Author: By Frank Curreri

For years fighters tried in vain to solve the Lyoto Machida puzzle. Now it is Machida’s turn to try and solve his own puzzle – 205-pound wunderkind Jon Jones. This fight is a prime example of how quickly a fighter’s stock can soar or sour in the eyes of pundits and fans (Jones’ career doing the soaring and Machida’s doing the souring, relatively speaking of course). It is educational that Machida enters this contest as a heavy underdog. Only two years ago the real-life Karate Kid was UFC champ and unbeaten. People were raving about “The Machida Era” – and I didn’t object. Only the experts who had christened Machida were quickly dispelled. After a 16-0 start, the fight game’s most perplexing riddle dropped two of his past three bouts (to Mauricio “Shogun” Rua and Quinton “Rampage” Jackson).

So you don’t have to spend much time scratching your head about why Machida enters the UFC 140 title matchup as a sizable underdog (though not nearly as big an underdog as Matt Serra was four years ago when he knocked out Georges St-Pierre and won the welterweight world title). Jones – already crowned 2011 Fighter of the Year at the World MMA Awards – now represents an aura of untouchability and unstoppability that Machida himself exuded not too long ago. Jones is 14-1, though that single blemish is incredibly misleading (his lone loss came via disqualification for illegal elbows in a bout that saw Jones manhandling Matt Hamill. It was a beatdown so memorable it had the power to send shudders through future opponents, making them think twice about signing on to fight Jon Jones).

Jones, a New York native, has never come close to losing a fight and has never encountered even so much as a three-second slice of a fight that didn’t feature him essentially toying with his prey. In one regard, Jones’ domination reminds me of Mike Tyson before his 21st birthday: The only suspense that arises in a Jon Jones fight involves how long the other guy can survive. “Who wants it more?” and “Who’s going to win?” are NOT questions you asked yourself while watching Tyson in his short-lived prime. And they are not questions you ask yourself during a Jon Jones fight.

And yet, mindful of the landmines that lurk when you underestimate an opponent, Jones has called Machida his most dangerous foe to date. I don’t think it’s lip-service; I think the champ is sincere – and he’s absolutely right. A UFC.com online poll was recently conducted which asked visitors, “How long will Jon Jones reign as champ?” The results surprised me. 31% said at least another year. 15% said at least three more years. 11% said at least five more years.

43% of voters picked Machida to dethrone Jones this Saturday in Toronto.

Now, the polls are not scientifically conducted here, meaning one person with a computer could vote 10 times if they wanted to (not the case with a scientific poll). And I suspect that the raging nationalism and loyalty of Brazilian fans is pushing the needle a lot. But perhaps fans are also acknowledging that Machida is probably the only man in the 205-pound division who can match Jones’ unorthodox tendencies with his own equally unorthodox tendencies. Unorthodox usually means unpredictable, and unpredictable means the chances of “anything can happen” shoot way up. Make no mistake, these are the two kings of unorthodox in the UFC.

An esteemed colleague of mine, Jon Anik, also conducted an informal survey among his 25,000 or so fans on Twitter. Anik posed the question: Who is the 205er best equipped to beat Jon Jones?

The responses: Rashad Evans (34%); Lyoto Machida (24%); Dan Henderson (20%); Phil Davis (16%), etc…

And hey, just for some extra ammunition in Lyoto’s favor, Machida and Jones were pitted against each other on the UFC Undisputed 3 video game. The results: Jones triumphed 18 times, Machida won 7. But, as Chael Sonnen would say, “we’re going to find out” who the better man is. Titles aren’t won or defended on paper, or by reporter debates, or online fan posts, or polls, or video games. Lest we forget, Rashad Evans is one heck of a fighter. 21 wins. And the only man to beat Rashad Evans is …. Lyoto Machida. So Machida, a former UFC champ, has been here before. He knows what it feels like to hold the UFC light heavyweight title, which, if ever there was a hot potato among UFC belts, the 205-pound belt is it.

I’m very much looking forward to this fight. And it wouldn’t surprise me to see Machida pull the upset. But my guess is that the challenger must come into the Octagon with a few new surprises, something nobody has ever seen before (something like the front kick that TKO’d Randy Couture in his last fight, knocking out a front tooth). It will take some new tricks to overcome the superior athleticism of Jones and his massive reach advantage (Jones’ wingspan is a whopping 84.5 inches versus 74” for Lyoto. And that reach advantage is obviously key for Jones because it allows him to be in range to hit and kick – without being in range to be hit and kicked by the other guy).

MIR VS. BIG NOG

Both of these guys, both victims of serious accidents involving motor vehicles, are lucky to be alive, let alone sharing the co-main event at UFC 140. I’ve got to say that I have seen a lot of super-tough guys in this sport – Wanderlei Silva, Frankie Edgar, Donald Cerrone and BJ Penn jump to mind – but Antonio Rodrigo “Minotauro” Nogueira is the pinnacle of toughness. He is the Gold Standard, the Bushido code personified. I’ve never seen a man time and again endure more pain and suffering and exhaustion in the pursuit of victory than the 35-year-old Brazilian. A black belt in judo and Brazilian jiu-jitsu, Big Nog is unquestionably one of the great heavyweights in history, but there are lingering questions about whether all of those wars have taken their toll. His chin is granite no longer, as Cain Velasquez demonstrated, as Frank Mir proved during his first go-round with Nogueira three years ago.

I must confess, I never saw Mir beating Nogueira. I had presumed it was a bad stylistic matchup for him, presumed that if they fought 10 times, Big Nog might win all 10 of ‘em. In my mind … the better standup: Big Nog. The better ground game: Big Nog. Who wants it more: Big Nog. So I stood inside the MGM Grand Garden Arena that night literally shocked as Mir abused Big Nog, put on a boxing clinic and floored Nogueira three times. I ran into Mir a week or so later and told him to his face that I was stunned that he not only beat Big Nog, but did it in such convincing fashion.

“No disrespect, I like you Frank, but I didn’t see you winning.”

Mir was 260 pounds; I weigh 146 on a good day. This was actually my first ever meeting with Mir (before either of us would start training Brazilian jiu-jitsu under renowned black belt Robert Drysdale). So I’m standing there alone talking with Mir and being probably a lot more candid than I should (a bad habit of mine).

“Before this fight I questioned your heart, I questioned your cardio, I questioned how much you wanted it,” I told him. “I thought you were a little bit lazy in the gym. Very skilled and talented, but a little lazy as fighters go.”

I had thought of Mir as many had, particularly after the 2004 motorcycle accident that broke his femur and threatened his career. And I told him what I thought, and congratulated him for making a complete and utter liar out of me and many others. The way Mir responded spoke volumes about him. He just looked me in the eye, let me have my say, and even shared some of the techniques such as that uppercut/jab hybrid that came at a weird angle and kept rocking Big Nog. He was a gentleman the entire time, never raising his voice, never becoming defensive. I’ve spoken with Frank Mir many times since then, not always in agreement on issues, and I’ve been impressed by how thick-skinned he is to the criticisms that every fighter must endure. Mir is a very confident man, a nimble heavyweight who thinks like a lightweight, who can pull off moves most heavyweights wouldn’t dare try. And I must say, the big guy has come a long way in the gym and it shows because now he can fight three rounds hard. I learned my lesson never to count him out. In addition to being a wordsmith, Mir is a technician, and if his wrestling continues to improve, as it has, the 32-year-old BJJ black belt is going to really be able to keep opponents guessing.

I was one of the people who thought Mir’s win over Nogueira may have been a fluke, but I don’t think so any more. Mir is just that good. Big Nog has only fought three times in the past three years, but says he feels rejuvenated after three surgeries. The win over Brendan Schaub was one of those turn-back-the-clock moments for Nog and he’s going to have revenge on his mind Saturday in Toronto. He thinks it was a staph infection that weakened him against Mir. That’s what makes this rematch so intriguing. Fluke or Trend? We’ll find out Saturday.

LAS VEGAS, December 3 – Caution was thrown to the wind by bantamweights John “Prince” Albert and Dustin Pague in their TUF14 Finale prelim bout Saturday at The Pearl at The Palms, as both fighters immediately met in the middle to start the bout, with Albert promptly dropping Pague with a wide left hook early in the first 20 seconds. See post-fight interview

With Pague (10-6) still trying to find his bearings on the canvas, Albert pounced on top and proceeded to tie up one of Pague’s arms and rain down punches on the trapped fighter until referee Herb Dean halted the action just 69 seconds into the fight.

“Pague’s probably the best kickboxer on the show,” said Albert, who improved to 7-1. “I just really worked my hardest. I’m a ground fighter first and I work with the best ground fighter in the world, Dennis Hallman, so…”

MARCUS BRIMAGE VS. STEPHEN BASS
 Southpaw Marcus Brimage knocked Stephen Bass from the ranks of the unbeaten, halting the Georgian’s 10-fight win streak on the strength of power left hands that found Bass’s face throughout most of their contest. But while Brimage opened the fight in ultra-aggressive mode, he seemed to become much more methodical and conservative as the fight wore on, perhaps sensing Bass is incredibly durable and has one heck of a chin. See post-fight interview
 
“Stephen Bass is a jiu-jitsu guy but he came out here and really tried to lay the smack down here,” said Brimage, a promising featherweight who improved to 4-1.
 
One interesting feature of Bass was his habit of leading with his chin, showing no fear of being hit by Brimage, the much faster and powerful puncher, who leading up to the bout had proclaimed that Bass “doesn’t like getting hit in the face.” Bass was competitive and occasionally tested Brimage’s chin with hard shots, as he did in the third round when he stunned Brimage with a combo.
 
In celebration of his unanimous decision triumph, Brimage – a graduate of Faulkner University in Alabama who wears the moniker “The Bama Beast” – paid homage to the University of Alabama football team (11-1), which is still in the hunt for a national championship and hungry for a rematch with top-ranked Louisiana State University. He offered up a poem to the crowd: “Roses are red, violets are blue. We whipped up on Auburn, now we want LSU. Roll tide, baby!!!”

ROLAND DELORME VS. JOSH FERGUSON
Roland Delorme entered this bout eager to ‘beat the red off Josh Ferguson’s neck.’ The 27-year-old Canadian didn’t put that kind of butt-whipping on Ferguson, but he was able to drop the stocky Kentuckian with a stiff left jab to start the third round, then swiftly submitted a stunned Ferguson with a rear naked choke just 22 seconds into the frame. See post-fight interview

Delorme, a Brazilian jiu-jitsu brown belt, had threatened to end the bantamweight battle in the first round, trapping Ferguson in a triangle choke for a long time and reigning down elbows in the process. Yet Ferguson (7-4) – also a BJJ black belt – gamely defended and escaped the choke.

STEPHEN SILER VS. JOSH CLOPTON
How should you defend when trapped in a Muay Thai clinch? Josh Clopton will probably spend a lot of time seeking that answer after Stephen Siler relentlessly abused, bloodied and perplexed him from the Muay Thai clinch. The Muay Thai clinic was vaguely reminiscent of Anderson Silva’s Muay Thai bludgeoning of Rich Franklin at UFC 64, save for the fact that Siler’s strikes are considerably less potent and he was unable to finish Clopton. See post-fight interview

Instead, the lanky Utah product settled for a unanimous decision by scores of 29-28 across the board.

The victory for Siler (19-9) knocked Clopton from the ranks of the unbeaten (6-1-1). Clopton finished with a blood-smeared face despite occasionally cracking Siler with hard shots and scoring several takedowns.

DUSTIN NEACE VS. BRYAN CARAWAY
Former Motorcross standout Bryan Caraway notched his first official UFC win, cinching in a rear naked choke at 3:38 of the second round to put away friend and former TUF 14 teammate Dustin Neace. See post-fight interview

The 27-year-old Caraway – best known by some for being the boyfriend of Strikeforce women’s 135-pound champion Miesha Tate — carried round one on strength of a crisp left hook to the temple area that briefly wobbled Neace, and controlled the Team Alpha Male fighter after scoring a takedown, passing guard and fishing for an armbar as the round expired. Neace (23-18-1) played the aggressor early in round two, with Caraway (16-6) curiously hesitant until he scored a takedown midway in the frame, later transitioning to the back and cinching in a rear naked choke beside the fence at 3:38 for the win.

LAS VEGAS, December 3 – He made a name for himself on The Ultimate Fighter 14 series because of his devastating knockout power, but Diego Brandao reminded everyone of his ground prowess Saturday at The Pearl at The Palms with a stunning armbar that forced Dennis Bermudez to tap at 4:51 of round one and crowned Brandao as featherweight winner of TUF 14. See post-fight interview
 
The submission that secured a six-figure UFC contract was all the more impressive given that just moments earlier Brandao had been clobbered by a monstrous right hand counter that dropped him to the canvas. Smelling the finish, Bermudez feverishly punched away but paid dearly for his ultra-aggression as Brandao, a Brazilian jiu-jitsu black belt, locked in a super-tight and swift armbar and exploded on the joint. When it was all over, Bermudez, a New Yorker and former Division I wrestler, laid on the canvas, writhing in pain and holding his left arm.
 
“I fell down and I (could) feel I was in a bad position,” said the 24-year-old Brandao (19-7), who was born and raised in Brazil and now trains under Greg Jackson in New Mexico. “I felt his punches and waited for the right moment to do an armbar. I felt him off-balance and I went the other way and it worked well. Now I’m going to be able to buy a house for my mom in Brazil, baby.”
 
The fight was fast and furious from beginning to end, and Brandao – a dynamite-fisted admirer of Wanderlei Silva and Mike Tyson who had knocked out all three of his previous TUF 14 foes – put Bermudez on the deck early with a sizzling right hand and suplex slammed him for good measure. Bermudez (8-3) survived and later turned the tables.
 
In the night’s other finale, John Dodson and T.J. Dillashaw battled for the TUF 14 bantamweight title. Dodson had accused Dillashaw of ducking him not once, but twice, during the season. But in the finale, with a six-figure UFC contract on the line, the Greg Jackson protégé finally got his long-awaited shot at Dillashaw and put him away with punches at 1:54 of the opening frame. The end was set in motion with a super explosive left hook that dropped Dillashaw. A few blows later, referee Herb Dean intervened and spared the Team Alpha Male fighter from further damage, causing a jubilant Dodson to rip off consecutive backflips. See post-fight interview
 
“Words cannot describe how I feel right now,” said the animated and outspoken University of New Mexico criminology student, whom Dillashaw had called “a clown” leading up to the fight.
 
Branded a traitor on the show because he tipped off the opposing team about his own team’s strategy, Dodson (13-5) made it abundantly clear once again that he relishes the role of villain and is unfazed by fan disapproval.
 
“You guys have no idea how great it is to be here,” he said. “Thank you to everybody who was booing me, cheering me – I don’t care. Just watch me please!”
 
Dillashaw, a former collegiate wrestling standout who punched his ticket to the finals with three straight wins on the show, fell from the ranks of the unbeaten to 5-1. He seemed unable to keep up with the lightning quickness of Dodson and, immediately after the fight had been stopped, looked up at the big screen to see a replay of what had just happened.

The pair of Greg Jackson fighters also dominated the post-fight bonuses. Brandao vs. Bermudez earned Fight of the Night honors, with Brandao also securing Submission of the Night. John Dodson took home Knockout of the Night. Each bonus was worth $40,000.
 
YVES EDWARDS VS. TONY FERGUSON
 
The Ultimate Fighter 13 winner Tony Ferguson notched his sixth straight victory, edging UFC pioneer Yves Edwards in an entertaining kickboxing match filled with hard exchanges aplenty and technical precision. Both lightweight fighters tested the other’s chin over the course of three rounds, with Ferguson stunning the Texan late in the first but Edwards weathering the storm. See post-fight interview
 
Though some had wondered whether the 35-year-old Edwards might be on the downslide of his career, the Bahamas-born southpaw dispelled those suspicions, repeatedly landing high kicks and hard right hands. Both men showcased a lot of variety in their attacks, but the judges may have been swayed by Ferguson’s booming right hands as they awarded the knockout specialist a unanimous decision by scores of 30-27, 30-27 and 29-28.
 
“I take off my hat to Yves,” Ferguson (14-2) said afterward. “I didn’t think it would go all three but I’m glad it did. I learned a lot and I had a hell of a good time … I thought I had him a couple of times and then I went to hit him but he kind of snapped out of it.”
 
JOHNNY BEDFORD VS. LOUIS GAUDINOT
 
TUF 14 semi-finalist Johnny Bedford returned to his winning form, overwhelming New Jersey’s Louis Gaudinot with takedowns and a ferocious ground and pound assault en route to a third-round TKO victory. Each round seemed a carbon copy of the previous, with the 28-year-old Bedford dominating his green-haired foe on top. Gaudinot (5-2) managed to survive until the third frame, when Bedford plowed through him in the Muay Thai clinch, causing Gaudinot to retreat to the canvas and cover up in the fetal position until referee Steve Mazzagatti had seen enough the 1:58 mark. See post-fight interview
 
With the win, Bedford improved to 18-10-1.

LAS VEGAS, December 3 – They showered Michael Bisping with a heavy chorus of boos, “U-S-A! U-S-A!” and “Miller! Miller! Miller!”
 
Yet none of the mass disdain mattered as the fiery Brit wore down and battered Jason “Mayhem” Miller and forced a referee stoppage late in the third round. The clash of The Ultimate Fighter </a>14 coaches and two of the UFC’s most colorful enemies was fun while it lasted though.

Miller (34-9, 1 NC) had jumped all over Bisping early, scoring with a takedown, ground and pound and some effective striking despite an obvious ugliness to his standup techniques. But the frantic pace caused the zany Californian to wilt heading into the second round, which spelled doom against Bisping, a cardio machine.
 
“I feel tired,” Bisping (23-3) said afterward. “He’s a tough guy. I knew I would have a hard time to finish him. You’re all booing, whatever… We had a fantastic season of the Ultimate Fighter. Congratulations UFC. Thank you UFC, to my wife and three kids. … Everybody who has helped, thank you very much.” See post-fight interview
 
Winner of five of his past six fights, Bisping has the look of a top contender to middleweight kingpin Anderson Silva. However, the British fighter conceded that his showing against Miller left something to be desired.
 
“If it was against the champion, a first round like that wouldn’t cut it,” Bisping said. “So I’ve got some work to do.”
 
Miller, meanwhile, was gracious in defeat.
 
“I trained really hard for this fight. I’m sorry guys, I got tired,” said Miller, his left eye badly swollen. “I can’t make excuses about it. For all the boos that Michael Bisping gets, as a fighter, he deserves your applause.”

SAN JOSE, November 19 – Bantamweight phenom Michael “Mayday” McDonald, who has showed the look of a future world champion, lived up to his vow to not let his UFC 139 fight go the distance – blasting unbeaten Alex Soto with a laser of a right and swarming him with punches thereafter for a stoppage just 56 seconds into their bout at the HP Pavilion Saturday night. Watch post-fight interview

McDonald, out of Modesto, Calif., pushed his pro record to 14-1. Soto fell to 6-1-1.

CHRIS WEIDMAN VS. TOM LAWLOR

New York middleweight Chris Weidman remained unbeaten in UFC </a>139 prelim action, winning his seventh straight with a D’arce choke submission over Tom Lawlor at 2:07 of round one. Weidman scored a takedown early that precipitated the fight-ending sequence. Watch post-fight interview

“Thanks to John Danaher and Matt Serra,” Weidman said. “God gave me the ability with long arms and they make it work for me.”

The highlight for Lawlor (7-4) was his walkout, as the “Filthy” showman walked out to Olivia Newton-John’s classic, “Let’s Get Physical.”

JASON BRILZ VS. RYAN BADER

Ultimate Fighter season eight winner Ryan Bader, desperate for a win after back-to-back losses, rediscovered his rhythm behind a booming right hand that flattened Jason Brilz just 77 seconds into their light heavyweight contest. The speedy knockout, set up by his left jab, put the Arizonan in position to begin another streak after notching 13 straight wins to start his career. Watch post-fight interview

“Losing sucks so I’m glad to get this win here,” said Bader, a former Division I All-American wrestler who was facing another former collegiate wrestler in Brilz (18-5-1).

RAFAEL DOS ANJOS VS. GLEISON TIBAU

Gleison Tibau is perhaps the most gigantic fighter at 155 pounds in the world. Fact is, Tibau – who has been as heavy as 194 pounds on fight night – often steps into the cage heavier than welterweight champ Georges St-Pierre, who of course is a WELTERWEIGHT. So in this battle of Brazilian southpaws, predominantly a kickboxing match, it was Tibau who got stronger as the fight wore on against his noticeably smaller foe. Watch post-fight interview

While the swifter dos Anjos (15-6) outhustled Tibau in the first frame, Tibau took control late in the second round, rocking dos Anjos with a pinpoint 1-2 combo. Tibau teed off and connected with big punches, yet dos Anjos, under heavy fire and badly wobbled, somehow stayed on his feet and displayed the heart of a lion and survived the round.

The third round was competitive, but the fresher Tibau (34-7) seemed to land the better shots and dictate the action. Though dos Anjos largely succeeded at denying Tibau his “A game,” which typically features takedowns and top game suffocation, he came up short on the judges’ scorecards. Tibau was given the nod by tallies of 28-29, 29-28 and 30-27.

MIGUEL TORRES VS. NICK PACE

Variety is not only the spice of life, it is also what propelled Miguel Torres to victory over New Yorker Nick Pace, who failed to make weight the day before by five pounds, but nevertheless gave a spirited effort against the former World Extreme Cagefighting champion. Watch post-fight interview

Armed with a significant reach advantage, Torres danced and controlled the bout from the center of the Octagon with kicks, jabs and a steady diet of crisp right hands. Showing much-improved takedown defense (he limited Pace to just one takedown), Torres also owned the clinch with knees to the body and dirty boxing.

“A guy like Nick Pace is real dangerous; he has nothing to lose so he’s going to try to knock me out, so I had to be real careful,” said Torres, who improved to 39-4.

Pace (6-3) threw some heavy leather but none of his big shots could find their mark. He survived to the final horn but found himself on the short end of the judges’ 30-27 scores across the board.

SETH BACYNSKI VS. MATT BROWN

Welterweight Seth Baczynski won his fourth straight, tapping out Matt Brown with a guillotine choke just 42 seconds into the second round. Watch post-fight interview

“He’s a super gnarly dude,” Baczynski said afterward to UFC commentator Joe Rogan. “I was expecting it to be real bloody.”

But it was far from the knock-down, drag-out wars that have become a hallmark of Brown’s fights. Baczynski, fighting out of Arizona, was the aggressor early, roughing up Brown a little from the clinch and then securing the takedown midway in round one. Brown managed a reversal, but the competitive round seemed to go to Baczynski (15-6) on the strength of his takedown attempts and effective dirty boxing.

In the second, Brown shot a double leg takedown – and finished it – only to learn that he had he walked right into a tight, closed-guard guillotine. After a struggle, Brown tapped out, falling to 14-11 in his pro career.

DANNY CASTILLO VS. SHAMAR BAILEY

You can see a confidence, a transformation, surging in Danny Castillo every time he steps in the Octagon. And the Sacramento lightweight impressed once again on Saturday, steamrolling Shamar Bailey with some vicious ground and pound that forced The Ultimate Fighter </a>13 alum to turtle over under a storm of punches, causing referee intervention at 4:52 of round one. Watch post-fight interview

The victory marked Castillo’s fifth in his past six bouts and he got heated up by taking Bailey down three times early in the round – twice with double leg slams. Bailey, whose wrestling base is a strongpoint, popped to his feet twice by using the fence. But Castillo (13-4) wisely moved the action to the center of the Octagon and Bailey (12-5) then had no answer as to how to return to his feet or defend effectively from the bottom.

“I felt really disrespected at the weigh in,” Castillo said, alluding to Bailey, who failed to make weight by two pounds. “You’re supposed to be a professional — don’t come in two pounds overweight and then tell me you can’t lose any more weight.”

SAN JOSE, November 19 – Kill the retirement talk. Wanderlei Silva isn’t going anywhere after a hair-raising come-from-behind win over Cung Le in the UFC 139 co-main event at HP Pavilion Saturday night that saw the Brazilian legend turn back the clock to the glory years when he was one of the sport’s most feared knockout artists. See post-fight interview

Dropped in the first round by a nasty Le spinning backfist, Silva dominated round two with hard punches over his fading foe, who was badly hurt after a right head kick-right hand combination. Silva, renowned as one of the game’s best finishers, furiously attacked and further punished the San Jose, Calif., hero with knees to the face and punches. A bloodied and battered Le fell to the canvas, and shortly thereafter the referee halted the bout at 4:49 of round two.

“Man, it’s an amazing moment for me,” an emotional Silva (34-11-1, 1 No Contest) said. “Everybody has tough moments in life — but never give up. If you just work hard, you can (do it).”

The southpaw and highly unorthodox Le, a former Strikeforce champion and occasional movie star, had seemed in control through the bout’s first 3 and ½ minutes. As fans in his hometown chanted “Cung Le! Cung Le!” he damaged the former PRIDE champion with spinning backfists and spinning backkicks, along with a varied assault of kicks and punches. For a time it did not seem Silva would last until the final horn, let alone dramatically turn the tide.

In the end, as Silva predicted, many fans in the pro-Le crowd were chanting, “Silva! Silva! Silva!”

“He hit me hard,” Silva said. “He’s a real tough guy. He kicked me hard. After I hit him, I felt in that moment the finish.”

URIJAH FABER VS. BRIAN BOWLES

Dominick Cruz, get ready champ, because it’s you and “The California Kid” one more time. The rubber match between the heated bantamweight archrivals was born after Faber choked out former World Extreme Cagefighting kingpin Brian Bowles at 1:27 of round two. See post-fight interview

“That’s how you finish fights,” Faber said. “Dominick, you can run but you cannot hide, boy. Put some gel in that hair … Let’s do some work. Let’s do battle.”

Bowles (10-2) hung tough in the opening stanza, though Faber’s speed seemed to cause him trouble. The Alpha Male head honcho avoided Bowles’ dangerous right hand and was busier with his punching combinations. For good measure, Faber cinched the round with a takedown and ground and pound.

In round two, Faber (26-5) turned up the heat. He faked a takedown and Bowles bit – leaving himself wide open for a vicious right uppercut that wobbled the Athens, Ga., fighter and left him searching for his wits. Faber swarmed, unleashing a hail of punches on his gutsy foe, who courageously survived the fistic onslaught but could not find his way out of a mounted guillotine choke.

“I know that Bowles is very tough and mentally tough, and that’s my biggest thing,” Faber said, “so I felt like I could go anywhere with this fight.”

RICK STORY VS. MARTIN KAMPMANN

Coming off two razor-thin losses to Diego Sanchez and Jake Shields, Denmark’s Martin Kampmann rebounded by inching past Rick Story in an exciting welterweight bout that saw both fighters drawing plenty of blood in the fight’s opening minutes. See post-fight interview

The heavy left hand of Story repeatedly cracked Kampmann throughout the bout, and the Washington state native also went hard to Kampmann’s body. But Kampmann (18-5) answered with hard shots of his own and timely takedowns, busting up Story’s face along the way. The difference in the fight may have been a couple of Kampmann takedowns in the second and third rounds as Story (13-5) seemed to tire and lose steam on his punches. Late in the third round, Kampmann came close to securing a rear naked choke but the final horn sounded.

Ringside judges awarded the Xtreme Couture fighter a split decision via scores of 30-27, 29-28 and 28-29.

STEFAN BONNAR VS. KYLE KINGSBURY

This matchup began in typical Bonnar fashion – with a riveting standup war, including a moment in the first round when both fighters simultaneously wobbled each other with hard right hands. But the back-and-forth slugfest proved short-lived as Bonnar, a Brazilian jiu-jitsu black belt under Sergio Penha, repeatedly scored takedowns and dominated Kingsbury with ground and pound and threatening chokes. See post-fight interview

Kingsbury, with a bloody nose and welted eye, survived the onslaught but lost via unanimous decision (30-27 across the board). Normally a crowd favorite, Bonnar fielded boos from fans at HP Pavilion arena for depriving them of a toe-to-toe war.

“I’m not used to fans booing my fights but it’s hard to get wins in here. I felt I had good control on the ground, so I didn’t want to risk it and do something silly,” said Bonnar, who improved to 17-7.

In a most unusual gesture, Bonnar (partner to a “Punch Buddies” side business that makes cartoonish skits about fighters) said he had thought about “calling out” Josh Koscheck for a fight because the frosty-haired UFC welterweight had been miffed that Bonnar made a t-shirt bearing his likeness. Instead Bonnar conceded he was in the wrong and apologized to Koscheck for not seeking his approval before making the shirt.

Kingsbury, meanwhile, fell to 11-3 with 1 No Contest.