MMAjunkie's needle-movers in 2014: Jones, McGregor, UFC 175, War Machine, brawls, injuries

Conor McGregor

This was the year that “needle-mover” entered the MMA lexicon. And while the UFC has its own list of apparent needle-movers, what about MMAjunkie?

We took a stroll through this 2014 MMAjunkie traffic stats to determine the top 10 fighters, events, stories, videos and more from the past 12 months.

So what did we learn? MMAjunkie readers like it when Jon Jones and Daniel Cormier brawl (or don’t realize they got caught with some live mics). You loved UFC 175 (especially since it was the same weekend as The Ultimate Fighter 19 Finale); you clicked on just about anything related to Ronda Rousey, Conor McGrehor and Anderson Silva; and coverage of that whole War Machine-Christy Mack saga was apparently pretty hard to resist.

And, it seems, MMAjunkie readers understand how punishing MMA can be, and they love to get a detailed look at the injuries associated with the sport.

So, as we close out a busy year of MMA and get ready to enter another, check out what moved the MMAjunkie needle in 2014.

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Jon Jones

Most popular fighters

1. Jon Jones
2. Conor McGregor
3. Ronda Rousey
4. Anderson Silva
5. Lyoto Machida
6. Vitor Belfort
7. Daniel Cormier
8. Chris Weidman
9. Cain Velasquez
10. Johny Hendricks

Lyoto Machida and Chris Weidman

Biggest events

1. UFC 175: Weidman vs. Machida
2. UFC 181: Hendricks vs. Lawler II
3. UFC 169: Barao vs. Faber II
4. UFC 170: Rousey vs. McMann
5. UFC 172: Jones vs. Teixeira
6. UFC 171: Hendricks vs. Lawler
7. UFC 179: Aldo vs. Mendes II
8. UFC 173: Barao vs. Dillashaw
9. UFC 178: Johnson vs. Cariaso
10. Bellator 120: Rampage vs. King Mo

Ronda Rousey and Alexis Davis

Biggest days

1. Sunday, July 6 (day after UFC 175/day of TUF 19 Finale)
2. Saturday, Dec. 6 (day of UFC 181)
3. Saturday, July 5 (day of UFC 175)
4. Sunday, Dec. 7 (day after UFC 181)
5. Monday, Aug. 4 (day of Cormier-Jones brawl)
6. Friday, Sept. 19 (Wanderlei Silva video/Anthony Johnson suspension/Bellator 125)
7. Saturday, Feb. 1 (day of UFC 169)
8. Saturday, Feb. 22 (day of UFC 170)
9. Monday, July 7 (two days after UFC 175/day after TUF 19 Finale)
10. Sunday, April 27 (day after UFC 172)

Jon Jones and Daniel Cormier

Top stories

1. Video: Jon Jones, Daniel Cormier scuffle, fall off stage at UFC 178 media day
2. Christy Mack posts disturbing photos from alleged War Machine assault
3. Video: Hot mics catch Daniel Cormier and UFC champ Jon Jones (and a death threat)
4. UFC 175 results, photos: Ronda Rousey destroys Alexis Davis in 16 seconds
5. UFC 172: Jon Jones vs. Glover Teixeira full fight video highlights
6. Nate Diaz slams UFC’s CM Punk signing: ‘F-ck him, f-ck the whole situation’
7. Ex-Bellator fighter War Machine, still on the run, tweets he’s innocent
8. Watch Mike Tyson force Dana White to give up his airplane seat
9. Is MMA’s next big rivalry Bethe Correia vs. Ronda Rousey’s ‘Four Horsewomen’?
10. Video: Sneak peek of Chael Sonnen and Wanderlei Silva’s ‘TUF: Brazil 3' brawl

Christy Mack

Top non-UFC stories

1. Christy Mack posts disturbing photos from alleged War Machine assault
2. Ex-Bellator fighter War Machine, still on the run, tweets he’s innocent
3. War Machine apprehended by U.S. Marshal service in Simi Valley, Calif. (updated)
4. Commission rep on ‘Rampage’s’ $10K fine: Worst behavior I’ve seen in pro sports
5. ‘Dog the Bounty Hunter’ threatens to track down War Machine after alleged assault
6. Woman vs. man in a bare-knuckle, no-rules fight? It happened, and the story is a wild one
7. Video: The bizarre Tito Ortiz-Stephan Bonnar confrontation (and Scott Coker’s reaction)
8. War Machine’s suicide note: ‘Society has killed men. I was never meant to live in this era’
9. Bellator 120 results, photos: Jackson earns puzzling decision over outraged Lawal
10. Bellator 131: Tito Ortiz vs. Stephan Bonnar, Will Brooks vs. Michael Chandler video highlights

Daniel Cormier

Top videos (non-fight highlights)

1. Video: Jon Jones, Daniel Cormier scuffle, fall off stage at UFC 178 media day
2. Video: Hot mics catch Daniel Cormier and UFC champ Jon Jones (and a death threat)
3. Video: Watch Mike Tyson force Dana White to give up his airplane seat
4. Video: Sneak peek of Chael Sonnen and Wanderlei Silva’s ‘TUF: Brazil 3' brawl
5. UFC 180 video: Jessica Eye nearly takes off Leslie Smith’s ear in gruesome moment
6. Video: The bizarre Tito Ortiz-Stephan Bonnar confrontation (and Scott Coker’s reaction)
7. Video: Why is Cung Le so jacked in this photo? Le explains as Bisping speculates
8. Video: Watch Conor McGregor and Dustin Poirier get heated at UFC 178 faceoff
9. Video: Jon Jones mourns his signature shoes, loss of Nike sponsorship
10. Video: Tito Ortiz on ‘joke’ and ‘embarrassment’ of Bonnar fight at Bellator 131

War Machine

Top social media stories

1. Ex-Bellator fighter War Machine, still on the run, tweets he’s innocent
2. Video: Watch Mike Tyson force Dana White to give up his airplane seat
3. ‘Dog the Bounty Hunter’ threatens to track down War Machine after alleged assault
4. Video: Why is Cung Le so jacked in this photo? Le explains as Bisping speculates
5. Dana White was perplexed by this UFC Fight Night 57 cageside photo
6. After saying Nate Diaz ‘doesn’t move needle,’ Dana White and manager clash on Twitter
7. Jason ‘Mayhem’ Miller live tweets three-hour police standoff before surrendering
8. Champ Chris Weidman takes Instagram swipe at UFC 181 title challenger Vitor Belfort
9. Video: Jon Jones mourns his signature shoes, loss of Nike sponsorship
10. Video: Extended footage of Tim Kennedy, Yoel Romero’s UFC 178 backstage encounter

Ronda Rousey

Ben Fowlkes’ top columns

1. UFC champ Ronda Rousey continues reign of destruction, but now what?
2. Woman vs. man in a bare-knuckle, no-rules fight? It happened, and the story is a wild one
3. How Miesha Tate saved Bryan Caraway’s mother’s life
4. So what is a Dynamic Fastener, and why is it suddenly all over UFC broadcasts?
5. Sanchez-Pearson decision might be worst in MMA history, and that’s saying something
6. After girlfriend’s death, Josh Samman takes guilt, grief into UFC 181
7. Duke Roufus responds to team members’ allegations, as other fighters chime in
8. How Kyle Kingsbury used ayahuasca to become a happier person and a worse fighter
9. Why are so many UFC fighters using Sqor?
10. The strangely sincere moment in the Sonnen-Silva brawl on ‘TUF: Brazil 3'

Arianny Celeste

Top photo galleries

1. Octagon Girls at play: 15 hottest Arianny Celeste, Brittney Palmer Instagram photos
2. UFC Fight Night 52 weigh-in photos: An MMAjunkie image gallery
3. TUF 20 Finale weigh-in photos: An MMAjunkie image gallery
4. UFC 170 weigh-in photos: An MMAjunkie image gallery
5. UFC on FOX 13 weigh-in photos: An MMAjunkie image gallery
6. UFC 175 weigh-in photos: An MMAjunkie image gallery
7. ‘EA Sports UFC’ video game fighter image gallery for XBox One, PS4
8. UFC 177 weigh-in photos: An MMAjunkie image gallery
9. UFC 169 weigh-in photos: An MMAjunkie image gallery
10. UFC 172 weigh-in photos: An MMAjunkie image gallery