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By Wade Keller, MMATorch supervising editor UFC 85: BEDLAM
JUNE 7, 2008
LONDON, ENGLAND
LIVE ON PPV
PRE-CARD HYPE
The pre-card show included Dana White saying that they always deliver, then White and Joe Rogan talked about how this fight was put together on short notice. Matt Hughes talked about how he's more cautious now, whereas when he was 24 he just went out and beat people up. White said this is a big fight for Hughes as he has to come out and show his old instincts and beat Alves. Rogan said, "The dude loves to fight. He loves to dominate people. He loves the whole experience of competing and putting on a show and winning." White called it a career-defining fight for Hughes. He said if Alves wins, he's automatically in the title picture. Rogan said Alves is an elite top contender. Hughes said he's a younger fighter on the rise trying to prove himself. White said in his last fight he knocked out Karo Parisian, who had never been knocked out before. Hughes said Alves isn't a fast starter, so he hopes to wear him out even before he gets started. Hughes said he doesn't care about how many wins in a row he has (how convenient), he just likes to go out and fight. Alves predicted he's knock out Hughes. Hughes said he's the nine time world champion, whereas Alves is the new guy trying to make a name for himself.
White said he was shocked at Fabricio Werdum beating Gabriel Gonzaga. Vera said he has a need to win the heavyweight title, not just a want. Werdum said he wants to win quickly. White said they're both really good on the ground. Vera said he's within arm's length of the heavyweight title again. White said he has to win the fight. Werdum said he has no fear, only victory on his mind.
PAY-PER-VIEW
Fighter soundbites aired: Vera said he wants to test Verdum's chin since nobody has. Hughes said they both have a lot to win in this fight. He said he wants to win and be back in line for another title shot.
Mike Goldberg introduced the event by saying in 2002, Hughes was at the pinacle of his career and he proved it with a win over Carlos Newton in a thrilling fight. He said this is Hughes's return to the UK for the first time in nearly six years. Goldberg announced that Alvez didn't make weight. Joe Rogan said they don't know why he didn't make weight, but he said it's a tribute to Hughes that he was willing to take the fight at a catch weight. He also complimented Hughes for taking the fight on short notice.
1 -- BRANDON VERA (30, 6-3, 228, Norfolk, Va.; 8-1) vs. FABRICIO WERDUM (30, 6-4, 247, Brazil; 10-3-1) -- HEAVYWEIGHTS
PRE-FIGHT: They touted Werdum's win over Gabriel Gonzaga... Vera said Werdum messes up a lot and he'll be there to capitalize on it... Goldberg said Vera is still upset over his loss to Tim Silvia and wants to get back on everybody's top list. Rogan said he's a "very, very well-rounded fighter"... This fight was the only fight other than the main event to get the pre-show hype, so it's surprising to see it as the opener...
ROUND ONE: Vera threw a couple leg kicks early to Werdum's inner thigh. Rogan complimented Werdum's improvement in stand-up. Werdum took Vera down with a slick almost subtle move at 1:30. Vera went into his guard right away and seemed relaxed. He was back on his feet a minute later. Werdum went for a single-leg takedown, but it didn't get Vera down. Vera caught Werdum with a legt hook, then moved in and scored with a left elbow. Werdum seemed potentially shaken up, but not close to out. They hugged against the fense, so the ref brought them back to the center. Werdum swept Vera down again, but Vera went into closed guard. Werdum moved to half guard in a nice pass quickly. He then got into full guard with 30 seconds left in the round. Vera covered well, but the ref stepped in and stopped it. Bad bad stop. With just 20 seconds left in the round, Vera looked like he could have held on without getting hurt. He couldn't escpae, but he didn't need to - he just needed to survive. Rogan said he thought you could make a case for the ref's call, but he didn't agree with it. Vera disagreed. He protested immediately fromn his back and then popped up and appeared completely 100 percent unfazed. The crowd booed.
WINNER: Werdum at 4:40.
STAR RATING (**): Solid first round with a disappointing finish.
POST-FIGHT: Rogan asked Werdum if it was a good stoppage. Werdum said, via an interpreter, that he thought Vera was saying "stop stop stop." Rogan asked for claification, but it's not cleear if we got it based on what was lost in translation. Rogan told the fans not to boo Werdum because he didn't stop the fight. Rogan then interviewed Vera who got a big cheer from the crowd. He said the ref asked if he was okay and he said he told him over and over he was fine. He also said that Werdum did his job by mounting him. "There's 15 seconds left in the round," Vera said. "Let me take the ass kissing and I'll move to round two." He said he's not a quitter. Vera thanked Werdum for the fight. They hugged afterward.
RAMIFICATIONS: Despite the questionable call at the end, Vera did let himself get in a vulernable position, so while it's not a decisive loss, it's not a great showing by him, either. Werdum took him down a few times. Vera didn't get to show much of anything memorable or compelling in terms of earning a title shot, but the loss doesn't set him back irreparably.
PRE-FIGHT: Rogan on Marquardt losing to Anderson Silva: "Anderson Silva's an alien." Rogan said Nate is great, but he had to experience Silva to realize what that next level is. He said Nate is really at a top level right now, though...
ROUND ONE: Not much until Leites caught Nate with a hard right as a counter punch. Nate went down and looked to be in trouble. Leites pounced. "Not good," said Rogan regarding Nate's situation. Nate survived in his guard for a minute on his back without taking much punishment. Nate managed to escape and stand and looked okay. Nate got aggressive with some body punches and moved in for a takedown. Leites didn't go down. At 4:30 Nate rocked Leites with a flurry of two left hooks and a left uppercut. Leites looked to be rocked, but he survived the round. Leites earned the round, but it was closer by the end than it looked to be mid-way in.
ROUND TWO: Nate was aggressive early with some bodyshots, but Leites came right back by moving in aggressively and causing Nate to practically trip moving backwards to keep his distance. They locked up and tried to take each other down, but Rogan noted they were slippery. Nate scored with a combo of punchyes, then shoved Leites to the mat. Nate Leites illegally while Leites still had a knee on the mat. The ref moved in quickly and separated them. The ref Herb Dean told him he "has time." He should have told him specifically he has five minutes. It's crazy that refs don't communicate very specifically to fighters. The ref called for the doctor to come into the ring to check on Leites. The doc asked if he was okay and he said yes. The ref insisted that he take time to recover, then took a point away from Nate. Leites didn't take his full time and was eager to get back fighting. Nate went aggressively after Leites with a barrrage of punches and then a tackle. He got him down and punched him in the back of his head. The ref issued a warning. Nate continues to swarm and landed another punch. He was relentless, bloodying Leites's nose. Dean warned Leites for grabbing the inside of Nate's glove when he was trying to defend himself on his back. Rogan complimented Dean for being the best ref in the business now that Big John (McCarthy) has retired. I'm not crazy about Dean's refereeing at times over the years. nate remained aggressive, clearly going for the win or at least a 9-9 and maybe a 9-8 round. With 30 seconds left, Dean stood them up. Rogan said he thinks Leites's nose is broken. Nate moved in for another takedown, but he moved right past him and got mounted with ten seconds left. Leites didn't have the time to do much with it and he just held on, clearly affected by his potentially broken nose. "This is a hell of a fight," said Rogan. Someone spoke of being concerned with his ability to breath. It's a 9-9 round, and I wouldn't even argue with 9-8 until that final 15 seconds where Nate overshot and was vulernable briefly at the end. He was as aggressive as you'll see a fighter - to a fault with the illegal knee - and effective.
ROUND THREE: At 0:30 Leites went for a flying knee, but Nate avoided it and took Leites down. Leites then almost applied a triangle submission from his back. Nate escaped nicely, but then punched Leites on the back of his head, another illegal move, and another loss of a point. Rogan said after watching the replay that the elbow was to the side of his head, not the back, which is what Nate was arguing also. Nate continued to look good, but what does it mean when part of that advantage comes from dishing out a knee to a fighter who is trained not to expect to get kneed in that position, thus his guard was down? With 2:00 left, Nate was on top on the mat against the fence. Nate lifted Leites and dropped him down on his face with five seconds left in a virtual piledriver move. The two fighters immediately hugged and traded notes. Goldberg called it one of the great fights in the Octagon. Rogan called it "outstanding, evenly-matched fight." Tough fight to call with the first round to Leites 10-9, second round a 9-9 tie, and third round a 9-9 tie (Nate won the last two rounds, but the two lost points cost him). I didn't see a 10-8 round in there.
POST-FIGHT: Rogan interviewed Leites, who said he had no problem with the illegal knee. He said he wasn't trying to hurt him. Very likable guy in the post-fight interview. Rogan turned to ask Nate about the point taken off in the third round for the supposed elbow to the back of the head. He asked if it was a correct call. Nate said it was a bad call because it was to the side of the head. Nate said the decision is a setback, but he still believes he can beat Anderson Silva in a rematch.
RAMIFICATIONS: Given that the two points taken away totally changed this fight, and given how good the fight was, they have to rematch these two at the next opportunity.
-Goldberg plugged upcoming UFC dates.
-They showed Chuck Liddell in the crowd.
A -- LUIZ CANE (6-2, 204, Brazil; 8-1) vs. JASON LAMBERT (5-10, Carlsbad, Calif.; 23-7) -- LIGHT-HEAVYWEIGHTS
PRE-FIGHT: None. They went right to ring introductions without setting the stage or featuring any fighter comments.
ROUND ONE: At 1:30 Cane caught Lambert with a punch as Lambert charged at him wildly and dropped him. Lambert scrambled and got back to his feet. Cane landed another series of lefts and dropped Lambert. Lambert got up again, but was clearly hurt. He just kept swinging, mbut left himself defenseless. He ended up grabbing the ref's legs not even knowing who was whom and the ref stopped it.
WINNER: Cane at 2:07 of round one via TKO.
STAR RATING (*+): Good while it lasted for action, but pretty sloppy and wild action by Lambert leading to his walking right into a punch. His surviving as long as he did after that showed he has a lot of heart.
3 -- MARCUS DAVIS vs. MIKE SWICK
Details coming later today.
WINNER: Swick.
4 -- MICHAEL BISBING (29, 6-2, Manchester, England; 16-1) vs. JASON DAY (29, 6-1, Lethbridge, Alb.; 17-5) - MIDDLEWEIGHTS
PRE-FIGHT: Bisbing said he's been in many fights in boxing, kick-boxing, MMA, and "other matches" (he said with a smile) and he's never been knocked out or submitted. He said he wants his opponents to loook in the mirror after a fight and know they've been in a fight. He said he's a knockout-oriented, aggressive fighter. Day, in a low-key demeanor, said he's going to surprise Bisbing and be the first to hurt him. He said a win will help him jump a couple rungs on the ladder and show the world what he can do... Rogan said Day is a real threat to Bisbing, and he showed it against Alan Belcher. He said taking on Bisbing in Bisbing's hometown on short notice shows what kind of fighter he is... Day has won five fights in a row and 10 of his last 11. Goldberg said stylistically Day loves this match-up. Rogan said we're about to find out if he's right... Bisbing came to the ring to Blur's "Song Two" (great band, one of my five favorite concerts ever was seeing them at First Avenue in Minneapolis about five years back)... Rogan touted how energetic and exciting and ferocious Bisbing is in the Octagon...
ROUND ONE: Day landed the biggest punch, a right to the side of Bisbing's head, in the opening minute. Goldberg pointed out it's the second fight in eight weeks for both men. Rogan said that could help because they're in excellent shape and used to fighting. They struggled against the fence and Bisbing won the clinch and ended up on top. Rogan said Day has an exccellent ground game. Bigsbing landed some good punches by standing over Day. The crowd went crazy. Bisbing passed to side control. The good news is Day wasn't getting punches anymore, but the bad news is he has to spend a lot of energy to protect himself. Day managed to maneuver himself to his feet, but Bisbing stayed on him aggressively with a knee and some punches, then took Day down again. He got full mount, and soon Day's back. Day covered up nicely, but was in a bad, bad spot. He kept moving and again tried to get to his feet. He moved to his back and covered up. Bisbing just pounded Day with a abrrrage of overwhelming, repetitive punches until the ref rightfully stepped in. Rogan called it Bisbing's most impressive performance.
WINNER: Bisbing via ref stoppage
STAR RATING (**+): Great performance from Bisbing. Day showed some the ability to maneuver out of bad spots, but he didn't show the ability to avoid getting into a new bad position immediately.
POST-FIGHT: Bisbing took the mic from Rogan early in the post-fight interview and said he could cry. He said he doesn't take any of this for granted. He thanked all of the fans. Rogan tried to take the mic back and seemed to be masking his irritation relatively well. Bisbing said he's happy with the performance. He thanked Day for taking the fight and called him classy. He also offered his services to a movie maker in the audience for a role in a gangster movie. He gave the mic back, but managed to commandeer it again and then gave a shout out to some people and his website.
RAMIFICATIONS: Day took the fight on short notice. It's a step back for him, for sure, but he will be rewarded by Dana White for taking the fight and he'll get another chance to improve and prove himself. Bisbing put in the performance that is necessary to make him a star in his division who can headline a PPV soon.
5 -- MATT HUGHES (34, 5-9, 170, Hillsboro, Ill., 43-6) vs. THIAGO ALVES (24, 5-9, 174, Coconut Creek, Fla.; 20-4) - CATCHWEIGHT FIGHT -- CATCHWEIGHT (175 LBS.)
PRE-FIGHT: Rogan said Alves may have not made weight because he was sick or injured or just huge. He said Alves walked around bigger than 185 yet tries to cut weight to 170. Goldberg said Hughes made weight and pushed himself to make the weight after years of experience as a wrestler. Rogan said stylistically it's a traditional striker vs. grappler match. Rogan talked up Alves's leg kicks... In soundbites, Hughes said if people think he's a dead man walking, he'll enjoy proving everyone wrong. He said if he takes Alves down, he'll stay down... As Rogan entered the Octagon, Rogan said he looks huge and he's as big as he's ever seen him... Rogan called this fight a pivotal moment in his career. He said he's recently opened his own training center and has ramped up his training from two-a-days to three-a-days. He said he wants to regain the momentum that he had... Rogan said Hughes looks small, but it might be because he's in such great shape... Hughes shot a look over at Alves as if to assess how big he looked. Hughes didn't have a look of confidence, nor did his corner, but that's admittedly a pretty subjective category to judge. To my eyes, Hughes looked like he was preparing mentally if not resigned to be defeated and hurt in the process; maybe he was just resentful of Alves not making weight... Goldberg noted that Alves has his right ankle taped...
ROUND ONE: Hughes shot in at 0:30 and Alves sprawled effectively. He shot in again at 1:00. Alves resisted with success and they cliched against the fense. Hughes then dropped onto his back and pulled guard. Alves snuck in a couple punches, then popped nup to take the fight to to stand-up again. Alves landed a big knee,m but Hughes got half guard when they immediately went to the mat. Alves moved into full guard. He tried to struggle and squirm to his feet, but Hughes held on and got back to a half guard position. The crowd began booing the lack of action by 3:00. After another 90 seconds, Alves got to his feet with Hughes holding ont his leg. Alves escaped. Hughes shot in immediately, but Alves ended up on top with 15 seconds left. He began landing some virtual bombs on Hughes as the round ended. Interesting, close round. Alves's conditioning could be a factor, but that remained to be seen at this point, as Hughes showed he had the ability to extend the fight and not take a beating. The blows Alves landed were few, but certainly more than anything Hughes landed.
ROUND TWO: At the start, Hughes shot in and took a knee. He went to his back and pulled guard. Alves slipped to side guard as Hughes bled from the bridge of his nose. Hughes moved back to his feet and grabbed Alves's leg. Alves shot in with a huge knee to Hughes's shoulder and knocked Hughes down. He then landed a monster right as the ref moved in to stop the fight. "Hughes is still out. He's badly hurt," said Rogan. Hughes appeared to land awkwardly on his left knee.
WINNER: Alves via TKO in round two.
POST-FIGHT: Rogan interviewed Alves. He said he's really happy to beat a legend like Hughes. Rogan asked where that places him now. Alves addressed White and begged for a title shot. They showed White smiling at ringside. Rogan moved to interview Hughes, who was standing. He asked about Hughes's left knee. Hughes said Alves is a good fighter. He thanked Jesus for giving him the power to fight. He said he fought for his kids and he's not disappointed for himself, he fought for them. Rogan asked about his fight future. He said he has one more fight left in him. He said, "Matt Serra needs to come up with a gameplan, that's for sure." He said he wants it, his wife wants it, and the fans want it, too." He thanked the UFC for making him who he is. He helped UFC, too, and legacy fighters like him need to remember how little money they fought for to make this sport what it is today.
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