Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) returned to network television this past Saturday night (May 5, 2012) with UFC on FOX 3: "Diaz vs. Miller," featuring what may have been the star making turn of Nate Diaz when he submitted Jim Miller in the second round of the main event to earn a crack at the 155-pound crown.

It's just too bad so few people saw it happen.

Johny Hendricks failed to make the impression he was hoping for in the co-headlining match-up against Josh Koscheck, but "Big Rig" came away with a split decision victory that may have earned him a welterweight title shot.

And what's there to say about Lavar Johnson and his knockout of Pat Barry? Or Alan Belcher and his first round comeback against Rousimar Palhares?

In cased you missed any or all of it -- or just want to keep the discussion alive -- below are links to all the major storylines borne from Saturday night's event in New Jersey.

In we go.

Continue reading this post »

UFC on Fox 3: "Diaz vs. Miller" took place this past Saturday night (May 5, 2012) from the IZOD Center in East Rutherford, New Jersey, featuring Nate Diaz earning a lightweight title shot -- which he'll actually wait for, apparently -- by submitting Jim Miller in the second round of their main event match-up.

A Diaz could be a champion in the UFC before the year is out, folks. And it's not Nick.

Johny Hendricks continued his assault on the 170-pound division by defeating Josh Koscheck via split decision in the co-headlining bout. The result was disputed by some -- Ricardo Almeida scored the fight for "Kos" -- but the Fight Metric numbers backed it up.

Other action on the card saw Lavar Johnson brutalize Pat Barry in their heavyweight affair and Alan Belcher escape one of Rousimar Palhares patented leg locks to pound him out for a first round stoppage.

A photo gallery is available for your viewing pleasure after the jump. For complete results and blow-by-blow coverage of all the night's action click here and here.

Continue reading this post »

With a thundering comeback after a near-disaster in one rollicking round of action, Lavar Johnson bumped his Octagon record to 2-0 with an exciting stoppage of Pat Barry. Squaring off in the first bout of the UFC on Fox 3: "Diaz vs. Miller" televised card last night (Sat., May 5, 2012) in New Jersey, the heavyweights put on an exciting battle that was tailor-made for a nationwide television audience.

It was the kind of red meat thrown to the fans bereft of the classical pitfalls than can turn mainstream audiences off. And it's no accident these two kicked off the card. Johnson and Barry are headhunting sluggers, both with considerable grappling deficiencies and big-time power.

There's a special place for this kind of fighter, and with the UFC's attempt to secure an expanded foothold in the eyes of the sporting public, heavyweight barnburners go a long way toward the effort.

In recent years, Barry has occupied that niche status as a kind of operational hand grenade designed to detonate and create excitement. Win or lose, "HD" has always supplied an exciting fight, despite his obvious shortcomings on the mat in a game where grappling and takedown defense are huge factors in keeping opponents from dictating the fight, particularly in the heavyweight division.

However, with Barry's loss -- his third in four fights over the last 11 months -- Johnson may have displaced him as the resident UFC heavyweight slugger destined for exciting matches, if not implied contender status.

Continue reading this post »

In the co-main event of last night's (Sat., May 5, 2012) UFC on FOX 3: "Diaz vs. Miller" event from New Jersey, Johny Hendricks busted his hump to earn a split decision victory over Josh Koscheck. He may have even earned a shot at the welterweight title, too.

He did this despite dealing with bronchitis and mono in the weeks leading up to the bout, or so he said. Quite impressive, no?

The result wasn't without dispute, however. One judge actually scored two rounds for Koscheck, believing he won the fight under the current criteria in place That one judge? None other than retired UFC fighter Ricardo Almeida.

Fight Metric released their report on the bout and it shows the two judges who sided with Hendricks made the right decision, at least by their methods.

Hendricks outlanded Koscheck in every area save for strikes to the body, where "Kos" had a rather significant edge, 22-3. In looking at the round-by-round breakdown, Hendricks was dominant in round two but rounds one and three were close.

Some would say it could have gone either way. Others would say don't let it go to the judges.

I would say the right guy tends to get the call more often than not and that certainly appears to have been the case in this one. Check out some stats from Fight Metric after the jump and remember to click over to their site to get a detailed look at the fight.

Continue reading this post »

It was like watching a boat marooned in an ocean storm, riding waves impossibly high only to survive each one en route to making it to safe harbor. And after fighting off a dizzying series of leg locks and assorted submission attempts by Rousimar Palhares, Alan Belcher found himself parked safely on top, with room to punch at the UFC on Fox 3: "Diaz vs. Miller" event last night (Sat., May 5, 2012) in New Jersey.

And then, he brought the pain.

Hammering down a series of brutal shots that turned Palhares from would-be victor into a middleweight chunk of lifeless flesh, Belcher showed considerable moxie and fire in scoring an epic first-round stoppage of one of the division's most dangerous fighters. The fact that he showed little fear in braving Palhares' lethal mat attack further endears him to fans. The pre-fight conventional wisdom suggested that his best and virtually only chance was to keep it standing and avoid a ground engagement at all costs.

That's the kind of attitude fans respond to, especially in a division ruled by Anderson Silva, the most dominant fighter in the game, whose mere presence can intimidate and freeze even the best challengers (Chael Sonnen and Dan Henderson notwithstanding, both of whom were vanquished despite this).

Continue reading this post »

I had a tough training camp, the last two weeks I was battling some mean stuff.... I had bronchitis and then mono [laughs]. Two great ones to have three weeks right before a fight, right? No [I did not consider pulling out of the fight]. Man, I was sitting there, coughing up junk and then I talked to Mark and was like, 'If you're coughing up stuff that means you're getting better. I started coughing up and then all of a sudden my wife comes homes and she's like, 'Ah!' So, I had to go back to the doctor. It was just a hectic week. Like I said, I prayed to God, he helped me so much and I just thank God for him, you know?

-- It's not exactly Tito Ortiz "broken skull" level post-fight excuse but Johny Hendricks tells FUEL TV he was battling some nasty sickness in the weeks leading up to his UFC on Fox 3: "Diaz vs. Miller" co-main event fight against Josh Koscheck last night (Sat., May 5, 2012) in East Rutherford, New Jersey. On top of dealing with bronchitis, Hendricks says he contracted mono but never once considered leaving the UFC stranded by pulling out of the fight. It's a good thing he toughed it out, too, considering he managed to pull out a split decision victory and may have earned himself a shot at the welterweight title whenever Carlos Condit and Georges St. Pierre settle up inside the Octagon. He says he's inclined to rest up and get healthy, which makes sense considering the indefinite medical suspension he was handed down by the New Jersey Athletic Control Board. Anyone think he should be given the next shot at the 170-pound strap? Or should he be fighting the winner of the upcoming Jake Ellenberger vs. Martin Kampmann fight at The Ultimate Fighter (TUF) 15 Finale? Opinions, please.

Continue reading this post »

UFC on Fox 3: "Diaz vs. Miller" took place last night (Sat., May 5, 2012) from the IZOD Center in East Rutherford, New Jersey, and featured a main event of Nate Diaz earning a lightweight title shot with a slick submission victory over Jim Miller.

The bad news? Not nearly enough people saw it happen.

Indeed, the overnight ratings are in and according to TV By The Numbers, the show garnered 2.25 million viewers for the FOX network, good for a 1.0 rating. If that sounds terrible, that's because it is, all things considered. The silver lining here is the numbers were good enough to win the timeslot in the important demographics.

But there's no denying the decline in viewership for each UFC event on FOX is alarming.

Here's how the first three events looked when the overnight ratings came in:

Continue reading this post »

Last November, when the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) made its network television debut with an abridged, one-hour show that featured a heavyweight title bout between then-champion Cain Velasquez and Junior dos Santos, it was seen as a watershed moment, a game changer for the fight promotion and the sport as a whole.

When the fight ended in 64 seconds, the result of a dos Santos knockout, even the most hardcore of mixed martial arts (MMA) fans shrugged their shoulders, wondering if that was it. You can imagine what the unwashed, collective public thought after barely a minute of action.

When the promotion returned to Fox in January, it was a three-fight card, one more indicative of what fans could expect in the future. One light heavyweight bout -- a fight between Rashad Evans and Phil Davis in the main event -- and two middleweight clashes were scheduled and each went to a decision. The 185-pound tilts were 15 minutes a piece while the headliner, subject to the newly instated five round main event rule, took nearly half an hour to get sorted out.

Again, the general public watched and were left wondering if MMA had anything to offer in between sudden, quick knockouts and drawn out, plodding affairs.

Thankfully, UFC on Fox 3: "Diaz vs. Miller" was exactly the card everyone -- fans, Fox and UFC President Dana White -- has wanted since announcing the landmark Fox deal last year. It was, from top to bottom, an exciting affair punctuated by slugfests, excellent grappling, tests of attrition and a young fighter coming into his own.

Let's take a closer look at it:

Continue reading this post »