Miguel Trindade knocking out Chadd Collins was the moment that shattered an entire weight class in kickboxing. With a swift overhand, Portugal’s Trindade caused the collapse of rankings in two organizations thus forcing them into a collaborative Grand Prix.
Knockout of the Year – Miguel Trindade vs. Chadd Collins
Let’s set the stage as to why the knockout was so impactful at the time. Petpanomrung Kiatmuu9 was the long-standing king of the 145 lbs division. He held the title for years across both RISE and GLORY. Largely, the Thai-born fighter had cleared out the division and was making the list as an all-time great. But then, he suddenly loses to Australia’s Chadd Collins.
‘The Shark’ Chadd Collins was a world champion in Muay Thai but largely untested in Kickboxing. He challenged the RISE and GLORY world champion Petch and defeated him over five rounds. It looked like a passing of the torch moment. But then, enter Miguel Trindade.
Miguel Trindade was a decent fighter who had some wins and losses in GLORY and ONE Championship. Coming off a loss to Berjan Peposhi, Trindade next faced the number-one-ranked Collins. It looked like an easy title defense for ‘The Shark.’ But in just 95 seconds, Miguel Trindade changed everything. It was a huge upset. The number one ranked fighter just lost to an unranked athlete and in a very dominant way.
The Portuguese striker dropped Collins three times throughout their short fight thus ending the clear and easy division rankings. Collins, Petch, and Trindade all had wins and losses against one another and a clear top-ranked fighter could not be picked.
RISE and GLORY got together to create a one-night Grand Prix for this weight class featuring the very best of the stacked division. It featured Petch, Collins, Trindade, Peposhi, and others. Petch ultimately won. But Trindade earned another KO win against Chadd Collins, this time even faster at just 1:02.
The powerful striker Miguel Trindade created a massive upset this year that set the stage for one of the best tournaments in kickboxing history. All this, and he’s only 23 years old. This is why Miguel Trindade’s knockout at RISE ELDORADO 2024 against Chadd Collins was the Combat Press Kickboxing Knockout of the Year.
