We're back, with our last three awards before the big FIGHTER OF THE YEAR award is handed out on Monday.

There's a reason these three awards were held until the last day ... because it turns out most Minnesota promoters suck at getting fighters/media videos. And they also aren't so good at nominating fights and fighters for awards.

So, one of the best fights of the year fell out of the running for fight of the year because no video ever was submitted. Same thing with a submission of the year contender. More on those later. But let's jump into these awards ...

FIGHT OF THE YEAR

BRANDON MERKT VS. BILL FRIDAY

(Feb. 26, Showdown at the Sheraton)

This fight was so much fun. I was there in person, and both guys put on a show!

Obviously, a fight like Ashkan Morvari vs. Rich Taylor was in the running for fight of the year, but no video was submitted by the promotion, so it fell out of the running. But it definitely should be noted. It was a championship war that went the distance, with two of the state's best fighters battling it out. Those are the kind of matchups fans dream of.

Anyway, back to the winner ... what a fight, and what a night of fights. All three of the amateur fights on this card went the distance, two of the pro fights went the distance and the fight of the year went into the third round.

Some thought Merkt would run through Friday, but the kid was  game. And a showman. Do yourself a favor and watch the video. Also, here's what I wrote about the fight when it happened:

"Next up was the 125-pound showdown between 7-1 Bill Friday and 9-0 Brandon Merkt, and it is the early leader for fight of the year in 2011.

Merkt and Friday put on a back and forth war that made it into the third round, with everything on the line.

The first round was amazing. Friday's fighting style was awkward. He kept his eyes on Merkt's feet for the entire first round, waiting for Merkt to make his move and then counter-punching.

Merkt, who is an outstanding wrestler and is ranked No. 1 in Minnesota at 135-and-below, wasn't getting the better of the exchanges early in the fight. And it got worse when Friday shot for a single-leg and finished it. On the ground, Friday showed good ground-and-pound.

But Merkt was able to sweep and end up on top briefly. With 10 seconds left, Friday swept and ended up on top.

Minnesota MMA News scored it a close round but 10-9 in Friday's favor.

Merkt turned up the pressure in the second. Both fighters landed power punches early, but Merkt scored a takedown about two minutes into the round. Friday was able to sweep briefly, but Merkt didn't stay on his back long before he was able to sweep.

The fighters went back to their feet late in the round, and Friday landed a huge right that dropped Merkt. But Merkt recovered and seemed to do enough in that final minute to secure the round.

With the fight on the line, Merkt came out in the third and had his best round. He controlled the pace and eventually put Friday on the ground. Merkt quickly worked to pass, and when Friday tried to roll out of the position, Merkt slid around to Friday's back and sunk both hooks in. Merkt worked for the rear-naked choke and got the tap 2:03 into the third."

SUBMISSION OF THE YEAR

CODY PASQUALE

VON FLUE CHOKE

Pasquale pulled off the feat at the Myth on Dec. 3, finishing off John Milledge by von flue choke just 1:13 into the fight.

Pasquale does a nice job setting it up, and Milledge fails to recognize he's in danger. Then it's too late!

There were other submissions also worthy of this honor, but video wasn't provided or they weren't nominated. Again, see below for more details on that.

The video of this submission was only loaded to Facebook, so I can't embed it on the site. Again, next year, we'll only take video that's sent directly to us or to youtube so it can be embedded in the stories.

But here's a link to our Facebook page, where you can see Pasquale's slick choke.

ROUND OF THE YEAR

ASHKAN MORVARI VS. RICH TAYLOR

ROUND 3

Well, video was not provided for this fight. But I didn't want them to be punished too badly, and this fight was worthy of recognition. So, I apologize. But next year, there will be no exceptions. If the promoters/matchmakers can't provide the video in a timely manner, they will be out of the running. Fans deserve to see the winners.

It's been a very frustrating year for the awards. Several promotions turned in no nominations. Others failed to provide videos.

One of my top contenders for fighter of the year was never nominated by his promotion or coaches. No video for a fight I considered a fight of the year contender. Also no video from Justin Rheaume's omoplata down in Austin, which was pretty sweet, and definitely would have been in the running.

The rules for the awards were set, and we put a call out for nomations. And that story was left on the website as the MAIN STORY for two full weeks. So there's no excuse.

Maybe these awards don't mean anything. They're just one man's opinion, truthfully. But I know they're important to some fighters because they've told me just that. So, I hope 2012 will be better.

And I don't want to be yelling at all promoters/matchmakers/trainers ... because a few of you took the time to sit down, round up the video, and type out a lengthy email with your nominations and reasons why they were nominated.

To those who did just that, THANK YOU! It's much appreciated. I'm at most of the fights, but I can't always be there. And even when I am there, it's nice to know that a matchmaker/trainer/promoter also thought it was special fight, submission or KO.

Anyway, enough of that rant.

Ready for fighter of the year yet??