UFC 149 results: James Head wins split decision over Brian Ebersole

Despite the fact that he just competed less than one month ago at UFC on FX 4, Brian Ebersole returned to the cage tonight (Sat., July 21, 2012) in a welterweight war against James Head on the main card of the UFC 149: "Faber vs. Barao" pay-per-view taking place at the Scotiabank Saddledome in Calgary, Alberta, Canada.

Ebersole won that fight last month, defeating T.J. Waldburger via decision to give him his fourth win inside the Octagon in as many fights. Head was tasked with ending "Bad Boy's" 11 fight win streak while trying to start up one of his own in his new weight class.

And that's exactly what he did.

After three grueling rounds (for the fans), Head was declared the winner by way of split decision (29-28, 28-29, 29-28) thanks to the fact that he was better standing and trading punches and denied about 600 takedown attempts.

The boo birds up north didn't seem to care either way.

Ebersole looked for a takedown early but Head had his sprawl game on point. He was also punishing the veteran on his feet until Ebersole landed a hard left hand.

Still, Head was aggressive. Ebersole got cute late, breaking out the cartwheel kick, which actually landed. It didn't do a ton of damage but it looked slick.

Head stayed pressuring Ebersole in the second, as "Bad Boy" started to look a bit tired. They exchanged plenty but the pace was slow and it didn't seem either guy was primed for a big push. Head landed a hard knee late but Ebersole quickly earned a takedown right behind it.

Ebersole went back to his takedowns to start the final frame but Head was ready for them. His sprawl worked to avoid Ebersole's takedown attempts but they weren't exactly well placed shots.

The crowd in Calgary didn't like this one. Not one bit.

Who could blame them? This one got ugly in a hurry, as Ebersole didn't have much of a gas tank and that led to his takedown attempts coming so slow, Head had no problem defending them. But the punches and kicks the two were exchanging looked like they were coming in slow motion.

Just bad.

Ultimately, Head was declared the winner.

Remember, too, to check out MMAmania.com's complete coverage of the UFC 149: "Faber vs. Barao" event by clicking here.