MMAjunkie's 'Fight of the Month' for February: Teammates put on a slugfest

With another action-packed month of MMA in the books, MMAjunkie looks at the best fights from February. Here are the five nominees, listed in chronological order, and the winner of MMAjunkie’s “Fight of the Month” award for February.

At the bottom of the post, let us know if we got it right by voting on your choice.

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The Nominees

Thiago “Marreta” Santos def. Anthony Smith at UFC Fight Night 125

Thiago “Marreta” Santos (17-5 MMA, 9-4 UFC) registered his fourth consecutive win by finishing durable Anthony Smith (28-13 MMA, 4-3 UFC) in a thriller.

The Brazilian middleweight put his thumping kicks on display. Santos’ accuracy was perfect on a fight-ending shot; he landed it directly to Smith’s liver and folded him to the canvas for the TKO victory.

#thiagosantos VS #anthonysmith UFC Fight Night Belem EVENT recap???? . . , #ufcbelem #ufcbrasil #ufcfightnight #fightnight #sports #karate #bjj #knockout #muaythai #legend #gym #taekwondo #martialarts #combat #jiujitsu #ufc #fight #workout #motivation #wrestling #fitness #wwe #boxing #kickboxing #fighting #CHAMP #mma

A post shared by YAHNCH (@mayhem_4_breakfast) on Feb 15, 2018 at 9:08pm PST

Jake Matthews def. Li Jingliang at UFC 221

Despite taking a WWE-level rake of the eyes from Li Jingliang (14-5 MMA, 6-3 UFC) while trying to secure a tight choke, Jake Matthews (12-3 MMA, 6-3 UFC) stayed after it and scored an upset for one of the biggest wins of his career.

Matthews won a unanimous decision over Jingliang with a pair of 30-26 scores and a 29-28 tally. Moreover, the pair each received a $50,000 “Fight of the Night” bonus.

Fight?????? ????Jake Matthews vs Li Jingliang???? ????????? Jake Matthews ???????? ??Song|????:Make Dem ??????????? ??????? ??? ????? ????? ?? ???????? ?????? @jakematthewsufc #ufc221#jakematthews#lukerockhold#yoelromero#ufcaustralia#ufcperth#mma#mixmartialarts#ko#knockout#fight#boxing#bjj#grappling#grappler#brazilianjiujitsu#khabibnurmagomedov#???#???#?????????#????#??????#?????#????#?????????????????#?????????#??????#????????#?????????#china

A post shared by MMA/Crossfit/Boxing/Sport. (@champ_of_fighters) on Feb 12, 2018 at 9:00am PST

Brandon Davis def. Steven Peterson at UFC Fight Night 126

Steven Peterson (16-7 MMA, 0-1 UFC) really had no interest in going away, no matter what Brandon Davis (9-3 MMA, 1-1 UFC) hit him with. And Peterson hit Davis more than a few times, himself.

But it was Davis who did enough to top Peterson, who was a bloody mess by the fight’s end. Davis picked up a unanimous-decision win and earned scores of 30-27, 29-28 and 30-26 for his first UFC victory.

#brandondavis def Steven Peterson UFC Fight Night Austin Texas???? #ufcaustin #ufcfightnight #fightnight #sports #karate #bjj #knockout #muaythai #legend #gym #taekwondo #martialarts #combat #jiujitsu #ufc #fight #workout #motivation #wrestling #fitness #wwe #boxing #kickboxing #fighting #CHAMP #mma

A post shared by YAHNCH (@mayhem_4_breakfast) on Feb 18, 2018 at 7:24pm PST

Jessica Andrade def. Tecia Torres at UFC on FOX 28

In a crucial bout in the women’s 115-pound title picture, Jessica Andrade (18-6 MMA, 9-4 UFC) put herself one step closer to another shot at the strawweight title with a win over Tecia Torres (10-2 MMA, 6-2 UFC).

Andrade won a unanimous decision and may have booked a spot against the winner of the upcoming rematch between current champion Rose Namajunas and ex-champ Joanna Jedrzejczyk. Andrade won with a trio of 30-27 scores.

Alan Jouban def. Ben Saunders at UFC on FOX 28

Alan Jouban (16-6 MMA, 7-4 UFC) desperately wanted to get back on track in the welterweight division – so much so that he was willing to fight a friend in teammate Ben Saunders (21-9-2 MMA, 9-6 UFC).

The warm feelings between the two didn’t stop them from putting on a “Fight of the Night” battle, though. Jouban managed to get the better of Saunders in the striking exchanges before putting “Killa B” down with a second-round knockout courtesy of a leg-kick left-hand combination.

Ben and Me lumping each other up in some “10 on 10 violence!”

A post shared by ALAN JOUBAN (@alanjouban) on Feb 26, 2018 at 12:41pm PST

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The Winner: Alan Jouban vs. Ben Saunders

Jouban and Saunders didn’t want to fight each other, but circumstances dictated it was the move to make for each.

The 10th Planet Jiu-Jitsu teammates (though not in the same locations) and friends turned in a memorable battle before Jouban put Saunders out with a second-round knockout. The end came at the 2:38 mark of the middle frame.

Saunders went to the center and then tried to slip away from a body kick. Seconds later, Jouban landed a solid inside leg kick and then circled outside again. The two tied up 45 seconds into the round and briefly traded knees before breaking apart. Saunders caught Jouban with a right hand 90 seconds in, but Jouban shook his head like it didn’t land. Not long after, Jouban landed – but with a kick too low. Saunders kept going without a break, though, and then landed a few big right hands. Jouban answered with one of his own and kept working the inside leg kicks.

Then he stung Saunders with a left and wobbled him with a knee seconds later. With two minute left, Saunders was on wobbly legs, but recovered. Jouban started putting together combinations with 90 seconds left, and then it was Saunders’ turn to land a low kick. Jouban tried a spinning wheel kick on the restart and then started piecing up Saunders with punches. He knocked down Saunders and then let him back to his feet with 30 seconds left.

Jouban landed a high kick in the first minute on the second and then put Saunders in trouble with punches and knees. But Saunders kept scrapping back and threw elbows and punches of his own. The crowd cheered in a frenzy for the action between the two friends. Both fighters took turns looking wobbled, but they kept trading. Jouban measured elbows that found their marks – but again, Saunders kept firing back.

And when Saunders put his hands down, it was all she wrote. Jouban kicked him to the inside leg, and when Saunders turned to move away, Jouban leveled him with a right hand to put his lights out.