It was a good -- not great -- night of fights last night at the Mandalay Bay Events Center in Las Vegas, Nevada.
As expected, Anderson Silva, Mirko "Cro Cop" Filipovic and Quinton "Rampage" Jackson went home winners. In fact, there were very few surprises at UFC 67.
Here are some quick hits:
Anderson Silva vs. Travis Lutter -- This bout was a bit revealing, with Lutter able to take Silva to the canvas with sluggish and telegraphed takedowns. At one point in the first round, he had the champion mounted, but he was throwing marshmallows that couldn't hurt a school girl. Lutter also wiffed on an armbar, which he more than likely would have locked in if he were in better condition. In the second, Silva wound up trapping "The Serial Killer" in his guard with a triangle and rained down brutal elbows to the top of Lutter's head that forced him to tap.
This was certainly not Silva's night despite the early stoppage. He had trouble early on with a guy who was physically and emotionally drained. It makes me even more pissed that Lutter didn't make weight, because I think if he was in top form last night it would have been a sensational back-and-forth battle.
Mirko Cro Cop vs. Eddie Sanchez -- Cro Cop stalked Sanchez around the Octagon like robotic killer, unleashing kicks and strikes to a clearly outmatched opponent. His patented left high kick connected, but did not drop the La Jolla, California, native. The Croatian eventually mounted Sanchez late in the first round and finished him off with strikes.
Sanchez was actually "intelligently" defending himself at the point of stoppage, but I guess the referee had seen enough and decided to just not delay the inevitable and called a halt to the match. Sanchez lasted a lot longer than I thought he would, but he was certainly way too green for a guy like Cro Cop. Kind of a silly fight -- I wonder if Cro Cop is wondering what the hell he got himself into with the UFC. And, his post fight commentary (silence) was priceless -- I doubt Joe Rogan will make that mistake again. Get this guy in the cage with Tim Sylvia before he retires or becomes more disinterested with the UFC.
Quinton "Rampage" Jackson vs. Marvin Eastman -- I was actually on the edge of me seat for this one, due in large part to Eastman landing some nice elbows throughout the fight. Rampage, however, was never in trouble and endured at least two eye pokes to finish off Eastman with an impressive barrage of uppercuts.
Absent from this fight was a patented Rampage slam or ground fighting -- it pretty much stayed upright the entire time. That'll surely come though, especially as Rampage shakes off some of the ring rust prior to his eventual showdown with UFC Light Heavyweight Champion Chuck Liddell. He admitted that he needs at least one more fight prior to facing "The Iceman." I say give him Keith Jardine and let the winner face Liddell for the belt.
Scott Smith vs. Patrick Cote -- Boring. I nearly fell asleep. I don't know how Cote can feel good about that victory. He is way too careful, and certainly not worthy of main card status.
Frank Edgar vs. Tyson Griffin -- Holy kneebar! Griffin slapped on a gross-looking submission attempt in the waning seconds of the fight the bent Edgar's leg in the wrong direction -- it was gruesome. Edgar was winning the fight and was able to hold on for the win. This was one of the fights I wanted to see -- and mentioned it prior to the show -- because it had all the makings of an exciting clash. And, it was. These guys went back-and-forth, both relying on excellent wrestling backgrounds, to produce a pitched battle. This by far was the fight of the night -- both of these guys have bright futures at 155.
Roger Huerta vs. John Halverson -- Lame ... and not controversial. The knee clearly hit the shoulder area and was not illegal. Halverson should have never been in the Octagon on a pay per view card.
Terry Martin vs. Jorge Rivera -- What happened? Rivera mumbled those words his trainer in the wake of his :14 second first round loss at the fists of Martin. It was quick. And, in the post fight interview, Martin revealed that he and Mike "Quick" Swick have some beef. Interesting ...
One more intersting note: Joe Rogan alluded to the UFC soon introducing a 145-pound division.
That's pretty much a wrap. Let's get ready for UFC 68 on March 3 -- now less than a month away.
For the quick UFC 67 results click here.