UFC 92 Recap & Results
This past weekend’s UFC 92 event, which drew an impressive live gate of $3.47 million was something of a rarity in that literally all three headlining bouts saw the official betting underdog come out on top and do so in impressive and—with one exception—one-sided fashion.
While any hardcore mixed martial arts fan should have known that Quinton “Rampage” Jackson would come out on top on Saturday night against his arch rival, Wanderlei Silva, the UFC’s promotion for the event, which prominently featured clips of “The Axe Murderer’s” utter decimation of Jackson in two bouts in Pride did its job and put a fair amount of fear into anyone who placed a bet on “Rampage.” Add in the recent loss of his title to Forrest Griffin in July, a split with his former trainer and mentor Juanito Ibarra, and a very public and volatile run-in with the law, as well as a camp relocation across seas, and the question marks seemed endless surrounding one of the UFC’s most potent grudge matches in its history.
With Jackson having knocked off Wanderlei in impressive, if not unnecessary fashion, rumors have already begun circulating that the former champion may be next in line to challenge the newly crowned Evans for the coveted belt, and while “Rampage” has made vocal his desire to rematch now former champion Forrest Griffin before a shot at the belt, and amidst rampant fan complaints about undefeated contender Lyoto Machida’s status at the top of the pack, this fight may very well be on the horizon for the light heavyweight division.
The biggest surprise of the night came when former champion Frank Mir, a man who seemed all but lost amidst his own martial musings and hero worship of a man he idolized in his youth, utterly and completely controlled the legendary Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira over one and a half rounds, successfully becoming the first man to ever stop the former Pride heavyweight champion. Mir utilized a near perfect south paw striking style that saw him lead repeatedly with the lead right while making his opponent ever weary of snapping kicks and a powerful left hand that eventually landed one too many times for the Brazilian fan favorite.
Mir’s victory sets up what will be—contrary to what the UFC and some others will tell you—the second most anticipated rematch in recent history as he takes on champion Brock Lesnar to unify the heavyweight titles in early 2009. (The most anticipated, of course, is the welterweight title bout between Georges St-Pierre and BJ Penn).
Last and certainly least surprising of UFC 92’s uncharacteristically short night of fights was the light heavyweight scrap between ultimate fighter alums Forrest Griffin and Rashad Evans. In the official “Fight of the Night”, the defending champ Griffin utilized his significant height and reach advantage to negate the dangerous speed and power of the challenger…for the first to rounds.
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In the third, with Griffin showing a bit more wear in the stamina department than his well-conditioned opponent, the champ grew careless with his trademark kicks, as he fired off one too many of the same exact attacks at the same spot on Evans ribcage, a dire mistake against such a dangerous opponent. In a flurry reminiscent of his teammate Keith Jardine’s utter thrashing of Griffin a few years earlier, Rashad Evans became the next UFC light heavyweight champion by stopping Griffin from inside the guard as he folded him over and pounded him mercilessly with sharp, powerful lefts that had the champ flailing for the referee to intervene.
UFC 92 capped off an impressive and exciting year for the UFC and for mixed martial arts in general, setting one champion back on track for a shot at the belt he lost in controversial fashion, crowning two new champs, and sparking some much-needed interest into a lacking heavyweight division that has fans and pundits alike salivating over the possibilities in 2009.
By Steven T. Kelliher
ProFighting-fans.com Staff Writer
Complete UFC 92 Results:
Main UFC 92 Bouts:
- Rashad Evans defeated Forrest Griffin via TKO (strikes) - Round 3 - Evans becomes new UFC Light Heavyweight Champion
- Frank Mir defeated Antonio Rodrigo “Minotauro” Nogueira via TKO - Round 2 - Mir becomes new Interim UFC Heavyweight Champion
- CB Dollaway defeated Mike Massenzio via TKO (Strikes) - Round 1
- Quinton “Rampage” Jackson defeated Wanderlei Silva via KO (Strikes) - Round 1
- Cheick Kongo defeated Mustafa Al-Turk via TKO (Strikes) - Round 1
Preliminary UFC 92 Bouts:
- Yushin Okami defeated Dean Lister via Unanimous Decision
- Antoni Hardonk defeated Mike Wessel via TKO (strikes) - Round 2
- Matt Hamill defeated Reese Andy via TKO (strikes) - Round 2
- Brad Blackburn defeated Ryo Chonan via Unanimous Decision
- Pat Barry defeated Dan Evensen via TKO (strikes) - Round 2