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PUNCHDRUNKGAMER'S BEST OF 2009 AWARDS By Justin Bolduc
2009 proved to be another exciting year for mixed martial arts fans. With several exciting cards put on by the UFC, WEC, Strikeforce, Shooto, Sengoku, and Dream – MMA fans were treated to legends, new champions, and hot prospects. Below are the best of 2009 awards Presented by PunchDrunkGamer.
Fighter of the Year
Jose Aldo 2009 Record: 4-0 (4 TKO) 2009 Victims: Rolando Perez, Chris Mickle, Cub Swanson, Mike Brown Accomplishments: Crowned WEC Featherweight Champion
Although he only competed twice in 2008, wins over Alexandre Franca Nogueira and Jonathin Brookins gained Brazil's Jose Aldo recognition going into 2009. He entered the year with a 12-1 record and subsequently exploded into pound-for-pound talks, as well as becoming a fan favorite.
Aldo started 2009 off with a bang in January by stopping Rolando Perez at WEC 38 with strikes in the first round. He continued against experienced opponent Chris Mickle with another first round stoppage before picking up his fifth consecutive win in the WEC with an eight second double-flying knee stoppage against Cub Swanson. In his latest appearance he stopped Mike Brown with strikes in the second round to earn himself the WEC's featherweight championship.
Honorable Mention
Gegard Mousasi 2009 Record: 4-0 (3 TKO, 1 Sub) Wins: Mark Hunt, Renato “Babalu” Sobral, Rameau Thierry Sokoudjou, Gary Goodridge Accomplishments: Crowned Strikeforce Light Heavyweight Champion
Gilbert Melendez 2009 Record: 3-0 (2 TKO) Wins: Rodrigo Damm, Mitsuhiro Ishida, Josh Thomson Accomplishments: Crowned Strikeforce Lightweight Champion
Tatsuya Kawajiri 2009 Record: 4-0 (1 TKO, 1 Sub) Wins: Ross Ebanez, Gesias Cavalcante, Melchor Manibusan, Kazunori Yokota
Fight of the Year
Hideo Tokoro vs. Abel Cullum – Dream 9 (May 26, 2009) As Dream 9 came up the bout between Japan's Hideo Tokoro and King of the Cage's Abel Cullum was under the radar of a lot of fans due to match-ups such as Joe Warren against Norifumi “Kid” Yamamoto, Ronaldo “Jacare” Souza against Jason “Mayhem” Miller, and Tatsuya Kawajiri against Gesias “JZ” Cavalcante, but what transpired between the two featherweights was a furiously paced back and forth battle of attrition.
Throughout the first round each fighter landed strikes, each had superior ground position, and each threatened with submissions. Every time it seemed that a tap out was a breath away there would be an escape and a scramble. Tokoro and Cullum set what could easily be called the fastest first round pace in mixed martial arts history. Round two was much of the same as neither fighter refused to back down until Tokoro locked in a rear naked choke 1:38 in.
Honorable Mention
Miguel Torres vs. Takeya Mizugaki – WEC 40 (April 5, 2009) Outcome: Torres edged out a unanimous decision (50-45 on each judge's scorecard) in a one-sided but entertaining fight. Mizugaki showed tremendous heart and skill as the two bantamweights went to war on their feet for five full rounds.
Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira vs. Randy Couture – UFC 102 (August 29, 2009) Outcome: Randy Couture tried to employ his clinch and grind strategy against the former PRIDE and UFC champion but found himself outworked and the biggest deciding factor – outstruck. Nogueira used superior boxing to lock in a unanimous decision win over the former UFC heavyweight and light heavyweight champion.
Diego Sanchez vs. Clay Guida – The Ultimate Fighter 9 Finale (June 20, 2009) Outcome: Sanchez earned a split decision against Guida in the main event of the TUF 9 Finale. The bout paired up two lightweights with some of the best conditioning in the business at a furious pace featuring striking, grappling, and a tremendous display of heart.
Hideo Tokoro vs. Jong Man Kim – K-1 Dynamite!! 2009 (December 31, 2009) Outcome: Tokoro outworked Kim for a unanimous decision, but it wasn't without trying. Kim stepped up as a late-notice replacement for Marlon Sandro and despite losing put on one of the biggest displays of heart and one of the most exciting performances in mixed martial arts history.
Knockout of the Year
Yahir Reyes def. Estevan Payan – Bellator 5 (May 8, 2009) After an exciting first round Mexico's Yahir Reyes found himself featured in highlight reels all over the Internet after finishing Estevan Payan with the most devastating spinning back fist the sport of mixed martial arts has ever seen. Unfortunately for Reyes, Bellator has not gained the viewership of other promotions such as the UFC, WEC, Strikeforce, or Dream.
Honorable Mention
Dan Henderson def. Michael Bisping – UFC 100 (July 11, 2009) Gegard Mousasi def. Renato Sobral – Strikeforce: Carano vs. Cyborg (August 15, 2009) Lyoto Machida def. Rashad Evans – UFC 98 (May 23, 2009) Mauricio Rua def. Chuck Liddell – UFC 97 (April 18, 2009) Fedor Emelianenko def. Brett Rogers – Strikeforce: Fedor vs. Rogers (November 7, 2009)
Submission of the Year
Toby Imada def. Jorge Masvidal – Bellator 4 (May 1, 2009) Fighting into the third round, underdog Toby Imada locked in an inverted triangle as opponent Masvidal attempted a triangle. The slick submission came quickly and was locked in tight and put the Sengoku veteran to sleep in a matter of seconds.
Honorable Mention
Shinya Aoki def. Mizuto Hirota (hammerlock) – K-1 Dynamite!! 2009 (December 31, 2009) Demian Maia def. Chael Sonnen (triangle choke) – UFC 95 (February 21, 2009) Ronaldo Souza def. Matt Lindland (arm-triangle choke) – Strikeforce: Evolution (December 19, 2009) B.J. Penn def. Kenny Florian (rear naked choke) – UFC 101 (August 8, 2009) Rousimar Palhares def. Lucio Linhares (heel hook) – UFC 107 (December 12, 2009)
Event of the Year
UFC 100 (July 11, 2009) Mid-year the UFC put on their 100th numbered event which featured two championship bouts, a knockout of the year candidate, and wars and upsets.
In the main event Brock Lesnar used size, power, and technique to shut down Frank Mir's half-guard and pounded out a second round stoppage. Right alongside the heavyweight title bout was Georges St. Pierre's one-sided decision over top contender Thiago Alves. St. Pierre utilized striking to set up takedowns and used superior wrestling to keep his Muay Thai based opponent on his back.
UFC 100 also featured Dan Henderson's bomb on the chin of Michael Bisping which was followed up but the highly debated tomahawk to a dreaming Bisping. Jon Fitch ground out a decision to avenge teammate Josh Koscheck against Paulo Thiago, Jim Miller stepped up and defeated TUF winner Mac Danzig, hall of famer Mark Coleman outworked TUF finalist Stephan Bonnar, Yoshihiro Akiyama battled Alan Belcher in a stand-up war, Dong Hyun Kim upset T.J. Grant, and Jon Jones submitted Jake O'Brien.
Honorable Mention
K-1 Dynamite!! Power of Courage 2009 (December 31, 2009) Notable Bouts: Shinya Aoki vs. Mizuto Hirota, Akihiro Gono vs. Hayato Sakurai, Alistair Overeem vs. Kazuyuki Fujita, Hideo Tokoro vs. Jong Man Kim, Tatsuya Kawajiri vs. Kazunori Yokota, Norifumi “Kid” Yamamoto vs. Masanori Kanehara, Hidehiko Yoshida vs. Satoshi Ishii, Michihiro Omigawa vs. Hiroyuki Takaya
The Ultimate Fighter 9 Finale (June 20, 2009) Notable Bouts: Diego Sanchez vs. Clay Guida, Brad Blackburn vs. Edgar Garcia, Jason Dent vs. Cameron Dollar, Joe Stevenson vs. Nate Diaz, Chris Lytle vs. Kevin Burns, Ross Pearson vs. Andre Winner
WEC 43 (October 10, 2009) Notable Bouts: Benson Henderson vs. Donald Cerrone, Mackens Semerzier vs. Wagnney Fabiano, Damacio Page vs. Will Campuzano, Anthony Njokuani vs. Muhsin Corbbrey, Scott Jorgensen vs. Noah Thomas, Deividas Taurosevicius
UFC 97 (April 18, 2009) Notable Bouts: Sam Stout vs. Matt Wiman, Mauricio Rua vs. Chuck Liddell, Cheick Kongo vs. Antoni Hardonk, Krzysztof Soszynski, Luis Cane vs. Steve Cantwell, Denis Kang vs. Xavier Foupa-Pokam, Nate Quarry vs. Jason MacDonald, T.J. Grant vs. Ryo Chonan, Mark Bocek vs. David Bielkheden
Breakout Fighter of the Year
Marius Zaromskis 2009 Record: 4-0 (3 TKO) 2009 Victims: Seichi Ikemoto, Hayato Sakurai, Jason High, Myeon Ho Bae Accomplishments: Crowned inaugural Dream Welterweight Champion, Crowned Dream Welterweight Grand Prix Champion
Zaromskis entered Dream with a 9-3 record and little name recognition. Primarily competing in Cage Rage, Zaromskis had fought the likes of Che Mills, Ross Pointon, and Ross Mason. Ikemoto and Sakurai stood as his first true tests at the top level of mixed martial arts.
In his Dream debut he defeated Ikemoto by decision to earn the promotion's inaugural welterweight title. He then moved on with knockouts over Hayato “Mach” Sakurai and Jason High to claim the promotion's welterweight tournament championship. In his most recent performance he knocked out Myeon Ho Bae in only nineteen seconds. In his last three bouts the beginning of the end for each opponent came due to a well placed head kick.
Honorable Mention
Mizuto Hirota 2009 Record: 2-1-1 (2 TKO) Wins: Mitsuhiro Ishida, Satoru Kitaoka Accomplishments: Crowned Sengoku Lightweight Champion
Benson Henderson 2009 Record: 3-0 (1 TKO, 1 Sub) Wins: Anthony Njokuani, Shane Roller, Donald Cerrone Accomplishments: Crowned WEC Interim Lightweight Champion
Jon Jones 2009 Record: 2-1 (1 Sub) Wins: Stephan Bonnar, Jake O'Brien
Paul Daley 2009 Record: 3-1 (3 TKO) Wins: Aurelijus Kerpe, Junior Barata, Martin Kampmann
Heavyweight of the Year
Cain Velasquez 2009 Record: 3-0 (2 TKO) Wins: Denis Stojnic, Cheick Kongo, Ben Rothwell
Velasquez began the year by finishing Denis Stojnic at UFC Fight Night 17 in the second round. His next bout was his first real test. Facing kickboxer Cheick Kongo, Velasquez showed an ability to hang on after taking a hard shot and how to dictate a fight by keeping Kongo on the mat and using ground and pound to win the fight by decision. Most recently he finished IFL stand-out Ben Rothwell by TKO in the second round at UFC 104.
Honorable Mention
Fedor Emelianenko 2009 Record: 2-0 (2 TKO) Wins: Andrei Arlovski, Brett Rogers
Fabricio Werdum 2009 Record: 2-0 (1 Sub) Wins: Mike Kyle, Antonio Silva
Junior Dos Santos 2009 Record: 2-0 Wins: Stefan Struve, Mirko Filipovic
Light Heavyweight of the Year
Mauricio “Shogun” Rua 2009 Record: 2-1 (2 TKO) Wins: Mark Coleman, Chuck Liddell
Despite losing a decision in his most recent performance against Lyoto Machida, “Shogun” returned to form and in the eyes of many fans, critics, and pros actually won the bout. Rua showed a great deal of heart in his first bout of 2009 by finishing Mark Coleman. Rua came off two devastating knee surgeries and was plagued by ring rust and poor cardio in the bout. When he met up with Chuck Liddell in April he appeared to have pulled everything together and won by knockout. In his title bout with Machida he became the first fighter to figure out the puzzle that is the “Dragon” and put on one of the best performances of his career.
Honorable Mention
Lyoto Machida 2009 Record: 3-0 (2 TKO) Wins: Thiago Silva, Rashad Evans, Mauricio Rua
Jon Jones 2009 Record: 2-1 (1 Sub) Wins: Stephan Bonnar, Jake O'Brien
Antonio Rogerio Nogueira 2009 Record: 3-0 (2 TKO, 1 Sub) Wins: Vladimir Matyushenko, Dion Staring, Luis Cane
Middleweight of the Year
Nate Marquardt 2009 Record: 2-0 (2 TKO) Wins: Wilson Gouveia, Demian Maia
Despite currently only being as good as second best to UFC champion Anderson Silva, Marquardt has rebounded from his loss and has begun to display a well rounded, aggressive attack featuring good striking. In a war with Gouveia at UFC 95, Marquardt used one of the most exciting chained attacks to finish the American Top Team fighter in the third round. Most recently he destroyed Brazilian jiu-jitsu ace Demian Maia with a bomb in only twenty-one seconds.
Honorable Mention
Jake Shields 2009 Record: 2-0 (1 Sub) Wins: Robbie Lawler, Jason Miller Accomplishments: Crowned Strikeforce Middleweight Champion
Ronaldo Souza 2009 Record: 1-0, 1 NC (1 Sub) Win: Matt Lindland
Nick Diaz 2009 Record: 2-0 (1 TKO, 1 Sub) Wins: Frank Shamrock, Scott Smith
Welterweight of the Year
Georges St. Pierre 2009 Record: 2-0 (1 TKO) Wins: B.J. Penn, Thiago Alves
St. Pierre defended his UFC welterweight title twice, picking up his second win over UFC lightweight champion and former UFC welterweight champion B.J. Penn and knocking off top contender Thiago Alves. St. Pierre Against Penn he showed the ability to pass the guard of a talented jiu-jitsu fighter and against Alves he showed the ability to outwork a larger, stronger opponent. continues to showcase the best wrestling inside mixed martial arts by blending it with his striking.
Honorable Mention
Marius Zaromskis 2009 Record: 4-0 (3 TKO) Wins: Seichi Ikemoto, Hayato Sakurai, Jason High, Myeon Ho Bae
Jon Fitch 2009 Record: 3-0 Wins: Akihiro Gono, Paulo Thiago, Mike Pierce
John Howard 2009 Record: 3-0 (1 TKO) Wins: Chris Wilson, Tamdan McCrory, Dennis Hallman
Lightweight of the Year
B.J. Penn 2009 Record: 2-0 (1 TKO, 1 Sub) *Excludes welterweight bout Wins: Kenny Florian, Diego Sanchez
Despite losing by TKO to Georges St. Pierre earlier in 2009, B.J. Penn stepped up as the best conditioned and most focused we have ever seen him. He handled both Kenny Florian and Diego Sanchez with ease, beating both fighters on the feet and mat. He finished Florian with a fourth round rear naked choke and opened a vicious cut on Sanchez' forehead in the fifth round. Not only did he show he is a dangerous jiu-jitsu fighter and boxer, but he also showed he can go deep in a fight.
Honorable Mention
Shinya Aoki 2009 Record: 3-0 (2 Sub) *Excludes welterweight bouts Wins: Vitor Ribeiro, Joachim Hansen, Mizuto Hirota Accomplishments: Crowned Dream Lightweight Champion
Gilbert Melendez 2009 Record: 3-0 (2 TKO) Wins: Rodrigo Damm, Mitsuhiro Ishida, Josh Thomson Accomplishments: Crowned Strikeforce Lightweight Champion
Benson Henderson 2009 Record: 3-0 (1 TKO, 1 Sub) Wins: Anthony Njokuani, Shane Roller, Donald Cerrone Accomplishments: Crowned WEC Interim Lightweight Champion
Featherweight of the Year
Jose Aldo 2009 Record: 4-0 (4 TKO) Wins: Rolando Perez, Chris Mickle, Cub Swanson, Mike Brown Accomplishments: Crowned WEC Featherweight Champion
There isn't much more to say about the explosive 145-pounder. Along with earning PDG's Fighter of the Year honors and the WEC featherweight championship, it is nearly impossible to not give him Featherweight of the Year as well.
Honorable Mention
Hatsu Hioki 2009 Record: 3-0 (2 Sub) Wins: Chris Manuel, Ronnie Mann, Masanori Kanehara
Michihiro Omigawa 2009 Record: 5-1-1 (2 TKO) Wins: L.C. Davis, Nam Phan, Marlon Sandro, Hatsu Hioki, Hiroyuki Takaya
Marlon Sandro 2009 Record: 3-1 (2 TKO, 1 Sub) Wins: Matt Jaggers, Nick Denis, Yuji Hoshino
Bantamweight of the Year
Brian Bowles 2009 Record: 1-0 (1 TKO) Win: Miguel Torres Accomplishments: Crowned WEC Bantamweight Champion
Despite only one bout in all of 2009, it is hard to argue against a decisive finish against Miguel Torres as the top 135-pound fighter of the year. The win came quickly and viciously as he knocked out Torres in 3:57. Undefeated in eight professional bouts, 2010 looks bright for Bowles.
Honorable Mention
Damacio Page 2009 Record: 2-0 (1 TKO, 1 Sub) Wins: Marcos Galvao, Will Campuzano
Antonio Banuelos 2009 Record: 2-0 Wins: Scott Jorgensen, Kenji Osawa
Scott Jorgensen 2009 Record: 3-1 (1 TKO, 1 Sub) Wins: Frank Gomez, Noah Thomas, Takeya Mizugaki The 2009 Mixed Martial Arts – K-1 Highlight of the Year
Honorable Mention
How it Ends Highlight by Shogun90
Other Notable Events of 2009 +Strikeforce crowns a female champion -Josh Barnett tests positive for steroids for a third time -Affliction cancels event and calls it quits promoting -Fedor and the UFC cannot come to terms +Fedor fights in the U.S. twice -Alistair Overeem refuses to defend his Strikeforce title +TUF 10 explodes -Quinton Jackson backs out of fight with Rashad Evans for a movie role +More worthwhile events than ever! 
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