The Key Arena in Seattle, Washington hosted the latest edition of UFC Fight Night where Antonio Rogerio Noguiera and Phil Davis squared off in the main event. It was a decent display of Mixed Martial Arts action where there were winners and losers, and a few upsets. Here, we'll look at all of them, break them down and what this means for their careers.
In the first fight during the televised card, Leonard Garcia and Chan Sung Jung fought in a rematch of their WEC classic from last year. Although not as exciting, these two put on a display of grit and determination in making this another great fight and they didn't let anyone down.
Leonard Garcia, who sports a career 15-7-1 record, stepped into the Octagon for the first time since December 2010 which was a win against Nam Phan and as always won Fight of the Night honors. He was looking to ascend the ranks of the UFC featherweight division, but the man dubbed "The Korean "Zombie" stood in his way.
Chan Sung Jung who has an 11-3 record, was making his UFC Octagon debut since the WEC merger. A native of South Korea, Jung is somewhat of a submission specialist with a very solid ground game but also a powerful striking game as well.
Both fighters began the fight cautiously, with both looking to score big strikes. With both looking for big shots, they traded kicks and punches and the fight ended up on the ground after a huge bomb attempt by Garcia in which Jung caught and tripped Garcia. The first round ended with Jung in superior position on Garcia.
The second round began and both fighters were looking for huge hits and were throwing with full intent of knocking the other out. As both fighters were looking to connect, Garcia attempts to throw a kick and proceeded to slip and fall on the mat where Jung capitalized and stepped into Garcia's guard. As Garcia rolls over, Jung gets position on his back and attempts a rear-naked choke, unfortunately losing the position. It was here that the fight would get interesting, as Jong went for a submission that I personally haven't seen used in competition. Utilizing the twister, Garcia taps with one second to go in the second round.
This proved to be a very competitive fight and exciting. Garcia and Jung showed heart and showed just how both are dangerous inside of the cage. With this fight, Jung has a successful debut inside the Octagon and Garcia falls with a loss. At the end of the day, Jung steps up in competition as I am sure the UFC will give him a tough fight within the division to test him further. As for Garcia, although he lost, he still is a competitive contender at Featherweight and I am sure he will bounce back against a solid contender in his next fight.
Next up to go inside the cage was Amir Sadollah and Demarques Johnson. Sadollah, a 5-2 competitor and also an Ultimate Fighter winner, came into this fight looking to extend his win streak to two. Johnson, fighting with a 12-9 record, was also looking for the same since his win against Micheal Guymon at the Fight for the Troops special.
The fight began explosively as both fighters were throwing punches left and right. Sadollah slips on a kick attempt with Johnson only getting ground position for a few seconds until Sadollah steps back up to his feet. The first round was an up and down battle with both fighters tagging each other, and in my opinion, ended in a draw.
The second round began and both fighters tagged each other with knees and kicks. As the round proceeds, Sadollah takes down and falls into Johnson's half-guard, where he would drive elbows into Johnson. As Sadollah gets into full-mount, Johnson gets free and back to his feet but is feeling the effects, as he seems gassed out and tired. Sadollah then scores another takedown where the fight would end. As Sadollah wraps up Johnson's arms, he drives elbows into Johnson where the fight was stopped at 3:27.
Sadollah is for sure to step up into competition as he stated in his post-fight interview. It sure to be exciting to see how he progresses in his career with these fights and how he fairs against top fighters. Johnson, with a loss, is sure to have a bounce back as he is a solid fighter, who is to be commended for taking the fight on two weeks notice. With a full and healthy training camp on ample notice, Johnson will be back to his winning ways.
Dan "The Outlaw" Hardy and Anothony "Rumble" Johnson were up next in what proved to be a dominant display by Rumble. Throughout the fight, Johnson used his superior wrestling and took down Hardy at will, using his strong grappling base to punish Hardy. The fight began with a huge head kick by Johnson that floored Hardy, and Johnson capitalized by jumping on Hardy. Johnson won the fight by unanimous decision and frustrated Hardy. Towards the end of the fight, Johnson had two great opportunities to submit Hardy with first a near-side choke and then a neck crank. However, Johnson gave up both positions and finished the fight with ground and pound.
Anthony Johnson got back to his winning ways in this fight, and did it in dominating fashion against a former number one contender. Improving his record to 9-3, Johnson has definitely improved on his game and has a solid wrestling base and also a pretty decent stand-up game as well in which his reach helps him. Although faltering in his attempts to submit Hardy, it was a strong-showing by Rumble and is a sure bet to be a dominating force in the Welterweight division.
Dan Hardy falls to 23-9-0 and suffers his third straight defeat that started with his loss to Georges St. Pierre in their title fight in March of 2010. Dan Hardy is a tough competitor who is a good fighter. However, he has faltered lately and is looking at a must-win situation in his next contest, should he have on inside of the Octagon. Never one to be counted out, one can be sure that he will come back strong and have a good fight, knowing the circumstances and what is at stake. We will have to wait and see what comes of Hardy last on this year.
In the main event of evening, the legend Antonio Rogerio Nogueira and the newcomer Phil Davis fought in front of the Seattle crowd. Nogueira, at 19-5 was looking to get back to winning after his loss to Ryan Badar in September of 2010. Davis, an undefeated Light-Heavyweight at 8-0, and also a replacement for Tito Ortiz in the contest, was looking to defeat his first big name in the sport and do it in the main event.
Davis, a collegiate wrestler at Penn State, was looking to take Little Nog down and use his grappling to get the upper hand. This proved to be a tough feat as every shoot was stuffed by Nogueira in the first round. Davis used his kicks and good footwork to allude the dangerous striking of Nogueira. Both fighters threw strikes and ended the first round solidly. It was the second round that Davis found success in taking Nogueira down. Davis had position on Nogueira, but Little Nog proved to be extremely strong in fending off Davis from getting good position, and used his grip strength to neutralize Davis's strikes. However, Davis finished out the round strong as he had Little Nog against the fence and pounded him with dozens of punches and knees to the body.
The third round proved to be somewhat the same as Davis used single-leg takedowns to wrestle Nogueira to the floor. Little Nog again kept Davis at bay somewhat with his legs and wrist control, but Davis finished the round with superior position on Nogueria.The judges saw the fight Davis's way with a 30-27 score, giving him the unanimous decision nod.
Davis improved his record to 9-0 and kept his undefeated streak in tact, also taking the spotlight in this huge chance he received. Davis fought with a solid game, and when he couldn't take down Nogueira at first, he used good footwork and striking to keep from being beaten. It sure to be that Davis will get another top guy in his next fight to further test himself, in which we will see how Davis will fair.
Nogueira falls in his second fight in a row, against another up and comer. The legend has not faired to well in his UFC career, as his fight with Jason Brilz in May of 2010 was also a lackluster performance that many thought he lost, including myself. Nogueira definitely has to go back to the drawing board to figure where he can be successful against the strong, young guys that the Light-Heavyweight division has to offer. We will see who his next opponent will be, and if he can take the opportunity to improve and get back to his winning ways, and do it in dominant fashion. If not, we are sure to be looking at a failed UFC run for the Nogueira brother.
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