The first six months of 2024 produced some incredible UFC action. Saturday's UFC Denver card marked the first UFC fights to occur in the latter half of what's been a great year for UFC fans everywhere. This post will celebrate what we saw in the first half of 2024 by assigning out some superlatives to fighters and moments that made January - June 2024 such a special time for the UFC.

Event of The Year (so far):

UFC 300 (T-Mobile Arena, 4/13/24)

Well, duh. The biggest UFC event of all time lived up to its hype and possibly even surpassed it. Diego Lopes elevated his status with a dominant finish of Sodiq Yusuff. Jiri Prochazka reinserted himself into the light heavyweight title picture with a win over Aleksandar Rakic. Despite some struggles, Bo Nickal kept the hype train rolling with a win over Cody Brundage. Arman Tsarukyan proved himself with a razor-thin win over fan-favorite Charles Oliveira. Max Holloway earned the BMF title with an all-time knockout of Justin Gaethje. Zhang Weili's dominant performance against Yan Xiaonan cemented her legacy as one of the best female fighters of all time. And finally, Alex Pereira checked a low blow, waved off Herb Dean, flattened former champion Jamahal Hill and emoted on him to retain his light heavyweight title. Absolute cinema. I'm not sure any event will EVER surpass UFC 300.

Rising Star of The Year (so far):

Payton Talbott, bantamweight

Speed, technique, power, submissions, Talbott's got it all. After winning his UFC debut in November 2023 via rear-naked choke, Talbott took off in 2024. He's won two fights this year, both by singular punches leading to ground and pound. He's rapidly rising in popularity, and his performances merit that recognition and more. Bantamweight is an extremely deep division, but if Talbott continues to make waves, we could see him ranked very shortly.

Submission of The Year (so far):

Islam Makhachev (c) subs Dustin Poirier via D'Arce choke (UFC 302)

I love jiujitsu with a passion and always enjoy a good submission, but most are not given the recognition that a knockout receives. However, Makhachev's championship-retaining submission of the always-game Dustin Poirier is an exception. After a five-round war that saw Poirier suffer a broken nose, broken rib and partially torn ACL, Makhachev was able to put The Diamond away with a beautiful D'Arce choke in round five. After failing to finish a single-leg takedown, Makhachev used his hold on Poirier's leg to whip the challenger to the ground. Poirier landed on all fours but Makhachev immediately pounced on him, securing a a head-and-arm lock that would eventually become a D'Arce choke. Thirty seconds after Poirier spun to the ground, he was forced to tap. The victory was an excellent showing for Makhachev, who retained his spot as the UFC's pound-for-pound king.

Knockout of The Year (so far):

Vinicius Oliveira KOs Bernado Sopaj via flying knee (UFC Fight Night: Rozenstruik vs Gaziev)

So many choices. Alex Pereira headkicking Jiri Prochazka was incredible (and sad). Max Holloway knocking Justin Gaethje into the shadow room with a buzzer-beater right hand was a moment that the UFC will NEVER let you forget (but why would you want to?). However, Oliveira's incredible flying knee KO of Sopaj stands above the rest. With less than 25 seconds left in a fight that marked both fighters' UFC debuts, Oliveira chased a retreating Sopaj across the cage and unleashed a vicious flying double knee. The first knee fooled Sopaj, who dropped his guard just in time to meet Oliveira's second knee, which escorted Sopaj face-first onto the canvas and into the shadow realm. While there were knockouts on much bigger stages than March 2's UFC Fight Night, none matched the style, beauty and impact of Oliveira's flying knee.

Fight of The Year (so far):

Max Holloway KOs Justin Gaethje (BMF) at the buzzer (UFC 300)

Holloway and Gaethje's BMF title fight wasn't the most competitive fight you'll ever see, as Holloway largely controlled the distance and pacing of the fight. However, the energy inside T-Mobile Arena amplified this fight's intensity to the max (haha). Despite a career performance from Holloway, everyone watching knew that Gaethje wouldn't go away, which was evident when Gaethje knocked Holloway down in the fourth round. And yes, it should have been ruled a knockdown. Then, with 15 seconds remaining, a clearly victorious Holloway pointed to the center of the octagon and challenged one of the UFC's best ever brawlers to slug it out to the finish. And finally, with one second remaining, Holloway landed a right hand that put Gaethje down and out in an all-time UFC highlight. This fight, while not as competitive as previous Fights of The Year, had incredible energy throughout. Holloway cemented himself as a true BMF, as evidenced by the $600K in bonuses he received post-fight.

Fighter of The Year (so far):

UFC Light Heavyweight Champion Alex Pereira

It's Poatan's UFC, and we're just living in it. Alex Pereira has become possibly the most popular fighter on the planet by knocking out two former champions in less than three months. His first, in the main event of the biggest event in UFC history, was the culmination of an intense rivalry with Jamahal Hill. Pereira caught Hill with a left uppercut in the first round and finished him with ground-and-pound before standing over him in celebration. Then, Pereira dominated Prochazka in a rematch of one of the most intense fights of all time, which he finished with an incredible head kick in the opening seconds of round two. He just turned 37 years old, but I'm not sure he's ever looked sharper. He's now got options for his next fight. He can stay at light heavyweight, where his only remaining challenger is Magomed Ankalaev, who would be the best wrestler he's faced so far. However, he's been repeatedly linked to the heavyweight division, where a win could set him up for a shot at becoming the first-ever three-division UFC champion. Another win, regardless of who he's fighting, could cement Alex Pereira's 2024 as one of the best years a UFC fighter's ever had.