MMAjunkie’s ‘Knockout of the Month’ for March: A big shot on MMA's smaller scene

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

Nordine Taleb def. Erick Silva at UFC 196

UFC welterweight Erick Silva (18-7 MMA, 6-6 UFC) was once touted as a future contender at 170 pounds. But he’s experienced a decline in recent years, and that led him to a matchup with Nordine Taleb (12-3 MMA, 4-1 UFC). The Canadian was the betting underdog, but it certainly didn’t play out that way.

After picking their shots for more than a round, Silva attempted a hard body kick early in the second frame. Taleb caught the strike, fired back with a massive left hand, and Silva went crashing to the canvas for the knockout.

Andre Soukhamthath def. Kody Nordby at CES MMA 33

Kody Nordby and Andre Soukhamthath

It was billed as a grudge match but wound up serving as a highlight-reel finish when Andre Soukhamthath (10-3) stopped Kody Nordby (6-4) with a crushing flying knee in the fifth round of their bantamweight title bout.

As Nordby looked for a takedown in the final frame of the CES MMA 33 headliner on AXS TV, Soukhamthath elevated with a flying knee that landed square on the chin, which his opponent out cold.

Justin Gaethje def. Brian Foster at WSOF 29

Justin Gaethje and Brian Foster

WSOF lightweight champion Justin Gaethje (16-0) remained perfect through 16 pro bouts when he defended his belt for the fourth time with a first-round finish of Brian Foster (25-9) in WSOF 29’s headliner.

Foster was the aggressor and came out with punches and kicks. Gaethje covered well and returned fire, and a few chopping low kicks started to take their toll on Foster, who began to visibly struggle. Gaethje saw the opportunity and continued to assault the left leg, and Foster collapsed on the floor. Gaethje didn’t bother to follow and simply turned away and celebrated the walk-off TKO finish in the NBCSN headliner.

Steve Bosse def. James Te Huna at UFC Fight Night 85

After a disastrous UFC debut that was over almost as soon as it started, Steve Bosse (11-2 MMA, 1-1 UFC) moved back to light heavyweight and used his second UFC fight to find out what the other side of a quick knockout finish feels like, much to the dismay of James Te Huna (16-9 MMA, 5-5 UFC).

A right hand from Bosse at the end of a quick combo caught Te Huna coming forward with his hands down, and it resulted in a 52-second knockout victory at UFC Fight Night 85.

Mark Hunt def. Frank Mir at UFC Fight Night 85

Former heavyweight champ Frank Mir’s (18-11 MMA, 16-11 UFC) plan to get Mark Hunt (12-10-1 MMA, 7-4-1 UFC) to the mat early and lock in a submission never got past the introductory stage.

In UFC Fight Night 85’s headliner, Hunt stopped Mir before he could get close and delivered another walk-off knockout with a thudding right hand in the first round. Hunt landed his signature strike and simply walked away as Mir made it clear he wasn’t getting up any time soon.

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The winner: Andre Soukhamthath

Andre Soukhamthath

In what was billed as the biggest grudge match in company history, Soukhamthath stopped Nordby in jaw-rattling fashion with a sensational fifth-round flying-knee knockout to win the bantamweight title in CES MMA 33’s headliner.

Soukhamthath captured the 135-pound belt with the picture-perfect finish in the final round of a grueling title fight.

Despite plenty of pre-fight trash-talk, Nordby showed a limited offensive repertoire. He frequently dove for takedowns with very minimal setup, and Soukhamthath scouted everything from a mile away. When that didn’t work, Nordby tried to attack the lower limbs by diving for leg locks from a distance. Soukhamthath managed to shut those down, as well, and responded with strikes that opened a cut on Nordby’s face.

The champion rejected nearly every advance from Nordby, save for a fourth-round push that raised concern over whether Soukhamthath would allow the fight to slip away down the stretch. But in the final round, he scored the spectacular finish.

Soukhamthath timed a Nordby takedown attempt, and just as the level change occurred, “The Asian Sensation” elevated with the flying knee that landed square on the chin. Nordby was out cold on impact, and the new champion was crowned at the 1:35 mark of the fifth frame.