One name, in particular, caught the eye of a fighter who’s no stranger to knockouts himself.
Lerone Murphy’s win over Aaron Pico stood out among several highlight-reel finishes, taking Bloody Elbow’s pick for the best knockout of 2025.
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In a sport as unpredictable as MMA, there are certain fighters who still manage to build reputations for their ruthless finishing ability.
There was some overlap between this list and Bloody Elbow’s own picks for the most dangerous punchers in the sport’s history.
It didn’t take long before people began to question whether one of the names truly belonged in the top 10 rankings.
Matt Brown raises eyebrows over Bo Nickal’s inclusion on hardest punchers list
Even though Matt Brown stepped away from the sport in 2024, he still sits just three knockouts short of Derrick Lewis’ record 16 KOs.
‘The Immortal’ is already the all-time leader in both knockouts and finishes within the promotion’s welterweight division, so when it comes to identifying serious punchers in MMA, his opinion carries a lot of weight.
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MMA UNCENSORED recently shared a list on social media that raised a few eyebrows, with some fans suggesting that one particular inclusion was more about generating clicks than actual fighting credentials.
Brown responded to the graphic by saying, “This has to be a joke right? Bo Nickal? I’m on the side that still believes Bo will be a champion one day but who made this list? His manager?”
Names like Francis Ngannou, Anthony Johnson and Ilia Topuria make sense given their track records. But seeing Bo Nickal at #8—a fighter with just two Octagon knockouts—stands out for all the wrong reasons.
Nickal only has four fights under his belt so far in MMA and while he does have an impressive background as an NCAA wrestling champion at Penn State, there isn’t much evidence yet of him being able to put people away with his hands.
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Bo Nickal’s spot should go to Ilia Topuria’s ex-opponent
Aside from Bo Nickal being included, it’s tough to find much wrong with the top 10 list from MMA UNCENSORED.
There are plenty of heavyweights you could make a case for, but there’s one fighter who stands out even more.
If it weren’t for Ilia Topuria, there wouldn’t be much debate over whether Josh Emmett is the most dangerous featherweight in Octagon history.
While Jeremy Stephens deserves mention, few fighters outside the heavyweight ranks can match Emmett’s collection of brutal one-punch finishes.
