MMAjunkie’s 'Fight of the Month' for March: You won't be surprised

With another action-packed month of MMA in the books, MMAjunkie takes a look at the best fights from March. Here are the five nominees, listed in chronological order, and the winner of MMAjunkie’s “Fight of the Month” award for March.

At the bottom of the post, let us know if we got it right by voting for your choice.

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The nominees

Miesha Tate def. Holly Holm at UFC 196

In the last round of what was likely to be the last UFC women’s bantamweight title shot she would ever get, Miesha Tate (18-5 MMA, 5-2 UFC) found herself in desperate need of a takedown against champion Holly Holm (10-1 MMA, 3-1 UFC).

Midway through the fifth round, she got one, and soon Tate was glued to the back of Holm, squeezing a rear-naked choke with everything she had. “Cupcake” refused to let go until Holm lost consciousness, and with it, her UFC title, to conclude the shocking comeback win with just 90 seconds remaining in the UFC 196 pay-per-view co-headliner.

Nate Diaz def. Conor McGregor at UFC 196

Against Nate Diaz (19-10 MMA, 14-8 UFC) and fighting up two weight classes, UFC featherweight champion Conor McGregor (19-3 MMA, 7-1 UFC) found out that pounds can very much matter in MMA when he suffered his first defeat in more than five years.

Diaz took some hard shots that opened multiple cuts on his face but ultimately weathered McGregor’s storm. In the second round of their UFC 196 headliner, he capitalized on a sloppy McGregor takedown to submit the Irish champion with a rear-naked choke in dramatic fashion.

Jennifer Maia def. Vanessa Porto at Invicta FC 16

Vanessa Porto and Jennifer Maia

Jennifer Maia (13-4-1) claimed Invicta’s vacant interim flyweight title with a hard-fought unanimous-decision win over fellow Brazilian Vanessa Porto (18-7) in a all-around competitive scrap at Invicta FC 16.

Tension was high from the first to the final round. Blood flowed freely as the two worked on the feet, in the clinch and on the ground for 25 minutes. Both fighters felt they had an argument for victory, but the judges only saw it in Maia’s favor.

Jake Matthews def. Johnny Case at UFC Fight Night 85

The UFC Fight Night 85 matchup between lightweights Jake Matthews (10-1 MMA, 4-1 UFC) and Johnny Case (22-5 MMA, 4-1 UFC) had “Fight of the Night” potential as soon as it was made, and it lived up to that hype when the two battled it out before Matthews secured a third-round rear-naked choke for the finish.

Matthews unleashed heavy right hands early in the fight that slowly but surely wore down Case. “Hollywood” hung tough and kept productive with his offense, but late in the third round, he experienced a defensive hiccup when Matthews climbed on his back and ended the bout with the choke.

Neil Magny def. Hector Lombard at UFC Fight Night 85

Neil Magny (18-4 MMA, 11-3 UFC) became the first fighter to stop Hector Lombard (34-5-1 MMA, 3-3 UFC) in MMA competition, and he was forced to work hard for it in the skull-rattling welterweight affair at UFC Fight Night 85.

Not only did Magny overcome being dropped twice in the first seven minutes of the fight, he had to land a UFC record 100 significant ground strikes after he turned the tables on Lombard to convince the referee to finally wave off the action early in the third round.

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The winner: Nate Diaz vs. Conor McGregor

Nate Diaz

Eleven days of prep to fight a dominant UFC champion was clearly enough for Diaz. He upset McGregor by second-round submission in their non-title welterweight bout for the biggest victory of his career.

McGregor, the UFC featherweight champ, was originally meant to challenge 155-pound titleholder Rafael dos Anjos for his lightweight belt, but the fight fell apart, and Diaz stepped in on short notice for a welterweight showdown.

The will be remembered as one of Diaz’s wisest. After taking some huge shots in the first round that bloodied his face with a crimson mask, Diaz rallied in the second frame when he managed to hurt and submit “The Notorious” with a rear-naked choke.

Not only did Diaz pick up the signature victory of his career at McGregor’s expense, but he further cemented his place in UFC history when he set a new modern-era record for submission wins (eight) and most fight-night bonuses (14) in company history.