Machida proves dangerous

Report by Anthony Springer Jr
Photos by Chris Cozzone

UFC 94 may not go down in history for being the most exciting MMA card in recent memory (an honor this writer believes goes to UFC 91 or 92), but it was the day that fans got to see two rising stars put on big performances.

After suffering relentless criticism by fans on the Internet, UFC 94 saw undefeated Lyoto “The Dragon” Machida come into his own. To be fair, some of the skeptics made valid points; despite an undefeated record, eight of the Karate fighter’s victories went the distance. Last night, the critics were silenced as Machida made previously undefeated American Top Team fighter Thiago Silva look like an amateur, knocking out the fellow Brazilian at the end of the first round.

The 14-0 Machida revealed that his daily routine changed in the lead up to the fight.

“I changed up a lot in my training,” he said via translator and manager Ed Soares. “I’ve gotten a nutritionist and I’ve trained a lot with my brothers and my father helped a lot.”

UFC president Dana White also addressed Machida’s detractors, and compared the rising “Dragon” to several of the Octagon’s all time greats. “The thing I said about this kid since the first time I ever saw him is if when you think back to Matt Hughes, Randy Couture, Chuck Liddell and any of the guys who have been the big stars here the past 10 years, they weren’t barn-burners when they first came into the UFC.

“It wasn’t like highlight reels and excitement. What happens is guys get in the UFC. It takes them a little while. They have to feel like this is their home. They have to start to get the feel for it, get some fights under their belt, and I said when Lyoto gets that, he’s going to be very dangerous.”

Dangerous may be an understatement as Machida has never been in any danger of losing a fight during his tenure with the UFC. Those looking to see Machida get the next title shot will have to wait a little longer. White indicated that Quinton “Rampage” Jackson will move to the front of the line if he defeats “The Dean of Mean” Keith Jardine at UFC 96 in March. However, White also stated that Machida is more than likely due for a crack at the crown by year’s end.

If last night is any indication, the fighter formerly known for notoriously going to decision is transitioning to a fighter that will be known for highlight reel finishes.

“Every time I come out I try to get better and better and try to improve and try to finish fights,” Machida said. “It makes me feel good to go out and do the kind of job that I did and the fans are cheering for me. It’s my goal to please my fans.”

Jones

With the world looking on, Jon “Bones” Jones put the UFC light heavyweight division on notice. The 21-year-old turn pro nine months ago and put on a dominating fight of the night performance against Ultimate Fighter runner up Stephan Bonnar.

The former wrestler preferred to do most of his talking in the Octagon and seemed shy in front of the lights, cameras and questions from the press. Still, in an era where mixed martial arts is unfairly labeled a sport of barbarians, classy guys like Jones will surely help it break through to mainstream acceptance.

“I’m just staying focused,” Jones humbly said. “I know that the 205 division is one of the toughest in the UFC. Me and my fiancée just moved out to the woods, away from my hometown. I’m just out there with god and reality.” I put several years in [with wrestling] and now it’s starting to pay off.”

Paying off is an understatement. Jones wowed the crowd with a suplex, a spinning elbow, superior speed, and striking against an overmatched Stephan Bonnar. For Jones, fighting on one of the biggest fight cards in history was just another day at the office.

“I do this for my family and I do this to be a provider,” Jones, who made his pro debut in April stated. “With the UFC, I know you have to win to stay in and I believe that every man puts his pants on in the morning exactly the same. I knew I was a huge underdog, but I went in there with a mission and I had to get the job done.”

With the win, Jones exposed a gaping hole in Bonnar’s game—a lack of knockout power.

“In the clinch, he threw a couple of uppercuts that stunned me, but I don’t think he has much knockout power and not much sting on his punches. No disrespect towards him, but I don’t think I got rocked.”

With a dedication to fighting that belies his age, the light heavyweight division is officially on notice—Jon “Bones” Jones is a force to be reckoned with.

Way too long past UFC 92 to write masses about it, so will just comment briefly. The big three fights of the night didn’t disappoint, obviously the big story was Rashad Evans defeating Forrest Griffin to win the light-heavyweight title, which came as a bit of a surprise given how the fight was going (had Griffin up 20-18 before the third round stoppage), but not majorly as most informed viewers recognised that it was an evenly-matched fight. It’ll be interesting to see how Evans does in his first defence, and I’m not sure who a good opponent would be. It’d be nice to see Machida not continually get jobbed but I really wouldn’t be surprised to see the winner of Rampage/Jardine get the shot, although that’ll be a way off. Elsewhere, Frank Mir shocked everyone by defeating a horribly out of sorts Nog to set up a rematch against Brock Lesnar which more or less sells itself, although I’m not sure that Mir can actually win a second time, Lesnar should have learned enough by then (if not already) to avoid cheap submissions. Rampage also knocked out Silva in somewhat of a grudge match, fairly entertaining unlike the rest of the card, although the quick finishes allowed some of the decent undercard to get promoted.

As for Affliction, it was another all-round decent card, although they still need to work on their production (although the comms, including Tito who was useful enough, were good, the backstage guys were morons who should be fired). Lauzon-Green was all-action although marred by frequent groin strikes, preventing any real rhythm to develop in the fight. Paul Buentello laid the smackdown on Kirill Sidelnikov, who would have lost a decision very comfortably (easily 30-27, not sure you can argue any round 10-8, maybe the last?) were it not stopped late in the third. Sokoudjou really needs to work on either his gastank, his fight planning, or both, as he looked to use up most of what he had against Babalu Sobral in the first (which, imo, he edged), but offered little in the second, eventually tapping to a choke. Maybe he’s just one of those that needs to finish a fight early, at least he has time on his side but there’s a lack of obvious fights outside the UFC apart from perhaps little Nog/Matyushenko from the undercard to this. Belfort’s quick KO of Lindland was brutal and a bit of a surprise, definitely one to catch if you’ve just watched the main event and that’s it. Barnett-Yvel was a mismatch, notable only for Yvel’s ability to defend from submissions and absorb a lot of punishment before eventually tapping in the third, and Barnett’s inability to finish the thing, instead just being content to work dominant ground positions (had the first 10-8 to him) and not really look to finish a clearly inferior opponent after the first round. Fedor-Arlovski was a weird one, Andrei looking to be a bit better in striking exchanges before oddly going in for a flying knee and being hit with a one-punch KO.

With Zuffa looking for any reason to chop fighters, and other organisations looking less than secure if not folded already, there’s enough talent out there for them to be able to put on a third card, whether they will isn’t something I’ll believe until I actually see it.

Will slot in a couple of beers from the Christmas period:

108 – A. Le Coq Viru (5.0%) – 6.5, distinctive slanted octahedral bottle. Rather light, malty but lacking as full a flavour as you might expect from this strength of beer.

109 – Okocim Jasne Pehe (5.5%) – 7, may have the style typoed or incorrect, slightly cloudy, crisp flavour, solid but not spectacular, typical Polish beer.

And from the festival itself, which had a nice setup, two largish rooms on different levels was a bit annoying but probably necessary, reasonably priced, food queues too long though.

110 – Sharps Doom Bar (4.0%) – 7, a standard, well balanced bitter.

111 – Sarah Hughes Ruby Mild (6.0%) – 9, very dark, fruity and well balanced.

112 – Nethergate Priory Mild (3.5%) – 6, dark, heavy, smoky, overpowering.

113 – Bryncelyn Holly Hop (3.9%) – 6.5, noticable initial sourness, gives way to solid, light hoppiness.

114 – Hesket Newmarket Old Carrock (6.0%) – 7, sharpish bitter taste, bit malty, becomes slightly sweet later.

115 – Wells & Youngs Winter Warmer (5.0%) – 7, slightly sweet and a bit nutty.

116 – Kelham Island Pride of Sheffield (4.0%) – 6.5, very light, very hoppy.

117 – Beartown Black Bear (5.0%) – 8, fruity and heavy, very dark.

118 – Spire Darkside of the Moon (4.3%) – 6.5, deep, smokyish but subtle.

119 – JW Lees John Willies (4.5%) – 6, ok but a bit bland and watery.

And some other randoms from out and about:

120 – Naylor’s On Target (3.7%) – 7, decent bitter but unremarkable.

121 – 1648 Triple Champion (4.0%) – 6.5, smooth, full, balanced, average.

122 – Wye Valley Butty Back (4.5%) – 6, light and hoppy, but too sour and thin to really recommend it.

123 – Purity Mad Goose (4.2%) – 7, slightly hoppy but otherwise very well balanced.

124 – St Austell Tribute (4.2%) – 6.5, little bit malty but otherwise decent if unimaginative.

And up to date finally. Just in time for GSP/Penn 2

Marcus (The Irish Hand Grenade) Davis VS Chris (Lights Out) Lytle

Lytle went to town on Davis in the 2nd round early. And pretty much controlled the second round keeping Davis out of reach. Davis landed some good body shots but was bleeding from his nose by the end of the round. The 3rd Round both fighters were a bit hesitant in their combos. Davis was able to land some good very good kicks to the midsection. Lytle’s left eye saw significant damage as you could easily it was swollen. In the last 60 seconds of the fight you saw both fighters go toe to toe and land some decent shots but nobody really controlled the round. Read More —>

Welterweights
Marcus Davis def. Chris Lytle via split decision

Alan Belcher vs. Denis Kang

1st Round… Kang landed some rights early, then mixed it up with some lefts. Got a takedown early, they kept it on the ground for a minute Kang was able to land a couple punches but didn’t do much damage. Back to the ground again with Kang on top landing some lefts but still doing very little damage. Belcher struggling early to do anything. Not much happening in the first… Round goes to Kang.

2nd round… not alot happening. Kang and Belcher exchanging punches. Kang’s got belcher on the ground again. Very boring round, Kang is keeping it on the ground neither fight doing very much. Kang still controlling the fight landing a few punches. Minute left in the round. Belcher is looking strong despite Kang controlling the fight on the ground and landing some punches. Wow Belcher counters Kang on a takedown and finishes Kang with guillotine choke!!!

Middleweights
Alan Belcher def. Denis Kang via submission (guillotine choke) – R2 (4:36)

Jeremy Horn VS Rousimar Palhares

1st Round… Horn on the ground early and Palhares is just pounding away at him, Horn having alot of trouble on the ground with Palhares on top of him. Horn is taking alot of Rights wow. Horns been on the ground for a good 2 minutes now with Palhares on top. Still giving Horn left and rights, Horn is just covering up. Palhares has Horn in a Knee bar. LOL Palhares took that round… On top of Horn for a good 4 minutes.
2nd Round…Horn gets slammed to the ground 20 seconds into the round. Palhares is just teeing off on Horn. Same as the first round. This could be over very soon. Horn is on top of Palhares finally. Horn still on top getting a couple shots in. Now both fighters are back on their feet. Palhares misses on a spinkick. Both fighters going toe to toe neither of them are landing much right now. Palhares with a serious takedown and theres 1 minute left in the round. bOth fighters look gassed. 2nd round comes to an end.
3rd round starts… Palhares slams Horn down HOLY CRAP. Very unorthodox fight. Horn with a nice elbow to Palharas back. Neither fighter doing much as they are tied up on the ground. 2:30 MARK of the 3rd round. Palhares is on top of Horns back. Now on their feet. Back to the ground lol. Not much punches landing. Minute left… Horn looks sluggish, trying to land some punches. Nothing doing. Almost lands a kick, and its back to the ground. and the fight ends. Looks like a Palharas win.

Middleweights
Rousimar Palhares def. Jeremy Horn via unanimous decision

Mark Coleman vs. Mauricio (Shogun) Rua

Coleman corners rua right off the bat and gets some nice shots in. Both fighters on the ground, Rua gets a nice knee in. Both fighters landing some good punches. Rua back on the ground, and Coleman gets a nice kick in. Rua takes Coleman down and their grappling on the ground again. Shogun is on top of coleman and landing some lefts to Colemans FACE. Not much going on now as their up against the side of the octagon. Coleman looks like hes out of breath. Rua with a nice legkick. and a nice left! wow another left and some knees. Back to the ground with Rua on top, Coleman is having some trouble. 1 minute left in the round. Rua with a right to the back of the head and Coleman falls SLOWLY to the ground. Rua with some Elbows to the back. Coleman landing some punches but gets knee’d again wow. And thats the end of round 1.
2nd Round… Coleman looks tired before the round even starts. Rua in control of things. Misses a legkick. Coleman with a big takedown. Not much doing on the ground. Back on their feet. Rua’s legs are active. Rua misses a right and Coleman lands a nice jab. Whoa Rura landing some nice punches. And now a knee. Damn this is nice. 2 minutes left in the round . Coleman takes Rua down and hes on top landing some punches. Rua’s got Colemans shoulder locked with his leg. Not looking good for Coleman. Still in the shoulder lock. 20 seconds left. Rogan is extremely annoying right now with his commentary. And Coleman is saved by the bell.
3rd Round… Rogan mentions Coleman looking very tired. and they exchange some punches. Rua landing some elbows now, Coleman now on top landing some shots to the ribs. Rua looks to be in trouble. Coleman still on top struggling for position. Landing BIG RIGHTS! Rua has coleman in a bad position now. 2 minutes left. Coleman on top of Rua controlling things. Landing more Rights. Rua is in an akward position still… Having trouble protecting his head. Coleman has opened Rua up. Back to their feet now.. Ref interrupted them. 40 SECONDS left. They both look gassed. Exchanging punches. Rua with OMG 3 4 5 big rights and thats it! wow Coleman just got destroyed.

Light Heavyweights
Mauricio “Shogun” Rua def. Mark Coleman via TKO (punches) – R3 (4:36)

Dan Henderson VS Rich Franklin

The fight we’ve all been waiting for.
Round 3… Franklin getting some kicks in. And Franklin throws Henderson down. but their both on their feet quickly. And now Henderson throws franklin down. On top of Franklin but not landing any punches. Franklin is up against the cage with landing some punches on Henderson. Now Franklin is on top and landing some punches to the back of Hendersons head. Both get up to their feet. Looking tired and up against the cage. Franklin gets a knee in. 2:30 LEFT… some dancing… Henderson misses a kick. Franklin gets a couple weak rights in. And a nice bodykick. Both fighters looking strong. 1 min left. Franklin landing a couple combos. A nice bodykick. Wow Henderson slips on a huge kick. Franklin fails to take advantage. and now.. whoa Franklin goes down after Henderson gets his finger RIGHT into Franklins right eye. That looks terrible. Franklin having trouble as the ref gives him a couple minutes to rest. His eye looks bad. But the fight is back on NOW. 30 seconds. Both fighters dancing. Franklin looking for an oppurtunity. neither fighter doing anything. 10 seconds… still dancing. Franking lands a couple punches. and BOOM goes the DYNAMITE… thats all she wrote.

Light Heavyweights
Dan Henderson def. Rich Franklin via split decision

UFC 93 has come and gone, and I gotta say it was a rather entertaing event. More so than the extremely overhyped UFC 92. This event had a couple of good bangers. I have to say that I truely enjoyed the Lytle fight, Henderson fight, and Shogun’s fight, and even Palhares’ dominating fight. Tough luck for Franklin I thought he did a pretty good job against Henderson but he just didn’t do enough to win the fight.

These are also late, but even more then boxing these had to be left until the new year so all the events could be done and everything taken into consideration. As it turns out, a few of the last few events of the year won some awards.

Fight of the Year- Eddie Alvarez TKO 1 (7:35) Tatsuya Kawajiri (DREAM.5)
This fight took place in the semi finals of the DREAM Lightweight Grand Prix and a cut suffered by Alvarez in winning this fight left him unable to continue in the tournament marking the way for alternate Joachim Hansen, the man Alvarez beat in the Quarter Finals, to fight in and win the Final against Shinya Aoki. Both fighters traded heavy shots on their feet throughout the fight and both fighters were knocked down. Alvarez dropped Kawajiri with a left hook-right cross about three minutes in but he used good survival skills to get himself out of trouble. After the doctors ruled Alvarez’s cut was okay to continue, Kawajiri dropped him heavily with a right hand and then passed his guard and mounted him. Alvarez escaped the mount and got back to his feet where both guys traded heavy shots and hurt each other more then once. Alvarez then pinned Kawajiri against the ropes and dropped him again, took his back and finished him with heavy strikes to the head. I picked this fight over some of the other ones on the list because it was fast paced for the full distance of the fight unlike some of the other candidates this year and because the whole way through the fight you had no idea who was going to win. If you haven’t seen the fight, here it is:

Honourable Mentions- Miguel Torres TKO3 Yoshiro Maeda (WEC 34), Forrest Griffin UD5 Rampage Jackson (UFC 86), Eddie Alvarez UD (15 mins) Joachim Hansen (DREAM.3).

Fighter of the Year- Gegard Mousasi
This might come as a strange pick to some people, but the big factor in this pick was that he went 6-0 this year (plus his victory under K-1 rules against MUSASHI) and four of those wins were against decent opposition in winning the DREAM Middleweight Tournament. After winning two fights early in the year (one over PRIDE veteran Evangelista Cyborg), Mousasi entered the Grand Prix as one of the dark horses. Matched up against PRIDE 2006 Welterweight Grand Prix Runner-up Denis Kang in the first round of the tournament, Mousasi’s triangle choke victory came as a big upset to most people. A workman-like decision win over Dong Sik Yoon in the Quarter Finals earned him his spot in the Final Event where he had to face Melvin Manhoef in the Semi Finals, and then fight again on the same night to win the title. Most were expecting a Manhoef-Ronaldo Jacare final, but Mousasi had other ideas, scoring a victory again via triangle choke in 88 seconds over the feared striker. Facing Brazilian Jiu Jitsu expert Jacare in the Final, Mousasi ended up on his back early, but at the 2:15 mark of the first round a dramatic upkick followed up by punches with Jacare in his guard left his Brazilian opponent unconscious and made Gegard Mousasi the new DREAM Middleweight Champion. Some of the other fighters (particularily in the UFC) scored bigger wins this year, but all of them fought only twice this year and you can question the level of some of their wins. While some of Mousasi’s opponents certainly wouldn’t make it in the UFC, going 6-0 against that sort of competition is very impressive stuff. I definately don’t think he’d beat Anderson Silva or anything like that so save your time from writing some idiotic comment saying Silva would crush him or whatever because that’s not what this is about. It’s about which fighter accomplished the most in the calendar year and it was in my opinion Gegard Mousasi.
Honourable Mentions- Frank Mir, Rashad Evans, Georges St Pierre.

Knockout of the Year- Rampage Jackson KO1 (left hook) Wanderlei Silva (UFC 92)
This knockout just edged out Rashad Evans knocking out Chuck Liddell. I almost made it a tie, but then I measured my closet and realised I wasn’t big enough to fit into it so I could come out of it after making it a tie and acted like a man and made the pick. I think the deciding factor was the importance of the knockout for Rampage in this fight after avenging two brutal KO losses to Silva from their PRIDE days with an equally if not more devastating KO win himself. I would put a clip of the KO up, but ZUFFA are pricks about this sort of thing and don’t allow any of their fights to be on youtube so I’ll have to describe it. Wanderlei attacked Rampage while he was near the fence and threw a left hook-right hook combo. Rampage countered the left hook with a tighter one of his own and caught Wanderlei square on the jaw with his own hook putting him out cold right away while he was in the middle of throwing his own shot. Rampage then followed it up with two or three shots while Wanderlei was out. Both Rampage and Rashad will likely fight for the belt later this year and hopefully we’ll see another KO of the year candidate (and hopefully it’s Rashad who is on the receiving end).
Honourable Mentions- Rashad Evans KO2 (overhand right) Chuck Liddell (UFC 88), Wanderlei Silva KO1 (rape choke + right hands from mount) Keith Jardine (UFC 84), Anthony Johnson KO3 (left high kick) Kevin Burns (TUF8 Finale).

Submission of the Year- Shinya Aoki Sub1 (5:12)(Aokiplata/Gogoplata from mount) Katsuhiko Nagata (DREAM.4)
I watched this about 50 times in a row after I saw it. It was so cool it has to be given it’s own name and I will from now on refer to this as the Aokiplata no matter how much my friend who has done Jiu Jitsu longer then me tells me that the gogoplata was originally done from the mount before the guard and that the one he did on Hansen should therefore be the Aokiplata because I think he’s wrong. Anyway, unlike KO of the year, I have a clip, so I’ll shut up and you can enjoy:

Honourable Mentions- Dustin Hazelett Sub2 (Flying Armbar from Whizzer) Josh Burkman (TUF7 Finale), Dustin Hazelett Sub1 (Cutting Armbar against his own leg) Tamdan McCrory, Demian Maia Sub2 (Triangle Choke from Mount + Punches) Ed Herman (UFC 83).

Event of the Year- UFC 92: The Ultimate 2008 (December 27th)

The UFC stacked their last show and it proved to be the best event of the year. On the card we had two title fights between Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira and Frank Mir for the UFC interim Heavyweight title and Rashad Evans challenging Forrest Griffin for the UFC Light Heavyweight title in the main event. Also on the card was a fight featuring one of the best grudges in MMA between Rampage Jackson and Wanderlei Silva; one that has been around for more then five years since before their first bout at PRIDE Final Conflict 2003. Thw two other fights that filled up the main card saw an excellent knockout by Cheick Kongo over Mustafa Al Turk as well as a great Middleweight battle between CB Dollaway and Mike Massenzio. The UFC put six of it’s top starts against each other in fights that had plenty of impact on their respective divisions as well as plenty of impact in future fights that can be made. This card had great matchups that turned into great fights, upsets plus some great finishes and you really can’t ask for anything more (other then the odd submission).
Honourable Mentions- Affliction: Banned, UFC 81: Breaking Point, UFC 84: Ill Will.

Performance of the Year- Fedor Emelianenko Sub1 (36 seconds) Tim Sylvia (Affliction: Banned)
There was a lot of hype around Fedor’s return to US soil and him fighting his (apparent) first ‘real’ opponent in former Heavyweight Champion Tim Sylvia. Plenty of people thought that Fedor was all hype and no skill and the new promotion he represented, Affliction, depended on him to prove them wrong in order to succeed. That he did. After a brief feeling out process off about 10 seconds, Fedor dropped Sylvia with a series of big punches, battered him on the ground with even heavier punches, took his back and made him tap with a rear naked choke. It was easily the most you could dominate someone in just 36 seconds. Anyone who wasn’t impressed by Fedor in this fight is an idiot and I really don’t care what anyone has to say about it. Fact of the matter is he’s the best Heavyweight in the World until someone beats him. Guess what, I found a clip of it as well:

Honourable Mentions- Anderson Silva Sub2 Dan Henderson (UFC 81), Frank Mir TKO2 Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira (UFC 92), Georges St Pierre TKO2 Matt Serra (UFC 83).

Upset of the Year- Mike Brown TKO1 Urijah Faber (WEC 36)
Faber was easily the top Featherweight in the World and was considered miles ahead of anyone else. He was a top pound for pound fighter as well and no one expected him to lose anytime soon. Mike Brown was a former UFC competitor (he had one fight and got tapped out by Genki Sudo) who had only lost to top fighters and usually fought at Lightweight. While a respectable fighter no one really thought he standed much of a chance with Faber. Two minutes 23 seconds later he had caught Faber with a big right hand as Faber attempted a spinning elbow and rained down punches until the referee pulled him off. I didn’t even bother watching this fight until I saw the result (plus I would have had a hard time finding it online because they broadcast fuckall down under in terms of MMA) because I thought this would be business as usual for Faber. None of the other upsets this year come close to that one.

Honourable Mentions- Junior dos Santos KO1 Fabricio Werdum (UFC 90), Rashad Evans KO2 (UFC 88), Frank Mir TKO2 Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira (UFC 92).

Before I get onto some of the lesser more comical awards, I’m going to explain my lack of a round of the year award. I prefer the Japanese 1 10 min/1-2 5 min rounds because I think MMA is a sport that doesn’t need rounds. It’s a proper fight and while I don’t care about having rounds as much as I care about say stand-ups and while I understand that they allow more fights to get sanctioned and make some fights more exciting, I still prefer the fighters to go for as long as they can for a round or two then a couple of shorter rounds at the end so I will not include a round of the year. If I did have one I’d give it to Alvarez-Kawajiri because it ended in the first round even though that round was 10 minutes long.

Now, seeing how MMA isn’t as old as boxing, these are all going to be completely new and made up awards named after whoever wins them as I go remembering some of the funnier moments of the year.

Shonie Carter Award for Best Referee Stoppage/- Shonie Carter (Tyler Bryan vs Shaun Parker)
Bryan/Parker Award for Double KO of the Year- Tyler Bryan vs Shaun Parker
And here it is:

Just a prior warning, the next few awards go to EliteXC for their ‘Heat’ show, so make sure you have a bucket handy.

Shamrock/Kimbo Award for Most Entertaining Weigh-in of the Year- EliteXC: Heat
This weigh-in had two big feuds that almost flared up as well as some nudity from someone not quite as ugly as Kimbo Slice. Undercard attraction and probably the most well known female MMA fighter Gina Carano failed to make weight for like the 4th time in her MMA career but instead of letting it go like what has happened in the past, EliteXC officials made her strip all the way to see if the limited clothing she was wearing accounted for extra weight that she was over. Somehow it did. About four towels covered Carano (and from what I read on a few message boards the wet dreams of many fight fans) that were being held up by her handlers and a very embarrassed Carano made the contracted weight for her fight with Kelly Kobald. After the Arlovski-Nelson weigh in went off without any problems, EliteEX Welterweight Championship competitors Paul Daley and Jake Shields had to be seperated after Shields blew Daley a kiss during the staredown. The main event for this fight was between UFC Hall of Famer Ken Shamrock and Youtube star Kimbo Slice (well at that stage it was) and going with his usual style, Shamrock decided to start some shit before the fight. While posing for the media in attention, Shamrock for absolutely no logical reason (Shamrock thinking he’s been disrespected isn’t a logical reason) pushed Slice in the back and caused the second near brawl of the weigh-in. This one took a lot longer to calm down though as both fighters had bigger entourages then Daley and Shields. Unfortunately, the actual card was no where near as entertaining as the weigh-in.

Jared Shaw Award for Worst Matchmaking of the Year- Kimbo Slice vs Seth Petruzelli (EliteXC: Heat)
Kimbo Slice Award for Most Pathetic Knockout of the Year- Seth Petruzelli KO1 (14 seconds) Kimbo Slice (EliteXC: Heat)
Ken Shamrock somehow got himself cut warming-up for the fight and EliteXC needed someone to step in and fight Kimbo Slice in their main event. After an offer from commentator Frank Shamrock was turned down because Shamrock, despite being 50lbs lighter then Kimbo, has some serious skills and would likely have beaten Kimbo anywhere the fight went and EliteXC couldn’t risk their main drawcard getting beaten by a Middleweight. Instead Jared Shaw came up with former TUF2 competitor Seth Petruzelli who was fighting in a Light Heavyweight bout on the preliminary card. Petruzelli was an unorthodox but fairly handy striker who also had some wrestling ability and Shaw tried to make sure it was his striking skills that he would be using against their apparent ‘top 10 Heavyweight boxer in the World’ by asking that Petruzelli stand with Kimbo. What Shaw didn’t know is that there is a difference in levels of striking between your good street fighters and your trained fighters. It took only 14 seconds for him to be wishing that he picked Frank Shamrock. Kimbo rushed across the cage in his usual fashion and backed Petruzelli against the fence. Petruzelli flicked out a jab while off balance and to his and everyone else’s surprised it dropped Kimbo onto all fours. Petruzelli pounced and landed several shots while on Kimbos back, then rolled him over and landed a barrage from, side control that forced the referee to stop the fight at just 0:14 of the first round.

Bob Sapp Award for Biggest Mismatch of the Year- Jan Nortje vs Bob Sapp (Strikeforce: At the Dome)
Some people might be surprised that I picked this fight over the Kinniku Mantaro fight against Sapp at the end of the year. Well the answer is obvious, that fight was competitive, this fight wasn’t. Jan Nortje was receiving a lot of hype for his 1-5 record that earned him a spot in the Strikeforce main event. They brought in monster of a man Bob Sapp to fight him because that wanted to see what happens when Nortje picks on someone his own size. The fight ended quickly after Nortje landed several hard blows that forced Sapp to run away, then chased him down and finished the job 55 seconds into the first round. It truly was a mismatch and the matchmakers at Strikeforce deserve an enquiry much more then EliteXC officials for bringing in someone as poor as Bob Sapp to fight a stud like Jan Nortje.

YAMMA Award for Worst MMA Show of the Year (maybe ever)- YAMMA Pit Fighting
Seriously this was just horrendous. The creators of the UFC tried to bring back eight man-one night tournaments and make MMA ‘more exciting.’ The tournaments were impossible to do like they used to be done, so they had to compromise. Because fighters could only fight five rounds a night, the first and second rounds of the tournament would be one round of fighting each with the Final fight being three rounds. YAMMA also had a ‘revolutionary’ new fighting surface in which the area of the mat around the edge of the fence would go up on an angle so that the wrestlers couldn’t just pin you up against the cage and drop elbows on your head. Basically YAMMA wanted their organisation to be striker friendly. Instead, the wrestlers backed their opponents onto the ‘ramp’ then took them down with ease because they were off balance and because the fights were only one five minute round, the fight was over right there and then. The tournament consisted of every match being won by lay and prey (including the three round final). The only slightly entertaining part of this event was the super fights between Butterbean and Patrick Smith (mainly because Butterbean got royally fucked up) and Oleg Taktarov vs the man who ate Mark Kerr (Taktarov won by kneebar about one minute in). The event was bad from the fights to the Ring Announcer, who was so bad I’ve named an Award after him.

Scott Ferrall Award for Worst Ring Announcer of the Year- Scott Ferrall (YAMMA Pit Fighting)
Scott Ferrall was funny but I wasn’t laughing with him. The guy was way too weird to be allowed to have his thoughts expressed on a microphone. He first announced referee Dan Miragliotta as “Big Dan Miragliotta STOMP YOU OUT!” and then “Big Dan the Man, How can I be the man if you’re the man, Dan Miragliotta (to which Dan shook his head in disgust).  Pulled off a terribly lame call in “Travis ‘The Diesel’ Gimme a room with a Wiuff.” One fighter he said “hadn’t eaten in a week because he’s going to the electric chair.” Referred to the YAMMA Championship belt as ‘the strap-on’ and probably the weirdest call he made was “Kevin Mulhall will be the referee for this beautiful matchup of warriors and freaks ready to pound and dance…”

Gone but not Forgotten
It’s sad that I have to do one of these for MMA. Boxing has been around for over 100 years and past champions are going to pass away each year and I feel it’s important to remember them. MMA on the other hand has been around for just 15 years and this year my favourite fighter, Evan Tanner, passed away way earlier then he should have.

Evan Tanner- Former UFC Middleweight Champion. Challenged Tito Ortiz for the UFC Light Heavyweight Title at UFC 30 but lost. Defeated Dave Terrell for the UFC Middleweight title at UFC 51 and won with strikes in the first round. Lost the title to Rich Franklin on a doctors stoppage in his first defence at UFC 53. None of this was why I liked Evan Tanner. He kept a blog on his website which I read for over a year about everything that went on in his life, including all his adventures and even his battle with alcohol which he beat in order to return to the UFC this year. I admired not so much the way the man led his life but the way he was completely honest with himself about who he was and who he wasn’t. He died in September of this year from heat exposure after his motorbike broke down in the desert and he ran out of water. He was 37.

Evan Tanner (1971-2008)

Anyone who saw UFC 92 knows that it was a night of unexpected knock outs, with Rampage surprising Wandy and Mir upsetting Big Nog.

However, one of the biggest knockouts of the night was the new ring girl, Logan Stanton. While being accused of skinnyness, she’s still flippin’ hot and I definitely would.

OWWWIEEEEEEE

Additional photos can be found here

Author: Warren Piece aka Glass Joe

You’re welcome. Also, do us both a favor and checkout my 2 most recent articles (“Mir vs Lesnar 2 or This is What Happens When Bad Meets Evil” and “TWOTHOUSANDNINE“) at mmaratings.net…and RATE THEM! Thanks all.

Mike Whitehead says some interesting stuff concerning some UFC fighters and talks about the UFC wanting to monopolize MMA.

Take a look at our new UFC 92 page and see who was wearing what.

UFC 92 Fighter Salaries

UFC 92 videos

Forrest Griffin vs Rashad Evans

Quinton Jackson vs Wanderlei Silva

Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira vs Frank Mir

Cheick Kongo vs Mustafa Al-Turk

CB Dollaway vs Mike Massenzio

Matt Hamill vs Reese Andy

Antoni Hardonk vs Mike Wessel

Evans pounds out Griffin in three
In what was the best fight of the night, undefeated winner of season two of The Ultimate Fighter Rashad Evans won the UFC Light Heavyweight Championship with a third round technical knockout over Season one winner Forrest Griffin. The win marks the third man to hold the Light Heavyweight belt this year, with Griffin taking it from Quinton ‘Rampage’ Jackson at UFC 86 before losing it in his first defence yesterday.
Both fighters started the first round of the fight slowly with Griffin landing more shots compared to Evans solid but infrequent bombs. The second round saw some furious exchanges with both guys looking hurt at different points in the fight. Evans ate a left hook early in the round which prompted Griffin to open up and chase Evans across the Octagon raining down blows. Evans retaliated by tauning Griffin then countering with a left hook. Later in the round Evans landed a series of bombs on Griffin that looked like they hurt the champion but Griffin fired back. Griffin landed heavily with a right hand at the end of the round which cemented the round for him on my card.
In the third round the fight finally hit the deck after Griffin slipped and Evans was quick to pounce, landing some hard shots from inside the champions guard. Griffin entually got wrist control but couldn’t control the challengers posture which made his submission attempts near impossible. Griffin tried a kimura from his back but Evans never let him get close. A triangle choke attempt from Griffin saw Evans briefly pass his guard and land some shots although Forrest was quick to get back to full guard. Evans finally got the opening he was after and landed a thunderous right hand from the guard which dazed Griffin. Numerous follow-up shots with first the right hand and eventually both hands had Griffin seriously hurt. Steve Mazzaghatti finally stepped in and halted the bout after what looked like Griffin tapped (although he claimed in the post fight interview that he didn’t and was just flailing from the punches) and crowned Evans the new champion at 2:46 of the third round.

Mir becomes first man to stop Nogueira
Fedor Emelianenko couldn’t do it. Josh Barnett couldn’t do it. Mirko Cro Cop couldn’t do it and either could Tim Sylvia or Heath Herring. But Jiu Jitsu stylist Frank Mir became the first man to stop Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira with strikes in the second round of their five round clash for the Interim UFC Heavyweight title. The win sets up a rematch for the Undisputed UFC Heavyweight Championship with Brock Lesnar, a rematch from a great fight earlier in the year which Mir won by kneebar in 90 seconds after taking heavy punishment for at least 60 of those seconds.
Right from the start Mir dominated the fight with his stand-up against the sluggish looking Nogueira. Landing with crisp combinations usually consisting of  right uppercut from his southpaw stance, Mir constantly kept Nogueira off balance and forced him back when he tried for a clinch. After a brief battle on the ground courtesy of a Mir takedown, Mir then dropped Nogueira with a combination and looked to finish on the ground. Nogueira showed his usual composure when hurt which has seen him score famous come from behind victories over the likes of Mirko Cro Cop and Bob Sapp and saw off Mirs attack before Mir took the fight back to the feet. Standing up, Mir continued to get off first with crisp combinations while Nogueira failed to pull the trigger on anything before Mir again dropped Nogueira at the end of the round.
Nothing changed in the second round with Mir again easily outboxing the former PRIDE Heavyweight champion and landing with clean, crisp combinations. Mir then dropped Nogueira for the third time of the night with punches but this time was able to follow up and force referee Herb Dean to step in and rescue Nogueira for the first time in his 38 fight career. An emotional Mir thanked his team and his family for helping him to get back to where he was after his horrific motorcycle accident in 2004 which cost him the UFC Heavyweight title last time he held it.

Rampage scores sweet knockout over bitter rival Wanderlei Silva
Former UFC Light Heavyweight champion made his comeback fight a successful one, avenging two previous knockout losses against Wanderlei Silva with a one punch left hook knockout at 3:21 of the first round. Silva had twice knocked Rampage out in fights for the PRIDE Middleweight (205lbs) title (one was the final of the 2003 Grand Prix) but lost his fourth fight in his last five appearances, his third by knockout. For Rampage, the win likely sets up another shot at the UFC crown he lost to Forrest Griffin at UFC 86 earlier this year.
Both fighters came out striking with Rampage looking the quicker early on. After eating two shots from Silva, Rampage attempted to take the fight to the ground but ate a knee for his trouble. Silva appeared to be getting set, landing a few vicious leg kicks to Rampage’s left thigh. Rampage though kept his cool and after en exchange of punches near the fence, Rampage countered a Silva left hook with one of his own that landed flush on the jaw and put the former PRIDE Middleweight champion down and out cold. Three follow up shots from Rampage left Silva unconscious for around three minutes before he woke up.

Other Results
CB Dollaway TKO1 (strikes from back mount) Mike Massenzio
Cheick Kongo TKO1 (strikes) Mustafa Al Turk
Yushin Okami UD3 Dean Lister
Matt Hammill TKO2 (strikes) Reese Andy
Brad Blackburn UD3 Ryo Chonan
Patt Berry TKO1 (leg kicks) Dan Evenson

I agree with Rampage on this one. Wanderlei does not look the same as he did in Pride. Getting knocked out twice already doesn’t help. This third time by Rampage just goes to show that perhaps Silva’s time is up.

RASHAD EVANS DEFEATS FORREST GRIFFIN, A FELLOW WINNER OF “THE ULTIMATE FIGHTER” TV SERIES

Rashad Evans defeated Forrest Griffin for the UFC Light heavyweight championship Saturday night at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas. With the victory, Evans remains undefeated in his UFC career. He scored a TKO over Griffin in the third round.

FRANK MIR WALKS AWAY WITH A VICTORY SATURDAY NIGHT

Also on Saturday’s card, heavyweight Frank Mir defeated Rodrigo Nogueira of Brazil for the “interim” title. Mir will now take on Brock Lesnar for the undisputed UFC Heavyweight championship.

RAMPAGE JACKSON KNOCKS WANDERLEI SILVA UNCONSCIOUS

Also on Saturday’s card, Quinton “Rampage” Jackson made his comeback to the Octagon with an impressive knockout of Wanderlei Silva.

UFC 92 Results Frank Mir, Rampage Jackson, Rashad Evans, & Matt Hamill.

UFC 92 from the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas is in the books with the event providing the crowning of two new champions. Frank Mir, wearing Pimpit Fight Team Shorts claimed a share of the heavyweight title by taking the interim belt from Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira following a second round TKO while Rashad Evans, sponsored by COS, Code of Silence dethroned Forrest Griffin as the UFC light heavyweight king following a third round TKO, and Rampage Jackson wore a ENVE T-Shirt while walking out the the cage with his crew knocked out Wanderlei Silva. What a night of heavy hands , and KO’s.

• Patrick Barry def. Dan Evensen via (injury) TKO at 2:36, Round 1
• Brad Blackburn def. Ryo Chonan via unanimous decision
• Matt Hamill def. Reese Andy via TKO at 2:19, Round 2.
• Antoni Hardonk def. Mike Wessel via TKO at 2:09, Round 2
• Yushin Okami def. Dean Lister via unanimous decision
• Cheick Kongo def. Mustapha Al-Turk by TKO (strikes) at 4:37, Round 1
• Quinton Jackson def. Wanderlei Silva by KO at 3:21, Round 1
• C.B. Dollaway def. Mike Massenzio by TKO at 3:01, Round 1
• Frank Mir def. Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira by TKO at 1:54, Round 2
• Rashad Evans def. Forrest Griffin by TKO at 2:46, Round 3

Results provided by http://www.codeofsilence.tv, http://www.pimpit.com, and http://www.enve.tv