Hi, kids. Do you like violence?
With Eminem’s famous opening line (Warning: NFSW language)—so simple, so, I don’t know, fraught?—we welcome you to UFC 195. Come one, come all.
MMA is always violent. Why, on this Saturday in Las Vegas, was the violence different from other days?
Because Robbie Lawler and Carlos Condit fought each other, with the former’s welterweight championship on the line. With a whopping 35 knockout victories between them, you don’t need a treasure map to discover the game plan.
Don’t make the mistake, though, of assuming these two are mindless lunks. Lawler, the champ, might have the heaviest right hand and some of the best defensive skills in the world, and he used both to majestic effect in his last fight, a win over Rory MacDonald that was probably the most stirring contest of 2015.
In the other corner, Condit is a whirling muay thai dervish with a penchant for bloodshed. But he’s a cerebral game-planner, too, working alongside the likes of Jon Jones and Holly Holm at the vaunted Jackson-Winkeljohn camp in New Mexico.
The 31-year-old challenger and the 33-year-old champion are at the absolute peaks of their games. Those peaks are stained red, and not from the picturesque desert sunset. Who would add a flash of gold to his scene with the welterweight strap?
Violence was a recurring theme throughout the night, from the Fight Pass prelims to finale. So sit back, break a resolution or two and ring in the new year with these—the real winners and losers from UFC 195.
As always, full card results appear on the final slide.