Jan Błachowicz (aka “Legendary Polish Power”), born February 24, 1983, is a Polish, mixed martial artist and current UFC Light Heavyweight Champion. He ranks at no.7 in the UFC men’s pound-for-pound placings, holding a record of 28 wins and 8 losses.
Jan is the first male UFC Champion from Poland, joining former champion Joanna Jędrzejczyk who herself was the first ever Pole to capture UFC gold. Błachowicz holds notable wins over Israel Adesanya, Dominick Reyes, Corey Anderson, Luke Rockhold and Ronaldo Souza.
Błachowicz’s fighting style is very well-rounded, being a fast-moving Jiu-Jitsu black belt and also an accomplished fighter with deadly one-punch KO power hence his nickname “Legendary Polish Power”.
This well-rounded style is highlighted in his spread of victories; 8 by KO/TKO, 9 by submission and 11 via decision. Błachowicz has aged rather like a fine wine going 9-1 in his last 10 fights against the UFC’s toughest competition and capturing UFC gold at 37, an age where most fighters are looking to retire.
Błachowicz’s professional MMA career started in 2007, but this journey did not start off so sweetly losing his MMA debut. Despite this, he won the KSW 2007 Light Heavyweight tournament and won the tournament again in 2008 and 2010.
In 2011 “Polish Power” won the KSW Light Heavyweight Championship and defended his title twice prior to getting his debut in the UFC. In 2014 after piling up a record of 17-3, Błachowicz took on Ilir Latifi – winning in under just 2 minutes. However, after this win, Jan lost 4 of his next 5 fights and, after his loss to Patrick Cummins, was on the verge of being cut by the UFC.
Nevertheless, Jan put together a 4-fight win streak, winning 3 Performance of the Night bonuses during this run, but came up short against Thiago Santos. Again, Jan built himself back up with a knockout against Luke Rockhold.
After defeating Corey Anderson in devastating fashion, Jan was on a 3-fight win streak and got a shot at the vacant UFC Light Heavyweight title against Dominick Reyes, in which he captured glory in the second round via TKO.
To date, Jan has defended his title once against Israel Adesanya and looks to take on Glover Teixeira this September 4th. Can the “Legendary Polish Power” put on another outstanding performance? We can’t wait to find out!
Now you’ve got the background on this heavy hitter’s career, let’s take a closer look into champion Jan Blachowicz’s Top 5 MMA Finishes! (in descending order)
5. Vs. Ilir Latifi – UFC FN: 53 (Oct. 4, 2014)
The Polish Power debuted against Ilir Latifi in Stockholm, Sweden, and it didn’t take long for Jan to introduce himself to the UFC fans.
A very cagey opening first minute until 1:15 in, where Latifi launches an attack swinging for the fences, but Jan is able to evade. At 1:45, this time it’s Jan pressing forward as he lands a brutal left kick to Latifi’s body, which clearly hurts.
This impels Jan to press the action and he fires another kick followed by a flurry of punches causing the referee to call a stop to the action at 1:58 of the first round.
So, in just under 2 minutes, Jan had burst onto the UFC scene with major impact showing early signs of what would later make him a champion.
4. Vs. Devin Clark – UFC FN: 118 (Oct. 21, 2017)
Clark comes out firing and blasts in for a takedown pushing Jan against the cage, but Jan is able to reverse the position, however a lack of activity leads to the fighters being separated.
With 1:25 left on the clock, Jan has Clark pressed up to the fence, but Clark lands a huge straight right that stumbles Jan back, however, Polish Power does well to recover.
In round 2, Błachowicz comes out blasting a left kick to Clark’s body which has great effect, the pain plainly visible on Clark’s face.
At 1:25 in, Błachowicz lands a takedown and looks to use his new, black belt skills on the ground, but Clark is eventually able to escape. Clark tries to close the distance but is caught by a swift right hand, but he drops down for a takedown.
Then, Jan grabs across Clark’s neck while standing and uses his Polish Power to squeeze the tap out of Clark from a very obscure angle.
Błachowicz demonstrated why he deserved his newly-earned black belt as he notched up his first UFC submission victory.
3. Vs. Corey Anderson 2 – UFC FN: 167 (Feb. 15, 2020)
After suffering a defeat against Anderson earlier in his career, Błachowicz came out looking for revenge. Anderson however, on a 4-fight win streak and just coming off a victory against up and comer, Johnny Walker, looked confident to repeat history.
In round 1, Anderson comes out on the front foot bobbing and weaving, looking to exhibit the best of the action within the start of the round. However, both fighters show their respect for each other with neither fighter taking too much risk.
At 3 minutes in, Anderson throws a right leg kick, which is countered by an overhand right from Jan knocking Anderson down and out at 3:08 of round 1.
The evolution of Błachowicz is clear to see here, with him avenging his defeat and showing Anderson: “There’s levels to this”.
A first round KO was enough to not only steal a $50,000 Performance of the Night bonus but also a shot at the vacant UFC light heavyweight title.
2. Vs. Luke Rockhold – UFC 239 (July 6, 2019)
With Rockhold’s debut in the UFC’s light heavyweight division, Jan looked to welcome him with a bang!
In round 1, Rockhold immediately comes out aggressively, firing off head kicks, but Jan stays calm and parries the attacks.
At 20 seconds in, Rockhold dives for a takedown but looks to be struggling to get the naturally bigger man, Jan down but he is able to control him for a significant amount of time against the fence.
Błachowicz is able to escape with just under 2 minutes left on the clock and looks to make up for lost time by attacking Rockhold’s base.
As the 10-second clapper sounds, Błachowicz puts together an immense combination with a left hook that shakes Rockhold to his core. He then spins him around for a follow-up head kick (right on the buzzer) which grazes off the side of Rockhold’s head, dropping him as his legs betray him on his way back to his corner.
Despite being rocked at the end of round 1, Rockhold blitzes forward to start round 2 landing a stiff jab but also getting caught with a check left hook.
At 50 seconds in, Rockhold shoots on Jan, pushing him against the cage, looking to find a takedown; however, as Jan disengages from the clinch, he finds Rockhold with his hands.
He unleashes that mighty Polish Power with a looping left hook that lifts Luke off his feet and out, causing the referee to stop the fight at 1:39 of round 2.
Unfortunately for Rockhold, his light heavyweight debut was a bitter one, and it was Błachowicz who conceived, believed and most importantly, ACHIEVED! This impressive KO also earned Błachowicz a $50,000, Performance of the Night bonus.
1. Vs. Dominick Reyes – UFC 253 (Sept. 27, 2020)
After almost defeating Jon Jones at UFC 247, Dominick Reyes seemed to be the uncrowned king of the light heavyweight division and was the majority favourite; however, Jan had other ideas.
Both fighters open up very cagey, recognizing the significance of the moment. Błachowicz starts to find success with the left body kick that leaves a glaring mark on the side of Reyes’s body, and with an overall slow first round, it looks as though these kicks are enough to steal it.
Round 2, similar to the preceding one, was also slow-paced, with neither fighter outputting a high strike volume; however, the tempo increases towards the back end of the round.
With a minute left, a Jan straight right looks to reconfigure Reyes’ nose, and identifying this, he looks to capitalize, landing stiff, straight shots
With 30 seconds left, another right hand with a left hook from Jan buckles Reyes to the floor whereupon he jumps on him to finish the fight with punches for the TKO.
Here, Błachowicz had flipped the script, stopping Reyes in just 2 rounds, becoming the UFC’s Light Heavyweight Champion and earning another well-deserved $50,000 Performance of the Night Bonus.
