UFC returns to London on Saturday night for a UFC Fight Night card headlined by England's own Tom Aspinall against Marcin Tybura. The card presents opportunities for new entries into London's rich UFC catalog.
London has become a regular destination for UFC's international circuit with Saturday's card marking the fourth time the promotion has made the intercontinental trek in 16 months. It's a major acceleration of London-hosted UFC events. Including this weekend, the UFC has visited the city 15 times in the company's 30-year history.
World champions fighting on home soil, highlight reel knockouts in enemy territory and career reinventions. London crowds have witnessed first-hand just about everything that mixed martial arts has to offer.
Let's look back at five UFC London cards that should be remembered in the history books.
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The first visit
There can only be one "first" and UFC 38 holds the distinction of being the first UFC event held in the United Kingdom. The card -- dubbed "Brawl at the Hall" -- took place at Royal Albert Hall on July 13, 2002. The event was headlined by a second meeting between UFC welterweight champion Matt Hughes vs. Carlos Newton. There was controversy surrounding their first clash eight months prior when Hughes was trapped in a triangle choke while standing upright and slammed Newton to the mat, knocking out the challenger. It is believed, however, that Hughes did not intentionally slam Newton but instead collapsed after being choked unconscious.
Their rematch in London left no doubt as to who was the better fighter. Hughes scored a decisive Round 4 TKO to defend his title and put the rivalry to rest. UFC 38 also featured UFC's first British fighter Ian Freeman handing a first-round stoppage to a young future UFC heavyweight champion named Frank Mir.
Michael Bisping survives the spider's web
Bisping's shocking upset of Luke Rockhold to capture the UFC middleweight championship is most certainly his Cinderella story. But Britain's first UFC champion had another career-defining moment in the fight preceding it. Bisping overcame his underdog status and endured a hellacious flying knee to defeat the legendary Anderson Silva at UFC Fight Night on Feb. 27, 2016. Bisping performed well across the first three rounds, but he made a grave error in the final seconds of Round 3. Bisping called on the referee to retrieve his fallen mouthpiece. His lack of focus allowed "The Spider" to spring into a flying knee that seated the Englishman. Silva walked away and hopped the fence in celebration, but the fight had not been waved off. Silva's strike landed at the buzzer signaling the end of the round. The break allowed Bisping crucial time to recover and ultimately win a narrow decision.
Carlos Condit KOs Dan Hardy in enemy territory
There may not be a more appropriate nickname in all of combat sports than "The Natural Born Killer." Condit's classic highlight-reel knockout of Hardy came at the tail end of Condit's most impressive career run. Condit went 13-1 between 2006 and 2012. That memorable stint included an interim UFC welterweight title win against Nick Diaz, four fights as WEC welterweight champion and three consecutive knockouts against Rory MacDonald, Dong Hyun Kim and, of course, Hardy.
Hardy returned home to England following a gritty but one-sided loss to welterweight champion Georges St-Pierre. Condit and Hardy met in the co-main event of UFC 120 on Oct. 16, 2010. The foes launched dueling left hooks in the final 30 seconds of the opening round. The punches mirrored each other identically with the exception that Condit's landed clean. Hardy crumpled to the mat as Condit celebrated one of the most memorable one-punch KOs in UFC history.
Leon Edwards completes his trilogy with Kamaru Usman at home
Edwards continued England's streak of shocking title upsets by tying his series with Kamaru Usman at UFC 278 in Salt Lake City on Aug. 20, 2022. Edwards had fallen well behind Usman on the scorecards before uncorking a Hail Mary head kick with 56 seconds left in the fight. It brought another UFC title home to England and coined the catchphrase, "Headshot, dead."
Edwards vs. Usman 3 took place seven months later at the O2 Arena, just two hours from Edwards' Birmingham home. The fight failed to produce another head shot, but Edwards pulled ahead of a gun-shy Usman. The contents of the fight won't be remembered fondly, but Edwards completing the trilogy in front of his fellow Englishmen is a moment worth celebrating.
Jorge Masvidal reboots career, hands out a three-piece and soda
Newer fight fans know Masvidal as a charismatic knockout artist but that wasn't always the reputation associated with "Gamebred." Masvidal had been regulated to journeyman status before his reinvention in 2019. Masvidal returned from a year-and-a-half absence -- following decision losses to Demian Maia and Stephen Thompson -- to face Liverpool's Till in London. Masvidal blitzed forward with a combination that bounced Till's head off the mat midway through Round 2. It was a thrilling moment of triumph for an underdog 46-fights into his career. Masvidal's soul-snatching performance reignited his career and kickstarted a thrilling 2019 in which he stopped Till, Ben Askren and Nate Diaz en route to capturing the ceremonial BMF title.
If knocking out Till wasn't enough to talk about, Masvidal found himself in a second tussle backstage. Masvidal walked away from an interview with Laura Sanko to uncork a combination on Edwards, famously dubbed "three-piece and a soda," that left Edwards with a cut under his left eye.
Honorable mention: UFC Fight Night: Volkov vs. Aspinall. The UFC returned to London for the first time in three years with a card chock-full of English talent. The feverish U.K. crowd buoyed the likes of Tom Aspinall, Arnold Allen, Paddy Pimblett and Molly McCann to victory. The energy at the O2 Arena was invigorating and spurred UFC to return three more times in the next year-and-a-half.
