The World MMA Awards are awards presented by Fighters Only magazine to honor exceptional performance in various aspects of mixed martial arts. Winners are presented with the Fighters Only silver statuette. The World MMA Awards are divided into over twenty categories. The first World MMA Awards ceremony was held in 2008. From their inception to the present, award winners have been chosen through online fan voting.[2][3] It is the most prestigious award event in the world of MMA.[4][5][6][7]

World MMA Awards
Awarded forExcellence in the field of
Mixed martial arts
CountryUnited States
Presented byFighters Only Magazine
First awarded2008
WebsiteWorldMMAAwards.com
Television/radio coverage
NetworkVersus[1]
Fuel TV[2]
Fox Sports Networks[2]

Active award categories

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Fighters

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Year The Charles 'Mask' Lewis
Fighter of the Year
Female
Fighter of the Year
Breakthrough
Fighter of the Year
International
Fighter of the Year
2022-23[8]   Leon Edwards   Alexa Grasso   Alex Pereira   Leon Edwards
2021-22[9]   Alexander Volkanovski   Valentina Shevchenko   Paddy Pimblett   Alexander Volkanovski
2020-21[10]   Kamaru Usman   Rose Namajunas   Brandon Moreno   Israel Adesanya
2019-20[11]   Israel Adesanya   Amanda Nunes   Jorge Masvidal   Israel Adesanya
2018[12]   Daniel Cormier   Amanda Nunes   Israel Adesanya   Aung La Nsang
2017[13]   Max Holloway   Rose Namajunas   Brian Ortega   Robert Whittaker
2016[14]   Conor McGregor   Amanda Nunes   Cody Garbrandt   Khabib Nurmagomedov
2015[15]   Conor McGregor   Holly Holm   Holly Holm   Conor McGregor
2014[16]   Robbie Lawler   Ronda Rousey   Kelvin Gastelum   Conor McGregor
2013[17]   Chris Weidman   Ronda Rousey   Travis Browne   Alexander Gustafsson
2012[18]   Jon Jones   Ronda Rousey   Chris Weidman   Michael Bisping
2011[19]   Jon Jones   Miesha Tate   Donald Cerrone   Alistair Overeem
2010[20]   José Aldo   Cris Cyborg   Jon Jones   Alistair Overeem
2009[21]   Georges St-Pierre   Cris Cyborg   Brock Lesnar   Gegard Mousasi
2008[22]   Anderson Silva   Gina Carano   Demian Maia   Michael Bisping
  • From 2010, Fighter of the Year was awarded as The Charles 'Mask' Lewis Fighter of the Year in commemoration of Tapout co-founder Charles Lewis Jr.[23]
  • From 2010, European Fighter of the Year was awarded as International Fighter of the Year, to the leading MMA fighter from outside of the Americas.

Fight of the Year

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Year Winner Defeated Method, Round Event
2022-23[8]   Islam Makhachev   Alexander Volkanovski UD, 5 UFC 284
2021-22[9]   Jiří Procházka   Glover Teixeira Sub, 5 UFC 275
2020-21[10]   Deiveson Figueiredo   Brandon Moreno M Draw, 5 UFC 256
2019-20[11]   Weili Zhang   Joanna Jędrzejczyk SD, 5 UFC 248
2018[12]   Tony Ferguson   Anthony Pettis TKO, 2 UFC 229
2017[13]   Eddie Alvarez   Justin Gaethje KO, 3 UFC 218
2016[14]   Cub Swanson   Doo Ho Choi UD, 3 UFC 206
2015[15]   Robbie Lawler   Rory MacDonald TKO, 5 UFC 189
2014[16]   José Aldo   Chad Mendes UD, 5 UFC 179
2013[17]   Jon Jones   Alexander Gustafsson UD, 5 UFC 165
2012[18]   Joe Lauzon   Jamie Varner Sub, 3 UFC on Fox: Shogun vs. Vera
2011[19]   Frankie Edgar   Gray Maynard S Draw, 5 UFC 125
2010[20]   Anderson Silva   Chael Sonnen Sub, 5 UFC 117
2009[21]   Diego Sanchez   Clay Guida SD, 3 The Ultimate Fighter: United States vs. United Kingdom Finale
2008[22]   Chuck Liddell   Wanderlei Silva UD, 3 UFC 79

Knockout of the Year

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Year Winner Knocked out Method, Round Event
2022-23[8]   Leon Edwards   Kamaru Usman KO, 5 UFC 278
2021-22[9]   Michael Chandler   Tony Ferguson KO, 2 UFC 274
2020-21[10]   Joaquin Buckley   Impa Kasanganay KO, 2 UFC Fight Night: Moraes vs. Sandhagen
2019-20[11]   Jorge Masvidal   Ben Askren KO, 1 UFC 239
2018[12]   Amanda Nunes   Cris Cyborg KO, 1 UFC 232
2017[13]   Francis Ngannou   Alistair Overeem KO, 1 UFC 218
2016[14]   Michael Page   Evangelista Santos KO, 2 Bellator 158
2015[15]   Holly Holm   Ronda Rousey KO, 2 UFC 193
2014[16]   Mark Hunt   Roy Nelson KO, 2 UFC Fight Night: Hunt vs. Nelson
2013[17]   Vitor Belfort   Luke Rockhold KO, 1 UFC on FX: Belfort vs. Rockhold
2012[18]   Edson Barboza   Terry Etim KO, 3 UFC 142
2011[19]   Anderson Silva   Vitor Belfort KO, 1 UFC 126
2010[20]   Maurício Rua   Lyoto Machida KO, 1 UFC 113
2009[21]   Dan Henderson   Michael Bisping KO, 2 UFC 100
2008[22]   Wanderlei Silva   Keith Jardine KO, 1 UFC 84

Submission of the Year

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Year Winner Submitted Method, Round Event
2022-23[8]   Alexa Grasso   Valentina Shevchenko Sub, 4 UFC 285
2021-22[9]   Charles Oliveira   Dustin Poirier Sub, 3 UFC 269
2020-21[10]   Khabib Nurmagomedov   Justin Gaethje Sub, 2 UFC 254
2019-20[11]   Demian Maia   Ben Askren Sub, 3 UFC Fight Night: Maia vs. Askren
2018[12]   Zabit Magomedsharipov   Brandon Davis Sub, 2 UFC 228
2017[13]   Demetrious Johnson   Ray Borg Sub, 5 UFC 216
2016[14]   Nate Diaz   Conor McGregor Sub, 2 UFC 196
2015[15]   Ronda Rousey   Cat Zingano Sub, 1 UFC 184
2014[16]   Ben Saunders   Chris Heatherly Sub, 1 UFC Fight Night: Henderson vs. dos Anjos
2013[17]   Urijah Faber   Ivan Menjivar Sub, 1 UFC 157
2012[18]   Frank Mir   Antônio Rodrigo Nogueira Sub, 1 UFC 140
2011[19]   Chan Sung Jung   Leonard Garcia Sub, 2 UFC Fight Night: Nogueira vs. Davis
2010[20]   Fabrício Werdum   Fedor Emelianenko Sub, 1 Strikeforce: Fedor vs. Werdum
2009[21]   Toby Imada   Jorge Masvidal Sub, 3 Bellator 5
2008[22]   Georges St-Pierre   Matt Hughes Sub, 2 UFC 79

Comeback of the Year

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Year Winner vs. Method, Round Event
2022-23[8]   Leon Edwards   Kamaru Usman KO, 5 UFC 278
2021-22[9]   Aljamain Sterling "Ridicule and Injury"
2020-21[10]   Charles Oliveira   Michael Chandler TKO, 2 UFC 262
2019-20[11]   Stipe Miocic   Daniel Cormier TKO, 4 UFC 241
2018[12]   Angela Lee   Mei Yamaguchi UD, 5 Car accident, ONE FC 71
2017[13]   Justin Gaethje   Michael Johnson TKO, 2 The Ultimate Fighter: Redemption Finale
2016[14]   Miesha Tate   Holly Holm Sub, 5 UFC 196
2015[15]   Eddie Alvarez   Gilbert Melendez SD, 3 UFC 188
2014[16]   Dominick Cruz "Career"
2013[17]   Travis Browne   Alistair Overeem KO, 1 UFC Fight Night: Shogun vs. Sonnen
2012[18]   Frank Mir   Antônio Rodrigo Nogueira Sub, 1 UFC 140
2011[19]   Cheick Kongo   Pat Barry KO, 1 UFC Live: Kongo vs. Barry

Upset of the Year

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Year Winner Defeated Method, Round Event
2022-23[8]   Alexa Grasso   Valentina Shevchenko Sub, 4 UFC 285
2021-22[9]   Julianna Peña   Amanda Nunes Sub, 2 UFC 269
2020-21[10]   Adriano Moraes   Demetrious Johnson KO, 2 ONE on TNT 1
2019-20[11]   Alexander Volkanovski   Max Holloway UD, 5 UFC 245
2018[12]   Amanda Nunes   Cris Cyborg KO, 1 UFC 232
2017[13]   Rose Namajunas   Joanna Jędrzejczyk TKO, 1 UFC 217
2016[14]   Michael Bisping   Luke Rockhold KO, 1 UFC 199
2015[15]   Holly Holm   Ronda Rousey KO, 2 UFC 193
2014[16]   TJ Dillashaw   Renan Barao TKO, 5 UFC 173

Training, In-ring

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Year The Shawn Tompkins
Coach of the Year
Gym of the Year Trainer of the Year Referee of the Year Ring-card Girl of the Year
2022-23[8]   Mike Brown   American Top Team   Dr. Heather Linden   Herb Dean   Brittney Palmer
2021-22[9]   Eugene Bareman   City Kickboxing   Dr. Heather Linden   Marc Goddard   Brittney Palmer
2020-21[10]   Trevor Wittman   American Top Team   Phil Daru   Herb Dean   Brittney Palmer
2019-20[11]   Trevor Wittman   American Top Team   Phil Daru   Herb Dean   Brittney Palmer
2018[12]   Mike Brown   American Top Team   Nick Curson   Herb Dean   Jhenny Andrade
2017[13]   Trevor Wittman   American Top Team   Nick Curson   John McCarthy   Jhenny Andrade
2016[14]   John Kavanagh   American Top Team   Mike Dolce   John McCarthy   Jhenny Andrade
2015[15]   Rafael Cordeiro   Jackson-Wink MMA Academy   Mike Dolce   John McCarthy   Arianny Celeste
2014[16]   Duane Ludwig   Team Alpha Male   Mike Dolce   Herb Dean   Arianny Celeste
2013[17]   Duane Ludwig   Team Alpha Male   Mike Dolce   Herb Dean   Brittney Palmer
2012[18]   Rafael Cordeiro   Cesar Gracie Jiu-Jitsu   Herb Dean   Brittney Palmer
2011[19]   Greg Jackson   Black House   Herb Dean   Arianny Celeste
2010[20]   Greg Jackson   Wand Fight Team   Herb Dean   Arianny Celeste
2009[21]   Greg Jackson   Greg Jackson's Submission Fighting   Arianny Celeste
2008[22]   Arianny Celeste
  • From 2012, Coach of the Year was awarded as The Shawn Tompkins Coach of the Year in commemoration of trainer Shawn Tompkins.[24]

Promotion

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Year Leading Man Personality of the Year Analyst of the Year Best Promotion
2022-23[8]   Dana White   Joe Rogan   Michael Bisping UFC
2021-22[9]   Dana White   Joe Rogan   Michael Bisping UFC
2020-21[10]   Dana White   Daniel Cormier   Michael Bisping UFC
2019-20[11]   Dana White   Joe Rogan   Daniel Cormier UFC
2018[12]   Dana White   Joe Rogan   Daniel Cormier UFC
2017[13]   Dana White   Joe Rogan   Dominick Cruz UFC
2016[14]   Dana White   Joe Rogan   Dominick Cruz UFC
2015[15]   Dana White   Joe Rogan   Dominick Cruz UFC
2014[16]   Dana White   Joe Rogan UFC
2013[17]   Dana White   Chael Sonnen UFC
2012[18]   Dana White   Joe Rogan UFC
2011[19]   Dana White   Joe Rogan UFC
2010[20]   Dana White   Joe Rogan UFC
2009[21]   Dana White UFC
2008[22]   Dana White UFC

Media

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Year Media Source of the Year Journalist of the Year Best MMA Programming
2022-23[8] ESPN MMA   Ariel Helwani Dana White's Contender Series
2021-22[9] ESPN MMA   Ariel Helwani Morning Kombat
2020-21[10] ESPN MMA   Ariel Helwani Morning Kombat
2019-20[11] ESPN MMA   Ariel Helwani JRE MMA Podcast
2018[12] MMA Fighting   Ariel Helwani The Ultimate Fighter
2017[13] MMA Fighting   Ariel Helwani The Ultimate Fighter
2016[14] MMA Fighting   Ariel Helwani The Ultimate Fighter
2015[15] MMA Fighting   Ariel Helwani UFC Embedded
2014[16] MMAjunkie.com   Ariel Helwani
2013[17] MMA Fighting   Ariel Helwani
2012[18] Sherdog   Ariel Helwani
2011[19] MMAjunkie.com   Ariel Helwani
2010[20] MMAjunkie.com   Ariel Helwani
2009[21] MMAjunkie.com   John Morgan
2008[22] MMAjunkie.com
  • From 2010, Best Media Coverage was awarded as Media Source of the Year.

Special Achievement

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Year Lifetime Achievement Award[25] Fighting Spirit of the Year
2022-23[8]   Ken Shamrock   Themba Gorimbo (Charity – building a water pump in Zimbabwe and putting others ahead of himself)
2021-22[9]   Kirik Jenness   Kevin Holland (Bravery - in and out of the cage, helping his community in the face of danger on several occasions)
2020-21[10]   Matt Hughes   Brandon Moreno (Perseverance - from being cut, to fighting back and becoming the first Mexican UFC champion)
2019-20[11]   Abdulmanap Nurmagomedov   Dustin Poirier (Charity - Good Fight Foundation)
2018[26]   Wanderlei Silva
2017   John McCarthy
2016   Tito Ortiz
2015[15]   Bruce Buffer
2014[16]   Burt Watson
2013[17]   Royce Gracie
2012[18]   Leon Tabbs
2011[19]   Shawn Tompkins
2010[20]   Randy Couture
2009[21]   Charles Lewis, Jr.
2008[27]   John McCarthy

Defunct award categories

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MMA Clothing & Equipment Brand of the Year

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Best MMA Brand

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Most Memorable Ring Entrance

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Best Lifestyle Clothing Brand

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Best Overall Clothing.

Best MMA Clothing.

Best Lifestyle Clothing Brand.

Best Technical Clothing Brand

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Best MMA Shorts.

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Best Technical Clothing Brand.

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Best Technical Equipment

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Best MMA Gloves.

Best Technical Equipment.

References

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  1. ^ "Versus to air 2010 World MMA Awards on Dec. 9, Versus' Molly Qerim co-hosts". MMAjunkie.com. 11 October 2010. Retrieved 13 January 2013.
  2. ^ a b c Leach, Robin (10 January 2013). "MMA Awards preview: Stars include fighters, Coco, Claire, Springer and 'Absinthe'". Las Vegas Sun. Retrieved 13 January 2013.
  3. ^ "Silva, Carano, UFC, MMAjunkie.com win World Mixed Martial Arts Awards". MMAjunkie.com. 9 December 2008. Retrieved 13 January 2013.
  4. ^ Adept Mobile (14 September 2018). "World MMA Awards Show Premieres Wed. on FOX Sports 2". ufc.com.
  5. ^ "ONE Championship". onefc.com.
  6. ^ "Jose Aldo takes top honours in FO World Mixed Martial Arts Awards 2010". Sport – Telegraph Blogs. Archived from the original on 4 December 2010.
  7. ^ "Roufusport Nominated for 'Gym of the Year' at 2011 World MMA Awards". fightnetwork.com.
  8. ^ a b c d e f g h i j Bryan Tucker (14 December 2023). "World MMA Awards 2023 Results". mmafighting.com. Retrieved 15 December 2023.
  9. ^ a b c d e f g h i j MMA Fighting Newswire (9 December 2022). "2022 World MMA Awards Results". mmafighting.com. Retrieved 17 December 2022.
  10. ^ a b c d e f g h i j MMA Fighting Newswire (10 December 2021). "2021 World MMA Awards Results". mmafighting.com. Retrieved 17 December 2022.
  11. ^ a b c d e f g h i j MMAjunkie Staff (27 December 2020). "Israel Adesanya, Amanda Nunes, Jorge Masvidal pace major winners at World MMA Awards". MMA Junkie. Retrieved 28 December 2020.
  12. ^ a b c d e f g h i j Tucker, Bryan (4 July 2019). "World MMA Awards 2019 Results". mmafighting.com. Retrieved 17 December 2022.
  13. ^ a b c d e f g h i j Tucker, Bryan (4 July 2018). "World MMA Awards 2018 Results". Retrieved 17 December 2022.
  14. ^ a b c d e f g h i j Tucker, Bryan (2 March 2017). "World MMA Awards 2017 Results". Retrieved 17 December 2022.
  15. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k Tucker, Bryan (5 February 2016). "World MMA Awards 2016 Results". Retrieved 17 December 2022.
  16. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m MMAjunkie Staff (31 January 2015). "2014 World MMA Awards winners". mmajunkie.com. Retrieved 17 December 2022.
  17. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l Tucker, Bryan (7 February 2014). "2013 World MMA Awards results". Retrieved 17 December 2022.
  18. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l Tucker, Bryan (11 January 2013). "World MMA Awards 2012 Results". MMAFighting. Retrieved 13 January 2013.
  19. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m Chiapetta, Mike (30 November 2011). "2011 World MMA Awards Results". MMA Fighting. Retrieved 17 December 2022.
  20. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l Mrosko, Geno (2 December 2010). "2010 World MMA Awards Winners and Results". MMA Mania. Retrieved 13 January 2013.
  21. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l Rhodes, Stephen (31 December 2009). "2009 World MMA Awards – Official Results". Octagon Buzz. Retrieved 13 January 2013.
  22. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k "Contact Support". Archived from the original on 6 October 2011. Retrieved 12 July 2015.
  23. ^ Okamoto, Brett (31 December 2009). "2009 MMA awards show honors top moments of the year". Las Vegas Sun. Retrieved 12 January 2013.
  24. ^ "Late coach Tompkins honoured at MMA Awards". Sportsnet. 1 December 2011. Retrieved 9 January 2023.
  25. ^ The World MMA Awards. "Awards Criteria". worldmmaawards.com. Retrieved 14 December 2023.
  26. ^ Mindenhall, Chuck (4 July 2019). "An evening at the Fighters Only World MMA Awards". theathletic.com. Retrieved 17 December 2022.
  27. ^ "John McCarthy Referee". 8 June 2008.
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