Video of the Day - Gabin v. Jones

Here is Jon "Sexual Chocolate" Jones fighting Moyses Gabin at BCX - Battle Cage Extreme which took place on 7/12/08 in Atlantic City, New Jersey.

Jones (21-1) next fights Ovince St. Preux (19-7) at UFC 197 on April 23, 2016.

Fighter Rankings

Heavyweight

1. Cain Velasquez
2. Junior Dos Santos
3. Daniel Cormier
4. Fabricio Werdum
5. Antonio Silva
6. Alistair Overeem
7. Josh Barnett
8. Frank Mir
9. Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira
10. Roy Nelson

Light Heavyweight

1. Jon Jones
2. Lyoto Machida
3. Dan Henderson
4. Phil Davis
5. Alexander Gustafsson
6. Glover Teixeira
7. Mauricio "Shogun" Rua
8. Antonio Rogerio Nogueira
9. Rashad Evans
10. Ryan Bader

Middleweight

1. Anderson Silva
2. Chael Sonnen
3. Chris Weidman
4. Vitor Belfort
5. Yushin Okami
6. Luke Rockhold
7. Mark Munoz
8. Michael Bisping
9. Costas Philippou
10. Ronaldo "Jacare" Souza

Welterweight

1. Georges St. Pierre
2. Carlos Condit
3. Nick Diaz
4. Johny Hendricks
5. Demian Maia
6. Martin Kampmann
7. Jon Fitch
8. Jake Ellenberger
9. Ben Askren
10. Rory MacDonald

Lightweight

1. Benson Henderson
2. Gilbert Melendez
3. Frank Edgar
4. Gray Maynard
5. Nate Diaz
6. Michael Chandler
7. Anthony Pettis
8. Donald Cerrone
9. Jim Miller
10. TJ Grant

Featherweight

1. Jose Aldo
2. Pat Curran
3. Chan Sung Jung
4. Chad Mendes
5. Ricardo Lamas
6. Clay Guida
7. Hatsu Hioki
8. Dennis Siver
9. Cub Swanson
10. Darren Elkins

Bantamweight

1. Renan Barao
2. Urijah Faber
3. Michael McDonald
4. Eddie Wineland
5. Raphael Assuncao
6. Brad Pickett
7. Scott Jorgenson
8. Bibiano Fernandes
9. Tyson Nam
10. Eduardo Dantas

TUF 17 - Round 1 Complete

The first round of TUF 17 wittled the cast from 28 to 14. I was happy about most of the fights, however the way it was edited was really annoying. Instead of letting fights that ended in the first round play out, they jump cut to Jon Jones, Chael Sonnen or Dana White jabbering about the fighters.

Sonnen decided to take the first fighter, and Jones picked Gilbert Smith to fight Luke Barnatt. Luke has a big reach advantage over Gilbert, and will need to keep him on the outside. Josh Samman really wanted to fight first.

TEAM SONNEN

Luke Barnatt (5-0)- The 6'6" English fighter has fought in BAMMA and UWC defeating Lee Johnson (5-2) via submission and won a decision over Ben Callum (5-1). Luke used his reach effectively to win a unanimous decision over Nicholas Hohring (3-0).

Uriah Hall (7-2)- The Jamaican born, New York trained kickboxer's only two losses are to UFC title contenders Constantinos Philippou and Chris Weidman. He has a TKO over Edwin Aguilar in Bellator and is currently on a 3 fight win streak. Hall also competed in Chuck Norris' WCL kickboxing league on the New Jersey Tigers. Hall won a tough decision over Andy Enz (6-1) in the first round of the tournament.

Zak Cummings (15-3)- The Bellator and Strikeforce fighter has fought around the midwest, defeating Terry Martin and Rudy Bears. He has 8 submission wins and 4 TKO wins on his resume. Cummings landed one of the fastest KO's in TUF history, with one punch to Nik Fekete's face.

Tor Troeng (15-4-1)- The Swedish veteran fighter is 11-1 in his last 12 fights only losing to Thales Leites. He has submission wins over Rafeal Silva (38-13) and Mark Weir. Troeng submitted Scott Rosa with a rear naked choke in the opening round.

Jimmy Quinlan (3-0)- The Massachusetts fighter was a successful collegiate wrestler and brown belt in BJJ. 2 of his wins are via first round submission. Shown in highlight form, Quinlan scored takedowns and finished Mike Persons via TKO in the first round.

Kevin Casey (5-2)- From California, Casey is a Rickson Gracie disciple who earned a rear naked choke over Eldon Sproat (3-1) in his TUF fight.

Kelvin Gastelum (4-0)- The 5'9" spark plug has 2 KO's and 2 submissions while fighting less than stellar competition. Kelvin won a razor thin decision over Kito Andrews in the first round.

TEAM JONES

Clint Hester (7-3)- Fighting pro for 4 and half years, the former boxer has several quality wins fighting in the southeast. Hester was 3-3 as a cruiser weight boxing. Hester won a dominant decision over Fraser Opie (10-5) in the opening round.

Josh Samman (9-2)- The Florida fighter and WWFC champ last defeated Bellator vet Mikey Gomez via submission due to punches, and has beat Chris Cope via KO. Samman defeated Leo Bercier via TKO in the first round.

Bubba McDaniel (20-6)- The Elite XC and Bellator veteran has won 6 straight with 15 total submission wins on his resume. He has defeated several legit veterans including Eric Schambari (15-3), Johnny Rees and Kala Hose. Bubba TKO'd Ryan Bigler in the 2nd round of the fight.

Gilbert Smith (5-1)- The muscular Colorado fighter has 4 submission wins. He submitted Eric Wahlin in the first round via arm triangle choke.

Collin Hart (4-1-1)- Colin won the fight via submission in the first round via rear naked choke.

Adam Cella (4-0)- A member of Finney's Hit Squad in Missouri, Cella has a kickboxing background. He has 2 KO's and 2 submissions in the first round. Cella may have gotten slammed pretty hard, but he tapped Jake Heun with an armbar in the first round of his match-up.

Dylan Andrews (16-4-1)- The New Zealander has 10 KO's on his resume fighting at 205 and 185 mainly on the Australian fight circuit. He has a win over Shonie Carter. Andrews won a decision over Tim Williams (7-1) in the opening round.

UFC Ultimate Ultimate 2013

I recently got an email regarding who the best 10 fighters are in the UFC if there were no weight classes. That got me in the mood of the mid 90's and I began to construct a tournament of my own.

Since there are athletic commissions now, I have instituted one tournament for above 206 pound fighters and another for 185 and under. I'm playing UFC's match-maker Joe Silva's job, so only Zuffa fighters under contract are eligible, sorry Josh Barnett.

The emailer thought that Jon Jones could beat almost every heavyweight UFC, but some might be able to "get their fat" on them. Jones would come in as the fastest 235 or so and would likely have a reach advantage on most. I would think a big grappler who could get on the inside and force the clinch could have success on Jones.

I have seeded with current actual UFC match-ups in mind. Since we are in 2013, the tournament would run over 4 events over the course of a year.

UU 13 - Open Weight 206+

1. Cain Velasquez- 11-1, Current UFC HW Champ
16. Rashad Evans- 17-2-1, UFC LHW Champ

8. Stefan Struve- 25-5, 9-3 UFC
9. Mark Hunt- 8-7, K-1 GP Champ

5. Daniel Cormier- 10-0, SF HW Champ
12. Frank Mir- 16-6, former UFC HW champ

4. Alistair Overeem- 36-11, SF/Dream/K-1 WH Champ
13. Antonio "Bigfoot" Silva- 17-4, Elite XC Champ

3. Junior Dos Santos- 15-2, UFC HW Champ
14. Phil Davis- 10-1, NCAA Champ

6. Fabricio Werdum- 16-5, ADCC 99KG+ Champ
11. Antonio Noguiera- 34-7-1, Pride HW Champ

7. Dan Henderson-29-8, Pride Champ
10. Lyoto Machida- 18-3, UFC LHW Champ

15. Chael Sonnen- 27-12-1, rightful WEC MW Champ
2. Jon Jones- 17-1, Current UFC LHW Champ

Fights to Make After UFC 135 and UFN 25

UFC 135 and UFN 25 were two solid events that shook up the landscape of the UFC. Most notable was another excellent performance by Jon Jones at UFC 135 and Jake Ellenberger's nasty KO of Jake Shields at UFN 25.

Here is a mock look-in at some potential bouts down the line:

Jon Jones against Rashad Evans- Jones is coming off a dominant performance against Rampage Jackson, utilizing his range, landing low kicks at will, and ending the fight with a 4th round rear naked choke.  Rashad has been chomping at the bit for a title shot, last fighting Tito Ortiz at UFC 133 and winning via TKO.

Jake Ellenberger against winner of Condit v. GSP- Ellenberger has been on fire since his insanely close loss to Carlos Condit, winning 5 straight fights. His last was the pinnacle with a destructive KO against title challenger Jake Shields.

Josh Koscheck against Tim Boetsch- Koscheck was able to stop Matt Hughes via TKO at UFC 135 as time was expiring. With hints at moving to 185, and the UFC not eager to see GSP v. Koscheck III, it is time for him to make the jump. Boetsch notched another big time peformance at UFC 135, crushing Nick Ring, before that he stopped Kendall Grove.

Travis Browne against the winner of Kongo v. Mitrione- Browne now stands at 12-0-1, taking a unanimous decision against Rob Broughton at UFC 135. With the draw coming against Cheick Kongo, a rematch would make sense should he win against Mitrione. Mitrione has confused many with his striking and athletic ability. Mitrione v. Kongo happens at UFC 137.

Nate Diaz against the winner of Mac Danzig v. Matt Wiman- Diaz is coming off a pinpoint performance against Takanori Gomi. Looking to make another run at 155, after alternating wins and losses at 170, the next logical step would be a fight against the winner of these two TUF vets.

Erik Koch against loser of Jose Aldo v. Kenny Florian- Koch was dominant in his decision win against TUF winner Jonathan Brookins extending his win streak to 4, defending takedowns and punishing his opponent. With Chad Mendes owning the title shot, Koch needs a high profile bout to push him into conention at 145.

UFC Title Picture

Here is the title picture for the UFC.

HW Champ- Cain Velasquez
Contenders- Junior Dos Santos, Frank Mir, Brock Lesnar
*Velasquez fights JDS at UFC 138 for the title
*Velasquez defeats Lesnar at UFC 121 for the title
*Dos Santos defeats Shane Carwin at UFC 131 for #1 spot
*Frank Mir defeats Roy Nelson at UFC 130


LHW Champ- Jon Jones
Contenders- Rashad Evans, Rampage Jackson, Forrest Griffin, Phil Davis, Lyoto Machida
*Jones fights Rampage at UFC 135 for the title
*Evans defeats Ortiz at UFC 133
*Rampage defeats Matt Hamill at UFC 130
*Griffin defeats Rich Franklin at UFC 126
*Griffin fights Shogun Rua at UFC 134

(Jon Jones pictured)

MW Champ- Anderson Silva
Contenders- Yushin Okami, Brian Stann, Vitor Belfort, Mark Munoz
*Anderson Silva defeats Belfort at UFC 126
*Okami defeats Marquardt for #1 contender at UFC 122
*Silva fights Okami at UFC 134 for the title
*Belfort KO'd Akiyama at UFC 133
*Stann on three fight win streak
*Munoz defeats Maia at UFC 131

(Anderson Silva pictured)

WW Champ- Georges St. Pierre
Contenders- Nick Diaz, Jon Fitch, Carlos Condit, BJ Penn, Diego Sanchez
*GSP defeats Jake Shields at UFC 129
*Fitch and BJ Penn fight to a draw at UFC 127
*Nick Diaz relinquishes Strikeforce belt
*GSP will fight Diaz at UFC 137 for the title
*Condit KO's Kim at UFC 132

(Georges St. Pierre pictured)

LW Champ- Frank Edgar
Contenders- Gray Maynard, Clay Guida, Benson Henderson, Melvin Guillard, Anthony Pettis, Dennis Siver
*Edgar fights to a draw with Maynard at UFC 125
*Edgar and Maynard out with injuries
*Guida defeats Pettis at the TUF 13 Finale
*Guillard wins 5th straight over Roller at UFC 132
*Siver wins 4th straight over Wiman at UFC 132
*Henderson defeats Miller at UFC on Versus 5

(Frank Edgar pictured)

FW Champ- Jose Aldo
Contenders- Kenny Florian, Chad Mendes, Manny Gamburyan
*Aldo defeats Hominick at UFC 129
*Chad Mendes defeats Yahya at UFC 133
*Florian defeats Nunes at UFC 130
*Aldo v. Florian likely for the next title bout

(Jose Aldo pictured)

BW Champ- Dominic Cruz
Contenders- Demetrious Johnson, Scott Jorgenson, Brian Bowles, Joe Benavidez
*Dominic Cruz defeats Faber at UFC 132
*Johnson defeats Torres at UFC 130
*Bowles defeats Mizugaki at UFC 132

(Dominic Cruz pictured)

Jon Jones Reigns Supreme

Jon Jones notched the signature win of his young and burgeoning career with a dominant performance, taking down MMA legend Mauricio "Shogun" Rua in the third round. With exceptional reach, height, quickness, striking and wrestling, Jones' potential seems to be limitless. Jones has yet to be hurt inside the cage.

(Jones and Rua stare down)

A state and junior college wrestling champion, Jon Jones switched to MMA in 2008. He began at Team Bombsquad, Jones rattling off 6 straight wins in regional East Coast promotions before getting signed by the UFC. Entering the UFC on a tear, Jones notched two dominant decisions off BJJ standout Andre Gusmao and the uber tough Stephan Bonnar.

(Jones hits a picture perfect suplex)

After taking out Jake O'Brien with a guillotine, Jones hit his first bump in the road in MMA. While dominating Matt Hamill, Jones threw a series of 12-6 elbows to Hamill's head. With some getting through, Jones was DQ'd and suffered his first loss.

(Jones throwing a spinning back elbow)

Jones bounced back with first round TKO's of Brandon Vera and Vladimir Matyushenko. While getting ready for a fight with undefeated TUF 8 winner Ryan Bader, Jones was told the winner of the fight would fill in for the injured Rashad Evans for the title.

(Jones nasty GNP against Vera)

After a switch to Team Jackson, Jones came out taking down Bader, an All-American wrestler at Arizona State University. In the third round, Jones was able to latch on a modified guillotine from top position, catapulting him into the number one contender spot.

(Throwing a punch against Bader)

The rest is history, as Jones has become the youngest UFC champion in history. With uncanny quickness and athletic ability, Jones seems to get progressively better in each outing. His next move will be fighting mentor and teammate Rashad Evans. If he gets by Evans, the next logical move would be a fight with Rampage Jackson.

(Jones throwing a knee)

UFC on Versus 2 Preview

Jon "Bones" Jones is poised to let his star shine even brighter this Sunday night on UFC on Versus 2. The electric fighter will look to build on his KO win over Brandon Vera with a statement win over grizzled MMA veteran Vladimir Matyushenko. The fireworks will be broadcast live on Versus and take place in San Diego, California.

Jon Jones 10-1DQ) burst into the UFC was his lightening fast stand-up, superb wrestling skills and improving submission game. The 6'4" Jones debuted at UFC 87 with a decision over Andre Gusmao, then took a decision win over Stephen Bonnar, guillotine of Jake O'Brien, then faced Matt Hamill at the Ultimate Fighter 10 Finale and was DQ'd due to illegal elbows. Look for Jones to use his quickness to pick apart Vladdy standing.

(Jon Jones' suplex over Stephan Bonnar)

Vladimir Matyushenko (24-4) has over 13 years of MMA training and fights under his belts, defeating the likes of Yuki Kondo, Pedro Rizzo and Travis Wiuff in his first run in the UFC,leaving in 2003. The international freestyle wrester went on the win the IFL 205 pound grand prix and title defeating the likes of Jamal Patterson, Tim Boetsch and Alex Schoenauer. Since returning to the UFC, he has defeated Igor Pokrajac and Eliot Marshall. Look for Vladdy to go for takedowns to acquire top position.

(Vladimir on the Tokyo Dragons in the IFL)

Mark Munoz vs. Yushin Okami- This is a battle of two excellent grapplers in the 185 division. Munoz will look to impose his will in this fight and get to the floor quickly. Okami will likely try to work strikes and knees while in the clinch.

After taking the NCAA division 1 crown at Oklahoma State University, Mark Munoz (8-1)has gone from assistant wrestling coach to rising prospect. Mark has an improving stand-up game with excellent wrestling. Munoz won two fights in the WEC before getting KO'd by Matt Hamill at UFC 96. He has since ran off 3 straight wins over Nick Catone, Ryan Jensen and Kendall Grove.

(Mark Munoz pictured)

Yushin Okami (24-5) first came on the scene winning an amateur MMA tournament that took place before Pride 4. He has used his grappling skills to grind out wins with top position. Okami has defeated Mike Swick, Jason MacDonald, Dean Lister and Evan Tanner in the UFC.

(Yushin Okami punching Rory Singer)

Takanori Gomi vs. Tyson Griffin- Former Pride champ Takanori Gomi desparetly needs a win in this fight against the energizer bunny known as Tyson Griffin. Gomi was unsuccessful in his UFC debut against Kenny Florian, getting out-grappled and out-struck, losing in the third round via rear naked choke. Griffin meanwhile also looks to rebound from a close decision loss against uber prospect Evan Dunham.

Look for Gomi (31-6) to keep the fight in mid-range and work inside Griffin's solid leg kicks. Gomi was a dominant force in the lightweight division of Pride during his prime, defeating the likes of Mitsuhiro Ishida, Tatsuya Kawajiri, Hayato Sakurai with solid boxing and wrestling skills.

(Takanori Gomi pictured)

Tyson Griffin (14-3) may work leg kicks from the outside, or try to bully Gomi with his solid wrestling skill. Griffin is a fire-plug, who seems to easily go through 15 minutes of action pushing the pace. He has defeated Marcus Aurelio, Thiago Tavares and Hermes Franca in the UFC.

(Tyson Griffin pictured)

Jake Ellenberger vs. John Howard- John Howard (14-4) is at his best when he can push around his opponent and overwelm him. That may be hard as Jake Ellenberger (22-5) is a top level wrestler who brutalized Mike Pyle in his last UFC fight winning via TKO. Expect each fighter to be looking the fight quick, but Ellenberger holding the advantage in the wrestling department.

PRELIMINARY CARD

Paul Kelly vs. Jacob Volkmann
DaMarques Johnson vs. Matthew Riddle
James Irvin vs. Igor Pokrajac
Mike Massenzio vs. Brian Stann
Darren Elkins vs. Charles Oliveira
Rob Kimmons vs. Steve Steinbeiss

UFC: Versus 1

UFC's first debut on the Versus network produced an entertaining fireworks. On the undercard, John "Doomsday" Howard destroyed UFC newcomer Daniel Roberts with vicious ground and pound. Junior Dos Santos pushed even closer to a title shot and X put his name right and center in the UFC's 205 pound division.

In the first fight of the broadcast, Alessio Sakara landed a perfect right hand into James Irvin's eye socket causing a stoppage in the first round. James Irvin originally thought it was an eyepoke, but veteran UFC referee Josh Roshental made the correct call.

In undercard action, John Howard fought the undefeated Daniel Roberts. Roberts was able to get takedowns early, but eventually Howard unloaded a fury. Howards hit a high amplitude double leg takedown then slammed a heavy right hand KO'ing Roberts.

In the second match of the evening, Cheick Kongo dominated Paul "Headhunter" Buentello for three rounds before coaxing a tapout from the veteran kickboxer. Kongo was able to mix in a combination of takedowns, punches, elbows and knees.

Referee Herb Dean did an exceptional job refereeing the fight. He deducted a point from Cheick Kongo from a knee when Paul Buentello. In doing so, Dean gave Buentello ample time to recover. Buentello also dislocated a pinky finger and was allowed to continue after popping it back into place.

In the end, Kongo's relentless attack was to much for Buentello to handle. Elbows to the thigh eventally forced Buentello to submit. With the victory, expect Kongo to get a solid test in the form of the winner of Roy Nelson and Stephen Struve.

Junior Dos Santos took another step into the heavyweight title picture defeating veteran UFC heavyweight contender Gabriel Gonzaga. Dos Santos defended the takedown, loading up a mean right hand. Gonzaga landed a couple deadly leg kicks, but eventually let his guard down.

As Gonzaga threw a leg kick, Dos Santos fired a shot from hell, flooring Gonzaga, the BJJ blackbelt to the ground. A few more punches sealed the deal, and Gonzga was cooked. Dos Santos now will likely fight Cain Velasquez for a title shot.

In the main event, Jon "Bones" Jones inched his way closer to a 205 pound title shot. Jones looked to be the quicker fighter as he was able to land strikes and take down Brandon Vera. From there, Jones worked top control and threw some punches. Until Vera threw an upkick while Jones had a knee on the canvas.

Vera was deducted a point for the foul and Jones was given back position. From there, Bones Jones landed nasty left and right punches and elbows from Vera's guard with his big-time reach advantage. A point of a right elbow looked to land on Vera's eye socket, prompting the stoppage. Look for Jones to fight Ryan Bader or the winner of Forrest Griffin v. Antonio Nogueira.

(Jon Jones pictured)

UFC Versus 1

UFC will have its first show on Versus on March 21, 2010 at the 1st Bank Center in Broomfield, Colorado. So far, the card has 11 rumored fights, but only 3 confirmed for the main TV broadcast.

The main event pits the uber athlete Jon "Bones" Jones against Muay Thai specialist Brandon Vera. This fight should see Brandon Vera to attempt to keep the fight standing while throwing more precise kicks and punches from distance. Jones may look to slug with Vera before going for a takedown.

Jon Jones (9-1, 3-1 UFC) is looking to come back from a devastating DQ loss to Matt Hamill. Jones was dominating the fight before throwing illegal elbows to a downed and near finished Matt Hamill. Jones has looked excellent in his UFC fights with wins over Stephen Bonnar, Andre Gusmao and Jake O'Brien.

(Jon Jones pictured)

Brandon Vera (11-4, 7-4 UFC) will be trying to rebound from a controversial decision loss to Randy Couture. Vera started his career in the heavyweight division before a loss to Tim Sylvia sent him to 205. Vera's biggest win was a TKO over Frank Mir. He has other wins over Krzysztof Soszynski, Reese Andy and Justin Eilers.

(Brandon Vera pictured)

Junior Dos Santos v. Gabriel Gonzaga- This fight has a good chance to be over in a hurry. Dos Santos (10-1, 4-0 UFC) has been throwing heavy hands during his tenure in the UFC, KO'ing Fabricio Werdum, Gilbert Yvel, Stefan Struve and making Cro Cop submit to punches. Dos Santos will look to throw his signature big power punches to add another KO to his resume and get closer to a title shot.

(Junior Dos Santos pictured)

Gabriel Gonzaga (11-4, 7-3 UFC) has had an up and down UFC career. Gonzaga started out destroying Kevin Jordan, Fabiano Scherner, Carmelo Marrero and then scoring a massive head kick KO over Mirko Cro Cop. After a loss to Randy Couture, Gonzaga has wins over Justin McCulley, Josh Hendricks and a controversial win over Chris Tuchscherer after a low blow. Gonzaga may look to get the fight to the ground where the BJJ blackbelt has an edge.

(Gabriel Gonzaga throwing a head kick on Cro Cop)

Paul Buentello v. Cheick Kongo- All signs point to this fight being a stand-up war. Buentello and Kongo are both top level kickboxers who will be looking for a KO. Kongo (14-6, 7-4 UFC) has been up and down, typically having problems with top level submission artists.

Paul Buentello (27-11, 3-2 UFC) has scored 17 KO's in his MMA career and is notorious for avoiding the ground and looking for big shots. Buentello has recently been training in Colorado with Trevor Whitman and the Greg Jackson crew.

James Irvin v. Alessio Sakara- Striker James Irvin (14-5, 3-4 UFC) is rebounding from a knee injury and other setbacks that have forced him out of competition since his loss to Anderson Silva in July 2008. Alessio Sakara (14-7, 5-4 UFC) meanwhile is riding a two fight win streak defeating Thales Leites and Joe Vedepo.

UNDER CARD

Shannon Gugerty v. Clay Guida
Eliot Marshall v. Vladimir Matyushenko
John Howard v. Daniel Roberts
Chase Gormley v. Brendan Schaub
Julio Paulino v. Mike Pierce
Jason Brilz v. Eric Schafer
Darren Elkins v. Duane Ludwig

UFC 100 Preview

UFC 100 has been much anticipated in the martial arts world. There have been rumors swirling around potential new UFC Hall of Fame inductees Chuck Liddell and Charles "Mask" Lewis, as well as the reveal of the official TUF 10 cast. Here is a look at the fights that are scheduled for July 11, 2009 at the Mandalay Events Center. Here is the line-up:

Brock Lesnar vs. Frank Mir (HW Title)- Expect some fireworks in this dynamic heavyweight match-up. One of the strongest men in all of mixed martial arts, Brock Lesnar (3-1, 2-1 UFC) will try to avenge his lone pro loss against elite submission artist Frank Mir (12-3, 10-3 UFC). In the first match-up, Brock Lesnar dropped Mir with a solid right hand, then smothered him with ground and pound.

However, Mir recovered after an ill-advised ref stand-up and next tapped Lesnar out to a knee-bar. Lesnar is the 2000 NCAA Heavyweight wrestling champion and WWE Heavyweight champ. Lesnar smoked judoka Min Soo Kim in his first fight in K-1 Hero's. After the loss to Mir, he destroyed Heath Herring then Randy Couture for the title.

(Brock Lesnar pictured)

Frank Mir was first supposed to fight Brock Lesnar at UFC 98, however Mir suffered a knee injury in training. Mir is coming off his best stand-up performance of his career against Antonio Nogueira. Mir captured the UFC HW title previously in an awesome arm breaking arm bar at UFC 48. He has other victories over Wes Sims, Pete Williams and Antoni Hardonk.

(Frank Mir's winning kneebar pictured)

Georges St. Pierre vs. Thiago Alves (WW Title)- St. Pierre (18-2, 12-2 UFC) has been on a roll since the upset loss to Matt Serra at UFC 69. He turned in dominated the competition rolling off five quality wins against Josh Koscheck, Matt Hughes, Matt Serra, Jon Fitch, and most recently BJ Penn. Look for GSP to get takedowns and then work ground and pound before a submission.

(Georges St. Pierre pictured)

Thiago Alves (16-3, 9-2 UFC) is a massive 170 pounder who may have a slight strength advantage against GSP. In his last fight, Alves was able to stay off the ground against Josh Koscheck, winning with his stand-up skills. Alves is a power puncher with good knees. His career victories include recent KO's with knees and punches against Karo Parisyan and Matt Hughes.

(Thiago Alves pictured)

Jon Fitch vs. Paulo Thiago
Michael Bisping vs. Dan Henderson
Yoshihiro Akiyama vs. Alan Belcher

UNDER CARD

Stephan Bonnar vs. Mark Coleman
Mac Danzig vs. Jim Miller
Jon Jones vs. Jake O'Brien
C.B. Dollaway vs. Tom Lawlor
Matt Grice vs. Shannon Gugerty
T.J. Grant vs. Dong Hyun Kim

UFC 94 Review

UFC 94 turned out to be a decent show with great top billed fights. With an estimated 14,855 people showing up at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas. I watched the fights on ppv and will be interested to see how many ppv buys the event had. GSP v. Penn has been hyped since last year and my guess is that the advertising dollars paid off.

Clay Guida def Nathan Diaz via Dec (Split)- Guida came to the fight with a high energy and smothering style to win the split decision. Diaz was able to land some heavy strikes and knees, but couldn't get anything really going. Guida won the fight by being able to get Diaz' back, get takedowns and better position. Guida now has three straight wins since his loss to Roger Huerta.
*Guida and Diaz win Fight of the Night.

Karo Parisyan def Dong Hyun Kim via Dec (Split)- In my opinion, Kim got the short hand of the stick in this fight. Kim won the first round by getting Karo's back, throwing down hammerfists, and almost getting Karo stuck in a Kim triangle choke. The first round that was decisive as the second and third round were very hard to score. I would give the second to Karo and the third to Kim. In dropping the decision, Kim learned a lesson not let the fight go to the judges scorecards.

Jon Jones def Stephan Bonnar via Dec (Unanimous)- Jon "Bones" Jones looked athletic and unorthodox in his second straight win in the UFC pushing his record to 8-0. Jones landed a suplex in the first while trying to get Bonnar's back. Jones also connected with a spinning back elbow and a vicious knee. Jones didn't let up, tossing Bonnar to the mat, getting takedowns at will, and throwing good knees throughout the fight to win the unanimous decision. With some more training and experience, Jones will continue to progress and develop into a force.

Lyoto Machida def Thiago Silva via KO (Punches) R1, 4:59- Machida took his time early on before connecting with a kick and knee to the body. After a brief time for a knee to the groin, Machida was able to land consistent combinations and takedowns. Right before the end of the round, Machida landed a left right combination and dove in for one more punch. Absorbing the impact, Silva is out for the count as the ref called the fight. Machida did a good job silencing his critics as he systematically took Silva apart.
*Machida wins KO of the Night.

Georges St. Pierre def B.J. Penn via TKO (Corner Stoppage) R4, 5:00- GSP simply overwelmed BJ Penn en route to an eventual TKO at the end of the fourth round. St. Pierre was able to dominate the fight with takedowns, ground and pound and connecting on his feet. BJ almost was able to get a couple submission attempts going, but they never really came close. BJ ate way too many elbows and punches in the fourth and when he went to the corner they called the fight.

GSP is now a lock for the UFC Hall of Fame. He has five straight wins including over Matt Hughes for the interim title, Matt Serra to unify the title, and defending against Jon Fitch and BJ Penn. A fight with Thiago Alves looms, as well as speculation of a potential fight with Anderson Silva.

UNDERCARD

Dan Cramer def Matt Arroyo via Dec (Split)
Jake O'Brien def Christian Wellisch via Dec (Split)
Thiago Tavares def Manny Gamburyan via Dec (Unanimous)
Jon Fitch def Akihiro Gono via Dec (Unanimous)
John Howard def Chris Wilson via Dec (Split)- Won the second fight of the night bonus.