WhatCulture UFC Awards: Best Of 2019

We've got to say: it wasn't an easy choice picking who the Fighter of the Year was going to be for 2019. There have been plenty of standout performances for many fighters on the UFC roster, but UFC middleweight champion, Israel Adesanya, and the baddest motherf***er in the UFC, Jorge Masvidal, stood head and shoulders above the rest.

On one hand, Adesanya, had the type of 12 months that would usually guarantee this accolade, especially after having a Fight of the Year winning battle against Kelvin Gastelum, then blasting Robert Whittaker with a bomb of a left hand to become the undisputed 185lb champ. In any other year in MMA history, it would be impossible to not to give it to Adesanya. However, you just cannot deny Jorge Masvidal for the levels of sheer brutality he's brought to the Octagon in 2019.

After a year away from the sport, Masvidal returned to competition at UFC Fight Night 147 in London against Liverpudlian striker, Darren Till. In what many believed to be a winnable fight for the powerful Brit, Masvidal shocked those in attendance and the world by knocking him out with a step-in left hook. Even after that, the violence wasn't over, as he had a bust-up with fellow welterweight Leon Edwards backstage, landing the "three piece and soda" combination that caught everyone's attention.

He then brutally knocked out Ben Askren, before mauling Nate Diaz to win the BMF title and become one of the biggest names in the sport. It might've been close, but not giving Street Jesus this award would've been a sin.