Traditionally the UFC has always had a stellar lineup for their end-of-year show, and this year was no different. With the lightheavyweight title on the line in the main event, the interim heavyweight title defended in the co-main, and the third installation of the Wanderlei Silva-Quinton Jackson series, ‘The Ultimate 2008’ had plenty of hype going into the show.
Cheik Kongo vs. Mostapha Al-Turk (HW)
In the first televised bout, the UFC newcomer Al-Turk started out attempting to exchange strikes with Kongo, until Cheik caught a kick and threw Al-Turk to the canvas. After getting up, Al-Turk went for the takedown but was thwarted, then landed a knee to Kongo’s groin from a clinch. After a break for Cheik to recover, the fighters went back to clinch and Kongo retaliated with a knee to the groin of Al-Turk. When the fight restarted again, Kongo came out aggressive and dropped Al-Turk then following him down, pounding away with elbows and punches that split Al-Turk’s forehead wide open and caused the referee to stop the bout, giving Kongo the TKO victory.
Fight grade: 4/5 3/5 (1 point deduction for low blows)
Aftermath: Nut shots aside, a good performance for Kongo that should place him in the top tier of contenders for the winner of the heavyweight championship mini-tournament. He is perhaps one win away from a title shot. Al-Turk does not impress in his debut; look for him on the televisual undercard of a UK UFC event some time in 2009.
Quinton Jackson vs. Wanderlei Silva (205 lbs)
These two have faced each other twice before in the Pride ring, with Silva winning both matches by TKO or knockout. Wanderlei at first was picking Jackson apart with leg kicks, but the bout devolved into a brawl halfway through the first round, with Silva throwing his usual flurries of hooks. ‘Rampage’ threw a left hook of his own, knocking Silva out cold. Jackson followed up with two more punches to his clearly unconscious opponent as he was pulled off by the ref.
Fight grade: 5/5
Aftermath: Rampage finally extracts revenge on his long-time rival, and positions himself for a title shot at the winner of the main event (assuming his legal troubles end up settling without any jail time). For Silva, another brutal knockout indicates that he may be shot as a fighter. Facing the loser of the main event would give Wanderlei an opportunity to show that he is still relevant in the division.
Patrick Barry vs. Dan Evensen (HW)
In a preliminary bout between two kickboxers, Pat Barry made his UFC debut against the Norwegian Evensen. Evensen had very little offense on the feet and tried to utilize his size advantage to push Barry around in clinch but had no success. Barry’s primary offense was leg kicks, and one of them buckled Evensen’s knee inward. Evensen turned his back and walked away, giving Barry the win by TKO (injury).
Fight grade: 2/5
Aftermath: An uneventful debut for Barry against an abysmal opponent, that demonstrated little of Patrick’s arsenal. Evensen looked completely devoid of any talent in both of his UFC fights and need not be brought back.
Matt Hamill vs. Reese Andy (205 lbs)
In a lightheavyweight bout that saw two fighters coming off losses, Matt Hamill seemingly forgot about his wrestling skill and attempted to box with the smaller but quicker Andy. Hamill was outworked in the first round, but Reese slowed down in the second as Hamill’s dirty boxing started to have an effect. Hamill kept landing uppercuts to Andy’s body and head while holding him with the other hand, and one of the body shots dropped Andy to his knees. From there Hamill swarmed in and overwhelmed Andy with punches until the bout was finally stopped.
Fight grade: 3/5
Aftermath:After a tough loss to Rich Franklin, Hamill picks up a much needed win, but his strategy needs to be questioned as I don’t see him outboxing any of the top fighters in the division. Reese Andy is now 0-2 in the UFC, a bust after a promising performance in the IFL.
C.B. Dolloway vs. Mike Massenzio (185 lbs)
‘The Ultimate Fighter’ alumnus Dolloway once defeated Massenzio in a collegiate wrestling bout. Massenzio was looking for revenge and rocked Dolloway early in the fight, then latched on to a tight guillotine. It looked like Dolloway was beginning to tap but it went unnoticed by Massenzio and the ref, and Dolloway was able to escape the submission. From there Dolloway was able to pass Massenzio’s guard and pounded him from the mount. Massenzio rolled over and gave up his back but offered no intelligent defense against C.B.’s strikes, and so the ref stepped in to give Dolloway the TKO victory.
Fight grade: 3/5
Aftermath:A victory over a ranked opponent will solidify Dolloway’s position in the bottom half of the UFC’s middleweight division. Massenzio falls to 1-1 in the UFC.
Champion Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira vs. Frank Mir (HW interim title bout)
Round 1: A fight between two grapplers often turns into a kickboxing bout, and this one was no different. Mir pushed Nogueira to the ground early in the round, and knocked him down with punches on two more occasions. Nogueira came in at almost 20 lbs heavier than he was in his prime, and did not carry the extra weight well, looking slow and almost lethargic. Nogueira fired back with a few combinations of his own but took a lot of damage through the round. Round 10-8 Mir.
Round 2: Mir scored another knockdown early in the round and jumped in to finish; the referee Herb Dean had seen enough and stopped the bout, making Mir the interim UFC champion and the first man to finish Nogueira.
Fight grade: 5/5
Aftermath:Mir has fought the best fight of his career, and is back to where he was prior to the unfortunate motorcycle accident. He will rematch Brock Lesnar next to unify the interim and the ‘real’ heavyweight titles. Nogueira appeared completely shot and punch-drunk. A bout with Randy Couture would make for an interesting matchup of legends whose careers are quickly winding down.
Champion Forrest Griffin vs. Rashad Evans (205 lbs title bout)
Round 1: Griffin was the aggressor, as expected. Evans was off to a slow start as usual. A very close round consisted of mostly sporadic striking exchanges, with Forrest edging out the round due to aggression. Round 10-9 Griffin.
Round 2: Griffin kept moving forward and started to find a rhythm, landing with leg kicks and punch combinations. Evans appeared undamaged by Griffin’s strikes, taunting Forrest at one point by dropping his hands, blowing an air kiss at Forrest, then grabbing his own crotch. Despite Rashad’s antics Griffin won the round, by a slightly wider margin than the first. Round 10-9 Griffin.
Round 3:Griffin started out on the offensive once again, until Rashad caught a kick and forced Griffin to the ground with a punch. Evans worked his ground and pound as Griffin attempted submissions; eventually several of Rashad’s punches dazed Griffin. Evans pounded on semi-conscious Griffin several more times until the referee stepped in to stop the bout.
Fight grade: 5/5
Aftermath:The ‘TUF’ Season 2 winner supplants his Season 1 counterpart as UFC’s lightheavyweight champion – one of the most prestigious titles in today’s MMA. He also keeps his undefeated streak and becomes the undisputed #1 in his weight class. His first defense will likely be against either Quinton Jackson, or the winner of the upcoming bout between undefeated contenders Thiago Silva and Lyoto Machida.
Griffin’s stint as a champion was very brief, but he remains one of the top dogs in the division. A matchup with Chuck Liddell or Wanderlei Silva sounds like fun, or perhaps a rematch with Keith Jardine or Mauricio ‘Shogun’ Rua.
Mike Wessell vs. Antoni Hardonk (HW)
With time still remaining in the broadcast, another preliminary heavyweight bout was shown. Hardonk had originally been scheduled to face Mark Burch, who pulled out on very short notice, allowing another UFC newcomer to step in. Wessell is a very large man and had some success in using his bulk to bully Hardonk to the ground and win the first round. More of the same in the second, and it was beginning to look like Hardonk was in for a long night when Antoni used a submission attempt to sweep Wessell and gain dominant position, mounting Wessell and pounding him out for the final TKO of the night.
Fight grade: 3/5
Aftermath:Hardonk has shown a marked improvement in his ground game, taking him a step further up the heavyweight ladder. A match-up with Kongo or Barry should make for an exciting striking battle. Wessell fails in his UFC debut but put up enough of a fight to earn another shot in the Octagon.
The three main fights all lived up to their lofty expectations, and the undercard was mostly entertaining. Even though it was sad watching the legends of Wanderlei Silva and Antonio Nogueira bite the dust, with seven fights shown and all ending by TKO or knockouts, there wasn’t much more you could ask of an MMA event.