Broadcast from Manchester, England, UFC 105 was televised in US on Spike TV and featured both winners of ‘The Ultimate Fighter: US vs UK’ making their post-TUF UFC debut.  The UK coach Michael Bisping was also on the card, taking on Dennis Kang and looking to rebound from the brutal knockout loss at the hands of Dan Henderson in his last bout.  The main event had Randy Couture returning to the light-heavyweight weight class against Brandon Vera, and Mike Swick took on Dan Hardy in the co-main for a shot at the UFC welterweight title.

Ross Pearson vs. Aaron Riley (155 lbs)

Round 1: After some initial circling, Pearson begins to find his striking range, and scores with punches and kicks.  Pearson clinches and pushes Riley against the fence, then unloads a series of knees.  Riley breaks free and tries to fire back but can’t get any offense going.  Pearson clinches again, punishing Riley with knees and elbows.  Pearson mixing up his striking and most attacks are right on target.  Round 10-9 Pearson

Round 2: Riley tries to be the aggressor early in the second but Pearson quickly forces another clinch.  Riley keeps trying to regain some distance but is being punished in striking range as well as in clinch.  Pearson lands a flying knee and Riley starts bleeding profusely.  The fight is stopped to check the cut and the ringside doctor calls an end to the bout.

Aftermath: A good post-TUF debut for Ross Pearson, completely shutting down a veteran opponent.   He should face Melvin Guillard in his next bout, to truly test Pearson’s impressive striking game.   Riley does not show much in the loss, and will likely be used as a fodder for other lightweight prospects.

Fight Grade: 3.5/5

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Following in the footsteps of now-defunct IFL and Elite XC, Strikeforce became the third MMA promotion to broadcast an event live on national television.  The inaugural CBS event was highlighted by the top heavyweight in the world Fedor Emelianenko taking on the undefeated Brett Rogers.  The televised card also featured a middleweight title bout between Jason ‘Mayhem’ Miller and Jake Shields, a non-title bout between Strikeforce light heavyweight champion Gegard Mousasi and Rameau Thierry Sokoudjou, and another heavyweight clash with Fabricio Werdum taking on Antonio ‘Big Foot’ Silva.

Antonio Silva vs. Fabricio Werdum (HW)

Round 1: After an initial feeling out process, Silva lands the first significant offense of the fight, dropping Werdum with an uppercut in a moment reminiscent of Werdum’s loss to Junior Dos Santos.  Silva pounces and unloads, but Werdum miraculously survives and works his way back to the feet.  Werdum exchanges with Silva then attempts to pull guard, but Antonio manages to keep the fight standing and punishes Werdum on the feet.  Round 10-9 Silva

Round 2: Werdum attacks early with a flurry.  Silva fires back and again drops Werdum.  Werdum invites Silva into his guard; Antonio accepts the invitation and gets swept.  Silva escapes back to his feet and they clinch against the fence.  After a stalemate in clinch, they separate and Werdum takes Silva down with a single-leg.  Werdum attempts an arm triangle, then spins for a kneebar as Silva defends.  Round 10-9 Werdum

Round 3: The fighters trade leg kicks.  Werdum lands a combination and follows it up with a takedown.  Silva gives up his back and stands up.  Werdum lands several knees from a plumb clinch.  Silva responds with a combination of punches then gets taken down again.  Werdum has Silva’s back; Silva regains half-guard but gets blasted with punches from the top.  Round 10-9 Werdum

Fabricio Werdum defeats Antonio Silva by unanimous decision (29-28 on all scorecards).

Aftermath: This fight was supposed to be the first part in a mini-tournament for the right to face the  Strikeforce heavyweight champion Allistair Overeem.  The next step for the Fabricio Werdum should be the winner of the night’s main event.  And might as well match up Silva with the loser while we’re at it.

Fight Grade: 4/5

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UFC 104 took place at the Staples Center in Los Angeles and was headlined by the light heavyweight champion Lyoto ‘The Dragon’ Machida attempting to make his first title defense against a man who was at one point widely regarded as the #1 light heavyweight in the world, Mauricio ‘Shogun’ Rua.  The other featured bout had the undefeated heavyweight Cain Velasquez taking on former IFL standout Ben Rothwell.   With no major events in the past few week, this was a highly anticipated event that unfortunately ended up mired in controversy and addled with mostly uneventful fights.

As was the case with UFC 103, three of the preliminary bouts were broadcast on Spike TV prior to the pay-per-view event.

Preliminary card (Spike TV)

Patrick Barry vs. Antoni Hardonk (HW)

Round 1: The two former professional kickboxers and training partners start the fight off trading on the feet as expected.  Barry seems to have quicker and more powerful hands, and lands a solid combination but Hardonk has a significant reach advantage and keeps Barry at bay with a variety of kicks.   Hardonk accidentally pokes Barry in the eye with a pawing jab, halting the action briefly.  Hardonk slips throwing a kick and Barry quickly follows him to the ground.  Barry lands some good shots from half guard; eventually Hardonk gets back to his feet.  Hardonk is landing multiple  leg and body kicks, and Barry’s legs  are starting to show the effects of them by the end of the round.   Round 10-9 Hardonk

Round 2: Hardonk is throwing kicks again but Barry counters with a combination that rocks Antoni.  Hardonk attacks again and gets hit with the same combination, this time knocked down momentarily.  Hardonk shoots for a half-hearted takedown, Barry easily defends and drops Hardonk with a punch to the side of the head.  Barry follows up with a huge right hand and raises his arms in victory before the referee officially stops the bout.

Aftermath: With a solid knockout, Pat Barry recovers nicely from the submission loss to Tim Hague in his previous bout.  Stefan Struve or Chris Tuchsherer would be the next logical matchups for Barry.  Barry received the official ‘Knockout of the Night’ and ‘Fight of the Night’ awards for his performance, adding a cool $120,000 to his fight purse.

Antoni Hardonk once again demonstrates that he is a one-trick pony, with nothing to back up his impressive arsenal of kicks.  Though Hardonk is 4-4 in the UFC, he has lost to strikers as well as grapplers, and struggled with even journeymen fighters.  With very little upside for Hardonk in the division, it may be time for the UFC to let him go – or possibly use him as fodder for the graduating class of ‘The Ultimate Fighter’ heavyweights.

Fight Grade: 3/5

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