The World MMA Awards this year saw Brandon Moreno take home three trophies while Trevor Wittman’s Team Elevation also took home multiple honors.
The World MMA Awards this year saw several of the top fighters of the year take home honors with UFC flyweight champion Brandon Moreno and Trevor Wittman’s Team Elevation taking home multiple trophies.
UFC flyweight champion Brandon Moreno, who defends his title this January, was the big winner of the entire evening. “The Assassin Baby” won the award for Fight of the Year for his war with Deiveson Figuiredo last December, the Fighting Spirit Award for his perseverance in winning the title after having previously been cut from the company, and for Breakthrough Fighter of the Year in becoming one of the stars in the sport after an impressive campaign in the last twelve months. Moreno also won over the crowd with his acceptance speech, playfully taking out a fake scroll with the notes of things he wanted to say.
Coach of the Year Trevor Wittman also took home major honors both for himself and his team as his athletes Rose Namajunas and Kamaru Usman took the awards for Female and Male Fighter of the Year. Notably, while Wittman’s team took home the trifecta, the award for Best Team went to American Top Team.
Among the major upsets, Morning Kombat with Luke Thomas and Brian Campbell took the award for Best MMA Programming over Joe Rogan’s MMA Show and ESPN MMA’s DC and Helwani. The biggest snub: Cageside Press which for the fourth year in a row was not nominated for Best MMA News Source despite their unparalleled greatness, an opinion that is certainly not biased in any way, shape, or form by any criteria by this writer.
UFC and Bellator veteran Chael Sonnen returned to host the show for the first time in over ten years and delivered a monologue that no fighter was safe from, most notably taking shots at everyone from Dillon Danis, Colby Covington, and even his former co-host Ariel Helwani. UFC analyst Din Thomas also delivered a memorable skit, impersonating Stephen A. Smith delivering a factually incorrect report on MMA.
The full list of winners is below.
Charles ‘Mask’ Lewis Male Fighter of the Year – Kamaru Usman
Female Fighter of the Year – Rose Namajunas
Breakthrough Fighter of the Year – Brandon Moreno
International Fighter of the Year – Israel Adesanya
Fight of the Year – Deiveson Figueiredo vs. Brandon Moreno I
Knockout of the Year – Joaquin Buckley vs. Impa Kasanganay
Submission of the Year – Khabib Nurmagomedov vs. Justin Gaethje
Comeback of the Year – Charles Oliveira vs. Michael Chandler
Upset of the Year – Adriano Moraes vs. Demetrious Johnson
Shawn Tompkins Coach of the Year – Trevor Wittman
Trainer of the Year – Phil Daru
Gym of the Year – American Top Team
Referee of the Year – Herb Dean
Ringcard Girl of the Year – Brittney Palmer
Leading Man of the Year – Dana White
Best Promotion of the Year – UFC
Personality of the Year – Daniel Cormier
Anaylst of the Year – Michael Bisping
Best MMA Programming – Morning Kombat
MMA Media Source of the Year – ESPN MMA
MMA Journalist of the Year – Ariel Helwani
Fighting Spirit of the Year – Brandon Moreno
Lifetime Achievement Award – Matt Hughes
