb. 1 at Qudos Bank Arena in Sydney, Australia. Nakamura put a big exclamation point on his Road to UFC featherweight tournament run when he scored a stoppage of Sebastian Szalay on the early prelims of UFC 325. Szalay entered the fight riding a nine-fight winning streak and fought well for the first two rounds of the fight, largely controlling the action.
Nakamura stepped up his offensive output in the third round, mixing in more combination striking as well as firing some hard knees and elbows as he tried to scrap back into the fight. Then, with 72 seconds left in the fight, Nakamura connected with a knee to Szalay's chin, dropping the Australian and finishing him off with a few perfunctory punches on the ground to score the stoppage win and claim a UFC contract.
Watch Nakamura's big knockout win to claim a UFC contract on Paramount+.
No. 4 -- Melquizael Costa def. Dan Ige (UFC Fight Night, Feb. 21)
Ige entered UFC Fight Night having never been finished in his lengthy career. Despite having made it to the final bell against many dangerous fighters, he was unable to make it out of the first round against a rising contender in Costa. "The Dalmatian" lost two of his first three fights in the Octagon, but rattled off five consecutive wins before meeting Ige, including a big head kick knockout in December.
Ige had a brief moment of success with a takedown, but couldn't keep Costa on the floor, at which point Costa began to work Ige over in the clinch. A front kick to the face rocked Ige, but it was a spinning back kick that finished Ige off. As Costa turned his body, Ige dipped down, seemingly attempting to defend a punch that never came, leaving him open for the fight-ending kick as Costa announced himself as a real player at featherweight.
Watch Costa announce his arrival as a player at 145 pounds on Paramount+.
No. 3 -- Uros Medic def. Geoff Neal (UFC Fight Night, Feb. 21)
The Feb. 21 Fight Night main card was not short on impressive stoppages after an undercard where seven of eight fights went to the scorecards. One of the most impressive finishes of the night came when Medic battled Neal in a welterweight showdown. It was no surprise this fight didn't require the judges as Medic has never seen a fight go to a decision in the entirety of his professional career.
After exchanging some early strikes, Medic took over with a string of heavy shots that slowed Neal's attack. Then came a left hook that bounced off Neal's temple, sending him crashing to the canvas unconscious just 79 seconds into the bout. The win was Medic's third consecutive knockout and none of his five most recent fights have even hit the 2:30 mark of Round 1. With the win, Medic also crashed the official UFC rankings, debuting at No. 12.
Watch Medic put Neal to sleep on Paramount+.
No. 2 - Nikolay Veretennikov def. Niko Price (UFC Fight Night, Feb. 7)
You'd be excused if Veretennikov was not on your radar entering UFC Fight Night on Feb. 7. Veretennikov entered the event with a 1-3 UFC record, and with that lone win coming by way of a controversial split decision win over Francisco Prado. Nine of 12 tracked media scorecards awarded that fight to Prado. Price didn't exactly enter the fight on a hot streak either, with a 2-6 record since 2020.
These types of fights can make for explosive action since both fighters know they could be cut with another loss. That's exactly what happened as Veretennikov and Price shared the Octagon. After backing Price into the cage in the opening two minutes of the fight, Veretennikov landed a heavy right hand, a knee to the jaw, an elbow and a flurry of punches that left Price out on his feet for one of the most impressive stoppages of the month.
Watch Veretennikov leave Price out cold on Paramount+.
No. 1 - Jacobe Smith def. Josiah Harrell (UFC Fight Night, Feb. 21)
Capping off the trifecta of top five knockouts from the Feb. 21 UFC Fight Night is Jacobe Smith's win over Josiah Harrell. Sometimes, a knockout is impressive in its sheer brutality and that was exactly the case with Smith's finish of Harrell. Smith earned a UFC contract with a ground and pound finish on Dana White's Contender Series, a method he returned to in this victory.
Smith caught Harrell with some powerful strikes early, but Harrell was able to get up after being taken down. In fact, Harrell shot for his own takedown, briefly putting Smith on the ground before Smith rolled through and ended up on top in side control. Smith immediately began dropping heavy punches before also trapping Harrell's arm in a crucifix. From there, Smith unloaded, putting Harrell out cold and running his undefeated record to 12-0.
