MMAjunkie's 'Submission of the Month' for March: A historic comeback gets the nod

With another action-packed month of MMA in the books, MMAjunkie looks at the best submissions from March. Here are the five nominees, listed in chronological order, and winner of MMAjunkie’s “Submission 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

Iuri Alcantara def. Luke Sanders at UFC 209

Iuri Alcantara (35-7 MMA, 9-4 UFC) staged one of the greatest statistical comebacks in UFC history when he rallied from multiple near-stoppages and a 107 strike differential to submit the previously unbeaten Luke Sanders (11-1 MMA, 1-1 UFC).

Sanders hurt Alcantara with big shots – the kind that would have most referees considering a stoppage. The Brazilian bantamweight hung on just enough to avoid that, though, and when the opportunity to roll into a kneebar arrived in the second round, Alcantara jumped on it and cranked until he got the tap.

Michael Prazeres def. Josh Burkman at UFC Fight Night 106

Michel Prazeres (22-2 MMA, 6-2 UFC) had Josh Burkman (28-15 MMA, 6-10 UFC) in danger after a hard left hook landed in the opening moments of their lightweight bout. He kept feeding him more of the same as he searched for the finish.

Strikes weren’t what ended it, but a rare submission did. Prazeres got in a position to secure a north-south choke when the fight was on the mat, and he did just that – becoming just the fourth fighter in UFC history to finish a fight with the submission.

Kevin Lee def. Francisco Trinaldo at UFC Fight Night 106

Lightweight prospect Kevin Lee (15-2 MMA, 8-2 UFC) ended Francisco Trinaldo’s winning streak (21-5 MMA, 11-4 UFC) – and pissed off a lot of Brazilians in the process.

After a tough first round that went in Trinaldo’s favor, Lee connected with hard high kick which dazed “Massuranduba” in the second frame. Lee didn’t allow his foe to escape danger; once he secured back control, he found a way to slide his forearm under the neck and lock in the fight-ending rear-naked choke.

Gunnar Nelson def. Alan Jouban at UFC Fight Night 107

It was inevitable Gunnar Nelson (16-2-1 MMA, 7-2 UFC) would get Alan Jouban (15-5 MMA, 6-3 UFC) to the mat. It wasn’t a foregone conclusion his right straight would be the passport.

Nelson surprised his welterweight opponent standing when he stunned Jouban with a powerful combination of strikes. His grappling instincts took over before he could get the knockout, though, and as soon as Jouban exposed his neck, “Gunni” secured a tight guillotine to end it.

Tonya Evinger def. Yana Kunitskaya at Invicta FC 22

After the result of their first fight was overturned due to a referee’s error, there was no controversy this time around between Tonya Evinger (19-5-1) and Yana Kunitskaya (9-3-1).

Evinger successfully defended her Invicta FC bantamweight championship when she overcame a troublesome first round and found an opening to ground her opponent in the second. Evinger slowly worked her way in position to finish the fight, and once she got it locked in, a rear-naked choke forced Kunitskaya to give up.

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The winner: Iuri Alcantara

Iuri Alcantara

Sanders had several opportunities to put away Alcantara, and he nearly succeeded. Alcantara had only one good chance, but he made the most of it, rolling into a kneebar that forced Sanders to tap at the 3:13 mark of Round 2.

Sanders had Alcantara in trouble early on in this fight, thanks to a little help from his ground and pound. After using an Alcantara kick to put his opponent on the mat, Sanders unloaded with punches from the back as Alcantara turtled up and tried to defend. But Sanders’ aim was sound, and he soon found the soft spot behind Alcantara’s ear with his powerful left hand. Referee Marc Goddard then warned Alcantara that the bout was close to being stopped.

Alcantara moved just enough to keep the referee at bay as he positioned himself against the fence, but his true savior came in the form of a mistake by Sanders. As Sanders cycled through punches and elbows in an attempt to stop the downed Alcantara, he launched a blatantly illegal knee to the head that forced Goddard to pause the bout and ask, “What are you doing?”

Goddard took a point from Sanders, but more importantly, he gave Alcantara time to rest and recover near the end of the round. Alcantara survived the frame, though he soon found himself in the same spot in the second.

This time, however, Alcantara had a solution. Instead of remaining a motionless target for Sanders, he rolled for a leg and got it, extending Sanders’ right knee as he locked in the kneebar. Sanders, looking exhausted and disappointed, gave a halfhearted tap, solidifying a loss in a fight he came so close to winning.

“I train so much jiu-jitsu that I was able to make the leg lock a natural submission for me, so I saw the opening immediately and was able to secure the victory,” Alcantara said. “Accidents happen, and the knee did not bother me. In training, these types of things happen, and so it had no effect.”