Roundtables
UFC ON FOX 2 ROUNDTABLE: MMATorch staff and contributors rate and review "Evans vs. Davis" event
Jan 29, 2012 - 12:30:44 PM UFC ON FOX 2 ROUNDTABLE: MMATorch staff and contributors rate and review "Evans vs. Davis" event

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By: Jamie Penick, MMATorch Editor-in-Chief

SHAWN ENNIS, MMATORCH SENIOR COLUMNIST: (7.0)

"Are you not mesmerized?" Well, no Chael. We weren't really. I'm actually being generous with the score - I thought the main card deserved a score of four or five. The preliminaries, though, were largely very good, and seeing as how some of the Torch staff and I were live at the show, it probably enhanced the experience a bit more. Here are some takeaways:

This show was meant to build anticipation for a couple of title fights, but all it did for me was convince me that Rashad Evans will be run over by Jon Jones, and Chael Sonnen will have his head kicked off when he fights Anderson Silva. I'll be excited to watch both fights, but not because I think they'll be competitive.

Demian Maia did not look good against Chris Weidmann, a guy who came in on 11 days notice. That's not a great indicator for him. Weidman, on the other hand, has got nowhere to go but up. He didn't look like a world beater, but given the circumstances that can be understood.

I know we've got Nick Diaz and Jim Miller probably main eventing the next Fox card, and that will help with what I'm about to say, but they need to start putting lighter weight fighters on these Fox shows - especially early to hook the crowd. There was nothing to latch on to during this event after the prelims were over. Lightweights, featherweights, bantamweights - those guys would solve that problem.

Charles Oliveira is going to be a force in the featherweight division. He picked up the first calf slicer, if I'm not mistaken, in UFC history and in my book he's at the top of the heap for Submission of the Year thus far (I know it's only January - I'm just sayin). Evan Dunham looked good taking out a very game Nik Lentz. Lentz is not an easy out, and Dunham did whatever he wanted.

Two pleasant surprises were Lavar Johnson and Cub Swanson, against both of whom I pretty confidently picked. Both picked up very impressive knockouts against Joey Beltran and George Roop respectively. That's made even more impressive by the fact that Beltran had never been knocked out. In fact, Beltran took everything that uber-prospect Stipe Miocic had and kept coming. Johnson smoked him.

So all in all, it's a disappointing result as far as action goes on the main card, but it's not the end of the world and for those who saw the prelims, they got a pretty good show.


FRANK HYDEN, MMATORCH CONTRIBUTOR: (4.5)

This was an extremely disappointing night of fights. All three fights were pretty boring. There's no way that Chael Sonnen should have won that decision. That was a crap decision. The fight should have been called a draw at worst. This was a horrible night for the UFC if they're wanting to get new fans. And where was Dana White?


ERIC HOBAUGH, MMATORCH CONTRIBUTOR: (7.5)

The UFC on Fox 2 broadcast in Chicago started with Randy Couture and Jon Jones in the broadcast booth. It was nice to see Randy again commentating for a UFC event. I am still getting used to the new intro music and feel of the UFC on Fox.

The Demian Maia vs. Chris Weidman fight started fast and slowed quickly. Maia's game plan was a surprise in that he did not go for any take downs and was satisfied with making this match a kickboxing fight. It was so surprising because Maia is one of the best BJJ fighters in any weight class. Weidman is an excellent wrestler with ever improving stand up who took the fight on an 11 day notice. By the middle of the third round the action had all but stopped. It was sloppy and not fun to watch. Weidman earned a split decision because he was able to take Maia down several times during the fight. I think based on this fight Weidman should start to get more top ten middleweight fights.

The pre-fight Michael Bisping vs. Chael Sonnen build up was great. After all of the trash talking, I was ready for this fight. The fight was exciting from start to finish, but did not go the way I thought it would. The unanimous decision in Sonnen’s favor was a bit of a surprise. I actually thought it might go to Bisping because you never know how MMA judges will score fights and Chael Sonnen was far from dominant. To me, the fight was very close and I disagree with the judge that scored it 30-27. I felt like Bisbing won the second round for sure and had done enough to have won the first. Sonnen looked very tired after the start of the second round. It was, however a good fight and sets up a great re-match between Sonnen and Anderson Silva.

The main event between Rashad Evans and Phil Davis was a great fight between two excellent former collegiate wrestlers. Evans was a standout at Michigan State and Davis was a national champion at Penn State. On paper the wrestling should advantage have gone to Davis. Evans not only out wrestled Davis, but also controlled every other aspect of this five round fight. Rashad’s striking was crisp and accurate and was on a different level than the striking game of Davis. It was great fight and Rashad earned a unanimous decision 50-45 on all the judges score cards. With the win Rashad Evans earns his title shot against Jon Jones in Atlanta at UFC 145 on April 21, 2012. This should be one of the best fights of the year. I cannot wait for that fight.


JASON AMADI, MMATORCH COLUMNIST: (5.0)

This was an awful show, and the only question I have coming out of this event is whether or not it was worse than Strikeforce Nashville.

Demian Maia seems to be getting worse as he continues to round out his game. Back when he knew he wasn't a competent enough striker to survive, he was desperate to get fights to the floor and desperate to submit his opponent.

The more confident Demian Maia that we've seen against Dan Miller, Kendall Grove, Mario Maranda, Jorge Santiago and now Chris Weidman hasn't been much fun to watch at all. Considering he took the fight on short notice, Weidman can't be judged too harshly; however, that in no way excuses the sloppy technique he displayed.

Michael Bisping beat Chael Sonnen as far as I'm concerned. When Sonnen meets up with talented fighters that he can't hold down, this is what we get from him. Also, I found Sonnen's promo after the fight completely obnoxious considering he was just awarded an unjust decision.

The main event was a typical Rashad Evans fight, except it was against a fighter who wasn't experienced enough to challenge him, so it was particularly hard to watch.

The UFC definitely deserves a ton of flack for the putting these fights on Fox. The way these fights played out was to be expected, and still the UFC moved forward with it. Unless the UFC exclusively puts fights on Fox featuring athletes at 170 pounds and below, they might be doing themselves a disservice airing fights on Fox at all.