Anderson Silva def. Stephan Bonnar TKO @ 4:40 R1 Antônio Rodrigo Nogueira def. Dave Herman Submission (armbar) @ 4:31 R2 Glover Teixeira def. Fabio Maldonado TKO (doctor stoppage) @ 5:00 R2 Jon Fitch def. Erick Silva UD Phil Davis def. Wagner Prado Submission (anaconda choke) @ 4:29 R2 Demian Maia def. Rick Story Submission (neck crank/RNC) @ 2:30 R1 Rony Mariano Bezerra def. Sam Sicilia TKO @ 4:16 R2 Gleison Tibau def. Francisco Trinaldo UD Diego Brandao def. Joey Gambino UD Sergio Moraes def. Renee Forte Submission (rear-naked choke) @ 3:10 R3
I didn't catch the Facebook prelims, but Camozzi beat Cane via UD and Cristiano Marcello beat Reza Madadi via split decision.
Not for the first time, an event with a less than mouth-watering looking ME wound up being tremendous. They sold it based on the idea we'd either see Anderson Silva add to his list of highlight reel finishes or witness one of the greatest shocks in the history of mixed martial arts. In the end, we got both, with Anderson putting Bonnar out of his misery with a beautiful knee, and Jon Fitch producing a genuinely exciting fight.
Davis, Big Nog and Maia all produced impressive submissions. Maia's was particularly brutal (if uncomfortable to watch) thanks to the visual of blood pouring out of Story's nose as he tightened the hold. Also not easy to watch at times was Glover's pounding of Maldonado who was rocked early but somehow managed to hang around until the end of the second despite being on the end of an almost non-stop beating.
And yes, Jon Fitch ladies and gentlemen! This wasn't just a good fight by Fitch standards, it was downright excellent by any measure. The second round in particular saw a great exchange of submission attempts and by the third Fitch was utterly dominant. Best Fitch has looked in ages.
And then there was Anderson Silva of course, who was at his cocky, imperious best. After a minute or so in the clinch he basically stood in front of Bonnar daring him to try and hit him, then bobbed and weaved his way out of everything Bonnar threw. At one point his corner was clearly displeased with what he was doing which drew a "It's OK, I got this guys" from Silva. Which got this he had, for seconds later Bonnar was crumpled on the floor having taken a knee to the sternum that would have brought back not so pleasant memories for Chael Sonnen.
All in all, a really good card, well worth catching on replay if you didn't get it live.
I saw the last three matches and the majority of Fitch/Silva. I gotta say that Fitch impressed me, and I have mostly hated him for "fitching" his opponents for years. But last night he stayed busy, got out of some hairy submission attempts and looked great. I hope that Fitch stays.
One of my friends called the Teixeira/Fabio fight the "manliest fight of the year" before it even happened, and my friend was mostly right. Fabio survived some brutal shots and threw some great punches himself. Good fight. The Nog fight was fun with him looking really good.
I gotta say that I hate Anderson Silva's showboating in the cage. I understand that he is the best fighter in the world, and he made Bonnar look foolish, but his antics make me sick. He is the best heel in the biz during a fight, and one of the nicest guys outside of it. I hope Dana makes the Silva/Jon Jones fight, as I will be more excited for that fight than any fight since Lesnar vs. Overeem. I hope Jon Jones crushes Silva.
"Put on your helmets, we'll be reaching speeds of 3!" "It was nice of you to give that dead woman another chance." "All right, look alive everybody...oh sorry Susan."- MST3K: Space Mutiny Click Here (facebook.com)
This show was a blast. Fun fights and great finishes up and down the card. Maia's neck crank was the sickest visual. Texeira's a beast and I hope we get him against Rampage as was the original plan. Fitch's fight was super fun, and Silva is infuriatingly good. I didn't have high hopes for this show going in, but it was one of the best UFCs I've seen.
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More like about 20 punches to the head too many. The highlight for me was how he talked about his frustration with being "singled out" for tests, because the tests won't prove he has HIV anyway. Riiight.
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