Part of the magic of combat sports lies in the way no fight is ever truly over until final horn. There’s no 10-point play in football, but MMA comes with the built-in possibility of a down-and-out fighter, seemingly seconds away from a disappointing defeat, pulling off a picture-perfect head kick to knock out arguably the sport’s best fighter. That’s what Leon Edwards managed to pull off when he knocked out Kamaru Usman in the main event of UFC 278 to win the welterweight championship.
Edwards surprised in the first round, scoring a takedown and advancing to Usman’s back and threatening with attempts at a rear-naked choke. But, from that point on, the fight was all Usman.
Usman won striking exchanges, scored takedowns and dominated the narrative of the bout. It was Edwards who looked fatigued and increasingly dejected as the minutes and rounds ticked by, his corner implored their fighter to do something to turn the fight around.
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Then, with less than one minute remaining in the fifth and final round, Edwards feinted, caught Usman leaning at the waist and launched a perfect kick that sent Usman crashing to the canvas unconscious.
As shocking as the knockout was for fans, it was equally shocking for other fighters.
Let’s take a look at some of the best Twitter reactions from the moments after Edwards’ sport-shaking head kick.
