Cain Velasquez won in the main event of UFC 110 without shooting for a single takedown. The wrestling ace stood with Rodrigo Nogueira and mixed up kicks and combinations until he caught Minotauro clean and finished him off on the ground with punches. A huge win for Cain cements his spot in the upper echelon of the Heavyweight division. Nogueira has now lost two of his last three via stoppage, the first two stoppages in his storied career, so who knows what is next on the horizon for the former Champ.
In the co-main event Wanderlei Silva did his fans proud by getting back into the win column as he earned a unanimous decision victory over the Brit Micheal Bisping. It wasn’t the kind of ending he was hoping for, but he desperately needed a victory to stay relevant. For Bisping, it is his second loss in three fights but it was at the hands of two legends in Dan Henderson and the aforementioned Wanderlei Silva which is nothing to be ashamed of.
Mirko Cro-Cop returned to the win column as well in his bout with Aussie and fellow Croatian Anthony Perosh. Cro-Cop used good sprawls to keep the fight standing and punished Perosh who was unsuccesful in his takedown attempts. The fight came to an end due to a cut opened up by a big elbow landed from within his guard by Mirko.
Ryan Bader impressed with a big win over Keith Jardine who may be in danger of receiving his walking papers from the UFC after his second KO loss in a row.
In the lightweight showdown between Aussie George Sotiropoulos and Jow Stevenson, the Australian native impressed fans with a solid decision victory. Sotiropoulos is now looking like he has a spot among the top tier opponents in the 155lb class and has lots of potential.

RESULTS
Cain Velasquez def. Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira via knockout (punches) – Round 1, 2:20
Wanderlei Silva def. Michael Bisping via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
George Sotiropoulos def. Joe Stevenson via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
Ryan Bader def. Keith Jardine via knockout (punch) – Round 3, 2:10
Mirko “Cro Cop” Filipovic def. Anthony Perosh via TKO (cut) – Round 2, 5:00
Krzysztof Soszynski def. Stephan Bonnar via TKO (cut) – Round 3, 1:04
Chris Lytle def. Brian Foster via submission (knee-bar) – Round 1, 1:41
C.B. Dollaway def. Goran Reljic via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
James Te Huna def. Igor Pokrajac via TKO (strikes) – Round 3, 3:26

Ric Fogel for ESPN.comReason to smile: Randy Couture breathed new life into his career by stopping Mark Coleman.

LAS VEGAS — It was never in doubt.

In a battle between beloved hall of famers, Randy Couture reigned supreme, as he submitted Mark Coleman with a second-round rear-naked choke in the UFC 109 “Relentless” headliner on Saturday at the Mandalay Bay Events Center.

Drifting briefly into a state of unconsciousness, Coleman went out on his sword 69 seconds into Round 2.

The incomparable Couture set the tone with his boxing but deftly moved to the clinch midway through the opening round, pressed Coleman against the cage and went to work with his patented dirty boxing. A dejected Coleman, 45, retreated to his corner after a lopsided period. He had no answers and seemed to know it. Reality bit.

Couture rocked Coleman with a left hook in tight in the third round, pushed again into the clinch and took down the former Olympian with surprising ease. From there, the two-division champion flurried on “The Godfather of Ground-and-Pound,” seized back control and cinched the choke for the victory, his second in a row since his return to the light heavyweight division.

“I’m having a blast,” said the 46-year-old Couture. “I feel like I’m improving each and every time I get out here. This is my third fight in seven months, and it feels good to be so active.”

Coleman is 1-2 in the UFC since returning after a decade-long departure.

“Wow, the guy’s tough,” he said of Couture. “The guy’s real tough. I don’t know what the hell happened. I’m disappointed. I think I can do better. I won’t quit. I’ll be back.”

Sonnen upsets Marquardt

In a near-virtuoso performance certain to solidify his place as one of the world’s premier middleweights, Chael Sonnen defeated former King of Pancrase Nate Marquardt by unanimous decision in the co-main event. All three judges scored the bout 30-27 in the Team Quest veteran’s favor.

Marquardt twice threatened with guillotine chokes. He also cut the outspoken Oregonian with an elbow from the bottom.

“He hurt me early on, even when I was on top,” Sonnen said. “I was hurt from the first round. I just had to hang in there.”

Sonnen was relentless in neutralizing his foe’s considerable offensive firepower with overwhelming top control and stout ground and pound. An underdog yet again, Sonnen seized command from the start and never let up. Leaning heavily on his amateur wrestling background, he grounded Marquardt at will and left the 30-year-old Brazilian jiu-jitsu black belt few openings on which to exploit. His takedowns were many.

Marquardt, in a last-ditch effort to prevent defeat, cinched a tight guillotine choke in the third round, but fatigue got the best of him and allowed Sonnen to escape. Marquardt reversed position late and fired away with some of his own ground-and-pound, though his efforts went for naught.

“I’m here to be the king of the mountain or I’ll move on in life and do something else,” Sonnen said. “I think I can beat any man God ever made.”

In defeat, Marquardt fell to 29-9-2 overall.

“I think I just executed my game plan the wrong way,” Marquardt said. “I really don’t think I should have lost that fight. I felt good. I think I kind of let him take control with the takedowns, and that was the key.”

Thiago submits Swick

Paulo Thiago took out another American Kickboxing Academy welterweight, as he choked Mike Swick unconscious with an airtight D’Arce 1 minute, 54 seconds into the second round.

Swick, who has lost consecutive fights for the first time as a professional, had never before been submitted.

Thiago threw and landed the more meaningful strikes in Round 1, as the two world-ranked welterweights waded through an extended feeling-out process. In the second round, Swick sent Thiago backpedaling toward the cage with an overhand right but walked into a counter left hook that put him on his backside. Thiago swarmed, locked up the choke and waited for Swick to fade to black.

Maia outpoints Miller

Decorated Brazilian jiu-jitsu black belt Demian Maia outperformed former International Fight League middleweight champion Dan Miller en route to a pedestrian unanimous decision. Scores were 30-27, 29-28 and 29-28 for Maia, whose win helps him climb back into title contention at 185 pounds.

The once-beaten Maia held his own standing and grounded Miller with takedowns in the first and third rounds. Miller stung the Brazilian with a right hand in the final stanza but left himself vulnerable for the takedown, and Maia capitalized. From there, he neutralized the AMA Fight Club standout with an effective mixture of strikes and suffocating top control against the cage, winning for the 12th time in 13 fights.

“I’m sorry I couldn’t finish the fight,” said Maia, who went the distance for the first time in seven UFC appearances. “I always try to finish the fight.”

Serra flattens Trigg

Former UFC welterweight champion Matt Serra notched his first win in nearly three years, stopping Frank Trigg on first-round strikes in a one-sided encounter at 170 pounds. The finish came 2 minutes, 23 seconds into Round 1.

Serra, 35, worked effectively to the legs and body early in the match, then floored Trigg with a booming overhand right as the two exchanged in the center of the cage. He followed with three powerful punches from the top that necessitated intervention from the referee. Serra put an exclamation point on the win with his trademark one-handed cartwheel, as a dazed Trigg, his UFC career perhaps at an end, lay nearby.

“Thank God for that overhand right,” Serra said. “I just had to wing that thing. I believe in my stand-up. It’s not pretty, but [when] I land it, it hurts.”

In the main event, current Hall of Famers Randy Couture and Mark Coleman will square off. The card also features a co-main event, Nate Marquardt vs. Chael Sonnen, and a welterweight battle between Mike Swick and Paulo Thiago.

Full UFC 109 results are below.
Pay-Per-View Bouts:

Randy Couture vs. Mark Coleman
Nate Marquardt vs. Chael Sonnen
Mike Swick vs. Paulo Thiago
Demian Maia vs. Dan Miller
Matt Serra vs. Frank Trigg

Preliminary Bouts:

Mac Danzig vs. Justin Buchholz
Melvin Guillard vs. Ronys Torres
Phillipe Nover vs. Rob Emerson
Brian Stann vs. Phil Davis
Tim Hague vs. Chris Tuchscherer
Joey Beltran vs. Rolles Gracie

Dave Mandel for Sherdog.comStill standing: Nick Diaz, left, emerged victorious after a back-and-forth brawl with Marius Zaromskis.

SUNRISE, Fla. — Nick Diaz captured the vacant Strikeforce welterweight championship in dramatic fashion Saturday at the BankAtlantic Center.

He rose from an early knockdown and stopped Lithuanian striker Marius Zaromskis with a short right hook in the “Strikeforce: Miami” main event.

Zaromskis, the reigning Dream champion, succumbed 4 minutes, 38 seconds into Round 1, as Diaz posted his sixth consecutive victory.

Diaz used his length to keep Zaromskis on the end of his punches but found himself on the wrong end of a clubbing right hand that put him on his seat midway through the first frame. Diaz avoided any of the significant follow-up shots Zaromskis lobbed his way and methodically worked his way back into the fight.

The tide began to turn in Diaz’s favor when he started going to the body of his fading opponent. The frenetic pace and digging body shots had Zaromskis teetering on the edge of exhaustion. Any hope he had vanished when Diaz planted him with the right hand.

Santos pounds out Coenen

Dave Mandel for Sherdog.com Cristiane Santos, right, was always one step ahead of Marloes Coenen.

Strikeforce women’s lightweight champion Cristiane “Cyborg” Santos stopped a game but overmatched Marloes Coenen in the third round of their title match, as she defended her crown for the first time.

Santos was in command throughout the bout, stopping all of her opponent’s takedowns and negating her perceived grappling advantage.

Coenen told reporters she would be more than happy to stand and trade with the champion, and she lived up to her promise. She delivered a number of clean, crisp punches, including a number of lead left hands, but Santos walked right through them. The difference in physicality and punching power was the deciding factor in the fight.

Santos employed a powerful striking game, on the feet and on the ground, and eventually wore down Coenen. The end came in the third round, when Santos took up dominant position after a weary Coenen pulled guard. She pounded away with punches until referee Jorge Ortiz rescued the Dutch fighter. The end came 3 minutes, 40 seconds into the first round.

“I’m very happy,” Santos said. “I prepared myself very much. I trained a lot.”

Santos admitted Coenen was probably her toughest test to date.

“She has a lot of game in her,” Santos said. “She has a lot of techniques, and she’s got a great heart.”

Walker makes successful debut

Dave Mandel for Sherdog.com Herschel Walker controlled nearly every minute of every round against Greg Nagy.

In his professional MMA debut, former NFL and college football star Herschel Walker controlled Greg Nagy and took home a third-round technical knockout victory by strikes.

Walker displayed an unorthodox striking style, standing upright and shimmying as he looked for an opening. It would not matter much because the 1982 Heisman Trophy winner from Georgia repeatedly took the fight to the ground, where he was clearly more comfortable.

Using a front headlock to wrangle Nagy, Walker transitioned from North-South to side control and to the back mount at will, punching his opponent at every opening. At 47 years of age, Walker showed an impressive fitness level as he outworked his much younger opponent and eventually wore him out.

Nagy tried to work his ground game, but ultimately, he could not keep up and seemed to give up near the end of the second round. Referee Troy Waugh seemed to be contemplating stopping the bout late in the frame, as Walker pounded away at Nagy from back control.

The third round was a near replica of the first two. Walker scored with the takedown, a slam from the clinch and took Nagy’s back. From there, he punched his way to the stoppage while Nagy offered little resistance. The end came 2 minutes, 17 seconds into the final round.

“This was very tough,” Walker said. “This is the hardest thing I’ve ever done.”

Walker indicated he would allow his American Kickboxing Academy trainers to determine whether or not he would fight again.

“I’ve got to come back and train,” Walker said. “They’ve got to make that decision for me.”

Lawler outguns Manhoef

Dave Mandel for Sherdog.com One punch was all it took for Robbie Lawler to turn the tide against Melvin Manhoef.

Robbie Lawler rescued a spectacular victory from what looked like impending doom when he knocked out Melvin Manhoef with a blistering overhand right that froze the Dutchman and sent him tumbling to the canvas.

Lawler, who was on the receiving end of a vicious leg attack, did not muster a single meaningful shot until the fight-changing punch. It appeared as if he was going to be outclassed.

Manhoef stalked him around the cage and repeatedly sent him pirouetting away after each successive kick to his lead right leg. Manhoef, known for his explosive striking game, landed at will and had Lawler on the run when, in an instant, the fight was over.

Lawler, backing away and covering up, exploded with the powerful right that scrambled Manhoef. Once he hit the ground, Lawler made sure he would not get back up, as he landed a pair of punches, a left followed by a right.

“This guy’s a killer,” Lawler said. “He was coming after me. I kept my hands up, and I knew I was going to catch him. I just didn’t want to get overextended. I knew I’d have a chance to catch him. His hands seemed to drop once he goes to finish guys, and that’s what I wanted to wait for.”

The stoppage came 3 minutes, 33 seconds into the first round and seemingly puts Lawler in line for another shot at the Strikeforce middleweight title.

“I’m going to take this win,” Lawler said. “I’m going to run with it, rest my leg. He was kicking the crap out of my leg. We’ll see what happens.”

Lashley lays out Sims

Dave Mandel for Sherdog.com Wes Sims found himself outmatched and overpowered by Bobby Lashley on the ground.

Bobby Lashley dominated an overmatched Wes Sims, stopping him via strikes midway through the first round of their heavyweight showdown. Lashley easily took the fight to the ground, where he controlled Sims and battered him with punches from within the big man’s guard.

After a rapid-fire series of right hands forced Sims to turn his back, Lashley finished the job by flattening him out and pounding away until referee Troy Waugh saw fit to end the carnage 2 minutes, 6 seconds into the first round.

Sims, always the entertainer, had tried to goad Lashley, who also works as a professional wrestler, into a World Wrestling Entertainment-style clinch to start the match. Lashley refused to engage and took Sims right to the mat as soon as he could.

“Anytime you go in there and you come out victorious,” Lashley said, “you have to be satisfied.”

UFC 108 results are in and Rashad Evans beat Thiago Silva 29-28 in an amazing fight. Despite being knocked down during the fight, Evans pulled through to a victory. It wasn’t an easy victory; with a score of 29-28, you can see how close Thiago Silva was to becoming this event’s winner.

According to MMAFighting.com, “In the main event, Evans immediately went on the attack and clinched Silva against the cage, and he showed that he wanted to use his experience as a former Michigan State wrestler to his advantage, taking Silva down multiple times in the first round. Silva seemed uncomfortable early on because of the way Evans was clinching with him. It was a very good first round for Evans.”

Things almost fell apart in the third round when they were off to a good start for Evans,but then Silva came in and made a couple of blows that left Evans seriously hurt. True to his tough image, Evans held in there through the round. Dana White, President of the UFC stated that he thought that Thiago Silva could have won the round, but “gassed out.”

Here are the full UFC 108 results:

Rashad Evans def. Thiago Silva via unanimous decision
Paul Daley def. Dustin Hazelett by first-round TKO
Sam Stout def. Joe Lauzon via unanimous decision
Jim Miller def. Duane Ludwig by first-round submission
Junior Dos Santos def. Gilbert Yvel by first-round knockout
Martin Kampmann def. Jacob Volkmann via first-round submission
Cole Miller def. Dan Lauzon via first-round submission
Mark Munoz def. Ryan Jensen via first-round TKO
Jake Ellenberger def. Mike Pyle via second-round TKO
Rafaello Oliveira def. John Gunderson via unanimous decision

Below is a post-game interview with Dana White, president of the UFC.

Dana White after UFC 108 Between Evans and Silva

Kevin Burns vs. T.J. Grant
Round 1

Dave Mandel/Sherdog.com

Grant vs. Burns.

Burns pushes forward while Grant looks to counter. Grant changes levels and hits a double-leg takedown. Burns pops right back up to his feet and clobbers Grant with a flurry of punches that drops the Canadian to the mat. Burns pounces and pounds with big punches that have referee Greg Franklin hovering. Grant spins out for a leg, forcing Burns to defend, and eventually gets back to his feet. Grant hits another double and establishes top position. Grant moves to half-guard and then stands in Burns’ guard before dropping a pair of big right hands to the head of his opponent. Grant tries to pass to mount and goes too far. He tries to secure an inverted triangle, but Burns pushes him off and gets back to his feet. In the following exchange, Grant landed a kick to the groin of Burns that felled him to his knees. Burns was given time to recover before the bout was restarted. Grant grabbed the plum right off the restart and kneed away at Burns before stepping back and landing a devastating right hook that crumpled Burns to the canvas. Grant hammered away until Franklin stepped in to save Burns at 4:57 of the first frame.

Dave Mandel/Sherdog.com

Johnson vs. Garcia.

Damarques Johnson vs. Edgar Garcia
Round 1
Johnson and Garcia touch gloves in the center to kick-off the welterweight affair. Garcia takes the center while Johnson is happy to circle outside. The two exchange with Johnson landing the better shots, causing a big welt under Garcia’s left eye. Garcia hits a takedown and transitions into a Peruvian necktie choke. Johnson works his way clear and escapes back to his feet only to be planted with a flurry of punches. Garcia followed Johnson to the mat in hopes of finishing the fight but Johnson turned the tables when he locked up a triangle choke that forces Garcia to tap at 4:03 of the first round.

Rousimar Palhares vs. Lucio Linhares
Round 1
Palhares shoots immediately and secures a sloppy single-leg takedown. Linhares works his way back to his feet as Palhares tries to pass his guard. Palhares grabs a guillotine choke and falls to his back then rolls Linhares over. Linhares defends his neck, but ends up on his back with Palhares in his guard. Referee Greg Franklin stands the two up with two-minutes left in the round. Palhares eats a punch, but gets Linhares back to the mat where he goes through a series of leg locks that are expertly defended by Linhares. Palhares takes top position with Linhares holding him in closed guard with a body-triangle. Palhares sits back for another leg-lock, and Linhares sits up and takes top position as the round comes to a close. Sherdog.com scores the round 10-9 for Palhares.

Round 2

Dave Mandel/Sherdog.com

Palhares vs. Linhares.

Palhares launches into a slow-motion flying knee that Linhares catches and drags him to the mat with. Palhares takes top off of a scramble and Linhares quickly locks up a tight triangle choke. Palhares stands and works to free himself, but Linhares begins to work his arm. Palhares wriggles off the hook by extracting his arm and working free. He then took top position but after little action Franklin brought them back their feet. Both fighters were visibly fatigued, and neither was quick to jump to their feet despite the prodding of Franklin. Linhares jumped into a flying omaplata as Palhares shot for a takedown on the restart. After easily defending the submission, Palhares sat back once again for a leg-lock and forced the tapout with a nasty-looking heelhook at 3:21 of the second period.

Johny Hendricks vs. Ricardo Funch
Round 1
Hendricks charges forward at the bell and Funch stands his ground. Hendricks unloads a couple punches that miss before shooting in. Funch grabs double underhooks and stops the attempt, and then knees to the body of the star wrestler. Hendricks wiggles free of Funch’s clutches and begins to dirty box. The striking opens up the takedown and Hendricks drops levels to hit a powerful double-leg slam. Funch gets back to his feet, but Hendricks unloads with punches from the clinch, the uppercut doing the major damage. Funch shoots in and Hendricks locks up a guillotine and falls to his back. Funch defends and Hendricks gives up the hold and moves to a front headlock. As the fighters scramble, Hendricks grabs the guillotine once again before going back to the front headlock as time expires. Sherdog.com scores the round 10-9 for Hendricks.

Round 2
Hendricks shoots to start off the second and Funch sprawls well. Hendricks gives up the shot and tees off with punches that leave Funch looking for cover along the cage. Hendricks shoots again, but Funch delivers a nice knee to the body. Undeterred, Hendricks grabs Funch and flings him to the mat with another powerful takedown. Hendricks backs away and calls for Funch to return to his feet. Hendricks pushes him up against the cage and hammers him with knees. Funch drops for a takedown, but Hendricks expertly defends before pounding him with more punches and hammer fists. Hendricks takes Funch’s back and punches away while trying to lock up a choke as the second round ticks to a close. Sherdog.com scores the round 10-9 for Hendricks.

Round 3

Dave Mandel/Sherdog.com

Hendricks vs. Funch.

Hendricks lands another takedown to kick off the third before transitioning to Funch’s back again. Funch defends the choke and escapes when Hendricks gets too high on his back. Funch lands a booming low kick that Hendricks shrugs off before landing a vicious one-two that backs Funch into the cage. Hendricks scores another takedown that lands him in side control. He tries to set up a crucifix by trapping Funch’s right arm with his legs but the Team Link fighter pulls his arm free. Funch scrambles back to his feet for a fleeting second before getting slammed back to the canvas again. Hendricks pounds away until the final bell sounds. Sherdog.com scores the round 10-9 for Hendricks.

The official scores are 30-27, 30-27 and 30-25.

Shane Nelson vs. Matt Wiman
Round 1
Wiman is beating himself up in the corner before the fight begins, smacking himself in the face, body and legs to get ready for his lightweight scrap. Nelson seems to have the speed advantage early in the first. He is countering well and getting off first when he chooses to. Wiman throws a right hand, but Nelson counters with a combination of punches and a kick to the body that knocks Wiman off balance. Wiman gets his feet back under him and springs forward with a flying knee that Nelson easily avoids. Wiman tracks Nelson back down and staggers him along the cage with straight right-right uppercut combination. Nelson falls to his back and establishes his guard but Wiman opens him up with a big elbow to the top of the forehead. Nelson gets back to his feet as the round ends. Sherdog.com scores the round 10-9 for Wiman.

Round 2
Wiman goes for a kick to the body, but Nelson grabs his leg and takes him to the mat. Referee Mario Yamasaki implores them to get busy but after little action on the mat he stands them back up. Wiman pushes Nelson against the cage and grabs a leg and steps back, pulling Nelson to the mat. Nelson goes for a triangle and Wiman avoids the submission attempt. Wiman loading up elbows from the guard as Nelson goes back and forth from open and closed guard. Nelson rolls out and grabs a leg, looking for a submission but Wiman sits up and tries to punch Nelson as the bell sounds. Sherdog.com scores the round 10-9 for Wiman.

Round 3

Dave Mandel/Sherdog.com

Wiman vs. Nelson.

Wiman steps in and throws a blistering kick to the groin of Nelson after a brief exchange. Nelson falls to the mat as Yamasaki intervenes. Wiman pleads his case as Nelson takes about a minute to recover from the low blow. Nelson lands a low kick of his own as the fight is restarted, but Wiman answers with a takedown. Wiman stands up to punch and Nelson gets rises to his feet and lands a nice combination of punches. Wiman moves into the clinch and takes a front headlock before a weary Nelson gives up an easy takedown. With Wiman in his half guard, Nelson rolls for another leg lock that is easily defended by Wiman, who then takes the Hawaiian’s back. Wiman cinches the body triangle and begins to work for the rear-naked choke. Nelson defends but can not get away. Sherdog.com scores the round 10-9 for Wiman.

Official scores: 30-27 on all three cards for Matt Wiman, who takes the unanimous decision.

Dave Mandel/Sherdog.com

Belcher vs. Gouveia.

Alan Belcher vs. Wilson Gouveia
Round 1
Belcher, in a pair of beautiful pink Thai shorts, stalks Gouveia from the center of the cage. Gouveia steps forward with a solid series of punches the face of the advancing Belcher. The fighters reset and do it again. They are just trading bombs with neither fighter backing down. Belcher rocks Gouveia with a right uppercut that puts the Brazilian on his seat. Belcher swarms with punches until referee Herb Dean steps in at 3:03 of the first round, giving Belcher the TKO victory.

Paul Buentello vs. Stefan Struve
Round 1
Struve kicks the body and Buentello catches it. Struve tries to pull guard and Buentello has none of it. Struve stands and crushes the Texan with an uppercut. Struve follows with a takedown and he gets it. Struve moves to the mount and Buentello turns his back to avoid punishment. Struve locks on a body triangle and works the head of Buentello with both hands. Buentello covers up while referee Dan Miragliotta watches closely. Struve locks on a rear-naked choke and Paul defends by controlling the left wrist of his foe. Struve clinches the choke and changes his grip for more leverage. An ignorant crowd boos the action. Struve releases the body triangle and it costs him, and Buentello takes the top position with a nice reversal. Buentello plays it cool in Struve’s offensive guard with elbows to the body. Buentello throws a double-Mongolian chop ala Sakuraba in the round’s final moments.

Jordan Breen scores the round 10-9 Struve
Brian Knapp scores the round 10-9 Struve
Mike Fridley scores the round 10-9 Struve

Round 2
Struve kicks at the body of Buentello and slips early in the round. Buentello does not engage him on the ground and invites his opponent to stand. Struve obliges. The fighters clinch against the cage and Struve drops down for an ankle lock. Buentello defends the technique well and hits Struve with a left hand as they stand. Struve jumps for a flying knee and Buentello knocks him flat with a right hand in mid air. Struve clears the cobwebs and tries it again. Buentello, showing excellent timing, blasts him with a right hand again before the knee impacts its target. Struve opens up with his hands and the fighters trade lefts and rights to the head. Buentello gets the best of the exchange. The fighters touch gloves after the violence.

Jordan Breen scores the round 10-9 Buentello
Brian Knapp scores the round 10-9 Buentello
Mike Fridley scores the round 10-9 Buentello

Round 3

Dave Mandel/Sherdog.com

Struve vs. Buentello.

Time is called before the round starts to remove a piece of tooth from Struve’s mouthpiece. The break gives Buentello a much-needed breather. The round starts and Buentello lands a right cross to the jaw. Struve lands two hard low kicks to the lead leg of Buentello. Struve finds a rhythm and connects with a right knee to the body and a left hook to the chin. Struve lands a standing elbow and the crowd reacts, but it was partially blocked. Struve continues to work the left leg of the winded Texan with kicks. Kick after kick scores with the thigh of Buentello. The pace slows as Struve seems content to pick Buentello apart from the outside with low kicks. Buentello pushes Struve down and hovers over him. The referee stands the fighters and Paul gets a right hand in on the chin.

Jordan Breen scores the round 10-9 Struve (29-28 Struve)
Brian Knapp scores the round 10-9 Struve (29-28 Struve)
Mike Fridley scores the round 10-9 Struve (29-28 Struve)

Official scores:
29-28 (twice for Struve) and a 28-28 draw. Struve takes the majority decision.

Kenny Florian vs. Clay Guida
Round 1
Florian, in a southpaw stance, lands a straight left lead to Guida’s jaw. Florian attempts a head kick and is dragged to the floor by Guida. Florian opens his guard and controls the wrists from the bottom. Florian finds distance to stand. Florian is cut above his right eye, but it doesn’t seem to be serious. Guida checks a low kick and fails on a sloppy double-leg attempt. Guida lands an uppercut from the clinch and Florian briefly takes Guida down. Guida stands and attempts to throw his opponent down, but it’s Florian that ends up on top in side control. Guida gets to his feet and Florian slams him to the floor with a lateral drop. Guida is bleeding behind the hairline above his left ear from an elbow, which prompts referee Mario Yamasaki calls time to have a doctor check the cut. The doctor says it’s OK to continue and we’re back on. The horn sounds moments later.

Dave Mandel/Sherdog.com

Florian vs. Guida.

Jordan Breen scores the round 10-9 Florian
Brian Knapp scores the round 10-9 Florian
Mike Fridley scores the round 10-9 Florian

Round 2
Guida’s cut is severe. His cutman loads the gaping hole with Vaseline before the second round. Florian is more patient in this stanza as he uses footwork to setup his jab. Florian follows a jab with a right hand and it connects clean on Guida’s chin. Guida melts to the floor and Florian hops on his back in search of a rear-naked choke. He secures it and Guida taps quickly at the 2:19 mark of round two.

Jon Fitch vs. Mike Pierce
Round 1
Fitch trips Pierce up while throwing a low kick. Fitch hops on his back and looks for a rear-naked choke with both hooks. Fitch gives up the choke to control the head with a half Nelson. Fitch punches the head with his free hand. Pierce walks Fitch over to the cage and finds a window to land some punches of his own while Fitch controls his back tightly. Fitch is warned for punching the back of the head by referee Mario Yamasaki. Pierce exits out the back door and takes the top position. Fitch uses his back against the fence to stand. The action slows to a crawl and Yamasaki separates the fighters. Fitch is bleeding from a small cut above his left eye. Pierce jabs and stuffs a Fitch single-leg attempt.

Jordan Breen scores the round 10-9 Fitch
Brian Knapp scores the round 10-9 Fitch
Mike Fridley scores the round 10-9 Fitch

Round 2
The fighters trade lazy strikes to start the second frame. Pierce shoots in for a single and Fitch defends it easily. Pierce clips his prey with a right hand and Fitch answers with an uppercut. Fitch lands another uppercut and bounces a knee off the Pierce’s body. Fitch catches Pierce flat on his feet, and drags him to the floor with a crisp single-leg takedown. Pierce stands and Fitch takes control of his back while standing. Pierce turns into his opponent and takes a knee to the midsection for his effort. The action slowed in the second round as Fitch forced Pierce into his game.

Jordan Breen scores the round 10-9 Fitch
Brian Knapp scores the round 10-9 Fitch
Mike Fridley scores the round 10-9 Fitch

Round 3

Dave Mandel/Sherdog.com

Fitch vs. Pierce.

Fitch cracks Pierce with a straight right. Pierce pushes Fitch against the cage and does little with the advantage. Fitch roughs him up with dirty boxing as he sneaks in a right hand and a sharp knee to the body. Fitch misses a sloppy head kick attempt and goes back to his jab, which is only affective at keeping his opponent at bay. Fitch gets a single and Pierce stands. Again, Fitch rides the back and does little else. Pierce escapes and then pieces together his best combination of the fight: a jab, right low kick set that turns the tide. Pierce turns it on with punches in the bout’s final moments and buckles Fitch’s frame. Pierce works the body and head with both hands, but Fitch survives to hear the horn.

Jordan Breen scores the round 10-9 Pierce (29-28 Fitch)
Brian Knapp scores the round 10-9 Pierce (29-28 Fitch)
Mike Fridley scores the round 10-9 Pierce (29-28 Fitch)

Official scores:
All three official judges see the bout 29-28 for Jon Fitch, who takes the unanimous decision.

Frank Mir vs. Cheick Kongo
Round 1
Mir floors Kongo with a left hook lead. Mir pounces and locks up a guillotine. Mir tells referee Herb Dean that Kongo is out. Dean lifts the arm of Kongo to verify, and it’s confirmed. Frank Mir chokes Cheick Kongo out cold with a guillotine at 1:12 of the opening frame.

UFC Lightweight Championship
B.J. Penn vs. Diego Sanchez
Round 1
Penn is all over Sanchez from the start as he belts the challenger with a right hook. Sanchez falls face first and Penn is peppering him with punches from both hands. Sanchez is hardly defending, but referee Herb Dean does a tremendous job in letting the fighters work. Sanchez takes a beating but he’s still in the game. Sanchez gets to his feet and now is fighting very tentative as he clears his head. Penn snaps Sanchez’s head back with a jab and a right hand. Another right straight clips the chin of Sanchez. Sanchez, bleeding from the bridge of his nose by the right eye, shoots in for a single. Penn sprawls and defends beautifully. Sanchez opens up and is smashed by a right-hand counter. Sanchez walks to the wrong corner at the bell.

Jordan Breen scores the round 10-8 Penn
Brian Knapp scores the round 10-8 Penn
Mike Fridley scores the round 10-8 Penn

Round 2
Penn measures Sanchez off and fires a right-hand lead that falls short. The challenger shoots for a single and swoops up Penn’s left leg. The champion’s balance is amazing. He hops on one foot and avoids the takedown while making it look easy. Again Sanchez shoots and fails. The crowd starts to chant “B.J., B.J.” Penn has taken control of the center of the Octagon. Sanchez is circling while Penn cuts off the cage. Sanchez drops levels for two more takedowns and it’s clear that he can’t take Penn down early in the fight. Sanchez throws a sloppy right hook and Penn uses head movement to avoid it, just as he has since the opening bell. Sanchez briefly trips Penn to the floor, but the Hawaiian hops back to his feet in less than a second. Through two rounds, Penn is both dominating and more fresh in terms of wind.

Jordan Breen scores the round 10-9 Penn
Brian Knapp scores the round 10-9 Penn
Mike Fridley scores the round 10-9 Penn

Round 3
Sanchez charges in for a takedown and is still unable to secure it. Penn’s balance and space is too refined. Sanchez puts his head down and looks at the floor while throwing a one-two. The punches miss their mark by a foot. A left-footed head kick is blocked by Penn and the fight goes back to the clinch as Diego misses on another takedown. Penn cracks Sanchez with a standing elbow. Sanchez is displaying his best war face, but he’s been unable to land a single significant strike or takedown. Puts stuffs another and roughs Sanchez up with a right hook. Penn bounces on his right foot while Sanchez tries desperately to drag him to the floor. Penn has none of it, and lands another right hand before time expires.

Jordan Breen scores the round 10-9 Penn
Brian Knapp scores the round 10-9 Penn
Mike Fridley scores the round 10-9 Penn

Round 4
Sanchez attempts a head kick that doesn’t come within feet of Penn. The champion connects with right hook as Sanchez tries to clinch. Penn backs Sanchez up to the fence and hurts him with a right hand that crisply follows a jab. Penn lands another right hand that forces Sanchez to retreat. A resilient Sanchez tries takedown after takedown, but he just can’t execute it. The pace slows as Sanchez works for a double against the fence. Penn defends by pushing the head down. The crowd goes restless and begins to boo. Penn chucks Sanchez off and returns to the center of the cage. Sanchez comes forward and Penn blasts him with a right-hand lead.

Jordan Breen scores the round 10-9 Penn
Brian Knapp scores the round 10-9 Penn
Mike Fridley scores the round 10-9 Penn

Round 5
Sanchez has an awful cut on his bottom lip. Cornerman Saulo Ribeiro pleas with Sanchez to take Penn down in between rounds. Sanchez comes out and tries just that, but he has no chance. Sanchez pushes his head to the floor and beats him up with punches and elbows. Sanchez stands and Penn lands a head kick that opens up a three-inch cut above the left eye of Sanchez. The challenger tries for a desperation takedown that is easily defended. Blood is pouring from the face of Sanchez and Herb Dean calls time to have the cut examined. The cavernous gap is jagged and wide, which gives the doctor no choice but to call and end to the fight. The official time is 2:37 or round five.

Kimbo Slice standing over Houston Alexander during their match in Las Vegas on Saturday (Dec. 5) for ‘The Ultimate Finale’ (Photo: Las Vegas Sun)

MMA fighter Kimbo Slice pulled off his first official win in the UFC on Saturday night (December 5). However, it wasn’t a the most spectacular performance we’ve ever seen from him.

The former backyard brawler took the win over Houston Alexander during the season finale of “The Ultimate Fighter 10″ seriesy at the Palms in Las Vegas, with a unanimous decision victory from the judges who scored the match 30-27, 29-28 and 29-28 in favor Slice.

The Slice-Alexander match was a very slow, and sometimes amateurish looking affair. For much of the beginning, Slice calmly stalked his opponent around the cage, as he danced in circles for several minutes without much action.fight’. The lack of action earned boos from the arena’s crowd.

Both fighters finally opened up a bit in the second round, as Kimbo finally landed some glancing punches before he slammed Alexander to the ground. When Alexander finally returned to his feet, he was slammed by Kimbo once again. Twice, Kimbo achieved full mount, but failed to drop any real blows before his foe escaped back to his feet.

Much of the third was the same. But there were couple of exchanges where both fighters let off a few flurries. At one point in the third round, Alexander did land a devastating right leg kick that temporarily swept Slice off his feet (if you watched “The Ultimate Fighter 10″, you probably know Slice suffered a knee injury, which still seems to be lingering).

By the end, both fighters were noticablly fatigued, and coasted through the closing minute. While Slice did seem to get the best of Alexander to earn the win, it wasn’t by a very wide margin.

After recording his first win, he explained his mentality during the fight and the lack of aggression fans loved in his first few MMA fights with EliteXC.

“I was thinking street for a minute,” Slice explained. “I had to bite down. Someone told me once to bite down hard and fight smart, and that’s what I had to do. … It was hard because I used to be a street fighter. There was no training in my style of fighting. It was based on instincts. At this level of the game, you have to fight smart.”

He also addressed the fans’ boos, acknowleding that things did start slow, and if had been a fan watching, he would’ve booed too.

“I would have booed, too. He rode the ring a lot,” Slice said. “Maybe that was part of his strategy, I don’t know. But the crowd is there to be entertained, and we were the entertainers. They booed because they weren’t happy.”

Roy Nelson raises his hand in victory after knocking out Brendan Schaub to become the ‘Ultimate Fighter’ (Photo: Las Vegas Sun)

“I was like, ‘Come on man, let’s do this,’ ” Kimbo added. “I had to call him out in the ring, so I reverted back to the streets in that respect. But he stuck to his game and I was like, ‘I’m not going to be foolish and run up on him.’ ”

Even with the win in the record books, Kimbo Slice as a lot of work to do, which he admits. But he’s now got his foot in the door at the UFC, so his future does seem a little brighter.

The main event of Saturday’s “Ultimate Finale” was the showdown of the season’s last two heavyweights standing — Roy Nelson versus former NFL pro football player Brendan Schaub.

This match ended quickly, with Nelson winning as most predicted.

While Schaub began the fight agressively at the ring of the bell, landing several blows to Nelson, he was able to weather the storm.

Nelson fired back shortly after, coming in with two left jabs, followed by a fight-ending straight right to Schaub’s left ear, knocking him out cold at 3 minutes, 45 seconds in the first.

It was Schaub’s first professional loss. Nelson, on the other hand, got the win, making him the “Ultimate Fighter” of this season’s reality series and winner of the six-figure UFC contract.

LAS VEGAS — Forrest Griffin waited more than three years for a second crack at Tito Ortiz, and he made the most of the opportunity.

Griffin avenged his April 2006 split-decision defeat to Ortiz with a split verdict of his own in the UFC 106 “Ortiz versus Griffin 2″ main event on Saturday at the Mandalay Bay Events Center. Two judges sided with Griffin by 30-27 and 29-28 scores; a third scored it 29-28 for Ortiz.

The victory snapped the first two-fight losing streak of Griffin’s career, which culminated with his knockout loss to UFC middleweight champion Anderson Silva in August.

I see Anderson over there,” Griffin said. “He broke me. He broke me. Tito was a great fight for me to come back. I think we’re going to have to do a third. That’s one to one, man.”

The bout itself was hotly contested. Ortiz had a difficult time trading with Griffin on his feet, as he ate stiff jabs and crude rights and lefts. At one point in the opening round, Griffin buzzed Ortiz with a right-left combination, this after battling back to his feet following Ortiz’s successful single-leg takedown. Ortiz closed the round with a series of meager strikes of his own but ate a few too many clean punches.

Ortiz came out firing in the second round and secured a double-leg takedown after Griffin missed a kick to the body and slipped. Ortiz fought from inside his foe’s guard and delivered a series of thudding elbows, but Griffin again scrambled back to his feet. Ortiz tried to trade with his fellow former champion, but a front kick to the face sent his mouthpiece flying across the Octagon. Ortiz, however, solidified his advantage in the round with another takedown, which led to a barrage of punishing elbows. The strikes lacerated Griffin above his right eye, but the cagy veteran deftly swept Ortiz with a half-minute left in the period and avoided further damage.

“I was setting that sweep up for about a minute while he was elbowing me in the face,” Griffin said. “It works good in jiu-jitsu; when the elbows in the face come, not such a great sweep.”

A bloodied Griffin kept Ortiz at bay with swift footwork and smoother, more refined strikes in the final stanza. Ortiz failed with a lazy takedown attempt early in the round and never came close to catching Griffin with a takedown. Griffin burned the former champion with stinging leg kicks and pesky front kicks. Whenever Ortiz drew close, he zipped a jab or hook to his face. Ortiz failed to close the distance effectively in the final round, as fatigue would not allow him to pull the trigger.

Ortiz, who claimed to have entered the fight with a bulging disc and cracked skull, addressed the postfight boos he received.

“I step in this cage, and I put a show on,” he said. “Were you guys satisfied with the show? It sucks losing. Forrest was the better man tonight. I gotta give it to him.”

Koscheck upends Johnson

Ric Fogel for ESPN.comJosh Koscheck’s rear-naked choke sealed the deal against Anthony Johnson.

Josh Koscheck outmuscled the taller, more explosive Anthony Johnson in a foul-filled co-main event before forcing his opponent to tap out to a rear-naked choke in the second round.

The two welterweights were cautious early in their duel, but Koscheck held his ground on the feet. Koscheck weathered Johnson’s combinations, and though Johnson clipped him with a few right hands, the former NCAA wrestling champion fired back with jabs, hooks and crosses of his own. Johnson kept Koscheck at bay for much of the bout with ferocious kicks to the body. In addition, the former junior college national wrestling champion stuffed Koscheck’s first few takedown attempts.

The fight lived up to its billing until a knee from Johnson to a fully downed Koscheck elicited a chorus of boos and jeers from the capacity crowd, mainly because multiple replays showed that Koscheck blocked the infraction. The knee resulted in Johnson’s being deducted a point, but the fouls did not end there.

Koscheck twice poked Johnson in the eye in the second round, and though they were accidental, the Fresno, Calif.-based fighter was twice warned. Once the fight resumed, Koscheck forced his will on his opponent and scored the single-leg takedown. Johnson was in deep water, on his back and pinned against the cage, and it was only a matter of time before Koscheck sealed the deal.

Koscheck rained down a series of elbows that forced Johnson to scramble, and when he did, Koscheck moved from Johnson’s half guard and seized his back. From there, the welterweight contender locked in the rear-naked choke and forced Johnson to submit 4 minutes, 47 seconds into the second round.

After the bout, Koscheck called out Dan Hardy, the man next in line to face UFC welterweight king Georges St. Pierre.

“I know there’s somebody here that thinks he’s the No. 1 contender; he thinks he’s the No. 1 contender, and I think he hasn’t fought anybody,” Koscheck said. “He’s sitting right over there. His name is Dan Hardy. He ain’t fought anybody like me, guaranteed. I’m the No. 1 freaking contender in this weight division. I’m fighting Georges St. Pierre in March, [UFC president] Dana White. You know it. February, I know they’re looking for a card. Dan Hardy, Josh Koscheck sells. Let them fight right here in the States first.”

Thiago outpoints Volkmann

Ric Fogel for ESPN.comPaulo Thiago’s superior ground game proved the difference against Jacob Volkmann.

Paulo Thiago handed Jacob Volkmann his first loss as a professional in a featured welterweight tilt, as he earned a hard-fought unanimous decision. Scores were 30-27, 30-27 and 29-28.

Thiago dropped Volkmann at the horn to end the first round and put his foe in a few precarious predicaments, but his varied choke attempts and superior stand-up were the difference in the match. Volkmann caught him in a D’Arce choke with about 30 seconds left in the fight, but the Brazilian escaped through the backdoor and swept the Minnesota Martial Arts Academy newcomer.

Thiago jabbed and countered Volkmann’s crude strikes while the two men were standing. Though the Minnesotan proved slippery and adept on the ground, his jiu-jitsu was a step behind Thiago’s. In short, the Brazilian had an answer for every trick Volkmann tried on the ground.

Nogueira steamrolls Cane

Ric Fogel for ESPN.comAntonio Rogerio Nogueira stepped out of brother’s shadow with a win over Luis Cane.

Trying to climb out of the considerable shadow of his bigger, better-known twin brother, Antonio Rogerio Nogueira scored an impressive first-round technical knockout against Luis Arthur Cane. The stoppage came just 1 minute, 56 seconds into the opening round.

“I’ve been learning his game a lot,” Nogueira said. “I know he’s a very good boxer. I respect him a lot, but I’ve been training. I just showed how hard I train.”

Nogueira rocked his light heavyweight counterpart roughly 70 seconds into the fight with a crisp left hook, but Cane recovered quickly. Nogueira later landed another left hand, but this time, Cane was in serious trouble.

Cane sprinted across the Octagon to regroup, but Nogueira stalked him down and engaged him in another flurry. Nogueira unfurled a perfect counter left hook that buckled his opponent’s knees. Soon after, another left hook crashed into Cane’s jaw. Once it connected, Nogueira landed another strike, and Cane crumpled to his back.

In a heap of trouble, Cane had no way to escape, and just as referee Steve Mazzagatti rushed in to stop the assault, Nogueira dished out two more left hands, wrapping a ribbon on the TKO.

Sadollah wears out Baroni

Ric Fogel for ESPN.comAmir Sadollah’s leg work took a toll on Phil Baroni.

In the opening main card bout, Amir Sadollah overwhelmed fan favorite Phil Baroni for three full rounds and won a lopsided unanimous decision. Scores were 30-27, 30-27 and 29-28.

“Just stepping into the ring with Baroni and fighting somebody as tough as that, that’s huge,” Sadollah said. “I loved it.”

Sadollah weathered an initial storm from Baroni, and once he found his groove, he never relented, methodically picking apart the “New York Bad Ass.”

Baroni rocked Sadollah immediately after the horn blared to kick off the match, but “The Ultimate Fighter” Season 7 winner was intelligent enough to clinch against the fence, thwarting the rest of his opponent’s onslaught. Baroni dug powerful hooks into Sadollah’s ribcage, but a minute or so into the round, Baroni’s punches lost their steam.

Sadollah utilized textbook muay Thai in picking apart his nemesis with stinging front kicks, crippling leg kicks and crafty combinations upstairs. By the end of the fight, Baroni was a gassed, bloodied and battered mess. Referee Yves Levigne looked long and hard at Baroni and seemed like he might pull the trigger on the mugging toward the end of the third round. Baroni never submitted to the thrashing, but he was too slow and tired to do any damage when his punches happened to find their mark.

Mike Sloan is a contributor to Sherdog.com.

Official fight card

Main Card

• Light Heavyweight bout: Tito Ortiz vs. Forrest Griffin
• Welterweight bout: Josh Koscheck vs. Anthony Johnson
• Welterweight bout: Amir Sadollah vs. Phil Baroni
• Light Heavyweight bout: Luiz Cane vs. Antonio Rogerio Nogueira
• Welterweight bout: Karo Parisyan vs. Dustin Hazelett^[1]

Preliminary Card (Spike TV)

• Welterweight bout: Ben Saunders vs. Marcus Davis
• Middleweight bout: Kendall Grove vs. Jake Rosholt

Preliminary Card (Non-televised)

• Welterweight bout: Paulo Thiago vs. Jacob Volkmann
• Welterweight bout: Brock Larson vs. Brian Foster
• Lightweight bout: Caol Uno vs. Fabricio Camoes
• Lightweight bout: George Sotiropoulos vs. Jason Dent

Tito Ortiz

Huntington Beach Bad Boy

6′ 2″ (188 cm)

204 (93 kg)

16-6-1

Forrest Griffin

6′ 3″ (191 cm)

205 (93 kg)

16-6-0

Josh Koscheck

Kos

5′ 10″ (178 cm)

170 (77 kg)

15-4-0

Anthony Johnson

Rumble

6′ 2″ (188 cm)

170 (77 kg)

8-2-0

Amir Sadollah

5′ 11″ (180 cm)

170 (77 kg)

2-1-0

Phil Baroni

New York Bad Ass

5′ 9″ (175 cm)

170 (77 kg)

6-5-0

Luiz Cane

Banha

6′ 2″ (188 cm)

205 (93 kg)

11-1-1

Antonio Rogerio Nogueira

n/a

205 (93 kg)

Karo Parisyan

The Heat

5′ 10″ (178 cm)

170 (77 kg)

26-5-0, 2 NC

Dustin Hazelett

6′ 1″ (185 cm)

170 (77 kg)

14-4-0

Ben Saunders

Killa B

6′ 3″ (191 cm)

170 (77 kg)

7-1-2

Marcus Davis

The Irish Hand Grenade

5′ 10″ (178 cm)

170 (77 kg)

21-6-0

May not be broadcast. Click for details.

Paulo Thiago

5′ 11″ (180 cm)

170 (77 kg)

11-1-0

Jacob Volkmann

n/a

170 (77 kg)

May not be broadcast. Click for details.

Kendall Grove

Da Spyder

6′ 6″ (198 cm)

185 (84 kg)

12-6-0

Jake Rosholt

6′ 1″ (185 cm)

185 (84 kg)

6-1-0

May not be broadcast. Click for details.

Brock Larson

5′ 11″ (180 cm)

170 (77 kg)

27-3-0

Brian Foster

5′ 10″ (178 cm)

170 (77 kg)

14-4-0

May not be broadcast. Click for details.

Caol Uno

5′ 7″ (170 cm)

155 (70 kg)

25-12-4

Fabricio Camoes

n/a

155 (70 kg)

May not be broadcast. Click for details.

George Sotiropoulos

5′ 10″ (178 cm)

155 (70 kg)

10-2-0

Jason Dent

Dynamite

5′ 9″ (175 cm)

155 (70 kg)

19-10-0

May not be broadcast. Click for details.