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The nominees... Angela Hill (ALLIANCE MMA) Bouts: W-KO1 vs. Alida Gray (Invicta FC 15: Cyborg vs. Ibragimova, January 16, 2016) W-KO2 vs. Stephanie Eggink (Invicta FC 16: Hamasaki vs. Brown, March 11, 2016) W-DEC5 vs. Livia Renata Souza (Invicta FC 17: Evinger vs. Schneider, May 7, 2016) W-DEC5 vs. Kaline Medeiros (Invicta FC 20: Evinger vs. Kunitskaya, November 18, 2016) Khabib Nurmagomedov (AMERICAN KICKBOXING ACADEMY) Bouts: W-TKO2 vs. Darrell Horcher (UFC on Fox 19: Teixeira vs. Evans, April 16, 2016) W-SUB3 vs. Michael Johnson (UFC 205: Alvarez vs. McGregor, November 12, 2016) Cub Swanson (JACKSONWINK MMA) Bouts: W-DEC3 vs. Hacran Dias (UFC on Fox 19: Teixeira vs. Evans, April 16, 2016) W-DEC3 vs. Tatsuya Kawajiri (UFC Fight Night 92: Rodríguez vs. Caceres, August 6, 2016) W-DEC3 vs. Do Hoo Choi (UFC 206: Holloway vs. Pettis, December 10, 2016) Dominick Cruz (ALLIANCE MMA) Bouts: W-DEC5 vs. T.J. Dillashaw (UFC Fight Night 81: Dillashaw vs. Cruz, January 17, 2016) W-DEC5 vs. Urijah Faber (UFC 199: Rockhold vs. Bisping II, June 4, 2016) L-DEC5 vs. Cody Garbrandt (UFC 206: Holloway vs. Pettis, December 10, 2016) Cezar Ferreira (MMA MASTERS) Bouts: W-DEC3 vs. Oluwale Bamgbose (UFC on Fox 19: Teixeira vs. Evans, April 16, 2016) W-DEC3 vs. Anthony Smith (The Ultimate Fighter 23: Team Joanna vs. Team Cláudia Finale, July 8, 2016) W-SUB2 vs. Jack Hermansson (UFC Fight Night 100: Bader vs. Nogueira, November 19, 2016) Gegard Mousasi (TEAM JUROJIN) Bouts: W-DEC3 vs. Thales Leites (UFC Fight Night 84: Silva vs. Bisping, February 27, 2016) W-TKO1 vs. Thiago Santos (UFC 200: Tate vs. Nunes, July 9, 2016) W-TKO2 vs. Vitor Belfort (UFC 204: Bisping vs. Henderson II, October 8, 2016) W-TKO1 vs. Uriah Hall (UFC Fight Night 99: Mousasi vs. Hall II, November 19, 2016) 2013 Winner: Robbie Lawler - AMERICAN TOP TEAM 2014 Winner: Anthony Johnson - BLACKZILIANS 2015 Winner: Demian Maia - DEMIAN MAIA JIU-JITSU Award voting will close 1/18 at 3:00 p.m. CST.

The nominees are... Evan Dunham (XTREME COUTURE/DUNHAM JIU JITSU) Bouts: W-DEC3 vs. Rodrigo Damm (UFC 182: Jones vs. Cormier, January 3, 2015) W-DEC3 vs. Ross Pearson (UFC Fight Night 72: Bisping vs. Leites, July 18, 2015) W-DEC3 vs. Joe Lauzon (The Ultimate Fighter 22 Finale: Team McGregor vs. Team Faber, December 11, 2015) Demian Maia (DEMIAN MAIA JIU-JITSU) Bouts: W-DEC3 vs. Ryan LaFlare (UFC Fight Night 62: Maia vs. LaFlare, March 21, 2015) W-SUB2 vs. Neil Magny (UFC 190: Rousey vs. Correia, August 1, 2015) W-DEC3 vs. Gunnar Nelson (UFC 194: Aldo vs. McGregor, December 12, 2015) Dustin Poirier (AMERICAN TOP TEAM) Bouts: W-KO1 vs. Carlos Diego Ferreira (UFC Fight Night 63: Mendes vs. Lamas, April 4, 2015) W-TKO1 vs. Yancy Medeiros (UFC Fight Night 68: Boetsch vs. Henderson, June 6, 2015) Robert Whittaker (PMA Super Martial Arts) Bouts: W-KO1 vs. Brad Tavares (UFC Fight Night 65: Miocic vs. Hunt, May 9, 2015) W-DEC3 vs. Uriah Hall (UFC 193: Rousey vs. Holm, November 14, 2015) Alistair Overeem (JACKSONWINK MMA) Bouts: W-DEC3 vs. Roy Nelson (UFC 185: Pettis vs. Dos Anjos, March 14, 2015) W-TKO2 vs. Junior dos Santos (UFC on Fox 14: Dos Anjos vs. Cerrone II, December 19, 2015) Rose Namajunas (GRUDGE TRAINING CENTER) Bouts: W-SUB1 vs. Angela Hill (UFC 192: Cormier vs. Gustafsson, October 3, 2015) W-SUB5 vs. Paige VanZant (UFC Fight Night 80: Namajunas vs. VanZant, December 10, 2015) 2013 Winner: Robbie Lawler - AMERICAN TOP TEAM 2014 Winner: Anthony Johnson - BLACKZILIANS Award voting will close 1/12 at 6:00 p.m. CST.

Luke Rockhold (American Kickboxing Academy) Bouts: W-TKO1 (BODY KICK) vs. COSTAS PHILIPPOU (UFC Fight Night 35: Rockhold vs. Philippou, January 15, 2014) W-SUB1 (TRIANGLE KIMURA) vs. TIM BOETSCH (UFC 172: Jones vs. Teixeira, April 26, 2014) W-SUB2 (GUILLOTINE CHOKE) vs. MICHAEL BISPING (UFC Fight Night 55: Rockhold vs. Bisping, November 8, 2014) One descriptive term every fighter wants to avoid being called is an after-thought. That’s the situation Luke Rockhold found himself in after suffering an injury to his medial collateral ligament, which postponed his UFC 166 bout with Tim Boetsch. The former Strikeforce middleweight titleholder was already coming off a humiliating defeat and was a recipient of a knockout of the year candidate. However, the loss was not all that humbling as Rockhold would take to Twitter and any other medium that would have him to agitate his one-time conqueror Vitor Belfort about his TRT usage. However, Belfort had one thing Rockhold most desired: a chance to challenge for the undisputed middleweight crown. Even though Rockhold applauded along with others in the poetic justice of Belfort facing his own roadblocks, the AKA standout was still not in the discussion of who could feasibly dethrone the man sitting atop the middleweight throne when the dust cleared. Thus, Belfort potentially facing a career altering suspension was satisfying for Rockhold yet unsettling. Therefore, Rockhold had to go on a defiant march in the new year to cement his spot among the rest of those hunting down Chris Weidman. First, Rockhold would utterly cream Costas Philippou with a paralyzing kick to the body, notching himself one of the last Knockout of the Night awards. Philippou, who had moved from the Serra-Longo gym to train with Keith Trimble at Bellmore Kickboxing, was rendered incapable of fighting back in two and a half minutes. Next, Rockhold would right the wrong of not facing Boetsch in October 2013.The native son of Santa Cruz, California muscled around the usually stronger-and-steadier Matt Hume trained combatant. Rockhold earned a submission of the year candidate by virtually twisting Boetsch up with a inverted triangle choke-kimura. In the sweetest twist of the year though, Rockhold would defeat Michael Bisping after months of back-and-forth between the two. The trash talk, while childish and immature in certain spots, did more for Rockhold’s profile than his past wins over names like Tim Kennedy and Ronaldo “Jacare” Souza ever did. He would get more time to separate himself from the pack and become his own man when it came to presenting his case to UFC matchmaker Joe Silva. Rockhold would put Bisping down with a high kick, something both men felt at the feet of Vitor Belfort, before jumping on “The Count” with a fight-ending guillotine choke. Although the performance bonus was well deserved on a show with all finishes, Rockhold is certainly hoping to hold the title strap that brings more money and all the prestige in 2015. Anthony Johnson (Blackzilians) Bouts: W-KO1 (PUNCHES) vs. MIKE KYLE (WSOF 8: Gaethje vs. Patishnock, January 18, 2014) W-DEC3 (UNANIMOUS) vs. PHIL DAVIS (UFC 172: Jones vs. Teixeira, April 26, 2014) W-KO1 (PUNCHES) vs. ANTÔNIO ROGÉRIO NOGUEIRA (UFC on Fox 12: Lawler vs. Brown, July 26, 2014) Looking back at Anthony Johnson career prior to 2014, it very much looked like a story cut short. When he was cut after UFC 142, it was like a movie that started out with a cohesive narrative and tremendous character development before unraveling into unwanted exposition and unrealistic dialogue between all the main players involved. If the first thirty minutes were Oscar and Golden Globe worthy, the next ninety minutes were definitely capable of grabbing all the Razzie awards. Johnson’s career was plagued by personal scandal, weight problems, and mismanagement. Much like most of Ken Pavia’s other former talent, Johnson seemed to be destined to be the guy only going after show money. In 2014, “Rumble” found himself thirty-five pounds above where he once turned Chad Reiner’s lights out in thirteen seconds. He would crack Mike Kyle with a counter right hook and put him to sleep in what would be his final World Series of Fighting appearance. He would sign to return to the UFC to fight Phil Davis shortly after. In a surprising turn of events, the Blackzilians fighter would stifle Phil Davis’ wrestling to the point where everyone thought Phil Davis would not be able to do anything to Glover Teixeira! It was a mind changing performance in that Johnson took everything Davis had and smashed the Alliance MMA star on the feet. Unlike teammate Rashad Evans who defeated the former NCAA D1 wrestling champ first, Johnson completely baffled Davis and took away his confidence. After trouncing “Minotoro” Nogueira in July in impressive fashion, the recurring storyline that followed Johnson like a shadow reappeared in the form of an indefinite suspension in September. The suspension, stemming from domestic abuse claims from the mother of two of his children, threatened to erase all the good he brought to himself throughout the year. However, the suspension was lifted less than two months later and paved the way to Johnson headlining the promotion’s second stadium show in Sweden. The booking of the title eliminator bout with home favorite Alexander Gustafsson tells us one thing about Johnson’s in-cage career. We don’t know how this sequel came about and where it’s going, but it definitely had one hell of a rewrite. THE REST OF THE NOMINEES: Cat Zingano (Elevation MMA) Bouts: W-TKO3 (STRIKES) vs. Amanda Nunes (UFC 178: Johnson vs. Cariaso, September 27, 2014) Rory MacDonald (Tristar Gym) Bouts: W-DEC3 (UNANIMOUS) vs. DEMIAN MAIA (UFC 170: Rousey vs. McMann, February 22, 2014) W-DEC3 (UNANIMOUS) vs. TYRON WOODLEY (UFC 174: Johnson vs. Bagautinov, June 14, 2014) W-TKO3 (PUNCHES) vs. TAREC SAFFIEDINE (UFC Fight Night 54: MacDonald vs. Saffiedine, October 4, 2014) Rousimar Palhares (Team Nogueira) Bouts: W-SUB1 (INVERTED HEEL HOOK) vs. Steve Carl (WSOF 9: Carl vs. Palhares, March 29, 2014) W-SUB1 (KNEEBAR) vs. Jon Fitch (WSOF 16: Palhares vs. Fitch, December 13, 2014) 2013 Winner: Robbie Lawler - AMERICAN TOP TEAM Award voting will close 12/30 at 11:45 p.m. CST.

URIJAH FABER (Team Alpha Male) Bouts: W-SUB1 (GUILLOTINE CHOKE) vs. IVAN MENJIVAR (UFC 157: Rousey vs. Carmouche, February 23, 2013) W-SUB4 (REAR NAKED CHOKE) vs. SCOTT JORGENSEN (The Ultimate Fighter: Team Jones vs. Team Sonnen, April 13, 2013) W-DEC3 (UNANIMOUS) vs. IURI ALCANTARA (UFC Fight Night 26: Shogun vs. Sonnen, August 17, 2013) W-SUB2 (GUILLOTINE CHOKE) vs. MICHAEL MCDONALD (UFC on Fox 9: Johnson vs. Benavidez II, December 14, 2013) Urijah Faber has spent a bulk of his Zuffa career as the primary target of fans for not being able to reel off credible wins to merit a title shot. Faber has taken flak with good reason, but the former WEC featherweight champion used 2013 as a stepping stone for something bigger after having no wins in 2012. After Duane "Bang" Ludwig came on as Team Alpha Male's chief striking instructor, people began to take notice at the subtle improvements to each man's respective games. Much like Team Takedown's Steven Wright, Ludwig was a much needed breath of fresh air. The evidence was a collection of not only several impressive wins in a row, but legitimate jaw-dropping finishes. The ace and leader of the Sacramento crew gathered perhaps the best assemblage of scalps among them. "The California Kid" choked out battle tested Salvadoran veteran Ivan Menvijar quickly in February before grabbing a late round submission in April against former WEC title challenger Scott Jorgensen. The bout with Pará native Iuri "Marajó" was much grittier and a tougher out, but Faber applied his wrestling skills to successfully notch his third win of 2013. The cherry on top was a domination of young knockout artist Michael McDonald inside the distance at the last Fox show of the year. Faber's third finish of the year earned the Submission of the Night bonus and placed him in line for another title shot. TIM KENNEDY (Jackson's MMA) Bouts: W-SUB3 (GUILLOTINE CHOKE) vs. TREVOR SMITH (Strikeforce: Marquardt vs. Saffiedine, January 13, 2013) W-DEC3 (UNANIMOUS) vs. ROGER GRACIE (UFC 162: Silva vs. Weidman, July 6, 2013) W-KO1 (PUNCH) vs. RAFAEL NATAL (UFC Fight Night 31: Fight for the Troops 3, November 6, 2013) Tim Kennedy has never been a person to shy away from letting you know his thoughts. Kennedy frequents social media with "bout agreements" and makes arrangements to fight other middleweights no matter if Joe Silva consents. MMA fans can get a sense of why the Army staff sergeant feels a little bit more inspired to do this. Prior to 2013, the last year Kennedy had more than two fights was 2007 (4). In 2012, Kennedy's only clash was a Strikeforce title bout fought close with American Kickboxing Academy stalwart and eventual winner Luke Rockhold. With the acquistion of the company by Zuffa a year prior, Kennedy had to become accustomed to the new business practices instead of the whims of former matchmaker Rich Chou. Kennedy was finally brought over after the finale show in January 2013, where he wiped the mat with Trevor Smith before the final bell. Certainly, Kennedy had a chip on his shoulder when he made his UFC debut against gi and no-gi grappling savant Roger Gracie. The multiple time ADCC, Copa do Mundo, and World Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu champion could not do anything to deter the much more MMA tenured fighter in any of the three rounds. Moreover, the man fighting out of Austin, Texas showed off his all around game to win his first UFC fight at UFC 162. In front of all his rowdy friends at the third UFC Fight for the Troops event, Kennedy starched another Gracie Barra faixa preta Rafael "Sapo" Natal with a scintillating knockout in one frame. Even with a quad injury suffered a week out from his big fight, Kennedy did not disappoint. Kennedy's attitude and demeanor in 2013, inside and out of the cage, shows he has no desire to do so. VITOR BELFORT (BLACKZILIANS) Bouts: W-KO1 (HEAD KICK) vs. MICHAEL BISPING (UFC on FX 7: Belfort vs. Bisping, January 19, 2013) W-KO1 (SPINNING HEAD KICK) vs. LUKE ROCKHOLD (UFC on FX 8: Belfort vs. Rockhold, May 18, 2013) W-KO1 (HEAD KICK) vs. DAN HENDERSON (UFC Fight Night 32: Belfort vs. Henderson II, November 9, 2013) Vitor Belfort's much maligned testosterone replacement therapy has become a rapidly hot storyline as his middleweight title shot comes to fruition. After his loss to UFC light heavyweight champion and pound-for-pound boss Jon Jones at UFC 152 in September 2012, it seemed like the career of "The Phenom" was heading in reverse. Although not close to his nadir after losing to Randy Couture at UFC 49, Belfort's twilight seemed to be more visible than ever. He already lost to Anderson Silva at UFC 126 in the most embarrassing-but-decisive fashion possible for the middleweight strap. In his sixteen year career in mixed martial arts, boxing, and submission fighting, we had already seen every iteration of the Brazilian imaginable. We've seen angry-as-a-junkyard dog, only move forward puncher. We've seen patient and deliberate submission specialist. We've seen timid and too respectful of the other man's strengths. We've seen counterpunching expert and enemy of every brainstem in a close proximity. We've seen a bittersweet mixture of those ingredients along with a dabble of something new like takedowns and great ground awareness. None of these versions of Belfort seemed capable of being a viable title threat and holding a lasting impression once you actually analyzed the matchup under a microscope. It was numerous times entertaining win or lose, but none of those elements were brewed into a violatile combination to such an effect to make people gasp like he did in 2013. It was unknown how much mileage Belfort would get out of the Blackzilians experiment. He had rattled the cage of trainers at Xtreme Couture and the Tapout Training Center along with Team Nogueira. Belfort has always been a professional bridge burner. Add in the fact Belfort always demands a certain privacy and control to his training session to go along his crazy philosophy on life and religion. Between the paranoia of Belfort and former two-time adversary Alistair Overeem, there were more curtains in the Jaco Hybrid Training Center than any theater venue on Broadway. Belfort chose not to use the expertise of trainers like Henri Hooft, Roberto Flamingo, Vitor Miranda, Cosmo Alexandre, and former mentor Zé Mário Sperry. Belfort kept to himself and brought in his usual cast of characters along with good friend Cezar "Mutante". However, the luxury provided by Glenn Robinson and uniqueness of his training did pay off once Belfort came out all guns ablazing. Belfort no longer felt to leave anything to chance. A fight was going to be a fight no matter if he initiated it or not. His wins in 2013 were not harmed by the detail of working more with Pedro Diaz, the trainer of boxing's junior featherweight dynamo Guillermo "El Chacal" Rigondeaux. Belfort also spent time brushing up on his wrestling with 1988 Seoul Olympic Games freestyle gold medalist Kenny Monday. While TRT remains Belfort's great complication at the moment, Belfort is not allowing his mental hindrances to complicate his critical performances. The thirty-six year old gladiator caused Michael Bisping to go down like he had been hit with a Thompson submachine gun in January as the main event of the first UFC show of the year. After Tommy gunning "The Count" in Sao Paulo, Belfort gave Strikeforce middleweight champion Luke Rockhold a rude and unexpected welcome in Jaraguá do Sul with another head kick knockout. The most splendid execution of his 2013 reign of terror was crushing the always reliable and sturdy chin of 2005 Middleweight Grand Prix victor Dan Henderson before hitting round two. Avenging his 2006 defeat, Belfort unleashed an uppercut so wicked on the former Strikeforce light heavyweight titlist it would make Matthew Saad Muhammad blush. He then laced the former Olympic alternate with his third straight one round show-ending, curtain closing head kick. The only time Henderson was stopped via strikes was also the most conclusive loss of his career. Henderson barely laid a finger on his opposition. While his planned next appearance against Chris Weidman in a five round foray is still up in the air in terms of a date and commission clearance, Belfort can take a deserved bow for his moments of the last year amidst controversy and reverence. TRAVIS BROWNE (Jackson's MMA) Bouts: W-KO1 (ELBOWS) vs. GABRIEL GONZAGA (The Ultimate Fighter: Team Jones vs. Team Sonnen, April 13, 2013) W-KO1 (FRONT KICK AND PUNCHES) vs. ALISTAIR OVEREEM (UFC Fight Night 26: Shogun vs. Sonnen, August 17, 2013) W-KO1 (ELBOWS) vs. JOSH BARNETT (UFC 168: Weidman vs. Silva II, December 28, 2013) epwar, on 31 Dec 2013 - 3:25 PM, said: ROBBIE LAWLER (American Top Team) Bouts: W-TKO1 (KNEE AND PUNCHES) vs. JOSH KOSCHECK (UFC 157: Rousey vs. Carmouche, February 23, 2013) W-KO2 (HEADKICK AND PUNCH) vs. BOBBY VOELKER (UFC on Fox 8: Johnson vs. Moraga, July 27, 2013) W-DEC3 (SPLIT) vs. RORY MACDONALD (UFC 167: St-Pierre vs. Hendricks, November 16, 2013)