Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) just wrapped another successful overseas campaign as UFC 138: "Leben vs. Munoz" took no prisoners and left the audience at the LG Arena in its wake as they packed up and left Birmingham, England, after the Nov. 5, 2011 event.
The card didn't receive a lot of love from the promotional department. If you checked out the UFC Facebook page prior to UFC 138, you may not have even been able to tell that there was another card before UFC on Fox 1 takes place on Nov. 12 in Anaheim, Calif.
You hear it time and time again. Sometimes the best cards are the ones that get the least hype. It's not always true. Sometimes cards don't get a lot of publicity because, frankly, they don't deserve to.
This was not such an occasion. UFC 138 delivered from top to bottom, at least as far as the main card is concerned. If you missed it, have no fear -- we've got you covered!
After the jump, MMAmania.com examines the highlights of UFC 138 -- the good, the bad and the ugly:
The main event featured a middleweight mash-up between two of the top contenders in the 185-pound division, as Chris Leben battled Mark Munoz.
Both have been on recent hot streaks and both have been mentioned in conversations about potentially challenging Anderson Silva for the middleweight title.
There were those who felt "The Crippler's" striking would be too much for Munoz to handle. Others were under the impression "The Filipino Wrecking Machine" would have too much in the way of wrestling for Leben to overcome.
Something had to give.
After two rounds of ridiculously fast-paced and violent action, the fight came to an anticlimactic halt when Leben was unable to answer the third round bell due to a deep gash over his left eye.
Read a full recap of the Chris Leben vs. Mark Munoz fight at UFC 138 here.
Afterwards, Munoz called for a title shot against his good friend and the current champion Anderson Silva.
Only time will tell how all of that plays out.
Leben will certainly need to take a step back and re-evaluate things from a career perspective. The same stubborness inside the cage that has been his greatest ally can also be his greatest enemy.
The day after the fight, a report surfaced that Leben had to cut 21 pounds in 24 hours in order to make weight. If that ends up being true, it would explain why Leben's performance (and his cardio) were not up to par.
Watch the video highlights of the Chris Leben vs. Mark Munoz fight at UFC 138 here.
Right before Leben and Munoz entered into the cage to exchange physical unpleasantries, top bantamweights Brad Pickett and Renan Barao engaged in a fast-paced 135-pound showdown that earned "Fight of the Night" honors.
Pickett entered as the hometown favorite and was looking to live up to the hype in his UFC debut.
Someone forgot to show Barao the script of how things were supposed to play out.
The Brazilian used some very impressive muay thai striking to keep Pickett on his heels and eventually on his back. Barao then wasted no time in showing MMA fans why his jiu-jitsu game is quickly becoming famous.
At 4:09 of the first round, Barao sunk in a deep rear-naked choke that left his opponent with two options: tap or go to sleep.
He chose the former.
With the win, Barao is undefeated in his last 28 fights and has been victorious in 17 straight.
Read a full recap of the Brad Pickett vs. Renan Barao fight at UFC 138 here.
UFC welterweight Thiago Alves badly needed a win. He came into Saturday night's bout against Octagon newcomer Papy Abedi having lost three of his last four fights.
It's not a good idea to back a "Pitbull" into a corner.
If you don't believe me just ask Abedi, who looked determined to put on a show at the expense of a fighter who once challenged Georges St. Pierre for his 170-pound belt.
Abedi showed why he has received so much acclaim and the UFC was so eager to sign him. From the opening horn, he came forward aggressively and looked to bring the fight to Alves.
It just wasn't his night.
Alves proved to be a step faster, a bit stronger and more technically sound in the striking aspect. That's why he was able to land crisp, clean strikes that paved the way for his first submission win under the Zuffa banner.
It will be interesting to see more from Abedi, though, especially how he uses this loss to build and improve his game.
For full analysis of the fight between Thiago Alves and Papy Abedi at UFC 138, click here.
Each fighter who won a bonus award at UFC 138 netted themselves a not-too-shabby $70,000.
Terry Etim won "Submission of the Night" with a beautiful standing guillotine against Eddie Faaloloto.
Che Mills won "Knockout of the Night" honors with a quick and brutal stoppage against former Ultimate Fighter (TUF) cast member Chris Cope.
The distinction for "Fight of the Night" went to Brad Pickett and Renan Barao for their brilliant bantamweight slugfest that resulted in a win for Brazilian.
That's enough of our banter, though. What was your favorite moment from UFC 138?
For complete "Leben vs. Munoz" results and a detailed recap of all the action click here. To check out a recap of the UFC 138 fights that were streamed online via Facebook click here.
And just in case you want to get up to speed on the entire UFC 138 fight card from top to bottom click here.