This is a few days late, but with the Super Bowl on Sunday following UFC 109 Saturday night, it was a long, busy and intoxicated weekend. But lets not waste time and dive right in to the UFC 109 results and thoughts. Starting off with the fact that it might not have been the best card, but there was still good action.
Matt Serra defeats Frank Trigg
– In what was no surprise to me, Matt Serra scored a first round KO of Frank Trigg. “Twinkle Toes” looked outmatched in the stand up game once again, as he made no effort, or Serra didn’t let him, to get close enough to even try and take him down and wrestle. Serra knew going in that he had to keep it standing up since Trigg’s wrestling is far better then his and Serra trusted his power to pull him through the fight. It is a big win in dominating fashion to put Serra back on the map in the division. This could mean the end of the road for Trigg as a octagon fighter, as he has suffered two 1st round KO’s in his 2 fights since his return, and is rumored to maybe be on his way to a different role with the company. Serra took home the KO of the Night award. I predicted Serra to get a KO in the 2nd, but he delivered a round early.
Demian Maia defeated Dan Miller
– In what was easily the most boring fight of the night, and was the least expected fight of the night, Demian Maia kept his roll toward the top of the 185 pound weight class going. He won a Unanimous Decision victory over skilled counterpart Dan Miller. Both guys seemed very weary to take the fight to the ground against their opponents, since both men are well known to be excellent ground grapplers and submission artists. Maia had never looked so tentative, which probably stems from the loss he suffered last year at the hands of Nate Marquadt in about 20 seconds. This was the least fun to watch fight on the card, the opposite of what I had thought, and I predicted the wrong person to win, so that turned out poorly for me, as I picked Miller to win a action packed fight by split decision. This fight was just a stand up affair with both guys just trying to hit each other instead of take it down and finish.
Thiago Alves defeated Mike Swick
– In what turned out to be my worst card in a year for predicting outcomes, Thiago Alves shocked me and my friends by submitting Mike Swick in the 2nd round. The submission of the night award winner Thiago Alves showed that he is much more then just a stand up fighter with knock out power. Swick looked like the better fighter in the 1st round and looked like he was on his way to a victory, landing shots and taking down Alves, however, once the 2nd round started it was a different story. They both went after each other early in the round, and after Swick landed a big punch he went after Alves who connected with a powerful counter left hook that knocked Swick down, and Alves pounced, landed another few shots and was able to strap him into a D’arce Choke, and Swick was asleep in a matter of seconds. It was one of the most impressive and improbable submissions I’d ever seen, it came out of no where and it appeared as if Alves used Swick’s own arm to choke him out. Who’s next for the young Brazilian at 170? With another win or 2 a title shot might be in order.
Chael Sonnen defeated Nate Marquadt
– The fight that shocked everyone, except for Chael Sonnen. Sonnen took home the unanimous decision victory and fight of the night bonus for his domination of the “Great” Nate Marquadt. It will be Sonnen, not Marquadt, set to challenge Anderson Silva (presuming he beats Vitor Belfort) for the title, and with the way Sonnen performed this weekend, I think it is possible that a new king of the Middleweight division could be on the horizon. Sonnen dominated from bell to bell with his awesome wrestling skills and aggression, just picking apart Marquadt. The only damage Sonnen seemed to suffer was when Marquadt nailed him with a nasty elbow while Sonnen was in his guard, which opened up a huge gash on his face. Marquadt kept hitting him with elbows from all angles as it was his only way to get shots in. Sonnen had his back several times and was relentless. That being said though, Marquadt came very close to winning on a few occasions. Marquadt locked Sonnen in a few very, very deep guillotines, one for about 20 seconds before Sonnen was able to break it. It was almost over then, Marquadt had his fist directly in the throat of Sonnen while he had him locked in, and right at the last second, Sonnen was able to pry his hands open and pop out of the submission. Despite his efforts, Marquadt suffered a huge upset loss to Sonnen, who is poised for a title shot.
Randy Couture defeated Mark Coleman
– This fight was bitter sweet. I am a huge fan of both fighters, but admittedly a much bigger fan of the Hammer. Randy came out swinging and pinned Coleman up against the cage for almost the entire 1st round, using his quick upper cuts and dirty boxing to keep Coleman from landing any shots. Coleman looked slow and sluggish from the start of the fight, and despite being a year younger then the ageless wonder, he looked about 10 years older. Sadly, Dana White seems to think this is the end of the road for the UFC Hall of Famer, but it is yet to be seen if Coleman is ready to call it quits. As for the rear naked choke, rather easy victory, for Couture, he seems poised for one last run at a title in the UFC. With his abilities and his past title reigns, a title shot could be in the near future as the general opinion is that if Couture wants a title shot he will get one at whichever weight class. Considering he doesn’t have the strength to go toe to toe with the Lesnars and Mirs of the world, he could potentially still give Lyota Machida and the other 205 fighters a good fight. I imagine a title fight this year is not out of the question for the Natural, where as the Hammer’s career may be nearing an end, as the legend does not seem to have much left in the tank. The recent drop to 205 has left Coleman looking very skinny and old, with almost no muscle left. Hopefully he has another good performance or two left in him somewhere so he can go out a winner, but if not, no one will forget the impact he had on the UFC.
Until next time folks, later this month we get UFC 110. Stay tuned.
The Lake Erie Soldiers 