In the recent years, it has become a tradition for the UFC to put on a major event the night before Superbowl.  This year, UFC is still reeling from the string of illnesses and injuries suffered by key fighters in the past few months, and so the Superbowl event had a rather underwhelming card.  Headlined by the “seniors’ tour” matchup of Mark Coleman vs. Randy Couture, 109 piled on the nostalgia with Matt Serra taking on Frank Trigg on the undercard.  The rest of the event was mostly filled with matchups with little divisional significance, with the notable exception of Nate Marquardt taking on Chael Sonnen for the shot at the middleweight title.

Preliminary Card (Spike TV)

Melvin Guillard vs. Ronnys Torres (155 lbs)

Round 1: Torres ducks under a punch and takes Guillard down.  Torres passes into half-guard and works for a kimura.  Guillard escapes and stands up.  Torres leads in with a punch then takes Guillard down again but Guillard reverses and ends up on top, then stands up and backs away.  Guillard lands a couple of kicks.  Torres misses with a flying knee.  Guillard attempts a spinning back fist but misses as well.  Torres shoots for another takedown, eats a knee on the way in but completes the takedown.  Ground and pound from Torres but Guillard is able to stand up and blasts Torres with two hooks as the round ends.   Round 10-9 Torres

Round 2: An ice bag breaks up in Torres’ corner between the rounds, extending the break to several minutes.  Both fighters come out swinging and missing.  Torres attempts to slam Guillard, lifting him up high against the cage; Guillard prevents the slam and they trade punches.  Torres shoots in – right into a knee again, then eats another knee after Guillard breaks free.  Guillard defends another takedown attempt but Torres takes his back standing and Guillard rolls, ending up in Ronnys’ guard.  Torres looks for a kimura but Guillard escapes and lands a big punch.  Round 10-9 Guillard

Round 3: Guillard is throwing haymakers, looking for a finish.  Guillard defends a takedown attempt and punishes Torres with big punches.  Torres fires back then earns a takedown.  Torres passes into side control and once again works a kimura.  Guillard escapes to his feet.  Guillard rocks Torres with a punch but gets taken down again.  Torres picks up Guillard and attempts a slam but lands on his back, mounted by Guillard.  Guillard tees off from the top as the round ends.  Round 10-9 Torres

Melvin Guillard wins a unanimous decision, 29-28 on all scorecards.

Aftermath: Melvin Guillard gets back on the winning track, somewhat controversially.  He should be faced with the winner of the upcoming bout between Spencer Fisher and Duane ‘Bang’ Ludwig.

Ronnys Torres’ long awaited UFC debut has been delayed by a series of injuries, and he performed fairly well coming off a lengthy layoff.  Still, the loss places him near the bottom of the UFC’s lightweight division and he should prove his mettle by taking on either Mac Danzig or the fellow struggling Brazilian prospect Thiago Tavares.

Fight Grade: 3/5

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From Arco Arena in Sacramento, CA, WEC 46 was highlighted by the long-awaited return of the injured lightweight champion Jamie Varner, set to unify the belts with the interim lightweight champ Benson Henderson in the main events.  In other featured bouts, two former featherweight champions Urijah Faber and Mike Brown set their sights on the comeback trail, with Faber taking on Rafael Assuncao and Brown facing an unheralded WEC newcomer Anthony Morrison.

Mackens Semerzier vs. Deividas Taurosevicius (145 lbs)

Round 1:  After a brief exchange, Taurosevicius closes distance and takes Semerzier down.  Semerzier locks in a guillotine but Taurosevicius slams his way out of it.  Taurosevicius stands over Semerzier and eats a slapping up-kick.  Taurosevicius passes into side control and throws elbows.  Semerzier regains guard and gets back to his feet but is quickly taken down again.  Semerzier with another guillotine attempt and Taurosevicius responds with a big slam.  The action slows down on the ground and referee stands them up.  Taurosevicius shoots another takedown as the round ends.  Round 10-9 Taurosevicius

Round 2: Semerzier leads off with a series of kicks.  He stops Taurosevicius’ first takedown attempt but gets dragged down from clinch. Semerzier escapes but is quickly taken down again, then slammed on his next attempt to get up.  Semerzier looks for a triangle but Taurosevicius defends well.  Taurosevicius works from Semerzier’s guard; Mackens looks for submissions from the bottom and nothing comes close.  Semerzier attempts a leg lock near the end of the round; Taurosevicius powers out of it. Round 10-9 Taurosevicius

Round 3: An uneventful exchange starts the final round.  Taurosevicius catches a kick but Semerzier stays on his feet.  Taurosevicius shoots for a takedown and Semerzier attempts a d’arce choke, then switches to a kimura.  Taurosevicius is in danger but rolls out of the hold, giving up the top position.  Semerzier stands over Taurosevicius, landing body and head strikes.  Taurosevicius is bleeding.  Semerzier passes guard and works from side control.  Taurosevicius scrambles out and gets caught in a guillotine, but escapes as the round ends. Round 10-9 Semerzier

Deividas Taurosevicius wins by unanimous decision, 29-28 on all three scorecards

Fight Grade: 3/5

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During the rigorous training that leads up to an MMA bout, fighters often get injured and are forced to pull out of a scheduled fight, leading to late substitutions and/or fight cancellations.  Injuries can always be expected, but UFC 108 broke all records with the number of fighters who were once scheduled to be on the card but had to pull out with an illness or an injury.  A string of bad luck leading up to UFC 108 left the card without a solid main event, which we’ve come to expect from UFC’s year-end events.  In fact Rashad Evans vs. Thiago Silva and Joe Lauzon vs. Sam Stout were the only originally scheduled main card bouts that made it intact to the actual event.  All other main card bouts and several of the prelims fell apart due to injuries, forcing UFC to scramble to come up with suitable substitutions.

Preliminary Card (Spike TV)

Dan Lauzon vs. Cole Miller (155 lbs)

Round 1: Miller moves forward and lands a combination.  Lauzon fires back, dropping Miller with a left hook.  Miller recovers and jumps up, eating a knee as he does.  Miller clinches and throws a knee.  Lauzon takes Miller’s back standing, but Miller reverses and ends up on Lauzon’s back with Dan on his knees.  Miller locks his legs around one of Lauzon’s arms and looks for a kimura on the other arm.  Lauzon defends until Miller rolls over, and Dan is forced to tap out.

Aftermath: Dan Lauzon was at 18 years old the youngest fighter to compete in the UFC when he lost his debut to Spencer Fisher back at UFC 64.  After going on an eight-fight win streak in various promotions, his UFC return was spoiled, dropping him to 0-2 in the organization.  He would be better off making a switch to the WEC’s lightweight division.

Cole Miller gets back on the winning track, earning himself a Submission of the Night bonus in process.  He should fight Jeremy Stephens next.

Fight Grade: 4/5

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Returning to Las Vegas, WEC 45 had a lackluster lineup by the usual WEC standards: no title matches or clear #1 contender bouts – just a series of bouts in the bantamweight, featherweight, and lightweight divisions, headlined by Donald ‘The Cowboy’ Cerrone taking on Ed ‘9mm’ Ratcliff.  Here’s how it went down:

Scott Jorgensen  vs. Takeya Mizugaki (135 lbs)

Round 1: Mizugaki leads off with punches and Jorgensen counters with a right hook, dropping Mizugaki.  Jorgensen follows to the ground and looks for a guillotine.  Mizugaki defends and works back to his feet.  Mizugaki lands a combination to the body.  They clinch and Mizugaki throws knees; Jorgensen catches one and throws Mizugaki down.  Takeya instantly gets back up and goes back to trading punches until Jorgensen knocks him down for the second time.  Jorgensen jumps into Takeya’s guard and throws punches from the top but Mizugaki scrambles, gives up his back then escapes.   Round 10-9 Jorgensen

Round 2: Mizugaki comes out swinging again.  Jorgensen shoots and gets a takedown.  Jorgensen passes guard but Mizugaki escapes and stands up.  They trade punches then clinch against the cage.  Action slows down and referee breaks them up.  Mizugaki flurries and gets taken down again though quickly makes his way back to the feet.  Another exchange and another takedown for Jorgensen, this time Mizugaki pops up even more quickly. Round 10-9 Jorgensen

Round 3: They exchange for the first half of the round with both fighters landing.  Jorgensen scores another takedown and Mizugaki is right back up again, then responds with a trip takedown of his own.   Mizugaki passes into side control, briefly gets a crucifix but Jorgensen rolls and escapes.  Mizugaki takes him down again and punches from the top as the round ends.  Round 10-9 Mizugaki

Scott Jorgensen wins a unanimous decision with the scores of 29-28 from all judges.

Fight Grade: 4/5

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