There is a faction among combat sports fans who hold one technique above all others. To this modest, elite society, nothing beats the aesthetic of a fighter chopping down their opponent. For those who value the art of the lumberjack above all else, we present the best Leg Kick GIFs and Performances of June 2018.
Much like the Never-Nudes, Leg Kick Fanatics are a niche population.
From Pedro Rizzo to Edson Barboza, low kick masters are consistently the most feared fighters in martial arts. A limping opponent can be rendered helpless as they’re continuously battered.
Yuta Kubo wins his 2016 K-1 World Grand Prix Semi-Final bout with a nasty barrage of low kicks.
UFC commentator Joe Rogan has compared being hit full swing to the impact of a baseball bat. The entire complexion of a fight can be changed from just one kick.
Antoni Hardonk finished that fight with only three low kicks.
Check out the best performances of June 2018 that featured a heavy emphasis on punting the lower limbs. Big shouts to Mike Skytte and Ryan Wagner for contributing candidates, there are thousands of fights every week and no one can keep track on their own.
Lumberjacks: Best Leg Kick GIFs June 2018
FEATURED LUMBERJACK: Brad Katona (TUF)
Many thanks to Mitch Banuelos for this beautiful, groundbreaking artwork.
Brad Katona is the first to earn this prestigious honor.
Winnipeg’s Brad Katona made an impressive run through The Ultimate Fighter: Undefeated‘s stacked featherweight bracket. In both his quarter and semifinal bouts, Katona made use of the low calf kick to stifle his opponents’ game.
vs. Kyler Phillips
Phillips hails from the MMA Lab gym in Glendale, where the low calf kick was made famous by Benson Henderson. That made it all the more impressive when Katona continued to go to the well and break him down.
Brad Katona: Nice guy, mean fighter.
vs. Bryce Mitchell
“Thug Nasty” made a great impression with his quirky, down-home personality, aggressive style, and versatile top game. Coach Daniel Cormier felt Mitchell was the overall second best featherweight in the tournament, in front of Katona and behind Tyler Diamond.
Facing a daunting reach disadvantage, Katona chopped away at Mitchell’s base, hindering his movement and decreasing the efficacy of his wrestling. That may have been the edge he needed to win an ultra-competitive bout.
Katona and Mitchell were teammates on the show. I assume Brad knew these kicks would work, and Mitchell knew they were coming.
Nathaniel Wood vs. Johnny Eduardo (UFC Utica)
On the first of this month, highly touted Cage Warriors prospect Nathaniel Wood made his UFC debut. Against a seasoned striker, the Brad Pickett protege made use of the low calf kick repeatedly to malign Eduardo’s lead leg.
While Eduardo would storm back and threaten Wood, the damage caused Eduardo to make a tactical error, shooting from space. Wood went on to win by D’arce choke.
Nathaniel Wood hinders the movement of veteran striker Johnny Eduardo to swing the momentum of the fight.
Robert Whittaker vs. Yoel Romero (UFC 225)
In their first encounter, Bobby Knuckles was tormented by the low line side kick to the knee. In a strange turn of events, after injuring Whittaker, Romero stopped throwing the kick.
Whittaker and his team picked up that the “oblique kick” family are excellent tools against a fighter who bounds in to attack like Yoel Romero. Bobby got to it early and often in the rematch.
Bobby Knuckles absorbed that technique from Romero in their first fight like Kirby.
Even when he was massively concussed after the third round, Whittaker threw to the legs with dramatic effect.
The kind of kicks that make you say, “Gross.”
Keoni Diggs vs. Andy Varela (LFA 44)
After going 4-0 with four submissions, Hawaii’s Keoni Diggs diversified his resume. Diggs worked almost exclusively with skipping outside low kicks with his lead leg. This was the only MMA leg kick TKO on the list this month.
Keoni Diggs is a dead ringer for Robbie Lawler. What.
Yodbuadaeng vs. Prakaiphet (Battle of Chefbuntham)
After a slow start of trading kicks from range, Yodbuadaeng changed the game by repeatedly slamming his shins home. In the next round, Prakaiphet adjusted with forward pressure, which opened up the nasty knees and boxing game of Yodbuadaeng. He soon finished with a beautiful right hook.
The average human can probably absorb approximately 0.001 of those kicks.
Alan Philpott vs. Gustavo Falciroli (ACB 88)
At ACB 88, two experienced bantamweights had themselves a sloppy little war. Against the relentless pressuring of Falciroli, Alan Philpott was able to stomp with low line side kicks to counter the advance. As Falciroli slowed, Philpott used his flowing punch combinations to set up digging outside low kicks.
Alan Philpott drops Gustavo Falciroli with numerous low kicks.
There wasn’t a large volume of leg kicks from Philpott, but he made each one count.
RISE 125
Big ups to Twitter GIF and aficionado Kyle Johnson for showing #hespect to the king of techniques, he even used the preferred terminology.
https://twitter.com/Maldobabo/status/1008282415247159298
Bobby Voelker vs. Justin DeMoney (Shamrock FC 306)
It was a race against time when two Strikeforce (RIP) veterans met at Shamrock FC. Leaning on a thwacking outside low kick, Bobby Voelker pushed the pace and walked down his rusty opponent. Late in the first round, Justin DeMoney landed his own kicks directly to the knee, gravely injuring Voelker.
Voelker clearly just tries to walk it off.
Voelker’s knee was taking damage, but DeMoney had already gassed badly. Could DeMoney finish off his wounded foe before Voelker broke him with his pressure? No.
If you didn’t catch it, DeMoney taps to strikes.
Li Jingliang vs. Daichi Abe (UFC Singapore)
Daichi Abe must be made of leather. “The Leech” Li Jingliang was in rare form, punting the inside and outside of both Abe’s legs for the full fifteen minutes. While the impact and damaged showed, Abe never stopped his active movement.
In my eyes, The Leech has totally redeemed himself after that Matthews travesty.
Mahachai vs. Markus Kalberg (MX MUAY XTREME)
This was the beginning of May, but it’s our first month with this series and a check finish could not be ignored. In this MX MUAY XTREME bout, Markus Kalberg intended to use a low kick heavy gameplan against his Thai opponent. Mahachai continued to check the power kicks of Kalberg, and eventually, he could take no more.
That’s embarrassing.
Join the Cult
If this content speaks to your soul, there are ways you can contribute. We want to make sure every great leg kicking performance gets its time in the spotlight. Hit us up on Twitter, or in the comments with any noteworthy candidates you may come across!
In the words of Dustin Ortiz, #StayChoppin.
