| From WorldWrestlingInsanity.com MMA
Anderson Silva stepped in to defend his championship against a new kind of challenger than he's been used to. Chael Sonnen had talked a lot of smack about Anderson but at UFC 117, Silva gave Sonnen the opportunity to back up what he said. When all was said and done, Chael gave Anderson a legitimate fight and made him earn his victory. With a strong main card, this show really did deliver and followed a great UFC 116 card, rivaling it for one of the better shows of the year. Let's take a look at the event.
Recap of UFC 117
UFC Middleweight Title Fight- Anderson "The Spider" Silva submitted Chael Sonnen at 3:10 of the fifth round in a fight that went quite different then what many thought. For all the shit talking that Chael did, the man backed up 95% of what he said he would do. Both men were met with a mixed crowd reaction as they entered the octagon but only moments into the fight, Sonnen had the crowd solidly behind him. I was confident that Chael would be able to take Anderson to the ground but I had no clue how little resistant Anderson would be to it. The most impressive thing was that Chael was able to actually hit and rock Anderson a couple times with some great punches. For five rounds, Chael took down Anderson and hammered him with fists but during the fifth round, with only a few moments to go, Chael was caught in a triangle choke and soon Anderson transitioned into an armbar which Chael eventually tapped out to. Anderson celebrated as he should because no one was able to do to Anderson what Chael did for such a long period of time. A rematch has to be up next for both guys as Ive heard a fair amount of people say that Chael won rounds one through three 10-8 and its no secret to anyone that watched, that Chael dominated Anderson until he made a mistake. Chael has what it takes to win this and now everyone knows for sure that he can do it. What's important to remember is that in 2007, many considered Paulo Filho to be the best fighter in the world at Middleweight and Chael was able to beat him down in similar fashion to his fight with Silva but, near the end of the fight, Cael was submitted. In the rematch, Chael avoided Filho's ground game and won himself a decision. What im getting at here, is that Chael's been in this situation before and I really wouldn't doubt it if this fight happens again. Both men received an additional $60 000 for fight of the night and Silva an extra $60 000 for a submission of the night victory. I know some could have found this fight to be somewhat boring due to all the ground action but looking back, this is going to have been one of those monumental moments in the company and we finally have someone who has exposed Silva's weakness. I'd put this fight up there with Brock vs Carwin, Shogun vs Machida, Garcia vs Zombie and Leben vs Akiyama in terms of fights I was legitimately standing for, jumping up and down and generally being a nuisance to others because I was so pumped up.
Junior Dos Santos defeated "Big Country" Roy Nelson by unanimous decision after picking Roy apart standing for a full 15 minutes. It didn't take JDS long to find his rhythm and soon he was landing uppercut after uppercut to Roy's chin. Roy did well for himself, hitting Dos Santos a few times throughout the fight with his big right hand but he never put Junior in any real danger. Nelson showed a lot of heart and took many punches that could have dropped or put out another man but he was overmatched standing and was unable to get him to the ground where Roy would have had the advantage. I know I talked a good game when it came to Nelsons take downs which JDS had very little problems with but Cain and Brock are a much bigger challenge when it comes to getting the fight to the ground than Nelson could ever be. Junior will more than likely face the winner of Brock Lesnar vs Cain Velasquez for the heavyweight championship in his next outing with the UFC, in early 2011.
Jon Fitch defeated Thiago "Pitbull" Alves by unanimous decision in a fight not much different than a usual Fitch fight. Alves was taken down at will for three rounds straight. Thiago was unable to make weight for the fight, weighing in an extra pound and having to forfeit 20% of his purse. Fitch should have won himself a title shot against GSP with his win but instead he will most likely be taking on the winner of Jake Shields vs Martin Kampmann. At the press conference, Dana White said that Alves will no longer be fighting at welterweight if he can't make weight which Alves wasn't pleased with but I do agree with Dana here. If someone can't make weight then they shouldnt be fighting in that weight division. Matt Hughes defeated Ricardo Almeida by submission to a modified anachonda choke at 3:15 of the first round. With the win, Hughes has added yet another Renzo Gracie black belt to his list of victims. Hughes looked pretty good early and when Almeida went in for the take down, Hughes sprawled and locked in a variation of an anaconda choke. Almeida began fighting it but within a few seconds Hughes was able to tighten his grip and Almeida was choked out. Hughes won himself an additional $60 000 for the submission of the night and stated in his post fight interview that he would be returning next year. Clay "The Carpenter" Guida submitted Rafael Dos Anjos at 1:51 of the third round in a good, competitive fight in which Guida was able to break Rafael's jaw during an exchange in the first round. Dos Anjos did well for himself standing and actually seemed to be winning the exchanges. Early takedown attempts from Clay were thwarted by Dos Anjos but in the second and third round, Guida was able to get him there. Sort of a weird ending here as Guida was on top of Dos Anjos and trying to advance his position and Rafael submitted. A few seconds after the fight it was revealed that Clay had broken Rafael's jaw and that was the reason for the stoppage. Regardless of the outcome here, both guys looked good. Stefan Struve defeated Christian Morecraft by knock out at 0:22 of the 2nd round in a come from behind victory. The newcomer, Morecraft was able to get Struve to the mat and hammer him with punches which at several points, seemed to put Struve on dream street. The referee stayed close looking to stop it if things got out of hand. Morecraft has some good punches and a very aggressive style but somehow Struve survived the round and a massive busted up lip. The second round began and within just a few seconds, Struve was able to catch Christian with a big right hand which floored Morecraft, and follow up with a couple more punches, until the referee stepped in and stopped it. Lots of respect has to be given to guys like Struve who take an ass kicking like a champion, until their perfect opportunity comes around. Struve took home an additional $60 000 for knock out of the night.
In Other Fights Tim Boetsch defeated Todd "Bulldog" Brown by unanimous decision Dennis "Superman" Hallman defeated "Killa B" Ben Saunders by unanimous decision Rick Story defeated Dustin Hazelett by unanimous decision Johny Hendricks defeated Charlie "The Spaniard" Brenneman by tko at 0:40 of the 2nd round Phil Davis defeated Rodney Wallace by unanious decision
WEC 50: Cruz vs Benavidez
Bantamweight Championship Fight- Dominick Cruz vs Joe Benavidez- This is a rematch from a year ago in which Cruz took home the victory after a full three rounds of action. Benavidez is hoping that with this being a title fight, he has an additional two rounds this time to win himself the fight. Dominick Cruz won the WEC Bantamweight championship this past March over former champion Brian Bowles and he's hoping to beat Benavidez yet again, this time as champion. Cruz fights with a very unusual style in which he more or less bounces around, getting in and out quickly and picking apart his opponents with punches. With a 5'8 build and long arms, this strategy works well and has, in the past, stopped Benavidez offense as well as many others. Joe Benavidez packs a mean punch and is no one to mess around with when it comes to the ground. At 5'4, Benavidez is a much smaller opponent with a great set of tools on the mat. I can't see this fight going any different than their first fight. Cruz is too smart to keep this one on the mat, as if he does, he may be in some trouble. With a significant reach advantage and only a year between fighting one another, I don't think Benavidez has had enough of an opportunity to learn from the mistakes he made, in their first outing and Cruz should be able to outpoint Joe for five rounds, to pick up his first title defense victory. I guess it's always possible for Joe to submit Cruz but I don't think the fight gets to the ground long enough for either to get much of the advantage. This fight should be real entertaining and extremely well paced. Prediction: Dominick Cruz by unanimous decision Anthony Pettis vs Shane Roller- The winner of this should most likely find themselves as the number one contender for Ben Henderson's Lightweight Championship. Roller is 8-1 in his last 9 fights with his only defeat coming at the hands of the current Lightweight champion, Henderson. For Roller, a win gives him the opportunity to avenge his loss and put himself at the top of the division. Anthony Pettis has gone 3-1 in the WEC with his only loss being to Bart Palaszewski, one of the top Lightweight's in the WEC. Both of these guys have great ground games but I think Roller is the better all around competitor. Pettis was rocked a few times in his last fight, against Alex Karalexis who is nowhere near the level of Roller and that doesn't convince me he's at the level he should be. Shane should be able to push the pace in this one and get Pettis to the ground, where his ground game should be a couple levels above Pettis. Anthony has never been finished before but there is a first for everything and I see Roller submitting Pettis before the time limit expires. Prediction: Shane Roller by submission
In Other Fights: Bart "Bartimus" Palazewski vs Zachary Micklewright: Prediction- Micklewright by unanimous decision Brad "One Punch" Picket vs Scott Jorgenson: Prediction- Jorgenson by unanimous decision Dave Jansen vs Ricardo Lamas: Prediction- Lamas by unanimous decision Cub Swanson vs Chad Mendes: Prediction- Mendes by submission Javier "Showtime" Vazquez vs Mackens Semerzier: Prediction- Vazquez by unanimous decision Fredson Paixao vs Brian Caraway: Prediction- Paixao by submission Anthony Njokuani vs Maciej "Irokez" Jewtuszko: Prediction- Njokuani by unanimous decision Dustin Poirier vs Danny Castillo: Prediction- Castillo by unanimous decision
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