Tag: Jussier Formiga

‘UFC Fight Night: Shogun vs. Henderson 2? — Fight Highlights, Bonuses, And Event Recap

(Shogun vs. Henderson 2 highlights via Fox Sports)

Dan Henderson and Mauricio “Shogun” Rua fought for the second time last night in Natal, Brazil, and though we weren’t treated to another five-round dogfight, the rematch turned out to be nearly as incredible as their first meeting. This time, it was Henderson who was getting beaten up in the early rounds, as an energized Shogun Rua came close to finishing the American legend on more than one occasion. It seemed like Henderson’s heart, experience, and still-solid chin were the only things keeping him alive going into round three. And then…boo-yah.

All it took was one right hand directly across the chin to snap Shogun’s head back and send him into a backwards somersault across the mat. Arguably, referee Herb Dean could have stopped the fight as soon as Shogun went ass-over-teakettle, but he allowed Hendo to follow up the knockdown with some controversial blows to the back of the head, as Shogun groggily clung to Henderson’s leg. To those of you who expected Herb Dean to penalize Henderson during the finishing sequence: You haven’t been watching MMA for very long, have you?

Henderson and Rua each earned $50,000 Fight of the Night bonuses for their headlining battle, and Dan Henderson also scored a $50,000 Performance of the Night award. (The unofficial Broken Nose of the Night award went to Shogun.) The other Performance of the Night bonus went to Godofredo “Pepey” Castro, who wrecked Israeli UFC newcomer Noad Lahat with a flying knee in the first fight of the night.

The Pepey/Lahat KO was just one of five matches at UFC Fight Night 38 that ended in the first round. Notably, middleweight vet CB Dollaway TKO’d TUF Brazil 1 winner Cezar “Mutante” Ferreira in just 39 seconds with an impressive display of counter-punching, which you can watch below…


(Shogun vs. Henderson 2 highlights via Fox Sports)

Dan Henderson and Mauricio “Shogun” Rua fought for the second time last night in Natal, Brazil, and though we weren’t treated to another five-round dogfight, the rematch turned out to be nearly as incredible as their first meeting. This time, it was Henderson who was getting beaten up in the early rounds, as an energized Shogun Rua came close to finishing the American legend on more than one occasion. It seemed like Henderson’s heart, experience, and still-solid chin were the only things keeping him alive going into round three. And then…boo-yah.

All it took was one right hand directly across the chin to snap Shogun’s head back and send him into a backwards somersault across the mat. Arguably, referee Herb Dean could have stopped the fight as soon as Shogun went ass-over-teakettle, but he allowed Hendo to follow up the knockdown with some controversial blows to the back of the head, as Shogun groggily clung to Henderson’s leg. To those of you who expected Herb Dean to penalize Henderson during the finishing sequence: You haven’t been watching MMA for very long, have you?

Henderson and Rua each earned $50,000 Fight of the Night bonuses for their headlining battle, and Dan Henderson also scored a $50,000 Performance of the Night award. (The unofficial Broken Nose of the Night award went to Shogun.) The other Performance of the Night bonus went to Godofredo “Pepey” Castro, who wrecked Israeli UFC newcomer Noad Lahat with a flying knee in the first fight of the night.

The Pepey/Lahat KO was just one of five matches at UFC Fight Night 38 that ended in the first round. Notably, middleweight vet CB Dollaway TKO’d TUF Brazil 1 winner Cezar “Mutante” Ferreira in just 39 seconds with an impressive display of counter-punching, which you can watch below…

Speaking of fights that lasted less than a minute, Thiago Santos TKO’d Ronny Markes in 53 seconds during the prelims, thanks to a well-placed body-kick. Considering that Markes missed weight by five pounds for the match, and he was already coming off a loss to Yoel Romero, his days in the promotion might be numbered.

“Possibly Early Stoppage of the Night” goes to the Steven Siler vs. Rony “Jason” Bezerra main card fight, which Jason won by first-round TKO after knocking Siler down with punches. The ref jumped in as soon as Siler hit the mat, drawing an immediate protest from the American featherweight. Not that Siler wasn’t hurt — but clearly there was some inconsistency in the officiating last night, when you consider how many opportunities Dan Henderson was given to recover after being rocked.

Speaking of controversial endings, Scott Jorgensen succumbed to a first-round rear-naked choke in his latest appearance at flyweight against Jussier Formiga. Jorgensen thought he was dropped by a head-butt. Formiga denies it. It doesn’t really matter because the ref didn’t see it. Jorgensen has now lost five of his last six fights.

As for fights that went the distance, Norman Parke cost himself a victory against Leonardo Santos by getting a point deducted for shorts grabbing during their main card fight. Instead, the match ended in a majority draw. And in other point-deduction news, prelim fighter Mairbek Taisumov became just the second UFC fighter to have two separate point-deductions in a fight that went to the judges. (Taisumov was docked points for an illegal head-kick in round one and fence-grabbing in round two.) As a result, he lost a unanimous decision with scores of 30-25 across the board.

And finally, Will Chope — the guy who was kicked off the card at the last minute when his history of domestic violence was uncovered — will fight for ProFC on May 25th in Taiwan.

Once again, here are the complete results from UFC Fight Night 38: Shogun vs. Henderson 2…

Main Card
– Dan Henderson def. Shogun Rua via TKO (punches), 1:31 of round 3
– C.B. Dolloway def. Cezar Ferreira via TKO (punches), 0:39 of round 1
– Leonardo Santos vs. Norman Parke ends in majority Draw (29-27, 28-28, 28-28)
– Fabio Maldonado def. Gian Villante via unanimous decision (29-27, 29-28, 29-28)
– Michel Prazeres def. Mairbek Taisumov via unanimous decision (30-25, 30-25, 30-35)
– Rony Jason def. Steven Siler via TKO (punches), 1:17 of round 1

Preliminary Card
– Thiago Santos def. Ronny Markes via TKO (body kick and punches), 0:53 of round 1
– Jussier Formiga def. Scott Jorgensen via submission (rear naked choke), 3:07 of round 1
– Kenny Roberston def. Thiago Perpetuo via submission (rear naked choke), 1:45 of round 1
– Hans Stringer def. Francimar Barroso via split decision (29-28, 28-29, 29-28)
– Godofredo Castro def. Noad Lahat via KO (flying knee), 2:39 of round 1

UFC Fight Night 28 Aftermath: Glover Teixeira Clinches LHW Title Shot, And a Gator Moves to the Top of the Food Chain

(Event recap via YouTube.com/UFC)

Our decision to only liveblog the UFC Fight Night 28 matches that we cared about turned out to be a wise choice. Though last night’s supporting card had its moments — particularly Piotr Hallmann’s comeback submission win over Francisco Trinaldo, and the Fight of the Night-winning battle between Rafael Natal and Tor Troeng — the UFC’s latest trip to Belo Horizonte didn’t turn into a terrifying orgy of violence until the last three bouts, which all ended the exact same way: A stiff knockdown, some nasty ground-and-pound, and an impressive first-round TKO for the favorite. Let’s start at the top and work our way down.

Of the three first-round maulings on the main card, only Glover Teixeira faced real adversity on his way to victory. During his main event fight against Ryan Bader, the Brazilian light-heavyweight phenom had to collect his bearings after getting wobbled in a striking exchange. Bader smelled blood and tried to go in for the kill, but his aggression turned out to be his undoing. As Bader swarmed with punches, Teixeira tucked his chin and landed a cross/hook combo that sent Bader to the mat. Teixeira followed with shots from above, and that’s all it took to secure his 20th consecutive victory (!) and a $50,000 Knockout of the Night bonus.

After the fight, it was confirmed that Teixeira (now 5-0 in the UFC) would receive the next light-heavyweight title shot against the winner of Jon Jones vs. Aexander Gustafsson at UFC 165 later this month. His performance last night might not have impressed everyone — rumor has it that Teixeira was recovering from a bad weight cut — but anybody with that kind of power and resilience is always a threat.

The second-biggest story of night had to be Ronaldo Souza‘s official arrival as an elite UFC middleweight. Since his Strikeforce title-fight loss to Luke Ruckhold two years ago, “Jacare” has sliced through lower-level competition (Bristol Marunde, Derek Brunson, Ed Herman, Chris Camozzi) with relative ease. Finally, he got a chance to prove himself against a longtime UFC contender, and he rose to the occasion, crushing Yushin Okami with an overhand right midway through the first round. Yes, Ronaldo Souza has “fallen in love with his hands,” so to speak. But unlike other jiu-jitsu aces like Demian Maia who have tried to re-invent themselves as strikers, Souza hasn’t looked the least bit uncomfortable turning his recent bouts into kickboxing matches. He’s as natural at striking as he is at grappling, and that’s a terrifying thought for the rest of the UFC’s 185-pounders. Jacare has chewed his way to the top of the middleweight food chain, and the possibilities in front of him are endless.


(Event recap via YouTube.com/UFC)

Our decision to only liveblog the UFC Fight Night 28 matches that we cared about turned out to be a wise choice. Though last night’s supporting card had its moments — particularly Piotr Hallmann’s comeback submission win over Francisco Trinaldo, and the Fight of the Night-winning battle between Rafael Natal and Tor Troeng — the UFC’s latest trip to Belo Horizonte didn’t turn into a terrifying orgy of violence until the last three bouts, which all ended the exact same way: A stiff knockdown, some nasty ground-and-pound, and an impressive first-round TKO for the favorite. Let’s start at the top and work our way down.

Of the three first-round maulings on the main card, only Glover Teixeira faced real adversity on his way to victory. During his main event fight against Ryan Bader, the Brazilian light-heavyweight phenom had to collect his bearings after getting wobbled in a striking exchange. Bader smelled blood and tried to go in for the kill, but his aggression turned out to be his undoing. As Bader swarmed with punches, Teixeira tucked his chin and landed a cross/hook combo that sent Bader to the mat. Teixeira followed with shots from above, and that’s all it took to secure his 20th consecutive victory (!) and a $50,000 Knockout of the Night bonus.

After the fight, it was confirmed that Teixeira (now 5-0 in the UFC) would receive the next light-heavyweight title shot against the winner of Jon Jones vs. Aexander Gustafsson at UFC 165 later this month. His performance last night might not have impressed everyone — rumor has it that Teixeira was recovering from a bad weight cut — but anybody with that kind of power and resilience is always a threat.

The second-biggest story of night had to be Ronaldo Souza‘s official arrival as an elite UFC middleweight. Since his Strikeforce title-fight loss to Luke Ruckhold two years ago, “Jacare” has sliced through lower-level competition (Bristol Marunde, Derek Brunson, Ed Herman, Chris Camozzi) with relative ease. Finally, he got a chance to prove himself against a longtime UFC contender, and he rose to the occasion, crushing Yushin Okami with an overhand right midway through the first round. Yes, Ronaldo Souza has “fallen in love with his hands,” so to speak. But unlike other jiu-jitsu aces like Demian Maia who have tried to re-invent themselves as strikers, Souza hasn’t looked the least bit uncomfortable turning his recent bouts into kickboxing matches. He’s as natural at striking as he is at grappling, and that’s a terrifying thought for the rest of the UFC’s 185-pounders. Jacare has chewed his way to the top of the middleweight food chain, and the possibilities in front of him are endless.

Meanwhile in the flyweight division, Joseph Benavidez looked every bit the 6-1 favorite he was going into his fight against Jussier “Formiga” Da Silva, who simply didn’t show up for this one. Benavidez was the aggressor from the opening bell, measuring his opponent with strikes, sticking-and-moving, tagging Formiga at will, while Formiga could only throw game counter-punches, hitting air most of the time. When a punch combination from Benavidez dazed Formiga, the Team Alpha Male standout immediately seized the moment, stuffing a knee into the Brazilian’s ribs, and adding another hook for good measure as he crumpled to the mat. Once on the ground, Benavidez buried Formiga in ground-and-pound until the ref intervened. With three straight wins since his flyweight title-fight loss to Demetrious Johnson last September, is it time for Johnson vs. Benavidez 2? Fun fact: Team Alpha Male has gone 17-0 since Duane Ludwig’s arrival as coach, proving once again that marijuana does in fact help you study better.

UFC Fight Night 28 Quick Results:

FOX SPORTS 1 MAIN CARD

Glover Teixeira def. Ryan Bader via TKO, 2:55 of round 1

Ronaldo Souza def. Yushin Okami via TKO, 2:47 of round 1

Joseph Benavidez def. Jussier Formiga via TKO, 3:07 of round 1

Piotr Hallmann def. Francisco Trinaldo via submission (kimura), 3:50 of round 2

Rafael Natal def. Tor Troeng via unanimous decision (30-27 x 2, 29-28)

Ali Bagautinov def. Marcos Vinicius via TKO, 3:28 of round 3

FOX SPORTS 1 PRELIMS

Kevin Souza def. Felipe Arantes via split-decision (29-28 x 2, 28-29)

Lucas Martins def. Ramiro “Junior” Hernandez via technical submission (rear-naked choke), 1:10 of round 1

Elias Silverio def. Joao Zeferino via unanimous decision (30-27 x 2, 29-28)

Ivan Jorge def. Keith Wisniewski via unanimous decision (29-28 x 2, 30-27)

FACEBOOK PRELIM

Sean Spencer def. Yuri Villefort via split-decision (30-27, 28-29, 29-28)

BONUSES ($50,000 each):
– Fight of the Night: Rafael Natal vs. Tor Troeng
– Knockout of the Night: Glover Teixeira
– Submission of the Night: Piotr Hallmann

UFC Fight Night: Teixeira vs. Bader — Liveblogging the Fights You Actually Care About


(Dana White isn’t there. Joe Rogan isn’t there. Arianny and Brittney aren’t there. But if you’re the Veteran Voice of the Octagon, you grab a polo shirt out of the hamper and show the hell up. It’s called integrity, okay? Hippofan knows what I’m talking about. / Photo via MMAJunkie)

Ali Bagautinov. Marcos Vinicius. Tor Troeng. Piotr Hallman. The people of Belo Horizonte don’t care about these dudes, and neither do we, to be honest. So we’re going to try something a little different for tonight’s liveblog of UFC Fight Night 28, and only run play-by-play for the three fights on this card that are worth liveblogging: Joseph Benavidez‘s meeting with Brazilian flyweight contender Jussier “Formiga” da Silva, the middleweight co-main event between Ronaldo “Jacare” Souza and Yushin Okami, and the light-heavyweight headliner between Glover Teixeira and Ryan Bader.

Live round-by-round results for those fights will be located after the jump starting around 8 p.m. ET-ish. We’ll also post quick results from the supporting card beforehand. Refresh the page every few minutes for all the latest, and if you’re watching along with us on FOX Sports 1, use the comments section to let us know how you feel.

(Dana White isn’t there. Joe Rogan isn’t there. Arianny and Brittney aren’t there. But if you’re the Veteran Voice of the Octagon, you grab a polo shirt out of the hamper and show the hell up. It’s called integrity, okay? Hippofan knows what I’m talking about. / Photo via MMAJunkie)

Ali Bagautinov. Marcos Vinicius. Tor Troeng. Piotr Hallman. The people of Belo Horizonte don’t care about these dudes, and neither do we, to be honest. So we’re going to try something a little different for tonight’s liveblog of UFC Fight Night 28, and only run play-by-play for the three fights on this card that are worth liveblogging: Joseph Benavidez‘s meeting with Brazilian flyweight contender Jussier “Formiga” da Silva, the middleweight co-main event between Ronaldo “Jacare” Souza and Yushin Okami, and the light-heavyweight headliner between Glover Teixeira and Ryan Bader.

Live round-by-round results for those fights will be located after the jump starting around 8 p.m. ET-ish. We’ll also post quick results from the supporting card beforehand. Refresh the page every few minutes for all the latest, and if you’re watching along with us on FOX Sports 1, use the comments section to let us know how you feel.

Quick results…

FOX SPORTS 1 MAIN CARD (7 p.m. ET / 4 p.m. PT)

Glover Teixeira def. Ryan Bader via TKO, 2:55 of round 1

Ronaldo Souza def. Yushin Okami via TKO, 2:47 of round 1

Joseph Benavidez def. Jussier Formiga via TKO, 3:07 of round 1

Piotr Hallmann def. Francisco Trinaldo via submission (kimura), 3:50 of round 2

Rafael Natal def. Tor Troeng via unanimous decision (30-27 x 2, 29-28)

Ali Bagautinov def. Marcos Vinicius via TKO, 3:28 of round 3

FOX SPORTS 1 PRELIMS

Kevin Souza def. Felipe Arantes via split-decision (29-28 x 2, 28-29)

Lucas Martins def. Ramiro “Junior” Hernandez via technical submission (rear-naked choke), 1:10 of round 1

Elias Silverio def. Joao Zeferino via unanimous decision (30-27 x 2, 29-28)

Ivan Jorge def. Keith Wisniewski via unanimous decision (29-28 x 2, 30-27)

FACEBOOK PRELIM

Sean Spencer def. Yuri Villefort via split-decision (30-27, 28-29, 29-28)

Alright, let’s do this.

Joseph Benavidez vs. Jussier “Formiga” Da Silva

Round 1: Benavidez measures his distance with front kicks. Benavidez stalks forward and they clash with punches. Benavidez sticks and moves. Formiga trying to play the counter game, with limited success. Benavidez throws a body kick, Formiga fires a hard left hook. Benavidez with a left straight. He throws some punches at the air and fires a high kick that’s blocked. Front kick and punch from Joe. Formiga tries a turning side kick. Benavidez lands hard with a pair of punches and a knee to the body, and Formiga crumples to the mat. Benavidez drops some bombs from the top, and the ref stops it. Excellent performance from Joe B…he was the aggressor the whole time, and seized on the finish at his earliest opportunity.

Joseph Benavidez def. Jussier “Formiga” Da Silva via TKO, 3:07 of round 1.

Yushin Okami vs. Ronaldo “Jacare” Souza

Round 1: Okami pawing with the jab. Jacare flashes the front kick. Body kick from Jacare, who shoots to clinch afterwards. Okami shakes out, but Jacare lands a big punch that stuns Okami, then punishes Okami against the fence with a barrage of strikes. Okami looks to be in trouble, but he escapes and they return to the center of the cage. Jacare throws a big overhand right. Okami returns fire. Jacare throws the overhand right again and knocks Okami to the mat. Jacare fires down some nasty right hands from the top and the ref has seen enough. Man, did I pick the right fights to liveblog or what?

Jacare says an injury prevented him from doing his Jacare crawl. So you might as well just watch Jade Bryce do it.

Ronaldo “Jacare” Souza def. Yushin Okami via TKO, 2:47 of round 1.

Glover Teixeira vs. Ryan Bader

Round 1: Bader shoots for a single right away and Teixeira defends it. Bader tries for a guillotine on the mat when Teixeira engages in close. Teixeira defends. They get back to their feet and clinch against the fence. Teixeira considers a guillotine of his own. They separate. Bader fires off some punches, and a high kick as Teixeira tries to close distance on him. Teixeira slips to the mat (or is he staggered?) after Bader launches a punch volley at him. Teixeira gets to his feet but he looks shaky as Bader continues his striking attack. But then Teixeira catches Bader on the chin with a right straight/left hook combo and Bader falls to the mat! Teixeira follows it up with punches from the top and it’s all over. Damn…all three fights ended the exact same way.

Glover Teixeira def. Ryan Bader via TKO, 2:55 of round 1.

“I’m telling you, this belt is gonna be mine,” Glover says. “It doesn’t matter if it’s Jon Jones or Gustafsson, it’s gonna be mine.” He admits to being knocked down by Bader, and says it was due to being overconfident.

Did that performance change your opinion of Teixeira in any way? Is he a future title threat or not? Let us know in the comments, and enjoy the rest of your night…

Watch the UFC Fight Night 28 Weigh-Ins Right Here at 3 p.m. ET / Noon PT [UPDATED w/RESULTS]

(Props: YouTube.com/UFC)

The 22 fighters competing at tomorrow night’s UFC Fight Night 28: Teixeira vs. Bader event at the Mineirinho Arena in Belo Horizonte, Brazil, will be hitting the scales this afternoon beginning at 3 p.m. ET / Noon PT. Watch all the staredowns and shoving live in the video player above; we’ll update the results after the jump when it’s over.


(Props: YouTube.com/UFC)

The 22 fighters competing at tomorrow night’s UFC Fight Night 28: Teixeira vs. Bader event at the Mineirinho Arena in Belo Horizonte, Brazil, will be hitting the scales this afternoon beginning at 3 p.m. ET / Noon PT. Watch all the staredowns and shoving live in the video player above; we’ll update the results after the jump when it’s over.

FOX SPORTS 1 MAIN CARD (7 p.m. ET / 4 p.m. PT)
Glover Teixeira (206) vs. Ryan Bader (205)
Ronaldo Souza (186) vs. Yushin Okami (185)
Joseph Benavidez (126) vs. Jussier Formiga (126)
Piotr Hallmann (155) vs. Francisco Trinaldo (155)
Rafael Natal (185) vs. Tor Troeng (185)
Ali Bagautinov (125) vs. Marcos Vinicius (126)

FOX SPORTS 1 PRELIMS (5 p.m. ET / 2 p.m. PT)
Felipe Arantes (146) vs. Edimilson Souza (146)
Ramiro Hernandez (135) vs. Lucas Martins (136)
Elias Silverio (169) vs. Joao Zeferino (170)
Ivan Jorge (169) vs. Keith Wisniewski (170)

FACEBOOK PRELIM (4:30 p.m. ET / 1:30 p.m. PT)
Sean Spencer (171) vs. Yuri Villefort (170)

‘UFC on FX: Browne vs. Bigfoot’ — Live Results & Commentary


(Travis plans to test Bigfoot’s chin tonight. Unfortunately, Bigfoot’s chin has already been tested by a team of doctors, and nobody can figure out what the hell is wrong with it. / Photo via CombatLifestyle. For more photos from this set, click here.)

Because you can never have enough heavyweight fights on basic cable, the UFC returns to FX this evening for a fun little card at the Target Center in Minneapolis. In the main event, one of the ten seven greatest undefeated fighters in MMA, Travis Browne, looks for his fifth UFC victory against Antonio “Bigfoot” Silva, who has been brutally stopped in his last two appearances. (Just keep repeating to yourself: He beat Fedor. He beat Fedor. He beat Fedor…) Plus: Jay Hieron tries to break his curse against Jake Ellenberger, while John Dodson and Jussier Formiga scrap for a flyweight title shot.

Fresh off his short-notice victory against the UFC 151 pay-per-view, Jim Genia is back again to liveblog tonight’s FX main card. Round-by-round results will be piling up after the jump beginning at 8 p.m. ET. Refresh the page every few minutes for all the latest, and if you’ve heard any good jokes lately, please share them in the comments section.


(Travis plans to test Bigfoot’s chin tonight. Unfortunately, Bigfoot’s chin has already been tested by a team of doctors, and nobody can figure out what the hell is wrong with it. / Photo via CombatLifestyle. For more photos from this set, click here.)

Because you can never have enough heavyweight fights on basic cable, the UFC returns to FX this evening for a fun little card at the Target Center in Minneapolis. In the main event, one of the ten seven greatest undefeated fighters in MMA, Travis Browne, looks for his fifth UFC victory against Antonio “Bigfoot” Silva, who has been brutally stopped in his last two appearances. (Just keep repeating to yourself: He beat Fedor. He beat Fedor. He beat Fedor…) Plus: Jay Hieron tries to break his curse against Jake Ellenberger, while John Dodson and Jussier Formiga scrap for a flyweight title shot.

Fresh off his short-notice victory against the UFC 151 pay-per-view, Jim Genia is back again to liveblog tonight’s FX main card. Round-by-round results will be piling up after the jump beginning at 8 p.m. ET. Refresh the page every few minutes for all the latest, and if you’ve heard any good jokes lately, please share them in the comments section.

Preliminary card results:
– Yves Edwards vs. Jeremy Stephens – Bout Scratched Due to Stephens Getting Arrested
– Michael Johnson def. Danny Castillo via KO (Punch) at 1:06, Round 2
– Jacob Volkmann def. Shane Roller via Submission (Rear Naked Choke) at 2:38, Round 1
– Diego Nunes def. Bart Palaszewski via Unanimous Decision
– Darren Uyenoyama def. Phil Harris via Submission (Rear Naked Choke) at 3:38, Round 2
– Marcus LeVesseur def. Carlo Prater via Split Decision
– Mike Pierce def. Aaron Simpson via KO (Punch) at :29, Round 2

Howdy.  Jim Genia here.  Ready for some UFC on FX nonsensical ramblings?

First up: Justin Edwards vs. Josh Neer

Edwards, who trains under Jorge Gurgel, has appeared in the Octagon three times but has yet to impress.  Neer… man, that dude be crazy.

Round 1: Edwards comes out swinging punches and flinging raw aggression like it’s free.  Neer counters by ducking his head and angling for a takedown – which plays right into a jumping arm-in guillotine that Edwards does not hesitate to slap on.  Neer goes to the canvas and makes some motions like he’s going to defend, but soon he’s asleep, and Edwards has earned himself the sweet technical submission at :45 of Round 1.  Okay, Edwards looks impressive now.

Justin Edwards def. Josh Neer via Technical Submission (Guillotine) at :45, Round 1

Up next: John Dodson vs. Jussier Formiga

The good news is that Dodson and Formiga are fighting for number one contender status for the flyweight title.  The bad news is… ah, there is no bad news.  This fight is going to rock.

Round 1: It took about a minute of dancing and circling before these two gentlemen began stepping in and swinging with bad intentions, with the American aiming crosses to the body and the Brazilian looking for a home for his counter right in the neighborhood of Dodson’s chin.  But fast footwork prevented either from really nailing the other, so Formiga shot for a takedown around the three-minute mark that was easily stuffed.  Another takedown was stuffed, and another, and the crowd began to boo at the lack of furious engagement.

Round 2: The dancing continued into the second, broken up by intermittent flashes of violence – including a winging overhand by Dodson 45 seconds in, and a lunging right by Formiga two minutes in.  Thankfully, three minutes into the round, Dodson caught Formiga with left as the Brazilian was stepping forward, and for a few seconds, Dodson was the predator hunting its prey.  Formiga, to his credit, managed to recover, but the end came soon after when the TUF winner blasted him in the gut and then dropped him with a left square in the chops.  Formiga fell, rolled over, and was helpless against the subsequent barrage of fists, prompting the referee to jump in.  The official time of the TKO was 4:35 of Round 2.

John Dodson def. Jussier Formiga via TKO (Punches) at 4:35, Round 2

Next: Jake Ellenberger vs. Jay Hieron

Once upon a time, Ellenberger and Hieron fought in the IFL and Hieron came away with the decision.  But time has presumably changed these men, with Ellenberger establishing himself as a top UFC competitor and Hieron becoming that poor dude who can never seem to get a UFC fight.  All that changes now, though!

Round 1: Mindful of Ellenberger’s power and seemingly eager to catch his foe moving forward, Hieron spends the first couple minutes of the round firing off single strikes – jabs, crosses, high-kicks, and even a couple spinning back-kicks.  But his patience erodes when a minute and a half is left, and he shoots for a single-leg that Ellenberger hops out of, and he nearly catches him with some hard counters of his own.

Round 2: The round opens with Hieron dinging Ellenberger with a counter, and soon after going for a takedown that is deftly avoided.  A sudden change in tactics has Ellenberger nailing a takedown of his own, and for the following minute, he’s able to bang up Hieron and open up a cut near the Xtreme Couture fighter’s eye.  Though bloodied, Hieron keeps his wits about him and manages to scramble back to his feet, and for the last two minutes of the period they dance the “I’m Afraid of You, You’re Afraid of Me” Waltz.

Round 3: Their wariness leads to more dancing in the third frame, although the action is halted briefly a minute in when Hieron kicks Ellenberger in the junk.  After a restart, Ellenberger goes for a takedown that Hieron squirms out of.  Does their mutual respect color how they fight throughout the rest of the bout?  Sadly, it does, as Hieron maintains a steady output of single, long-range kicks and punches while Ellenberger waits for that one big opening that never seems to come.  Hieron does fall in the final seconds of the fight, but it isn’t clear if it’s a slip or if Ellenberger has actually tagged him, and the bout goes to the judges.  The winner?  Ellenberger by unanimous decision, but yeah, it’s close.

Jake Ellenberger def. Jay Hieron via Unanimous Decision

Next, the main event: Travis Browne vs. Antonio “Bigfoot” Silva

It’s hard to place where exactly in the heavyweight division Browne and Silva belong, especially since Dana White declared that Stefan Struve’s win over some scrub somehow catapulted the dude to number five in the rankings (uh, what?).  Regardless, big men fighting.  Hooray! 

Round 1: Browne comes out throwing colorful kicks, but Silva informs him with a right hand that he better check himself before he wrecks himself.  They exchange more cautiously, and a minute and a half in the Brazilian comes in, eats a knee, but still manages to tie Browne up against the fence.  After a few seconds Browne escapes, but it’s suddenly evident that something is wrong with his knee, and after almost a minute of him limping around, Bigfoot steps in with a huge right that drops Browne against the cage.  The fists to the side of Browne’s head may or may not have been needed, but they happened anyway, and when referee Herb Dean jumped in, it’s official: Silva has won via TKO.  The time of the stoppage was 3:27 of Round 1.

Antonio Silva def. Travis Browne via TKO (Punches) at 3:27, Round 1

Afterwards, an extremely happy Silva thanked the crowd for showing up, and spoke of how much he’d trained for the fight.

And that’s all, folks.  Thanks for showing up.

Gambling Addiction Enabler: ‘UFC on FX: Browne vs. Bigfoot’ Edition

For the past several UFC events, CagePotato reader/contributor Dan “Get Off Me” George has been holding down the Gambling Addiction Enabler’s with the poise and classiness of a 16th century Bolognese swordsman. Unfortunately for you, he only likes to bet on the big time PPV events, so you’re stuck with me for the time being. Fortunately for you, I write a lot less than he does and love to get reckless with my hard earned cash, so let’s do this! Listed below are the odds for UFC on FX: Browne vs. Bigfoot, courtesy of BestFightOdds, followed by my advice which simply put has never been wrong not once ever.

MAIN CARD
Travis Browne (-240) vs. Antonio Silva(+200)
Jake Ellenberger (-360) vs. Jay Hieron (+300)
John Dodson (-200) vs. Jussier Formiga (+170)
Josh Neer (-280) vs. Justin Edwards (+240)

PRELIMINARY CARD 
Yves Edwards (+175) vs. Jeremy Stephens (-225)
Danny Castillo (+130) vs. Michael Johnson (-160)
Dennis Hallman (+190) vs. Thiago Tavares (-250)
Shane Roller (+150) vs. Jacob Volkmann (-180)
Diego Nunes (-180) vs. Bart Palaszewski (+150)
Phil Harris (+230) vs. Darren Uyenoyama (-290)
Marcus LeVesseur (-105) vs. Carlo Prater (-125)
Mike Pierce (-170) vs. Aaron Simpson (+150)

Thoughts…

For the past several UFC events, CagePotato reader/contributor Dan “Get Off Me” George has been holding down the Gambling Addiction Enabler’s with the poise and classiness of a 16th century Bolognese swordsman. Unfortunately for you, he only likes to bet on the big time PPV events, so you’re stuck with me for the time being. Fortunately for you, I write a lot less than he does and love to get reckless with my hard earned cash, so let’s do this! Listed below are the odds for UFC on FX: Browne vs. Bigfoot, courtesy of BestFightOdds, followed by my advice which simply put has never been wrong not once ever.

MAIN CARD
Travis Browne (-240) vs. Antonio Silva(+200)
Jake Ellenberger (-360) vs. Jay Hieron (+300)
John Dodson (-200) vs. Jussier Formiga (+170)
Josh Neer (-280) vs. Justin Edwards (+240)

PRELIMINARY CARD 
Yves Edwards (+175) vs. Jeremy Stephens (-225)
Danny Castillo (+130) vs. Michael Johnson (-160)
Dennis Hallman (+190) vs. Thiago Tavares (-250)
Shane Roller (+150) vs. Jacob Volkmann (-180)
Diego Nunes (-180) vs. Bart Palaszewski (+150)
Phil Harris (+230) vs. Darren Uyenoyama (-290)
Marcus LeVesseur (-105) vs. Carlo Prater (-125)
Mike Pierce (-170) vs. Aaron Simpson (+150)

Thoughts…

As I previously mentioned, I am going to be short and sweet for this week’s enabler. That means no prop bets and no fight-by-fight analysis, just a straight look at who I think is being under/overvalued and a suggested parlay.

The Good Dogs: Your best chances at upsets in my opinion are heavily based around the grappling-oriented gameplans of several fighters on the card. Hallman vs. Tavares, Volkmann vs. Roller, and Castillo vs. Johnson will be determined by the abilities of Volkmann, Hallman, and Castillo to get the fight to the ground and grapple out a decision. In all three cases, you are looking at only a slight to moderate underdog hovering in the +150 to +200 range. Of these three matches, the person who stands the best chance of implementing this gameplan is Dennis Hallman, who holds a notable size advantage over most every lightweight out there including Tavares. Although he has looked great lately and has a solid Jiu-Jitsu base, I think Hallman should be able stay heavy on top of Tavares and avoid getting submitted long enough to score a close decision victory.

While we all know that Shane Roller is undoubtedly more well rounded than Jacob Volkmann, we also know that it takes a hell of a wrestler to deal with the grappling prowess of the Minnesotan. Roller, while being a talented grappler in his own right, does not lead me to believe that he can defend Volkmann’s takedowns when a wrestler like Danny Castillo couldn’t. Volkmann has shown that he can be submitted by an opponent with an offensive guard, but the key to a Roller victory here is going to be keeping the fight standing. Roller showed in the Thiago Tavares fight that he does pack some power, so if you think he’ll be able to fend off Volkmann’s takedowns for long enough to land a haymaker, I’d suggest a wager on him as well. Personally, I just don’t think that will be the case. Castillo vs. Johnson is in the same vein. Johnson will be looking to keep things on the feet, but Castillo is a stellar grappler who is strong on top and will probably be looking to exploit Johnson’s somewhat weak submission defense. If he is able to get Johnson to the mat in the first round, expect him to dictate the action for the rest of the fight.

There is one other option: Bart Palaszewski vs. Diego Nunes.

This fight is a little easier to gauge: Both men are primarily strikers, both are coming off losses, and both are 1-2 in their past 3. The difference in their striking lies in pure aggressiveness; Nunes is known for using his kicks to keep his opponents at bay and has shown little killer instinct in the past couple of years, whereas “Bartimus” loves to drag things into a good old fashioned brawl and let the fists fly. Bart should also hold an advantage in the grappling game, so expect to see him utilize some clinch work and dirty boxing to eek out a decision over Nunes if things get hairy on the feet.

Come to think of it, that was pretty much a fight-by-fight analysis. MOVING ON.

Stay the Hell Away From: The main event. Antonio Silva is not listed as a big enough dog to risk a bet on and Browne has notched impressive victories over Stefan Struve and Chad Griggs in between weak performances against Cheick Kongo and Rob Broughton. Browne should easily take this, but you don’t want to risk your parlay on whether or not he’ll have an off night.

Official CagePotato Parlay: Pierce – Stephens – Dodson – Ellenberger

Official CagePotato Parlay #2: Pierce – Hallman – Dodson

Worthy Side Bets: Castillo and Palaszewski

Agree or disagree?

–J. Jones