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Top Five Countdown: Most Exciting Shows of 2020s Decade

Originally posted on MMA Sucka | By Drew Zuhosky | Last updated Jun 16, 2025 9:26 PM ET

Combat sports in the 2020s got off to a rough start. For that matter, so did the landscape of the entire world at the outset of the current decade. After the World Health Organization (WHO) had spent the early weeks of 2020 tracking the threat of the coronavirus (COVID-19), the organization moved to declare COVID-19 a pandemic on March 11, 2020.

In the days that followed, all sporting competitions across the planet were either suspended or, in the case of the NCAA inside the United States of America, ended for the remainder of the then-ongoing academic term. Combat sports were not immune to the changes.

The Saturday night after COVID-19 was declared a pandemic by the WHO, the UFC went on with a UFC Fight Night card as scheduled in Brasilia, Brazil, but there were some alterations made to the schedule of events for fight week. Most notably, no spectators were allowed in the venue and the ESPN+ onsite studio crew was relocated outside the arena in the name of safety. This was a historic time in the history of combat sports.

Counting Down the Top Five Combat Sports Events in the 2020s So Far

With the 2020s being more than halfway over, now is the perfect time to have a countdown of the top five shows in combat sports. A little bit of housekeeping before we begin the countdown:

This top-five list isn’t exclusive to MMA events. Shows from ONE Championship and boxing events can and will also show up here.

With those preliminaries out of the way, let’s get started.

Top Five Combat Sports Events of the 2020s So Far: No. 5: ONE on Prime Video 1

We flash back to August of 2022 for the No. 5 entrant to the countdown, an event whose story goes back a few months beforehand. The previous April, ONE Championship and Amazon Prime Video came to an agreement to bring the combat sports promotion to the streaming platform for its United States and Canadian viewing audience in a monthly broadcast window on Friday evenings.

This pact officially began with ONE on Prime Video 1 on Aug. 26, 2022. That night’s card was headlined by a rematch for the ONE Flyweight (135 lbs) MMA Championship between Demetrious Johnson and Adriano Moraes in the main event of the evening. “Mighty Mouse” took the title in the end with a fourth-round knockout by way of flying knee.

Earlier in the evening, the co-main event of this combat sports extravaganza saw the ONE Bantamweight (145 lbs) Muay Thai Championship up for grabs when Nong-O Gaiyanghadao bested Liam Harrison with a leg kick in the opening round.

Top Five Combat Sports Events of the 2020s So Far: No. 4: UFC 300

We move up to April of 2024 for the No. 4 entry into our top-five countdown. Just like it’s done so many times before and since, T-Mobile Arena in Enterprise, NV played host to a historic evening of MMA when UFC 300 took place from the venue.

There were three title fights at the top of the bill that night. Your main event of the evening for the UFC Light Heavyweight Championship saw Alex Pereira stop Jamahal Hill inside the opening round, while the co-main event of UFC 300 had the promotion’s strawweight championship at stake, won by Zhang Weili via decision.

In addition, the BMF Championship was on the line in UFC 300. Max Holloway took Justin Gaethje to the limit, landing a knockout with one second remaining on the clock in the final round. Future UFC Women’s Bantamweight Champion Kayla Harrison made her promotional debut after leaving the PFL during the prelims of UFC 300, besting Holly Holm in the second round by rear-naked choke.

Top Five Combat Sports Events of the 2020s So Far: No. 3: Bellator 301

Let’s turn the clock back to the fall of 2023 as our top-five countdown reaches its midpoint. In at No. 3 today, we take a trip to the Windy City of Chicago for a historic event, Bellator 301.

If, by chance, you were comatose during the fall of 2023 and missed the behind-the-scenes goings on with the now-late Bellator MMA, rumors concerning the long-term vitality of the promotion ran rampant, with the PFL eventually buying Bellator a few days after this card took place.

Bellator 301 from Wintrust Arena in Chicago was the final Bellator event to air on the Showtime premium cable network. Earlier that fall, Showtime owner Paramount Global moved to sunset the Showtime Sports brand as the network adjusted its programming strategy toward scripted content.

As far as the fights themselves that autumn night, Jason Jackson defeated Yaroslav Amosov for the Bellator MMA Welterweight Championship in the main event of the evening, while Patchy Mix unified the Bellator MMA Bantamweight Championship with a victory over Sergio Pettis with a second-round submission by way of rear-naked choke.

Bellator would cease to exist in January of 2025.

Top Five Combat Sports Shows of the 2020s So Far: No. 2: UFC 261

With a few exceptions, upon the UFC’s return from the pandemic hiatus, the promotion’s events were held exclusively in Enterprise, NV at the UFC Apex facility. UFC CEO Dana White mentioned that he had no interest in holding shows at traditional arenas during the pandemic where maximum capacity was going to be reduced by order of local authorities.

In April of 2021, the promotion held its first show in a traditional venue with a full-capacity audience in tow since the last weekend before the COVID pandemic hit. Vystar Veterans Memorial Arena, where the rescheduled UFC 249 took place following the pause in action in May of 2020, welcomed a sold-out crowd for UFC 261.

Given that it was the first card with a full gallery of spectators in tow in over a year, the audience was noisy right from the early prelims that evening. The roar of the crowd is the lifeblood for any MMA event, after all, and they got their money’s worth on the main card that spring Saturday night.

All five fights on the pay-per-view ended in stoppages, including all three title fights. Valentina Shevchenko unleashed some elbows in the second round to end her fight versus Jessica Andrade in the first championship contest of the evening at women’s flyweight, while Rose Namajunas delivered a head kick to close things out against Zhang Weili to take the strawweight championship.

The evening was capped by Kamaru Usman defending his UFC Welterweight Championship with a one-punch knockout in round two of his fight versus Jorge Masvidal.

Top Five Combat Sports Shows of the 2020s Thus Far: No. 1: Canelo Alvarez vs. Caleb Plant

For the No. 1 entrant in this countdown, we go to the Sweet Science of Boxing. One of the most dominant fighters in the squared circle this decade is Saul Alvarez, better known by his nickname of Canelo.

Canelo’s status as a household name in the world of combat sports is long-secured. Even during the pandemic, Alvarez was taking fights and winning them on a regular basis. No fight was more important than the one he fought in November of 2021.

Alvarez’s 60th career appearance as a boxer saw him trek to T-Mobile Arena to achieve rarefied air in combat sports. That Saturday night, he fought Caleb Plant with undisputed gold at stake in the super middleweight division for the first time ever.

During the 11th round of an advertised 12, Canelo uncorked a slew of shots to take advantage of an already-stunned Plant after the latter had already been knocked down in the previous round, forcing the referee to wave off the contest.