The event was billed as the "Ultimate 2008" and it lived up to every piece of hype, and your boy when 7/10 on my predictions - only Griffin, Chonen, and Evenson let me down. In the prelims, there was some news. Middleweight Yushin Okami continues to make the case of a crack at Anderson Silva, winning a unanimous decision over Dean Lister. Okami is now 9-1 in the UFC with his only lose coming to Rich Franklin, nothing to apologize for. I don't see how putting Thales Laites or any other jabroni works . . . Okami is clearly the #1 contender in the middleweight division now. Bisping and Maia are better fighters but they aren't ready. Okami has earned it. Matt Hamill, MMA's only deaf fighter, came back from his lost to Franklin last August to defeat the deplapidated Reese Andy. Everyone loves Hamill for what he has had to overcome so its always fun to watch him win. Other than that, nothing much.
On the main card, there was upset after upset. Firstly, Cheick Kongo again made his case for a title shot down the road in absolutely destroying Mostapha Al-Turk. CB Dolloway showed a lot of guts in defeating Mike Massenzio after taking a brutal shot but surviving and getting the TKO win. But as for the three big fights, the first one up was Rampage Jackson and Wanderlei Silva. If you recall, these guys fought twice back in Pride in Japan with Silva essentially destroying Jackson both times.
Not this time.
Jackson showed some great head movement, ducking and weaving under Silva's wild shots before connecting with a tight left hook that sent Silva down unconscience. Two more clean shots to the face before the ref could pull him off and Rampage has not only shed one of the biggest demons of his past, but steps right back into the front of the line for a UFC Title shot. As for Silva, I don't know what could be left for him. Much like Chuck Liddell, it appears that the MMA game has evolved past his skill sets. Its no longer smart to go out there and throw hands wildly, these guys now are just too good. Jackson clearly has been trained properly and has adjusted to the new style of being a total fighter. He can keep fight but I don't see the point. He's 1-4 in his last five fights, and has looked awful in his losses to Mirko CroCop, Dan Hernderson, Liddell, and now Jackson. I think its all over for the legend, and I hope he hangs them up because he just can't keep taking beatings like this.
The next big fight was Minotauro Nogeuira against Frank Mir for the interim heavyweight title. I picked Mir in an upset, I thought he was more focused and angry because of how Brock Lesnar got a title shot and he's made him tap out. Everyone else in the world picked Big Nog. And everyone else was wrong. Minotauro is a wiz on the ground, but the only time he was on his back was when Mir dropped him there. Mir, known also for his ground skills, shocked everyone by standing up and just taking Nogeuira apart with crips stricking and really tremendous combinations of jabs, uppercuts, and leg kicks. He completely owned Nog in the first round, but so did Tim Sylvia and Heath Herring (and a million other fighters who have fought Nog). Nog is kind of like Ali, he's a rope-a-dope fighter that likes to take a beating, wear and opponent out, and then grab a limb and tap him out. But Mir fought smart, when he knocked Nog down, he didn't fall for the ground-game bait and stood it back up. The second round as more of the same and this time when Mir got Nog down, he ground-and-pounded him for the win and the interim title. Frank Mir is the first fighter to every finish Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira. Let me repeat that. Frank Mir is the first fighter to every finish Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira. In 38 pro fights, nobody has finished Nog. Not Fedor, not Sylvia, not CroCop, not Coleman. Nog has lost before, but always by decision. Frank Mir is the first man in MMA history to finish Minotauro in a fight. Amazing and he looked unbeatable. That of course sets up for a title unification fight between Brock Lesnar and Frank Mir. And Frank Mir made Lesnar tap out last year. This will be good and Brock better not believe his own headlines, but Frank Mir is for real. As for Minotauro, I'm not sure what to make of his performance. He looked totally confused out there, didn't know what Mir was doing, and seemed lost. Mir's strategy was obviously something Nog didn't prepare for. But he's not done. There is one more fight for him, a legends bout if you win, and that is against Randy Couture.
In the main event, Forrest Griffin looked good in the first two rounds defending his light heavyweight title against Rashad Evans, using good combinations and extensive leg kicks to keep the explosive Evans at bay. But Evans got him down in the third round and Griffin using one of the laziest gaurds I've ever seen and just allowed Evans to posture up onto one knee, fold him up, and punch his lights out over and over until the ref ended it. Great heart by Rashad to take all the punishment and just by his time. Griffin needs to get back in the gym and work on his jiu-jitsu because that looked terrible. Next up for Rashad? Most think it will be Rampage Jackson, but if Lyoto Machida can beat Thiago Silva next month it might be Machida. Rampage is the sexy pick and those two really could sell a pay per view. As for Forrest, he's not done so its back to the drawing board. I wouldn't be suprised to see a mega-fight between him and Chuck Liddell.
A great night of fights, the best ppv of the year, and major props to Frank Mir and Rashad Evans for finally silencing their critics once and for all.
WINNERS: Berry, Okami, Hamill, Blackburn, Hardonk, Kongo, Jackson, Dolloway, Mir, and Evans.
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