MMAjunkie's 'KO of the Month' for March: An absolutely crushing uppercut

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

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

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The Nominees

Melvin Blumer def. Jeff Curran via backfist at RFA 24

Jeff Curran’s (36-17) goal of an eventual UFC return was seemingly crushed by the hands – or rather the backfist – of Melvin Blumer (11-2). The bantamweight looked good for most of the opening frame, but in the final seconds of the round, Blumer threw a right hand that didn’t connect and snapped his arm backward. It turned into a short backfist that caught Curran right on the chin and dropped him, ending the fight in unique fashion.

Gianni Subba def. Thanh Vu via soccer kick, punches at ONE Championship 25

Flyweight terror Gianni Subba (5-1) needed just 20 seconds to land a combination of strikes that badly hurt and finished Thanh Vu (5-4). He caught Vu with an overhand punch while he rushed in early and never showed any remorse. Subba’s killer instinct kicked in, and he charged forward, landed a clean soccer kick to the head, and followed with a few more punches to end the fight.

Ross Pearson def. Sam Stout via left hook at UFC 185

When the veteran lightweights clashed, Ross Pearson (17-8 MMA, 9-5 UFC) unloaded a brutal second-round left hook and a crushing followup punch on Sam Stout (20-11-1 MMA, 8-10 UFC) to get the victory. The fighters had traded heavy blows in an entertaining battle until Pearson’s crushing and perfectly accurate fight-ending punch.

Fredy Serrano def. Bentley Syler via uppercut at UFC Fight Night 62

In a battle of debuting flyweights, Fredy Serrano (2-0 MMA, 1-0 UFC) managed to wake up the audience while putting Bentley Syler (5-1 MMA, 0-1 UFC) to sleep after more than two rounds of tedious action. It was an underwhelming contest for more than 11 minutes, but Serrano erased those memories with one of the most gorgeous uppercuts ever thrown inside the octagon.

Kevin Souza def. Katsunori Kikuno via right hook at UFC Fight Night 62

Kevin Souza (16-3 MMA, 3-0 UFC) had no intention of playing games with Katsunori Kikuno (22-7-2 MMA, 2-2 UFC) before he scored a one-punch knockout of the Japanese fighter just 91 seconds into their featherweight clash. Souza waited for Kikuno to step in range before he uncorked a massive right hand that put his opponent to sleep.

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The Winner: Fredy Serrano

Fredy Serrano and Bentley Syler

Serrano proved it’s not about how you start a fight – it’s how you end it – when he knocked out Syler in the third round of UFC Fight Night 62’s opening bout on March 21.

After two rounds of dreadful combat, Serrano started the final round with a knockout on his mind. He landed two hard uppercuts that caught Syler’s attention, and he then followed up with a third shot that landed clean and dropped his opponent to the canvas in gruesome fashion.

At 35 and with just one pro fight prior to his UFC debut, Serrano faced criticism that he didn’t deserve a roster spot. For roughly 11 minutes, the complaints appeared justified.

Fortunately for Serrano, perception can change in a flash, and one thunderous punch was all it took to prove his worth and earn a $50,000 “Performance of the Night” award.