Middleweights Dan Miller and Nate Marquardt went the distance last night, March 19, 2011, at UFC 128 "Shogun vs. Jones."

On paper, Nate looked to be the "greater" of the two fighters, but Miller, scrappy as ever, wouldn't go away quietly in front of his home state of New Jersey.

"The Great" won the fight decisively, utilizing a mixture of explosive takedowns and superior striking.

However, there's no need for Miller to hang his head and he surely deserves a ton of credit for taking the fight on such short notice. 

With Marquardt's win, it's hard to say if he'll be fighting for a title anytime soon, but the former King of Pancrase certainly got back on the right track to take him there.

Here's how he got it done:

The two fighters decided to forgo the feeling out phase of the fight, instead electing to jump right into action. Miller worked to bring Marquardt to the ground and was eventually successful on his second attempt for a single leg.

From there, Nate scrambled and defended the AMA Fight Club product's trademark submission, the guillotine choke. No small feat, considering Miller's career accomplishments include a Brazilian jiu-jitsu black belt. After getting handled in the early going, Marquardt stopped beating around the bush and picked his opponent up for a big slam to finish the round.

The second frame saw Marquardt taking his cornermen's advice (don't tell Dana White) and actually putting together a few combinations. The Aurora, Colorado, native would miss a flying knee and Miller quickly capitalized on the error, momentarily taking him down.

It didn't take long for both men to get back to their feet, though, and Marquardt would push to get on top again right after. Miller went back to his bread and butter, the guillotine, but Nate, savvy veteran that he is, once again avoided any real danger.

Prior to the final round, Mike Constantino of the AMA Fight Club told Miller how he badly needed to win it. Alas, it was not meant to be, as he would attempt a takedown midway through and Marquardt would sprawl and rain down several punches to definitively take the fight.

All three judges scored the bout 30-27 in favor of Nate Marquardt.

With the win, Marquardt upped his UFC record to 10-4 and 31-10-2 overall in mixed martial arts. A satisfying victory, no doubt, but what does it do for him as far as divisional relevance at this time? Stay tuned.

It's back to the drawing board for Miller, who had his two-fight win streak snapped. It helps that he's currently in the good graces of the powers that be, considering he took this fight on just over a week's notice. Any thoughts on who his next opponent may be?