UFC 128 Results

Light Heavyweight Title: Jon Jones d. (c) Mauricio Rua (TKO – Round 3, 2:37)

Okay, so maybe Jon Jones is for real.  Jones was stunningly dominant in his TKO victory over reigning Light Heavyweight Champion “Shogun” Rua.  Jones used strong wrestling to control Rua, while he was once again able to effectively use his reach in battering Shogun.

Jones moves on to fight former teammate Rashad Evans, who has now left the Greg Jackson camp.  For Shogun, maybe a rematch with Forrest Griffin might be in order?  It would give Shogun a chance to avenge a loss and it would be a step up for Forrest, who was recently successful over Rich Franklin.

Bantamweight: Urijah Faber d. Eddie Wineland (Unanimous Decision)

In a fairly unimpressive fight, Urijah Faber was able to score the unanimous decision over Eddie Wineland.  Faber clearly won the second and third rounds with his takedowns after a very close first round.  Faber’s victory means a Bantamweight Title shot against Dominick Cruz, with the potential of both men coaching on the next season of The Ultimate Fighter. 

Lightweight: Jim Miller d. Kamal Shalorus (TKO – Round 3, 2:15)

Jim Miller looked like the superior fighter for most of this match, using effective striking and coming close to submitting Shaorus on occasion.  Shalorus got hurt in the third round and Miller promptly ended the fight with big knees and punches.

Jim Miller seems to be a likely candidate for the winner of the next Maynard/Edgar title match.  With B.J. Penn and Kenny Florian at other weight classes, Jim Miller is the third best lightweight in the UFC (not counting Strikeforce’s Gilbert Melndez.)

Middleweight: Nate Marquardt d. Dan Miller (Unanimous Decision)

Nate Marquardt took a deserved unanimous decision victory, tiring and defeating the outmatched Dan Miller.  Marquardt was the more active fighter, pushing the pace of this fight well into the third round.  With both fighters under the same parent company, I would love to see Marquardt fight Jacare.

Heavyweight: Brendan Schaub d. Mirko Filipovic (TKO – Round 3, 3:44)

Brendan Schaub fought a good, though at times sloppy fight against the heavyweight legend Mirko “Cro Cop.”  Schaub was warned and subsequently deducted a point for strikes to the back of the head, but it wouldn’t have mattered.  Schaub pushed the pace of this fight and outstruck Cro Cop, also using solid takedowns to stay in control of this fight.

I think we need to see a Schaub/Roy Nelson rematch, though the winner of Chieck Kongo/Pat Barry might be a good opponent.  Perhaps even Shane Carwin, though the fighters being training partners seems to rule out that option.  Unfortunately, this seems to be the last we’ll see of Cro Cop in the UFC.

Lightweight: Edson Barboza d. Anthony Njokuani (Unanimous Decision)

In a very fun fight, Edson Barboza and Anthony Njokuani displayed outstanding kickboxing with Barboza taking a close decision.  Both fighters were very active and Barboza actually came close to finishing the fight at the end of the third round.  I look forward to seeing both fighters compete again.

Welterweight: Mike Pyle d. Ricardo Almeida (Unanimous Decision)

Mike Pyle was able to keep most of this fight standing and outstruck Ricardo Almeida en route to victory.  Despite Almeida’s BJJ prowess, Pyle was able to effectively defend most of Almedia’s attempts to bring this fight to the ground.

Light Heavyweight: Luiz Cane d. Eliot Marshall (TKO – Round 1, 2:15)

Luiz Cane devastated Eliot Marshall and took the dominating TKO victory.  Cane dropped some huge bombs on Marshall prompting the referee to stop the fight.  Cane should really see a step up in competition, as I feel he’s a top 25 light heavyweight.

Lightweight: Gleison Tibau d. Kurt Pellegrino (Split Decision)

Gleison Tibau took the controversial split decision victory, though many though Kurt Pellegrino did enough in the first two rounds to win this fight.  It may have been the first round that did Pellegrino in, as neither fighter was active enough to clearly win the round.

Bantamweight: Joseph Benavidez d. Ian Loveland (Unanimous Decision)

Joseph Benavidez mixed up his takedowns and striking, doing enough to score a unanimous decision win over Ian Loveland.  I’ll say it again, this fight should have been broadcast in some form.  It’s a real disservice to the bantamweight division that one of their top fighters is relegated to a spot this low on the card.

Featherweight: Erik Koch d. Raphael Assuncao (KO – Round 1, 2:32)

In an impressive knockout win, Erik Koch took victory over Raphael Assuncao.  Koch caught Assuncao perfectly, scoring the first round knockout victory which was replayed during the SpikeTV and pay-per-view broadcasts.

Catchweight (195 lbs.): Nick Catone d. Costantinos Philippou (Unanimous Decision)

Nick Catone dominated Costantinous Philippou in all aspects of this fight, taking a well deserved unanimous decision victory.  Philippou hung in there, but couldn’t do enough to keep up with Catone.