Halfway through 2026 and MMA has seen no shortage of memorable manglings.
Sure, we’ve yet to see a major title fight decided by a submission yet, but what’s great about the mixing of the martial arts is that sometimes you see some of the most amazing finishes happen when you least expect it, and that’s doubly true when it comes to fighters forcing their opponents to tap out.
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Six months into the year, we’ve seen all kinds of submissions from airtight chokes to body-bending holds to classic armbars, so we had plenty of options to choose from when deciding which was the best for our Midyear awards. In the end, we landed on a Dana White Contender Series signing making a debut that will be tough to top, a talented flyweight contender putting an exclamation point on an impressive performance against one of his division’s most dangerous spoilers, and never-before-seen-in-the-UFC leg lock courtesy of a streaking strawweight who’s proving she’s more than just a meme machine.
So let’s look at MMA Fighting’s top-3 submissions of 2026 so far.
No. 1: Murtazali Magomedov vs. Melsik Baghdasaryan (UFC Vegas 119)
You could be forgiven for mistaking Murtazali Magomedov for a striker.
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For many fans, their first introduction to Magomedov came on the Contender Series, where he showed slick hands to put away Brahyam Zurcher and earn a UFC contract. Even his last Octagon League featherweight championship defense came courtesy of a hellacious knockout knee up the middle. Magomedov might be a wrestler, but he certainly doesn’t shy away from throwing hammers on the feet.
However, his UFC debut reminded everyone he has a dangerous submission game. Once Magomedov put Melsik Baghdasaryan on the mat, he didn’t settle for a pedestrian rear-naked choke or hunt for a joint lock; no, that wouldn’t be satisfying enough. Instead, he waited for Baghdasaryan to turn into his body lock, trapping him halfway through, and then twisting him in such a way that his upper half threatened to separate from his lower half.
The official call was Scottish twister and the official result was Magomedov putting the 145-pound division on notice that he is not to be messed with when it comes to grappling.
No. 2: Asu Almabayev vs. Charles Johnson (UFC Baku)
Asu Almabayev is so close to breaking into that elite tier of flyweights and he moved one step closer to cementing a spot with his latest win.
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Kazakhstan’s Almabayev has been a healthy favorite in his past couple of fights, but it’s one thing to look good on paper and another to look good inside the octagon. For two rounds, against flyweight kingmaker Charles Johnson, Almabayev showed off a complete game, especially his superior wrestling.
Up on the cards heading into Round 3, Almabayev could have cruised to a decision win. Why risk giving Johnson even the slightest window for a comeback considering his history of upsets (UFC champion Joshua Van and Lone’er Kavanagh know all too well how dangerous Johnson is) when you’re in control of the cards? With less than two minutes left in the fight, Almabayev took advantage of Johnson attempting to stand up out of back control, snatched Johnson’s leg to break his base, and then utilized a classic Suloev stretch to yank his foot way over his head. Tap or say goodbye to your hamstring.
With just one loss in eight UFC appearances, don’t be surprised if this is the performance that pushes Almabayev towards an eventual title shot.
No. 3: Alice Ardelean vs. Polyana Viana (UFC Vegas 117)
Is Alice Ardelean… good?
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Even the most positive-minded fight fan (me!) had a difficult time reconciling Ardelean being signed to the UFC in 2024. Her two claims to fame were her considerable social media following (millions are subscribed to Ardelean’s socials for her viral reaction face) and having previously lost to Zhang Weili. Her pro record was 9-5. And then she lost to Shauna Bannon and Melissa Martinez. Like, what are we doing?
Then something weird happened. Ardelean stuck to it. She could have settled for using a brief UFC run to further boost her profile, but she actually started winning fights. A Fight of the Night-winning performance against Rayanne dos Santos. Another decision nod over Montserrat Conejo. And then a matchup with Polyana Viana, a struggling veteran, but a woman that knows a thing or too about internet notoriety.
Ardelean made sure both of them went viral again. With Ardelean in top position, Viana countered with a body lock from bottom position, aiming to control Ardelean’s posture. However, what she didn’t know was that Ardelean is terminally online and guess what? That’s a pretty dangerous base for MMA in 2026.
With Viana’s foot tucked between her legs, Ardelean turned body lock defense into leg lock offense and soon it was Viana being forced to signal her submission.
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I don’t know if Ardelean ever becomes a serious contender. I don’t know if she even comes close to cracking the top 15. But she’s already made her mark, becoming the first fighter ever to say that they successfully scored a Capsule Lock submission in a UFC fight.
