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UFC on FUEL 5: Struve vs. Miocic — Live Results & Commentary

(Just remember, Stipe: The bigger they are, the funnier they lawn-chair. / Photo via MMAJunkie.com)

The UFC makes its first (and only!) U.K. stop of 2012 today, with a card that’s low on star power but high on potential fireworks. If you’re reading this right now, it means you’re at least sort-of interested, and that’s good enough for us. So which heavyweight main-eventer is about to put himself “in the mix”? Can Dan Hardy string together his first back-to-back wins since 2009? Will Matt Wiman be just another notch on Paul “Sassangle” Sass‘s sassbelt? And WTF is wrong with Kyle Kingsbury, anyway? The answers to most of those questions will be revealed shortly.

Handling liveblog business for the UFC on FUEL 5 main card broadcast is George Shunick, who will be stacking round-by-round results after the jump beginning at 4 p.m. ET / 1 p.m PT. Let us know how you feel in the comments section, and refresh the page every few minutes for all the latest. And as always, thanks for spending part of your weekend with us.

(Just remember, Stipe: The bigger they are, the funnier they lawn-chair. / Photo via MMAJunkie.com)

Welcome, fight freaks, to this ~~stacked~~ ~~relevant~~ British card on Fuel TV. I expect most of you will be getting your updates on the internet for this event, considering half of you don’t have Fuel TV, and the other half can’t find it. Fortunately Potato Nation, that’s why we’re here. Now, on to the fights!

Prelim Results (as if you care):

Robbie Peralta def. Jason Young via Round 1 TKO

Gunnar Nelson def. DaMarques Johnson via Round 1 Submission

Brad Tavares def. Tom Watson via Split Decision

Akira Corassani def. Andy Ogle via Split Decision

Jimi Manuwa def. Kyle Kingsbury via Kingsbu’s eye being battered into oblivion (Round 2)

Now that that’s out of the way, on to our first fight.

Che Mills vs. Duane Ludwig

Round 1: The fighters touch gloves. Mills works dirty boxing the clinch, lands a knee and takes Ludwig down. Passes to side control. Ludwig sweeps, stands, eats a knee and is back underneath, pondering the futility of his actions. Mills working elbows from side control. Ludwig regains guard, Mills lands elbows. Ludwig goes for an armbar, Mills stands and misses a huge right hand. They stand, Ludwig collapses and points to his knee and it’s done. Replay shows his knee just gives out. Possibly a torn ACL.

Che Mills def. Duane Ludwig via knee implosion of Round 1 Very disappointing for Ludwig. Che Mills doesn’t look terribly thrilled either. Hopefully Ludwig will be able to recover and get back to fighting soon. He’s an entertaining guy who always brings the violence. Mills says he loves to fight for the fans and, ever receptive to transparent flattery, the mob showers him with adoration. First win for a British fighter so far.

Next up is a fight from the prelims: Robbie Peralta and Jason Young. I predict a 23 second knockout for Peralta. 23 seconds later, Robbie Peralta gets the knockout. Damn, I’m good.

Next up, British rising star John Hathaway takes on British submission specialist John Maguire. I’ll go out on a limb here and predict the Brit will take this one.

John Hathaway vs. John Maguire

Round 1: The welterweights touch gloves. They feel each other out for the first 30 seconds. Hathaway attempts a high kick, which is blocked. 1 minute in, little action. Hathaway lands a low kick. Hathaway moves forward, lands a few punches and a knee. They reset. 2 minutes in, nothing of significance has landed. Nice counter left by Maguire. Hathaway almost lands a head kick. Goes high again, and is blocked. Neither guy looks comfortable in their stand-up. Hathaway lands a take down, but his momentum sends him flying into the fence, well past Maguire. They stand. (Ugh.) Maguire lands a few nice shots. Maguire shoots, but Hathaway hits the switch and… they stand. The bell sounds. 10-10, really, but if I had to guess I’d say the judges lean Hathaway because he controlled the center of the Octagon.

Round 2: Hathaway telegraphs a right and misses wildly. Lands an inside leg kick. Hits a head kick! Hathaway leaps in a clinches with Maguire along the fence and takes him down. He’s in half guard, landing short hammerfists to Maguire temple. Maguire controlling his posture, attempts to sweep him. Hathaway stands, lowers into guard. Maguire attempts a triangle, now working out of half butterfly guard. Hathaway landing short shots, Maguire still controlling his posture. Hathaway stands, goes back into half guard. Now mixing shots to the body. Maguire regains guard, Hathaway stands again, then takes a knee and grabs half guard. Landing more punches, passes to side control. Hathaway landing shots to Maguire’s head, and Maguire is beginning to tire. Hathaway is relentless, if not terribly violent. He stands and the bell sounds. 10-9 Hathaway.

Round 3: The fighters touch gloves again. Hathaway misses a front kick. He’s pressing forward, though, and Maguire has no answer for him on the feet. Hathaway lands a knee against the cage. Maguire lands a left, but he hasn’t put together combinations and he’s having trouble getting inside on Hathaway. Hathaway isn’t landing anything of substance, though, but he’s controlling the fight. Hathaway finally lands a right hand following a blocked head kick. This is becoming a glorified sparring match. Maguire shoots and lands a takedown! Passes to side control. Can the gypsy jiu-jitsu expert get a submission with one minute left? Hathaway recovers half guard, now full guard. Hathaway throwing elbows from the bottom. They exchange, with Maguire seemingly content to sit in full guard. He stands and Hathaway lands upkicks as the bell sounds. 10-9 Hathaway, who should take the unanimous decision.

John Hathaway takes the unanimous decision (30-27′s all around). No surprises there. Hathaway looked unimpressive in victory and Maguire looked even more unimpressive in defeat. British MMA, people! At least it isn’t Ultimate Ball.

Paul Sass vs. Matt Wiman

Round 1: Two exciting lightweights about to square off. Sass’ ground game ain’t nothing to fuck with. They touch gloves, Sass grabs the single. That was quick. Working from full guard, he maneuvers them to the fence. Sass lands body shots as Wiman controls his posture. Nice elbows from Sass. Wiman answeering from the bottom. Sass goes for a leg lock, but can’t get it. Now he goes for an omoplata! Wiman escapes. Sass sweeps and gets the takedown. Sass goes for another ankle lock, abandons it. Now Sass is caught in a triangle! But he escapes. Wiman throwing elbows. Sass lands some huge shots from the top! Wiman going for an armbar. Sass throws a knee while defending. Wiman gets the armbar! That’s it, Wiman beats Sass at his own game. Easily the best fight so far.

Matt Wiman def. Paul Sass via armbar in one round. Matt Wiman is holding back tears in the post-fight interview. Not because he’s overwhelmed by emotions, but because interviewer Jon Anik smells like onions. Then he makes silly faces at cameras.

Now we’re treated to another prelim fight: Iceland’s Gunnar Nelson against DaMarques Johnson. Solid, entertaining affair that showed just why so many people are talking about Nelson as he submits Johnson with a rear naked choke in the first round. Dude fights with the calm, cold demeanor of certain other fighter from the northern wastes. He just needs a sweater with mystical violence-enhancing abilities.

Up next is possibly the most exciting fight of the night – which is saying something after Wiman vs. Sass – as Brad Pickett takes on Yves Jabouin. Really excited for this one. I think I’ll call my friends using my MetroPCS service while I reach for a NOS energy dri- oh god, these commercials are destroying my brain.

Brad Pickett vs. Yves Jabouin

Round 1: Fighters touch gloves, Pickett moves forward. Then he gets poked in the eye. He says he’s OK. Pickett swinging wildly while Jabouin going for kicks. Pickett lands a jab. Jabouin lands a high kick, followed by knees and kicks. Pickett lands a left hook. Jabouin land a kick. They exchange with both landing. Big knee from Jabouin, but Pickett lands counter hooks. Pickett lands an uppercut, followed by a hook. Jabouin lands a right straight. Pickett goes flying in with a hook. Right to the body by Pickett, Jabouin lands a spinning back kick, stuffs a takedown. OH MY GOD! Pickett lands a HUGE uppercut and Jabouin is OUT! Wow. Pickett plays to the crowd, possibly attempting to incite a riot. Replay shows Pickett followed up with two violent shots. No doubt there – Jabouin is out cold. KO of the Night, no doubt.

Brad Pickett def. Yves Jabouin via first round KO. Very thankful Pickett ended that fight in the first round – live-blogging bantamweights is not easy. Replays show Pickett did the Gangnam dance after the fight. Someone get a .gif of that ASAP. Well, that was satisfying. Pickett puts on his trilby hat, gives his interview in barely comprehensible Brit-speak, and leaves the cage. Like a boss.

Dan Hardy vs. Amir Sadollah

Woah, we get walkouts for this one! Amir walks out to unidentifiable dance music. The original MMA hipster enters the cage, and the lights go out right before Dan Hardy’s music hits. Hardy comes out with the trademark bandana and “England Belongs to Me” by the ~~Sex Pistols~~ Cock Sparrer. (Dur.) The crowd eats it up and sings along.

Dan Hardy vs. Amir Sadollah

Round 1: The crowd chants “Hardy!” as Bruce Buffer announces the fighters, before booing Amir. (I’m not typing “Sadollah” over and over.) The Hardy chants come back for the staredown. Fight starts, they don’t touch gloves. Amir takes the center of the Octagon. Amir lands a kick and eats a counter. Hardy blocks some shots. Amir lands a low kick. Then another. Inside leg kick Hardy. Amir goes for a head kick and misses. They exchange, neither connecting with anything hard. Hardy lands a left hook. Then another. Low kick Amir. Inside leg kick Amir. Big right from Hardy. Another inside leg kick from Amir. Hardy is looking for the left hook and lands it. Misses with a right, but lands a jab. Amir returns the favor as the crowd chants “Hardy”. Sadollah gets a body lock and pushes Hardy into the fence. They exchange knees, and Hardy reverses position. Hardy lands an elbow and they exchange knees some more. They separate. Big shots from Hardy! Hardy grabs a Muay Thai clinch, lands some knees and they’re back on the fence. Another big elbow from Hardy. Amir counters with dirty boxing. The round ends as Hardy attempts a hip toss. 10-9 for the Brit.

Round 2: Hardy checks a kick, lands a knee as Amir comes in. High kick blocked by Amir. Hardy lands a low kick. Nice counter left by Amir. Hardy snapping that left hook. Cross by Hardy. Right to the body by Hardy followed by an inside leg kick. Big right hand by Hardy. He’s in total control this round. Hardy lands a double leg! (What? Is this the real Dan Hardy we’re watching?) Sadollah stands, Hardy presses him against the fence. Amir trying to get a body lock, but he can’t get off the fence. Wait, yes he can. He reverses position. But then Hardy returns the favor. Nice left by Sadollah. They separate. Low kicks from Sadollah. Another double leg from Hardy! Throws an elbow to the body, Sadollah working from half butterfly guard. Now full guard. Ground and pound from Hardy. Sadollah angling for an armlock. Hardy landing hammerfists, almost in side control. The bell sounds, another round for Hardy.

Round 3: Counter left from Hardy. Hardy backing Amir up, but not laning too much. They exchange kicks. Hardy goes for a takedown, but Amir defends along the fence. They’re in the clinch again. Hardy lands a knee. Amir goes for a trip, doesn’t land it, but he switches position on the fence. They break. Hardy lands a left hook, dives in for a superman punch and Amir ducks and goes for a takedown. Hardy defends and they’re on the fence. Hardy looks like the fresher fighter. Amir goes for a head kick and slips. Hardy charges forward, grabs a body lock and nails the takedown. Hardy lands shots while Amir attempts triangles and armbars. Hardy lands some short elbows as he defends. Amir has trouble maneuvering with the fence in his way. More elbows from Hardy. Big ones now. Amir is cut. Hardy continues to punish him. Amir rolls out, shoots for a single. Hardy answers with a knee. Hardy lands a big combo punctuated by a left hook. Dominant round for Hardy, who should take all the rounds on the scorecards.

Hardy takes the decision 29-28 on two cards and 30-27 on the third. Hardy screams “OYYY-OYYYY!” or something in the microphone. The mob responds in kind. Hardy showed a new wrinkle in his game today, and it paid off for him. For Sadollah, it was a rough night, but still a solid fight. Hardy dances with his cornermen and leaves the ring. Those cheeky Brits. Next up: THE MAAAAAIIIIIINNN EVENT. OF THE EVENING!

Stefan Struve vs. Stipe Miocic

Stipe Miocic enters to Linkin Park, despite not being a prepubescent suburban white kid from 2002. -100 for you, sir. Stefan Struve enters to… Godsmack. The state of MMA entrance music is not looking too good right now.

Round 1: The fighters high five. Miocic takes the center of the Octagon. Immediately, it appears Miocic will have trouble closing the distance. He throws a left hook, right cross. Both blocked by Struve. Doubles up on the jab, but Struve backs away. Lands a body shot. And another. Inside leg kick by Miocic. He goes to the body again. And again. That looks like his gameplan. Struve moves forward, lands a left hook. Jab by Miocic. Miocic is beginning to get inside. Inside leg kick Miocic. Then an overhand right. Struve throws a head kick, thena flying knee. Miocic works the body some more. Knee by Struve. More shots to the body by Miocic, followed by a right. Struve hits a knee, Miocic takes him down but jumps out of a leglock attempt. They stand. Head kick Struve, but Miocic counters. Struve misses a knee. Another shot to the body. Miocic catches a kick, but misses the counter. More body work. Jab by Struve, then a knee. Big leg kick from Struve. Big jab from Miocic. The bell sounds, 10-9 Miocic.

Round 2: Inside leg kick Miocic. Big kick to the body by Struve. Miocic doubles his jab, but gets kicked in the balls on the way in. After a brief break, the action resumes. Left hook, cross form Miocic. He follows up with uppercuts. Inside leg kicks from both men, and Miocic escapes a clinch attempt. Struve is looking to take this fight down. jabs from Struve. Body shot from Miocic. Left hook from Struve, who is loosening up. Body shots from Miocic. Struve now rushes forward. Miocic is hurt. Struve throwing uppercuts. They break. Miocic still isn’t 100%. Struve landing uppercuts again. Miocic is retreating. But lands a BIG left hook. BIG right hand from Miocic. Both guys have been hurt. Miocic is wobbly, but landing heavy shots. Right from Miocic. Big combo from Struve! Body shot from miocic. Miocic slipped, Struve takes advantage and unloads on Miocic. Miocic stays on his feet, but he’s out of it. Herb Dean steps in and that’s all she wrote. Legit stoppage. Struve wins via TKO.

Stefan Struve def. Stipe Miocic by TKO in the second round. Struve looks much improved on the feet, at least when he actually decides to set his offense up with a jab. When he started doing that in the second round, he became a completely different fighter. Still, for a guys who’s so tall and has such a long reach, he really needs to find a way to be less hittable if he wants to contend for the title any time soon. As for Miocic, this is definitely a setback. He landed some serious shorts, but he couldn’t really get past Struve’s jab. That was the beginning of the end.

Speaking of the end, that’s it for the fights! You may now return to your normally scheduled Saturday programming of imbibing massive quantities of alcohol with your fellow amoral miscreants. Goodnight Potato Nation!

Barnburner Alert: Che Mills vs. Duane Ludwig Booked for UFC on FUEL 5

(Duane, how many times do I have to tell you to STOP SLEEPING ON THE JOB??!!!!)

Well, well, well…it looks like the UFC has finally delivered a free card matchup that doesn’t make us yearn for the days of Arlovski/Sylvia III. Word just broke (and by just, we mean a good six or seven hours ago) that veteran strikers Duane “Bang” Ludwig and Che Mills have been paired up for UFC on FUEL 5, which goes down on September 29, 2012 at the Capital FM Arena in Nottingham, England and features a headlining matchup between heavyweight contenders Stefan Struve and Stipe Miocic. Mills broke the news via his Twitter:

(Duane, how many times do I have to tell you to STOP SLEEPING ON THE JOB??!!!!)

After stringing together a pair of wins over Nick Osipczak and Amir Sodallah to save his UFC career, Ludwig again finds himself with his back against the wall. He has dropped his last two contests to Josh Neer (via Ambienotine) and Dan Hardy (via lead left hook of death) and could be looking at his final fight under the promotion if he is not successful against Mills. From all accounts, Ludwig is one of the nicest guys in the sport, so let’s hope he brings his A-game against Mills, who is coming off a loss of his own to welterweight wrecking machine Rory MacDonald at UFC 145. The loss snapped a five fight win streak for Mills, who kicked off his UFC career by almost kneeing off Chris Cope’s head at UFC 138. Luckily, we’ve managed to find the crappiest quality footage possible of that fight, which we’ve placed for you below.

One thing’s for sure, we won’t have to worry about either man’s grappling credentials (or lack thereof) coming into play. This should make for a hell of an addition to a card that has a distinct lack of drawing power at the moment, so who you got, Potato Nation?

–J. Jones

UFC 145 Salaries: Jon Jones Tops the Payroll With 400 Grand, Polly

(The fighters of UFC 145 meet perhaps the single greatest interviewer of all time. Props to Creative Loafing for the vid.)

It’s good to be king, Potato Nation. We sure don’t need to tell that to Jon Jones, who walked away from UFC 145 with not only his pretty non-replicated belt, but a cool 400K for his troubles. As Pepper Brooks would surely tell you, that’ll buy one hell of a blumpkin. Not to be outdone, Rashad Evans picked up $300,000, which he immediately invested in a double D sized ocular implant. I know it probably gives you more confidence, “Suga,” but you’ll lose respect from the soccer moms is all we’re saying. Combined, the night’s main-eventers took in just over half of the total disclosed salary, which rang in at $1,241,000.

Check out the full list of salaries, along with our thoughts, after the jump. Per usual, these numbers do not include things like locker room bonuses, PPV cuts, insurance, licenses, taxes, etc., nor do they include the $65,000 end of the night bonuses handed out to those who earned them.

(The fighters of UFC 145 meet perhaps the single greatest interviewer of all time. Props to Creative Loafing for the vid.)

Check out the full list of salaries below. Per usual, these numbers do not include things like locker room bonuses, PPV cuts, insurance, licenses, taxes, etc., nor do they include the $65,000 end of the night bonuses handed out to those who earned them.

Jon Jones: $400,000 (no win bonus)
def. Rashad Evans: $300,000

Rory MacDonald: $36,000 (includes $18,000 win bonus)
def. Che Mills: $8,000

Ben Rothwell: $104,000 (includes $52,000 win bonus)
def. Brendan Schaub: $14,000

Michael McDonald: $16,000 (includes $8,000 win bonus)
def. Miguel Torres: $32,000

Eddie Yagin: $12,000 (includes $6,000 win bonus)
def. Mark Hominick: $17,000

Mark Bocek: $46,000 (includes $23,000 win bonus)
def. John Alessio: $10,000

Travis Browne: $24,000 (includes $12,000 win bonus)
def. Chad Griggs: $27,000

Matt Brown: $36,000 (includes $18,000 win bonus)
def. Stephen Thompson: $8,000

Anthony Njokuani: $24,000 (includes $12,000 win bonus)
def. John Makdessi: $12,000

Mac Danzig: $54,000 (includes $27,000 win bonus)
def. Efrain Escudero: $10,000

Chris Clements: $12,000 (includes $6,000 win bonus)
def. Keith Wisniewski: $10,000

Marcus Brimage: $16,000 (includes $8,000 win bonus)
def. Maximo Blanco: $13,000

Thoughts…

Overpaid: Who would’ve guessed that Ben Rothwell was making over 50K to show? Before UFC 145, the guy was 1-2 in the UFC and on the heels of a disastrous loss to Mark Hunt, but you would think he was a top contender with that kind of money. We aren’t here to dump haterade on “Big Ben,” because he seems like a pretty cool dude, as evident by his heartfelt post-fight speech. He’s earned his payday, as did everyone else on the card. It’s just a little surprising is all.

Underpaid: OK, now it’s time to dump some haterade. If someone has the balls to attempt and justify how Keith Wisneieiskiwiewi manages to have a higher base salary than bantamweight phenom Michael McDonald and Che Mills, then be our guest. We know that Mills has only had one fight in the UFC prior to UFC 145, but so did Whiskeytits (at least in his current run), and he required Face/Off surgery after his last performance against Josh Neer. This is not a knock on Winsnickerskew, because the dude’s a warrior, but more of a knock on the paltry base pay some fighters receive. Hopefully DW tossed Mills some undisclosed cash in the locker room, or else he might want to start considering the rare bird wrangling business. It may be more frustrating than MMA, but it’s a lot less painful.

As for McDonald, he now stands at 4-0 in the UFC with two straight knockouts, the most recent coming over a former WEC champ and top pound-for-pounder nonetheless, yet he gets paid like a sub-level TUF participant. Makes you wonder what he’s always smiling about.

-J. Jones

UFC 145 GIF Party: Jones vs. Evans and All the Finishes

(Above: Rashad Evans licks his hand and wipes his butt…
Below: …and pays dearly for it. / Props: )

We bid a final farewell to Saturday’s UFC event with a roundup of the 11 best GIFs from UFC 145, courtesy of The UG and IronForgesIron. Enjoy, and click here for previous MMA GIF coverage.

(Above: Rashad Evans licks his hand and wipes his butt…
Below: …and pays dearly for it. / Props: )

We bid a final farewell to Saturday’s UFC event with a roundup of the 11 best GIFs from UFC 145, courtesy of The UG and IronForgesIron. Enjoy, and click here for previous MMA GIF coverage.

UFC 145 Afterthoughts: Rashad’s Eye, Danzig’s Ankle, and Other Medical Suspensions

(Was this photo taken with a fish eye lens? Get it?! A FISH EYE LENS!! *crickets*)

Yowza. As if we needed further proof, Rashad Evans sent out this tweet earlier today, confirming once and for all that Jon Jones does is fact have the nastiest elbows in the game. At least he took it in stride, stating the following:

I went 2 UFC 145 in Atlanta and I had the best seat in the house & all I came back with was this fat eye! Wth! I hope those of u that went came back with better souvenirs than I did! =)

Brandon Vera feels your pain, Suga. And then some.

Though Evans only received a week suspension, he might want to consider sitting out a little longer while he waits for that baby to deflate. ‘Shad was one of fourteen fighters from Saturday’s card to earn just a seven day suspension for cautionary reasons. Brendan Schaub and Che Mills received 45 day suspensions for their (T)KO losses, where Miguel Torres earned a 60 day suspension for his knockout loss to Michael McDonald. Torres must also undergo a CT scan before he is cleared to return to action.

But worse than Schaub, worse even than Torres, was the indefinite suspension Mac Danzig received for the gnarly ankle injury he suffered in his unanimous decision victory over Efrain Escudero as a result of a first round heel hook. Word has it that while this was occurring, Rousimar Palhares went on a bloodthirsty rampage through Brazil that resulted in the deaths of no less than 400 people.

Check out the photo of the damage, compliments of Danzig’s twitter, along with the full medical suspensions, after the jump.

(Was this photo taken with a fish eye lens? Get it?! A FISH EYE LENS!! *crickets*)

I went 2 UFC 145 in Atlanta and I had the best seat in the house & all I came back with was this fat eye! Wth! I hope those of u that went came back with better souvenirs than I did! =)

Brandon Vera feels your pain, Suga. And then some.

Check out the photo of the damage, compliments of Danzig’s twitter, along with the full medical suspensions, below.

(Where does the calf fat end and the ankle fat begin?)

UFC 145 Medical Suspensions
Mac Danzig: Suspended indefinitely pending results of right-ankle X-ray
Miguel Torres: Suspended 60 days; needs CT scan
Che Mills: Suspended 45 days for precautionary reasons
Brendan Schaub: Suspended 45 days for precautionary reasons
Eddie Yagin: Suspended 30 days, including 21 days with no contact
Mark Hominick: Suspended 30 days, including 21 days with no contact
Chad Griggs: Suspended 30 days, including 21 days with no contact
Matt Brown: Suspended 14 days for precautionary reasons
Stephen Thompson: Suspended 14 days for precautionary reasons
Keith Wisniewski: Suspended 14 days for precautionary reasons
Jon Jones: Suspended seven days for precautionary reasons
Rashad Evans: Suspended seven days for precautionary reasons
Rory MacDonald: Suspended seven days for precautionary reasons
Ben Rothwell: Suspended seven days for precautionary reasons
Michael McDonald: Suspended seven days for precautionary reasons
Mark Bocek: Suspended seven days for precautionary reasons
John Alessio: Suspended seven days for precautionary reasons
Travis Browne: Suspended seven days for precautionary reasons
Anthony Njokuani: Suspended seven days for precautionary reasons
John Makdessi: Suspended seven days for precautionary reasons
Efrain Escudero: Suspended seven days for precautionary reasons
Chris Clements: Suspended seven days for precautionary reasons
Marcus Brimage: Suspended seven days for precautionary reasons
Maximo Blanco: Suspended seven days for precautionary reasons

-J. Jones

‘UFC 145: Jones vs. Evans’ — Live Main Card Results & Commentary

(“…but my body! My BODY, is telling me yeeahh!” / Photo courtesy of MMAFighting.com)

At long last, we’re finally going to find out if watching Jon Jones and Rashad Evans fight is as entertaining as discussing it. The two light-heavyweight rivals — who sport similar haircuts, completely by coincidence — will settle their beef at the end of tonight’s UFC 145 main card, backed by a supporting lineup that includes Rory MacDonald vs. Che Mills, Brendan Schaub vs. Ben Rothwell, and Miguel Torres vs. Michael McDonald.

Live, round-by-round results from the UFC 145: Jones vs. Evans pay-per-view broadcast will be collecting after the jump starting at 10 p.m. ET / 7 p.m. PT, courtesy of CagePotato flyweight liveblog champ Aaron Mandel. Refresh the page every few minutes for all the latest, and let us know your thoughts in the comments section. Now take our hand, Constant Reader, and follow us into the abyss…

(“…but my body! My BODY, is telling me yeeahh!” / Photo courtesy of MMAFighting.com)

Alright, it’s time for the action to start in Atlanta!

John Alessio VS. Mark Bocek

Round 1- Bocek takes the opening round, my cable provider sucks ass, now I’m live, sorry PotatoHeads!

Round 2- Redhead vs. blonde action here as Alessio tries to have more UFC success than his first few runs. Bocek’s striking does not look good, Alessio tags him on the feet. Bocek shoots for a double leg and pins Alessio against the cage as he completes the takedown. Bocek working in Alessio’s guard, trying to pass. Elbows from the top by Bocek who is much more comfortable on the ground. More elbows from Bocek as he works into half guard. Bocek moves into side control and looks very slick on the ground. Alessio hip escapes back into half guard as Bocek continues to work some strikes and hunt for submissions. Alessio escapes and they are back on the feet. Bocek’s leg kicks look very slow, not sure why he’s throwing so many of them. Alessio working some strikes on the feet as Bocek shoots for another takedown. Alessio clinches up and defends the takedown. Round ends and it’s a close one.

In between rounds Alessio’s corner unleashes a string of aggressive curse words to encourage his fighter, which impresses Rogan!

Round 3- Bocek is likely up two rounds at this point. Alessio comes out throwing as they engage on the feet. Alessio with some strong jabs, repelling Bocek’s takedown attempts. Bocek gets an easy takedown and takes Alessio’s back with hooks. Bocek stays heavy on Alessio’s back with a body triangle working some ground and pound. Bocek is bloodied up but in total control on the ground and sort of resembles a battle extra from “Lord of the Rings”. Alessio with a nice escape and they are back on the feet again with two minutes left. Bocek with a sloppy takedown attempt and Alessio working kicks, but they look too casual. Bocek times the kick and shoots another takedown. Bocek works to the back but Alessio comes out the back and they are on the feet again with now one minute left. Bocek clinches Alessio against the cage and Alessio has to make something big happen in a hurry here. Bocek sticks to Alessio as the round winds down and Bocek cruises to what will certainly be a decision victory.

Mark Bocek defeats John Alessio by unanimous decision.

Mark Hominick vs. Eddie Yagin

This looks to be a tailor-made comeback fight for Hominick as Yagin has done nothing in his UFC career to deserve this fight.

Round 1- Hominick makes it through the first ten seconds, longer than his previous bout with the Korean Zombie lasted, so he must be thrilled! Hominick looks must bigger than Yagin. Yagin clips Hominick on the feet and looks quick with his hands. Good leg kick from Yagin. Both fighters are feeling each other out early. Hominick has very technical striking but Yagin is staying in the pocket successfully throwing punches and kicks. Yagin drops Hominick and pounces looking for the finish! Hominick defends and recovers guard but Yagin is pounding away. Hominick is back on his feet but his face is cut up and bruised badly already. Yagin swings with a wild spinning back kick and I wonder if he gassed himself out trying to finish Hominick early. Hominick may still be dazed but he’s hanging in there and Yagin is slowing slightly as the round ends. Round one goes to Yagin.

Round 2- Yagin throwing big power shots while Hominick is much more technical and conservative with his strikes as they trade on the feet. Hominick peppering Yagin with a jab. Yagin throws another wild spinning kick that misses badly. Yagin drops Hominick again and he looks badly hurt but survives on the ground. Yagin is really fast in addition to his obvious power as he makes me eat my pre-fight words. Hominick is recovering and tying Yagin up in his guard. Hominick’s face is messed up. Yagin throws another spinning kick as they return to the feet. Hominick is landing much more frequently but when Yagin lands Hominick is getting dropped. Yagin again looks tired from trying to finish Hominick, just as in the first round. Hominick working some strong shots to the body of Yagin. Another round for Yagin as we head to the third.

Round 3- Both guys faces are bloodied up but Hominick is starting to resemble his alien doppelganger that appeared in his Aldo fight. Yagin pumps the crowd up as he works for a huge upset as the round begins. Striking exchanges between the two are pretty even as Hominick is trying to turn up the pace. Hominick is starting to get the better of the striking exchanges, which he needs to do in my opinion to have any shot at winning the fight. Hominick is working a stiff jab that is hurting Yagin and cutting him up but I don’t know if that will finish him. Hominick needs to take a page from Yagin’s playbook and throw some power punches. Two minutes left in the round. Yagin is getting tagged now and loses his mouthpiece but fires back with a minute left. These guys are throwing down! Yagin looked to be hurt but is still in there and firing back. The round ends with Hominick in charge but I don’t think it was enough as we go to the judges scorecards.

Eddie Yagin defeats Mark Hominick by split decision

Huge upset win for Yagin and it’s now three straight losses for Hominick.

Miguel Torres vs. Michael McDonald

This fight is a great test for both fighters in the bantamweight decision. Does McDonald have what it takes at such a young age to compete with the top guys and does Torres have another title run in him?

Round 1- Both fighters tentative at the start. McDonald the more active striker at the outset. McDonald unleashes a flurry on Torres but most of it is blocked as Torres uses footwork and head movement to circle away. McDonald throws very heavy uppercuts but they haven’t landed flush yet. Torres’ mouthpiece comes out and Herb Dean stops the action to replace it WITHOUT RINSING IT as Goldberg mentions the five-second rule. McDonald drops Torres with a huge uppercut and he is out before he hits the mat. Huge KO for McDonald and there is no doubt he is for real.

Michael McDonald defeats Miguel Torres via knockout.

Ben Rothwell VS. Brendan Schaub

This is a must-win fight for both guys. Will Rothwell turn into a walking zombie like he did in the Hunt fight or can he put his new physique to use and touch the questionable chin of Schaub.

Round 1- Rothwell looks intense and the fighters touch gloves to start. Rothwell eats some heavy shots from Schaub but clinches up and throws some knees. Spinning elbow from Schaub lands and puts Rothwell in trouble but as Schaub swarms, Rothwell drops him out cold with a left hook! Wild exchange and career saving win from Rothwell.

Ben Rothwell defeats Brendan Schaub via knockout

Rory MacDonald VS. Che Mills

Rory MacDonald is in a situation akin to similarly named Michael McDonald and has a huge platform to make a name for himself in the co-main event tonight. Speaking of which, if I beat Chris Cope could I get in a co-main event too?

Round 1- MacDonald looks intense at the start. Mills with some low kicks but has his chin exposed. Mills cracks MacDonald with a punch as they clinch against the cage. Mills cracks MacDonald again with an uppercut and MacDonald immediately shoots in for a takedown which he gets rather easily. MacDonald unloads some huge ground and pound which he throws with amazing accuracy. A huge shot from a postured up MacDonald lands on Mills as MacDonald slides easily into side control. Mounted crucifix for MacDonald who appears to be light years ahead of Mills on the ground. MacDonald pounding away from the mounted crucifix as Mills lies there bleeding and looking confused. Mills tries to escape and shakes the crucifix but has MacDonald in side control. Mills’ face is a bloody mess. MacDonald moves into full mount and pounds away as Mills rolls and gives up his back. HUGE punches by MacDonald as he works for a rear naked choke. The round ends with Mills’ cheekbone doing a better job of escaping his face than Mills’ did off his back.

Round 2- Wasn’t sure if Mills would answer the call for round 2 but he does, a total warrior. MacDonald grabs a single leg and effortlessly takes Mills down and starts pounding away again. Yet another cut is opened up on Mills’ face as MacDonald is in side control working toward full mount. Full mount for MacDonald and he quickly transitions to Mills’ back. MacDonald unloads another flurry and Mills turns away in pain and agony as the ref mercifully steps in and stops this one.

Mills looked good during his brief time on the feet but had no answer for MacDonald on the ground. MacDonald got tagged on the feet but was never in real trouble and will probably get a big name for his next fight.

Rory MacDonald defeats Che Mills via technical knockout

Champ Jon Jones VS. Rashad Evans

It’s main event time now. The amount of buildup and hype for this fight has been off the charts. When the cage door closes, can the fight itself live up? One thing worth noting is how loose Jones has looked every time he’s been shown on camera in the locker room. I, for one, think Jones will win, but I have some doubt in the back of my head about him being too cocky now and clowning around. Video montages, walk ins, fighter introductions and then it’s go time!

Round 1- Jones and Rashad both coming out in cat mode! Jones goes to the body early and thinks about dropping for a shot but separates. Jones throwing kicks, Evans looks tentative. Rashad’s reach deficit is apparent as it looks hard for him to get inside. Rashad lands a combination there and Jones appears to take it well. More kicks from Jones. Head kick lands from Jones but Evans appears to take it well. Leg kick from Jones and he’s using his legs to maximize his reach advantage and control distance. Jones throwing a lot of kicks. Elbow to Evans face from Jones. Body shot from Jones. Evans seems to be content to wait for counter striking opportunities here in the first. Jumping body kick from Jones. A superman punch and two quick body kicks from Jones who is controlling the action early. Evans in counter mode, leg kick to Jones head and Jones is staggered! Jones shoots and then clinches. Round ends with Rashad in charge but I think Jones takes the round.

Round 2- Clinch between the two early and then they separate. Jones looks way more tentative now as they both swing and miss in the center of the cage. Jones tries a front upkick that misses. Evans taunts Jones after a flurry misses, Jones does not react. Stiff jab from Jones lands on Evans. Elbow from Jones from short range looks painful. Jones rocks Evans with another elbow that staggers Evans. Evans clinches and tries to clear the cobwebs. Another push-away elbow from Jones but Evans seems to be recovering. More elbows from Jones. Jones is using this short elbow a lot and concludes with a flying knee and a left hook that rocks Evans right as the round ends. That round goes to Jones.

Round 3- Jones the aggressor as the round begins. Evans lands a huge overhand right on Jones but Jones seems to take it well. Evans appearing more confident. Jones may be hurt but Evans is not pushing the pace. Jones lands a head kick. This is a great fight, my heart rate is tripping out! Lots of momentum swings and back and forth action. Evans’ boxing looks really tight. Jones rocks Evans with a flying knee and follows it with a body kick and another flying knee. Rashad counters with a punch. Hard body kick from Jones. Evans with a sloppy shot and they clinch. Jones looks to be wearing Evans down but he is staying in range of Rashad’s power shots. Jones ends the round with two kicks and I think Jones took that round.

Round 4- We are in the championship rounds, baby!!! Strikes in the center of the cage from both fighters. Spinning elbow attempt misses from Jones. Evans looks for a takedown that is easily stuffed by Jones. Jones catches a kick and throws a right hand down the middle that lands. Jones controlling the action here, Evans has done very little. Evans is looking to throw his right hand and not much else at this point. Jones is hopping like a rabbit towards Evans but the action has slowed in this round. Jones stops a takedown attempt and tries a front choke before giving it up and throwing some knees. Rashad has a “welt” on the side of his head that looks more like a dent in his skull, probably from the round two elbows. Shoulder strikes from the standing clinch by Jones, you read that right, yes. Jones shoots in but can’t complete the takedown as the round ends with Jones in charge.

Round 5- Evans looks tired compared to Jones at the start. Jones throwing jabs to start the round. Evans has to stop Jones to win at this point. Jones is snapping Evans head back with jabs and mixes in a body shot for good measure. Jones dancing around a little and just slips a huge right hand from Evans. Jones is standing right in front of Evans not moving much but lands a huge right. Jones landing some kicks and elbows while Rashad swings wildly and misses. Evans misses with a spinning back fist and eats a flying knee for his trouble. In the clinch and Jones muscles Evans against the cage. Jones lands a left and separates. Jones initiates a clinch again and flings Rashad to the ground with ease and tags him on the ground. Rashad separates and gets up but finds himself in the clinch eating knees from Jones again. Thirty seconds left and Rashad flings some bombs. For no reason known to man, Jon Jones pulls guard and defends against Evans’ ground and pound as the round ends.

We go to the judges and Jon Jones should retain his title here with a dominant win over Rashad Evans.

Jon Jones defeats Rashad Evans via unanimous decision

And that’s it folks, thanks for hanging out!