MMA GIF Party: TUF 12 Finale Edition

(Props: ‘caposa’ on the UG)
Today’s GIF party features a couple of animated highlights from the TUF 12 Finale’s unaired prelims, as well as the Spike broadcast. First up, the night’s only knockout — Pablo Garza’s flying-knee-KO of Fredson Paixa…

Pablo Garza Fredson Paixao knockout KO MMA gif gifs Mazzagatti UFC TUF 12 Finale
(Props: ‘caposa’ on the UG)

Today’s GIF party features a couple of animated highlights from the TUF 12 Finale‘s unaired prelims, as well as the Spike broadcast. First up, the night’s only knockout — Pablo Garza’s flying-knee-KO of Fredson Paixao, which came just 51 seconds into round one and scored Garza a $30,000 Knockout of the Night bonus. As if the KO wasn’t impressive enough, check out Steve Mazzagatti flying in from 15 feet away to tackle Garza before he makes Paixao’s concussion any worse than it needs to be.

After the jump: The "Pace choke," the McKenzitine, and the stunned expessions following Phan vs. Garcia.

Falling Action: Best and Worst of UFC & Strikeforce’s Dueling Events

Filed under: UFC, StrikeforceNow that we’ve all caught our breath, gotten a little sleep, and prepared ourselves to approach Saturday night’s dueling MMA events like calm, rational individuals, let’s dig through the results and get worked up all over a…

Filed under: UFC, Strikeforce

Now that we’ve all caught our breath, gotten a little sleep, and prepared ourselves to approach Saturday night’s dueling MMA events like calm, rational individuals, let’s dig through the results and get worked up all over again.

Without further delay, here are the big winners, losers, and everything in between after the TUF 12 Finale and Strikeforce: Henderson vs. Babalu.

Biggest Winner: Dan Henderson
A blind man would have known this fight was over once he heard the sound of Hendo’s right hand thumping against “Babalu” Sobral’s skull. But because Sobral managed to keep his eyes open even as they rolled around in his head, it wasn’t stopped until after Henderson had landed several more memory-busters, just for completely unnecessary good measure. The impressive brutality of the win goes a long way towards erasing Henderson’s loss to Shields in the minds of fans, but we should probably reserve judgment until we see him in a fight with an opponent who’s still in his prime. An opponent like, say, light heavyweight champion “Feijao” Cavalcante.

Stats Confirm That Phan/Garcia Decision Was Indeed Bullshit

(Apparently, leaving your face open for repeated blows means you’re "dictating the action." Photo courtesy of UFC.com)
Well, another Leonard Garcia fight is in the books, which means it’s time to ask the judges, once again: Are you guy…

(Apparently, leaving your face open for repeated blows means you’re "dictating the action." Photo courtesy of UFC.com)

Well, another Leonard Garcia fight is in the books, which means it’s time to ask the judges, once again: Are you guys totally blind, or just legally blind, so that, you know, you can make out shapes and degrees of light, that kind of thing?

Garcia’s split-decision victory over Nam Phan at Saturday’s TUF 12 Finale elicited immediate chants of "Bullshit!" from the Las Vegas fans, as well as a lengthy anti-NSAC rant from Joe Rogan. Did the judges see something we didn’t? Am I just biased by the fact that Phan is a likable underdog, and Garcia’s striking is an aesthetic nightmare that I can’t stand watching?

Well, no, as it turns out. According to FightMetric’s report on Phan/Garcia, the match should have been scored a 30-27 for Phan based solely on statistical effectiveness. Phan landed more "significant strikes" in every round, with only the first round being close (33-30 significant strikes in Phan’s favor). The second round was an obvious runaway for Phan (34-13 in the s.s. department, with a brief knockdown via side-kick) and the third was also a clear win for Phan (35-21). The only advantage Garcia had was his two takedowns (one apiece in rounds 2 and 3), neither of which led to any real damage.

Cody McKenzie, Pablo Garza, Garcia-Phan Win TUF Bonuses

LAS VEGAS – Pablo Garza, Cody McKenzie, Leonard Garcia and Nam Phan all took home bonuses for their performances on Saturday’s finale card for Season 12 of “The Ultimate Fighter” at The Pearl at The Palms in Las Vegas.

UFC president Dana White announc…

UFC president Dana White announced the bonuses at the post-fight press conference on Saturday. Each of the bonuses was worth $30,000.

‘The Ultimate Fighter: Team GSP vs. Team Koscheck’ — Live Results and Commentary

(Above: "Remember, remember, the fourth of December, the Gunpowder Treason and plot. I know of no reason why the Gunpowder Treason should ever be forgot, brah." Below: You know what to do, honey. / Photos courtesy of UFC.com)
Welcome, fi…

(Above: "Remember, remember, the fourth of December, the Gunpowder Treason and plot. I know of no reason why the Gunpowder Treason should ever be forgot, brah."
Below: You know what to do, honey. / Photos courtesy of UFC.com)

Welcome, fight fans, to the first leg of a liveblog double-header on CagePotato.com. The TUF 12 Finale gets rolling on Spike at 9 p.m. ET, with Team GSP lightweight finalists Jonathan Brookins and Michael Johnson battling for the highly coveted glassware, Stephan Bonnar trying to build a winning streak against Igor Pokrajac, and Demian Maia tangling with rangy TUF 3 winner Kendall Grove. Plus, five other TUF 12 vets will do their best to hang on to their UFC contracts, including Nam Phan, who clashes with hardy slugger Leonard Garcia in the UFC’s first-ever televised 145-pound feature. (Yes, the UFC has featherweights now!)

Round-by-round results await you after the jump; refresh the page every few minutes to get all the latest. Please toss in your two cents in the comments section, and don’t forget to check in at our viewing party at PlayPhilo.com for a chance to win a UFC: Ultimate 100 Greatest Fights DVD set.

GSP Koscheck TUF Finale

Main card Featherweight bout: Nam Phan vs Leonard Garcia I like Nam Phan in this one. I can imagine he is the underdog here. Phan’s striking variety is better, as well as his ground game. However, Garcia is tougher until proven otherwise on Phan’s part. Like I said, I think Phan’s striking ability is better […]

Main card

Featherweight bout: Nam Phan vs Leonard Garcia

I like Nam Phan in this one. I can imagine he is the underdog here. Phan’s striking variety is better, as well as his ground game. However, Garcia is tougher until proven otherwise on Phan’s part. Like I said, I think Phan’s striking ability is better overall, so he could win a decision on his feet.

Welterweight bout: Johny Hendricks vs Rick Story

Super tough guys here. Both are awesome in their own right and tend to have great fights. I like Rick Story here though.

Middleweight bout: Demian Maia vs Kendall Grove

I actually like Kendall Grove here. Grove is a big underdog and is fairly good with his own right with jiu jitsu. Is on Maia’s level? Definitely not. However, Grove is a dangerous striker. I got Grove here in the BIG underdog spot.

Light Heavyweight bout: Stephan Bonnar vs Igor Pokrajac

Stephan Bonnar here. I am not familiar with Pokrajac, but I feel this is a showcase.

Lightweight bout: Jonathan Brookins vs Michael Johnson

I think Jonathan Brookins will win this fight. His take down defense is good enough, his takedowns will likely be nullified by Johnson, but his standup is better than Johnson. Not only that, but Brookins cardio is good as well. Where it seems Johnson carries more muscle.

Preliminary card

Middleweight bout: Rich Attonito vs Dave Branch

Dave Branch here. Sick jiu-jitsu.

Featherweight bout: Fredson Paixão vs Pablo Garza

Pass

Catchweight (138 lb) bout: Will Campuzano vs Nick Pace

Pass

Lightweight bout: Sako Chivitchian vs Kyle Watson

I like Kyle Watson to either manage a decision or submit Sako.

Featherweight bout: Tyler Toner vs Ian Lovelan

Pass

Lightweight bout: Cody McKenzie vs Aaron Wilkinson

I’m a big fan of Cody McKenzie’s modified guillotine choke. Wilkinson is good on his feet and can easily win this one by staying away from the clinch and the ground. Despite that, I want McKenzie to slap that guillotine on in the big show.