Cage Fighting Championship 17
June 3, 2011
Southport Sharks Function Centre,
Gold Coast, Queensland, Australia

CFC Lightweight Title

Lightweight (155 lbs)

Bernardo Magalhaes (11 – 1 – 0) defeated Robert Lisita (5 – 3 – 0) by unanimous decision.  Magalhaes, who is on a 5 fight win streak, bounds 42 spots up the ranks from [#208] to [#166].  Previously ranked [#448WW] Lisita, who was on a 4 fight win streak prior to this loss, drops off the ranks.

Lightweight (155 lbs)

Adrian Pang (18 – 7 – 3) fought to a draw against Muhsin Corbbrey (9 – 6 – 1).  Pang, who was on a 3 fight win streak prior to this draw, drops 13 spots down the ranks from [#170] to [#183].  Corbbrey, who is 1-3-1 in his last 5, enters the lightweight “Top 500” at [#400].
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UFC – The Ultimate Fighter 13 Finale
June 4, 2011
Palms Casino Resort,
Las Vegas, Nevada, United States

Ultimate Fighter Season 13 Final

Welterweight (170 lbs)

Tony Ferguson (11 – 2 – 0) defeated Ramsey Nijem (4 – 2 – 0) by KO due punches at 3:54 of round 1.  Ferguson, who is on a 4 fight win streak (all by (T)KO), jumps 17 spots up the ranks from [#114] to [#97].  Ferguson should face someone next who can test his ground acumen, and [#73] Carlos Eduardo Rocha would do that in spades.  Nijem, who was on a 3 fight win streak prior to this loss, moves from [#273LW] into the welterweight “Top 500” at [#397].  A bout with [#339] Ryan McGillivray or [#243] Justin Edwards would gauge who deserves another shot and who should probably be cut.

Lightweight (155 lbs)

Clay Guida (29 – 11 – 0) defeated  former WEC lightweight champion Anthony Pettis (13 – 2 – 0) by unanimous decision.  Guida, who is on a strong 4 fight win streak, moves 1 spot up the ranks from [#7] to [#6].  Guida stands on the precipice of a title shot, and should face the winner of [#7] Jim Miller vs. [#21] Ben Henderson to see who will earn the privilege.  Pettis, who was on a 4 fight win streak prior to this loss, moves 4 spots down from [#16] to [#20].  Should [#23] Donald Cerrone defeat [#571] Vagner Rocha, Pettis and Cerrone should face each other in what would be a guaranteed action bout.

Middleweight (185 lbs)

“Ultimate Fighter season 3” finalist Ed Herman (22 – 9 – 0) defeated “Ultimate Fighter season 7” alum Tim Credeur (12 – 4 – 0) by TKO due to punches at 0:48 of round 1.  Herman, who had not fought in nearly 2 years, enters the middleweight “Top 350” at [#55].  A bout between Herman and [#33] Tim Boetsch would send the winner upward towards the top tier of the middleweight division.  Another route that could be taken would pit Herman against [#52] Kendall Grove in a rematch from the “Ultimate Fighter 3” Finale back in June of 2006.  Both fighters are in a different spot than they were at that time, and it would be interesting to see if the bout played out the same way.  Credeur, who had not fought in nearly 2 years as well (0-2 in his last 2), enters the middleweight “Top 350” at [#186].  He could face the loser of the upcoming match between [#40] Aaron Simpson and [#190] Brad Tavares.

Light Heavyweight (205 lbs)

“Ultimate Fighter season 8” alumnus Kyle Kingsbury (11 – 2 – 0) defeated Fabio Maldonado (18 – 4 – 0) by unanimous decision.  Kingsbury, who is on a 4 fight win streak, moves 8 spots up the ranks from [#44] to [#36].  He should look to face the winner of [#48] Krzysztof Soszynski vs. [#125MW] Mike Massenzio, which will take place this saturday at UFC 131.  If Soszynski wins, it would create an “Ultimate Fighter season 8” rematch.  Kingsbury is greatly improved from when he was on the show, and could prove the foil to Soszynski this time around.  Maldonado, who was on an 11 fight win streak prior to this loss, moves 8 spots down from [#51] to [#59].  He should face [#29] Brandon Vera, who was brought back into the UFC after his loss to [#13] Thiago Silva was ruled a “No Contest.”  One more loss for Vera would surely send him packing this time.

Welterweight (170 lbs)

Chris Cope (5 – 1 – 0) defeated Chuck O’Neil (8 – 4 – 0) by unanimous decision.  Cope, who has won 2 in a row, rockets 179 spots up the ranks from [#440] to [#261].  Cope could face fellow victor and “Ultimate Fighter 13” participant [#240] Clay Harvison next.   Previously ranked [#298] O’Neil, who was on a 3 fight win streak prior to this loss, drops off the rankings.  O’Neil could face either [#339] Ryan McGillivray or [#243] Justin Edwards, if any of these 3 stick around.

Preliminary Bouts

Lightweight (155 lbs)

Jeremy Stephens  (20 – 6 – 0) defeated Daniel Downes (8 – 2 – 0) by unanimous decision.  Stephens, who is 4-1 in his last 5, moves 6 spots up the ranks from [#25] to [#19].  He should face [#16] Yves Edwards, should he get past [#44] Sam Stout this Saturday at UFC 131.  Stephens vs. [#17] Sean Sherk would also be a worthwhile match to make.   Downes, who is 2-2 in his last 4, moves 4 spots up from [#150] to [#146].  He should face the loser of [#61] Joe Lauzon vs. [#132] Curt Warburton next.

Featherweight (145 lbs)

George Roop  (12 – 7 – 1) defeated Josh Grispi (14 – 3 – 0) by KO due to a punch to the body at 3:14 of round 3.  Roop, who is 2-2-1 in his last 5, bounds 32 spots up the ranks from [#57] to [#25].  It would be interesting to see a battle of 2 of the tallest bantamweights in the UFC between Roop and [#41] Pablo Garza next.  Grispi, whose considerable hype has been derailed by back to back losses, drops 18 spots from [#26] to [#44].  His next fight is an absolute must win if he is to salvage any of the momentum he had built up.  He should look to face someone like [#38] Raphael Assuncao in his next bout.

Welterweight (170 lbs)

Shamar Bailey  (12 – 3 – 0) defeated Ryan McGillivray (11 – 5 – 1) by unanimous decision.  Bailey, who broke a 2 fight losing streak with this bout, flies 173 spots up the ranks from [#377] to [#204].  McGilivray, who was 3-0-1 in his last 4 prior to this loss (all by submission), plummets 123 spots from [#216] to [#339].

Welterweight (170 lbs)

Clay Harvison  (7 – 1 – 0) defeated Justin Edwards (6 – 1 – 0) by split decision.  Harvison, who is on a 3 fight win streak, jets 110 spots up the ranks from [#350] to [#240].  Edwards, who has won 4 of his 6 victories via guillotine choke, plunges 60 spots from [#183] to [#243].

Bantamweight (135 lbs)

Scott Jorgensen (12 – 4 – 0) defeated Ken Stone (9 – 3 – 0) by KO due to punches at 4:01 of round 1.  Jorgensen, who is 6-1 in his last 7, moves 1 spot up the ranks from [#11] to [#10].  Stone, who is 1-3 in his last 4, moves up 2 spots from [#140] to [#138].

Bantamweight (135 lbs)

Reuben Duran (8 – 3 – 1) defeated Francisco Rivera (5 – 2 – 0) by submission due to rear naked choke at 1:57 of round 3.  Duran, who is 5-1 in his last 6, moves 11 spot up the ranks from [#53] to [#42].  Rivera, who is on a 2 fight losing streak, remains unranked.

Dream – Fight for Japan
May 29, 2011
Saitama Super Arena,
Saitama, Japan

Bantamweight (135 lbs)

Masakazu Imanari (23 – 8 – 2) defeated Kenji Osawa (17 – 10 – 2) by submission due to an achilles lock at 0:58 of round 2.  Imanari, who is on a 2 fight win streak (7-1 in his last 8), moves 10 spots up the ranks from [#15] to [#5].  Osawa, who is 4-2 in his last 6, jumps 13 spots up the ranks from [#38] to [#25].

Bantamweight (135 lbs)

Hideo Tokoro (29 – 23 – 1) defeated Atsushi Yamamoto (15 – 7 – 2) by split decision. Tokoro, who is on a 3 fight win streak, moves from [#55FW] into the bantamweight “Top 150” at [#7].  Yamamoto, who was on a 3 fight win streak prior to this loss (and had not fought in 1 1/2 years prior to this night), enters the bantamweight “Top 150” at [#15].

Lightweight (155 lbs)

Shinya Aoki (28 – 5 – 0) defeated Rich Clementi (40 – 20 – 1) by submission due to face lock at 2:17 of round 2. Aoki, who is on a 5 fight win streak (4 by submission), holds his ranking at [#4].  Clementi, who is on a 2 fight losing streak (1-3 in his last 4), drops 1 spot from [#196] to [#197].

Lightweight (155 lbs)

Katsunori Kikuno (15 – 3 – 2) defeated Daisuke Nakamura (23 – 13 – 0) by unanimous decision. Kikuno, who has won back to back decisions (3-1 in his last 4), moves 6 spots up the ranks from [#29] to [#23].  Nakamura, who was on a 3 fight winning streak prior to this loss, drops 16 spots from [#87] to [#103].
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Battlefield Fight League 8
May 28, 2011
Frank Crane Arena,
Nanaimo, British Columbia, Canada

Middleweight (185 lbs)

“Ultimate Fighter season 7” alum Jesse Taylor (19 – 6 – 0) defeated UFC and Pride vet Denis Kang (34 – 13 – 2) by submission due to rear naked choke at 1:57 of round 1.  Taylor, who is on a 5 fight win streak, moves from [#30LHW] into the middleweight “Top 350” at [#15].  Kang, who is 2-2-1 in his last 5, drops 8 spots from [#21] to [#29].

Featherweight (145 lbs)

Graham Spencer (7 – 1 – 0) defeated Bruno Capdeville (3 – 2 – 0) by unanimous decision.  Spencer, who on a 2 fight win streak, enters the featherweight “Top 250” at [#206].  Capdeville, who was on a 3 fight win streak prior to this loss, remains unranked.
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In the last pre-taped episode, the two semi-final fights took place.   Team Dos Santos’ Ramsey Nijem defeated Team Lesnar’s Chris Cope with a TKO in the second round.  In a matchup between two Team Lesnar’s teammates, Anthony Ferguson stopped Chuck O’Neil with a TKO in the third round.

The live finale will take place on Saturday, with Team Lesnar’s Anthony Ferguson taking on Team Dos Santos’ Ramsey Nijem.

The final win tally is 6 Team Dos Santos, 7 Team Lesnar in head-to-head matchups.

Interestingly, the higher ranked fighter won every matchup this season except two: Chris Cope’s upset win over Shamar Bailey, and the first fight between Zachary Davis and Chuck O’Neil.

The following matchups have been announced for the finale:

[#114 WW] Anthony Fergusson (pre-season ranking: #113 WW) vs [#273 LW] Ramsey Nijem (pre-season ranking: #247 LW)

[#440 WW] Chris Cope (pre-season ranking: #441 WW) vs [#298 WW] Chuck O’Neil (pre-season ranking: #289 WW)

[#183 WW] Justin Edwards (pre-season ranking: #182 WW) vs [#350 WW] Clay Harvison (pre-season ranking: #387 WW)

[#377 WW] Shamar Bailey  (pre-season ranking: #364 WW) vs [#216 WW] Ryan McGillivray (pre-season ranking: #200 WW)

Keep reading for the final recap of this season:

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Titan Fighting Championship 18
May 27, 2011
Memorial Hall,
Kansas City, Kansas, United States

Catchweight (140 lbs)

Brian Davidson (7 – 3 – 0) defeated UFC, Pride and WEC vet Jens Pulver (24 – 15 – 1) by submission due to rear-naked choke at 4:04 of round 1.  Davidson, who is on a 2 fight win streak (preceded by a 2 fight losing streak), enters the featherweight “Top 250” at [#215].  Pulver, who was on a 2 fight win streak prior to this loss (preceded by a 6 fight losing streak), remains unranked.

Catchweight (200 lbs)

John Ott (9 – 8 – 0) defeated UFC vet Jake Rosholt (11 – 4 – 0) by disqualification due to an illegal knee strike at 4:23 of round 3.  Ott, who is 3-2 in his last 5, moves from [#321MW] into the light heavyweight “Top 250” at [#71].  Rosholt, who was on a 4 fight win streak prior to this loss, moves from [#64MW] into the light heavyweight “Top 250” at [#79].
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UFC 130 – Rampage vs. Hamill
May 28, 2011
MGM Grand Garden Arena,
Las Vegas, Nevada, United States

Light Heavyweight

Quinton “Rampage” Jackson (32 – 8 – 0) defeated Matt Hamill (10 – 3 – 0) by unanimous decision.  Jackson easily stuffed Hamill’s repeated takedown attempts, answering with powerful punches to the head and body.  Other than leg kicks, Hamill was not able to mount any real offense against the former light heavyweight champion.  Jackson, who is 4-1 in his last 5, holds his ranking at [#4].  Perhaps a rematch with [#5] Lyoto Machida would help show where both men belong among the top of the division. Hamill, who was on a 5 fight win streak prior to this bout, moves 1 spots down the ranks from [#15] to [#16].  He should look to rebound against [#9] Ryan Bader should he defeat [#26] Tito Ortiz, who are scheduled to fight at UFC 132 in July.

Heavyweight

Frank Mir (15 – 5 – 0) defeated Roy Nelson (15 – 6 – 0) by unanimous decision.  Mir took down Nelson repeatedly, once with a textbook judo hip toss in the 1st round.  Nelson’s gas tank failed him by the 2nd round, and Mir continued to capitalize with both strikes on the feet and superior ground control.  Mir, who is 3-2 in his last 5, holds his rank at [#7].  Since the top of the heavyweight division is locked up at this point, Mir should look to face someone like [#22] Travis Browne to stay busy.  Nelson, who is on a 2 fight slide (2-4 in his last 6), moves 1 spot down the ranks from [#25] to [#26].  Nelson could face [#16] Mike Russow next to try and get back on the winning track.

Heavyweight

Travis Browne (11 – 0 – 1) defeated Stefan Struve (21 – 5 – 0) by KO due to a punch at 4:11 of round 1.  Struve nearly locked on a D’arce choke early in the round, but was stopped by a crushing superman punch by Browne.  Struve’s body seemed to fold upon itself as he fell to the canvas, followed by two unanswered blows from Browne.  Browne, who has won 9 of his 11 victories by stoppage, jumps 13 spots up the ranks from [#35] to [#22].  Browne should take a step up and face [#7] Frank Mir in his next bout.  Struve, who is 2-2 in his last 4, falls 16 spots down the ranks from [#34] to [#50].  Struve will need a win in his next bout, and should look to face someone like [#54] Rob Broughton.

Welterweight

Rick Story (13 – 3 – 0) defeated Thiago Alves (18 – 8 – 0) by unanimous decision.  Story used takedowns and clinch work to vex Alves throughout the fight.  Alves fired back with knees and punches that at times backed Story up, but never fully stopped his forward motion.  Story, who is on a 6 fight win streak , jumps 12 spots up the ranks from [#23] to [#11].  Story is making serious waves in the welterweight division, and should look to face a top contender like [#6] Josh Koscheck (who should be returning to competition in mid 2011) or [#4] John Fitch (once he returns from his injury).  Alves, who is now 1-3 in his last 4, falls 5 spots down the ranks from [#12] to [#17].  A fight between Alves and [#16] Jake Ellenberger would prove telling for where both men belong in the division.

Middleweight

Brian Stann (11 – 3 – 0) defeated Jorge Santiago (23 – 9 – 0) by KO due to punches at 4:29 of round 2.  Stann rocked Santiago in the 1st with a left hook that sent him crashing to the mat.  Santiago was able to fight through the ground and pound that followed from Stann.  Santiago’s suspect chin came into play again in the 2nd round, when he ate a right to the side of his head.  Again Santiago hit the mat, and Stann finished it this time with his ground and pound.  Stann, who is  5-1 in his last 6, jumps 12 spots up the ranks from [#18] to [#6].  If [*]Wanderlei Silva makes it past [#23] Chris Leben, that would be a great match to make (as Stann has requested the match personally).   Santiago, who is 3-2 in his last 5 (6 of his 9 losses coming from (T)KO), moves 6 spots down the ranks from [#5] to [#11].  A bout with [#27] Dan Miller would help show if Santiago is in over his head in the deep waters of the UFC.

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