From that very first event which took place all those years ago in Denver, the power of grappling and submission in MMA has been abundantly clear. A slim, narrow-shouldered Royce Gracie would shock the world by grappling his way to win the first UFC championship, demonstrating just how effective a submission fighter could be. Though now the unified MMA rules have introduced a set of weight classes, a skilled grappler is able to fight against a man much larger than himself and succeed purely through technique. As we have seen time and time again in the Octagon, a well-timed, well-disguised, well-executed submission can alter the tide of or even end a fight in seconds. Indeed, watching a fighter come from behind to catch his opponent in a skilful submission off of his or her back can be as good as it gets in MMA. When evaluating these submissions, we considered the pure technical skill of the submission in its own right, the context of the fight in both the fighters careers and the holds context within the specific fight. Obviously this list only takes place in the UFC so notable submissions like Werdums triangle choke victory over Fedor Emelianenko, Ryo Chonans flying scissor heel hook of Anderson Silva and Rose Namajunas armbar are not eligible (if this was a more general MMA submissions list they certainly would be). Submission wins have facilitated some of the great underdog stories of the Octagon as well as some of the most technically masterful performances ever witnessed. Here are the 10 greatest to have taken place in the UFC:
Hailing from South East London, Sam Heard is an aspiring writer and recent graduate from the University of Warwick. Sam's favourite things include energy drinks, late nights spent watching the UFC with his girlfriend and annihilating his friends at FIFA.
