Issei Tamura Upset Tiequan Zhang by TKO in Rd 1. Its hard to call Zhang anything but a bust at this point. He came hyped from China and has gone 1-2 in the UFC and just got KO'd by a replacement fighter. Time to move along.
Chris Cariaso Upset Takeya Mizugaki by Unanimous Decision in controversial fashion. No home cooking here as Takeya gets jobbed in his own homeland.
Ricky Fukuda defeated Steven Cantwell by Unanimous Decision. Steve Cantwell has now set the UFC record 5 lost bouts in a row! Congratulations to the "Robot" who really earned it. How Steve has managed to get worse is beyond me but he has succeeded as Ricky prolongs his stint in Zuffa while Cantwell mercifully hits the bricks.
Vaughan Lee Upset Norifumi Yamamoto by Armbar in Rd 1. The "Kid" just cannot buy a win! Yamamoto was in full control having hurt Lee with a right hand that dropped Vaughan but he then survived a barrage of knees and strikes initiating a scramble. Norifumi landed on top but Lee threw up a crooked triangle attempt that "Kid" should have been able to escape from. Yamamoto waited too long and Lee switches to the armbar forcing "Kid" to tap and punch the canvas in frustration. Its another loss for Yamamoto who has lost all 3 of his UFC bouts after once being one of the most feared lighter fighters in the world. "Submission Of The Night"
* Norifumi is most likely to get cut following another loss and Lee sneaks in a win in Japan for England.
Takanori Gomi defeated Eiji Mitsuoka by TKO in Rd 2. There is no debating how just awful and rudimentary Gomi looked in the initial round. Throwing baseball punches from the waist completely off balance and being rocked continually by Eiji's jab. The 2nd saw the reemergence of the "Fireball Kid" who goes for broke throwing and kicking non-stop for the 1st 90 seconds. A Gomi knee crushes the ribs of Mitsuoka who goes down and Takanori dives onto his opponent unleashing a fury of strikes until the referee is forced to halt the bout and the "Fireball Kid" celebrates atop the Octagon cage with the boisterous crowd.
* I'm not gonna lie. Gomi looks awful even in victory. Some of that can be chalked up to his unorthodox style but he has regressed badly with his footwork and really needs a new camp to tighten his game. That won't happen and lets hope the UFC feeds Takanori more strikers.
Anthony Pettis defeated Joe Lauzon by KO (head kick) in Rd 1. "J-Lau" thought "Showtime" was going low with the lick but he went high and nearly took Joe's head off. Unconscious before he hit the mat, Lauzon was done and Pettis has another highlight reel head kick to his credit and a possible looming title shot. "KO Of The Night"
* With Ben Henderson winning the strap and Pettis being the last man to defeat him (for the WEC title) it just makes sense.
Hatsu Hioki defeated Bart Palaszewski by Unanimous Decision. Hioki finally showed that promised brilliance just dominating "Bartimus" in the 1st and 3rd rounds almost securing a few tapouts. Hatsu is right there in the conversation for a shot at Featherweight Champion Jose Aldo.
Tim Boetsch Upset Yoshin Okami by TKO in Rd 3. Okami brought the "Thunder" for the 1st two rounds abusing the "Barbarian" who came out in the final round going for broke with his back against he wall.
Jake Shields defeated Yoshihiro Akiyami by Unanimous Decision. It was a close battle with "Sexyama" looking great at Welterweight stuffing almost all of Jake's takedown attempts until the final round. It was Shields aggression and never say die attitude on the takedown attempts that won him the day. Jake still looks bad striking and I cannot understand why the boys at Cesar Gracie Jiu-Jitsu can't learn how to take someone down effectively! Anywho, Jake got it done by a narrow margin and gets the much needed win that still eludes Akiyama.
* I personally hope the UFC doesn't cut Yoshihiro as he seems to possess new life at 170. Give the guy a chance to make a true go of it. Somebody needs to teach Shields to strike but I would love a future fight with Josh Koscheck.
Mark Hunt Upset Cheick Kongo by KO in Rd 1! I just cannot predict Kongo's irrational behavior. When he has an advantage he doesn't use it (the ground game) instead opting to stand with a known powerhouse and getting rocked on a couple of occasions before being put out by the "Super Samoan." Hunt was near a forced retirement and has now rattled off 3 wins in a row and sees his record above .500 (8-7) for the 1st time in a long time.
* Great work for the beloved big man of Japan who could deliver fireworks against the likes of Travis Browne or Stefan Struve.
Ryan Bader Upsets Quinton Jackson by Unanimous Decision. I think Quinton is a fraud. There I said it. He doesn't train and was simply there for his Japan moment of glory that didn't come. Ryan out worked Jackson in the 1st as the men got comfortable. In the 2nd, "Rampage" body slammed Bader onto his neck and smashed his right arm but but he quickly got back to the feet showing no ill effects. "Darth" then hits a solid double leg taking Jackson to the mat for some work. In the final round, Bader again got the takedown and rubbed on Jackson until the bell for a big decision win.
* I hope you got your moneys worth from "Rampage" because he is going to keep taking it. Time for the swan song match with Jackson versus Stephan Bonnar or Phil Davis and we call it a career. A big boost for Bader who stays alive as it were in the Light Heavyweight division and perhaps a bout against Mauricio Rua would provide a proper test though Bader has gone about as far as he is going to in his career.
Benson Henderson Upset Frankie Edgar by Unanimous Decision to become the new UFC Lightweight Champion! I gave "Bendo" rounds 1, 2, 4, and 5 while scoring only the 3rd for Edgar. Fightmetric scored 100 total strikes to Ben while 81 to Frankie. Ben would out strike Frank in all categories save leg kicks which he won 18 to 13. Henderson out landed 87 to 68 in significant strikes, 59 to 40 head shots, and 28 to 23 in body shots. It was another back and forth tilt but "Bendo" landed more and hurt Frankie with an upkick in what I found a clear win for the new Champion. "Fight Of The Night"
* Ben Henderson vs Anthony Pettis II is coming and going to be amazing. Frankie Edgar is now allowed some time to recoup from all his wars before facing top talent like Melvin Guillard or Donald Cerrone for guaranteed excitement.
Thoughts:
- Impressive that MMAFO was the lone picker of our newly thorny crowned Champion.
- Funny that the post fight press conference's sound was a step behind the video looking like an old dubbed Kung Fu film.
- A rough 7-5 on the picks but with all the Upsets tonight not too bad.
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