No.3: Lyoto Machida vs. Vitor Belfort
It was known heading into UFC 223 that this was to be Vitor Belfort’s last before retirement and he hadn’t been handed an easy opponent for the occasion in fellow Brazilian Lyoto Machida.
Belfort had already been finished by strikes in four of his previous six fights, but the desire to compete still burned brightly in ‘The Phenom’ and he had his heart set on ending his career with one more big win under his belt.
However, it wasn’t to be as early in the second round Machida perfectly placed a front kick to Belfort’s chin and knocked him out cold, before proceeding to bow respectfully to the legendary fighter stretched out before him.
It was a strike Belfort was in fact all too familiar with, having been knocked out by Anderson Silva with the same technique years earlier, while Machida had previously also ended Randy Couture’s career in similar fashion.
