On Saturday, Oct. 4, UFC 86 will make its basic cable television premiere. The show, which originally aired on pay-per-view on July 5, was headlined by Forrest Griffin’s dramatic decision upset over Quinton “Rampage” Jackson for the UFC light heavyweight title.

The following week on Oct. 11, UFC 87 will also premiere on Spike. The show, which originally aired Aug. 9 on PPV, featured Georges St. Pierre successfully defending his UFC welterweight title in a five round unanimous decision against Jon Fitch. UFC 87 also saw heavyweight Brock Lesnar record a unanimous decision victory over Heath Herring.

Then, on Saturday, Oct. 18, UFC 89 will air on a same day tape-delay basis from the National Indoor Arena in Birmingham, England. The card will feature Michael Bisping taking on Chris Leben in the night’s main event and will also see light heavyweights Keith Jardine and Brandon Vera square off.

The airing of UFC 86 will go head-to-head with EliteXC and CBS’ third-ever telecast of “Saturday Night Fights.” This will be the second time in which the UFC and Spike have counter-programmed a live EliteXC event on CBS.

During “Saturday Night Fights II” on July 26, the UFC and Spike aired a replay May’s UFC 84 event that featured UFC lightweight champion B.J. Penn recording a third round TKO against Sean Sherk.

While EliteXC’s show on CBS attracted more total viewers, the UFC 84 replay still beat SNF II in the coveted male 18-34 demographic. According to a press release issued by Spike TV, UFC 84 outdrew SNF in the male 18-34 demo by 27% with Spike totaling 433,00 men compared to CBS’ 341,000.

The Oct. 4 telecast of “Saturday Night Fights” is considered to be a key show for the future of EliteXC on CBS after the July 26 show only drew a 1.7 rating. While EliteXC officials have attempted to downplay the disappointing ratings claiming that the show was affected by the summer airing and a shorter turnaround time to promote the event, the show still attracted fewer viewers than what CBS normally drew in the Saturday primetime slot.

One major benefit that EliteXC and CBS will have this time around when they go head-to-head with the UFC and Spike TV is that they will be featuring their two biggest attractions in Kevin “Kimbo Slice” Ferguson and Gina Carano on the show. The July 26 show had been headlined by a EliteXC middleweight title rematch between Robbie Lawler and Scott Smith.

However, while the returns of Slice and Carano will no doubt help, UFC 86 will not be the only programming competing with “Saturday Night Fights” for male viewers between the ages of 18 and 34. ABC will be televising a college football game between Ohio State and Wisconsin that same night with FOX also expected to air a Major League Baseball wildcard playoff game in the opposing timeslot.

Prior to the weigh-ins for UFC 87 in Minnesota, UFC President Dana White conducted a Q&A with members of the UFC’s “Fight Club.”

Usually, “Fight Club” members are UFC loyalists who are some of the most passionate people about the product I have ever met. However, a dissenter infiltrated their ranks in the form of a 29-year old fan from Toronto who has been dubbed “Crazy Corrie”

Corrie is a die-hard Tito Ortiz fan and also a Randy Couture supporter. Somehow she was given a mic during the Q&A and vented her frustrations on Dana.

This is must-see video, folks!

I wanted to post some of his thoughts again. As a huge Ross fan, I marked out recently when we were on the same flight from Philadelphia to Dallas last month. It was pretty early in the morning, so I didn’t want to disturb him. Early morning flights after you worked late the night before are the worst. It was still pretty cool getting to sit one row behind the guy (he was the last row in first class, I was in the first row of coach).

While reading his thoughts, please keep in mind that Ross is a pro wrestling-man who has been involved with that industry almost his entire adult life. He is also a former WWE Vice President of Talent Relations and admittedly is more fan than expert when it comes to MMA. None-the-less, I still think his perspective is very interesting.

On various production elements (morphed by me into one paragraph):

The pre-show interviews from the key participants felt unnecessary. After watching the 30 minute pre pay per view show, I felt like I had heard the material enough already. Let’s get to business. … But if pre show interviews are going to be used, the UFC should consider identifying the interviewees with graphics. … The sponsor signs in the fighter’s corners has got to go. Or classed up. Something. … Announcers (Mike) Goldberg and (Joe) Rogan always do a solid job and I enjoy listening to them because it is clear that they thoroughly prepare for which I have ample respect…. I do think that they could lay out more especially on the fighter’s entrances so we fans at home can hear the natural ambiance. I like to hear boos, cheers, catcalls and all the other unique sounds that come from an atmosphere like Target Center was Saturday night. … It’s easy to get too familiar with the Harley Davidson spiel…”only motorcycle worthy of being in the Octagon.” Please tweak the copy so I don’t tune out when I hear it. That’s not the purpose. … The UFC needs a 3rd voice, a voice over guy, to read the copy for the fighter’s packages and any thing else they can take off Mike Goldberg’s plate. Doing play by play is plenty even with a partner like Joe Rogan. … The broadcasters having to sell live event tickets during the action of the final two matches was distracting. Having been there I understand one reads what they are produced to read but from a fan’s perspective it annoyed me. Sell tickets between bouts or just use a graphic and no audio sell but keep the main event (s) clean. …Post match interviews on these events are often times a train wreck. That may be a good thing for some but for my two cents this aspect of the presentation needs addressing.

On Brock Lesnar:

Brock Lesnar was a beast Saturday night winning by unanimous decision against Heath Herring. Lesnar who made weight at 265 likely tipped the Toledos at around 280 by fight time and used that weight and strength advantage effectively. Lesnar delivered some nasty knees throughout the fight. The former NCAA Heavyweight Champion (2000) can take any one down that I have seen in MMA. If there is a man out there that can keep his feet for extended periods of time against Lesnar then I definitely want to see that man compete.

On the St. Pierre vs. Fitch fight:

Jon Fitch deserves a bonus for his courage and his will to compete in a losing effort against Welterweight Champion Georges St. Pierre. Demonstrating that I would be a poor referee in this game, I might have stopped the fight early which would not have been the thing to do as things worked out.

St. Pierre dominated and won the 5 round unanimous decision but as impressive as GSP was one still has to marvel at the toughness of Fitch. Plus, Fitch is the type of athlete who learns from the experience and who redeems one’s self the next time in the Octagon.

On a potential rematch between St. Pierre and B.J. Penn:

Yeah, I want to see B.J. (Penn) vs. St. Pierre as there is the smell of serious money in this matchup. This will probably be a Vegas fight but how great would the atmosphere be to return to Montreal or to have the fight in Aloha Stadium in Honolulu?

On Demian Maia:

Demian Maia is a bad dude and is going to be special or perhaps I should say more special as time goes on. Maia’s got it all. Plus, I enjoyed watching him put on his sponsor laden T shirt in record time after his fight. It was a “Tap Out” shirt for the record so the advertising must have worked.

Ross doesn’t stop there. He has a lot more in his writeup of the event, which you can read by clicking here.

“The word swirling around the media room was that UFC may try to make a Cheick Kongo-Lesnar fight next,” writes Cofield.

Lesnar evened his UFC record to 1-1 following a three-round unanimous decision over Heath Herring in one of the night’s featured attractions. In an undercard match that was moved to the pay-per-view broadcast on a tape-delay basis, Kongo finished UFC newcomer Dan “The Viking” Evensen off via TKO towards the end of round 1.

Kongo and Herring actually fought each other this past March, with Herring winning their UFC 82 matchup via split decision in a fight where both competitors looked impressive. Despite losing to Herring, Kongo would pose an intriguing test for Lesnar. Kongo is still relatively new to MMA and would be vulnerable on the ground. However, he could possibly dominate the standup portion of the fight.

An accomplished kickboxer, Kongo is a more versatile striker than Herring and his leg kicks could create problems for Lesnar. You also have to take into consideration that on some levels, Kongo would be able to match him athletically. Simply put, Lesnar would not have the same physical skill advantage he had last night vs. Herring.

A more sensible matchup for the emerging mega-star might be former UFC heavyweight champion Mark Coleman, Lesnar’s original opponent for UFC 87 before pulling out with an injury.

From a box office standpoint, Lesnar vs. Coleman has a lot of potential. Lesnar resorted to some pro wrestling tactics last night by trying to embrace the role of a “bad guy” with some of his antics aimed at Herring. The 43-year old Coleman, a professional wrestler in Japan, could easily assume the role of “good guy” as a past-his-prime veteran trying to prove himself one last time against the cocky newcomer. A UFC Hall of Famer, Coleman has strong credentials that can earn him credibility with a novice fanbase if he is marketed properly.

However, it remains to be seen whether it’s a fight Coleman is still even interested in. There have been recent rumblings that Coleman might be looking to cut down to light heavyweight for a possible rematch in December against Mauricio “Shogun” Rua. However, Rua was just recently quoted on a video appearing on YouTube that his December opponent could instead of former UFC light heavyweight champion Quinton “Rampage” Jackson.

Regardless, after last night’s effort, does it make sense for the 43-year old Coleman to try and test himself against Lesnar after he’s already proven himself multi-times over? It would appear that Kongo is as good of an option as any as Lesnar’s next opponent.

The event saw two of the promotion’s biggest stars walk away victorious in fights that went to the judges yet whose outcomes were never truly in doubt.

Lesnar, the former NCAA and WWE heavyweight champion, got off to an explosive start against Heath Herring, blasting him with an overhand right early in the fight that floored the former PRIDE veteran. Lesnar, who once spent training camp with the Minnesota Vikings, then exploded like a defensive end coming off the edge on a blitz and went in for the kill.

An over-zealous Lesnar landed out of position and was unable to finish Herring during the opening seconds of the fight. However, what proceeded was three rounds of dominance, with Lesnar showing he could take Herring down at will. When it was over, Lesnar evened his UFC record to 1-1 while improving his overall MMA record to 2-1. It is unclear who he’ll face next, but Lesnar showed all the ingredients of a future heavyweight champion during the unanimous decision victory.

While former NCAA wrestler Jon Fitch proved he was the number two ranked welterweight in the world last night with a gritty performance, UFC welterweight champion Georges St. Pierre proved there is a strong gap between number one and two. Despite having no formal wrestling background in high school or college, St. Pierre proved to be Fitch’s equal on the mat.

On the feet, Fitch was no match for St. Pierre’s superior athleticism. Despite showing a strong chin and an amazing will to fight with less than his full faculties, Fitch was out-pointed in the standup aspect for virtually the full 25-minute duration of the contest. It was St. Pierre’s utilization of a stiff left jab, reminiscent of how B.J. Penn peppered Sean Sherk during their UFC 84 title fight in May, that appeared to have done the most damage. However, the standup exchange was not one-sided, as Fitch landed his shots as well, managing to open up St. Pierre in the process. But when the bout was done, it was evident by looking at the faces of both fighters that Fitch clearly sustained the most damage.

With the win, St. Pierre further addressed critics still unable to let his April of 2007 upset loss to Matt Serra at UFC 69 go. With four consecutive dominant victories over the likes of Josh Koscheck, Matt Hughes, Serra, and now Fitch, St. Pierre has clearly put the infamous night of 4/7/07 in the rear-view mirror and the letdown performance appears to be nothing more than an aberration. In last night’s fight with Fitch, St. Pierre showed toughness, poise, and a chin. All areas in which his harshest critics still attempt to raise questions.

Much like Lesnar, it is isn’t completely clear what is next for St. Pierre. However, current UFC lightweight champion B.J. Penn entered the cage following St. Pierre’s five-round unanimous decision victory and proposed a challenge. St. Pierre verbally agreed to the bout, which has been rumored for several weeks now to be taking place on Dec. 27 in either Las Vegas or Montreal. However, nothing is definitive as UFC President Dana White was with the two men in the cage and visible on-camera yet made no attempt to address the possible rematch from their 2006 encounter at UFC 58.

Review of the Fight Card:

Demian Maia def. Jason MacDonald via submission in the third round – The opening round of this fight was very exciting. It was a great example for casual viewers that jiu-jitsu can be very exciting. Maia pulled guard early in the fight and put MacDonald in a triangle that appeared to be properly executed. MacDonald not only managed to escape but wound up taking Maia’s back in the process.

Round two was not as entertaining as round 1, but still very strong. I scored the first two rounds 10-9 in favor of Maia. It was obvious that Maia was leading the scorecards heading into round two and MacDonald’s corner pleaded with him to stop going to the ground with the jiu-jitsu black belt. Needing a finish in order to execute a rally, MacDonald did not heed his corner’s advice and eventually wound up on the ground in round three. Despite trying to put Maia away with some ground and pound, the decision to engage on the ground was ill-advised, as the percentages of MacDonald being able to finish Maia were much higher on his feet than on the floor.

While Maia’s standup has improved and he could one day challenge Anderson Silva for his middleweight title, he provided no reason in this fight to believe he has a chance to win. No one can question Maia’s overall jiu-jitsu ability, but he had trouble holding his position as times against MacDonald, which is not good considering that Silva is known for his strong sweeps and transitions. Maia also is not big for a middleweight and was giving up eight inches in reach to MacDonald. In a standup battle vs. Silva, he’d be eaten alive because the reigning top pound-for-pound fighter would have too much range on him.

Kenny Florian records unanimous decision victory over Roger Huerta - Considering that Huerta went to college in Minnesota, I was surprised that he was introduced first. Initially, I thought it was a repraisal for his critical comments of the UFC in the August edition of FIGHT! magazine, however, after seeing Brock Lesnar introduced first, I doubt that was the case. It could have to do with the color of corner assignments or because of seniority.

I felt Joe Rogan was on his game last night and gave one of his best performances. His technical analysis during the ground fighting that took place in the Maia vs. MacDonald match was excellent. Play-by-play man Mike Goldberg was a different story. While he was solid, I had issues with him screaming into the mic before action had commenced in several bouts. It seemed like he was trying too hard to show a high-energy level and when he’d scream, it sounded like there was no load-balancing on the volume as the mic popped. I also wasn’t a fan of some of his hyperbole, most notably when he was discussing Florian’s work with a nutritionist, when he blurted out, “He’s turned eating into a science!” I know sometimes the right phrases aren’t always available in your mind when you’re trying to articulate a point, but c’mon.

I thought the fight itself was fantastic and everything we expected. Huerta proved to be the better athlete, showing more explosion and quickness. However, Florian was too technical and too poised. Huerta tried to press at multiple times but would get too wild and Florian either had a counter ready or simply got out of the way.

Both fighters deserve a tremendous amount of credit. After losing to Sean Sherk several years ago for the then-vacant UFC lightweight title, Florian has successfully worked his way back up the ladder and has earned another shot. As for Huerta, he is more than just a marketing creation. Huerta can flat out fight and is incapable of having a boring performance. The only knock against him is that he relies too much on his standup and still lacks polish despite having a great deal of fights under his belt.

It will be interesting to see what happens next for both fighters. Florian likes to stay active and he may have to risk his lightweight title shot if St. Pierre and Penn meet in December. If St. Pierre vs. Penn II becomes a reality, then March would likely be the earliest Florian could get his shot at Penn for the lightweight title. Florian may have no choice but to accept a fight in between then. There’s also the question of what happens if Penn wins the welterweight title from St. Pierre? He has said publicly he intends to compete at both lightweight and welterweight, but if Penn beats Pierre, it’s unlikely he’d go back to 155 lbs.

If Penn wins and abandons the title, might we see Florian vs. the winner of Tyson Griffin vs. Sean Sherk at UFC 90 end up competing for a vacated UFC lightweight title? The possibility of Sherk vs. Florian II is intriguing, but hardly a pay-per-view main event.

As for Huerta, he now has one fight remaining on his current contract and has ruffled the feathers of the UFC’s front office with recent comments in the media and is reportedly fair a part when it comes to money during current contract re-negotiations. If he does not re-sign, it is likely that Huerta won’t be booked for a fight up until his contract is right about to expire. And chances are, the bout will not be televised.

Robert Emerson knocks out Manvel Gamburyan at 12 seconds of round 1 - Wow, the speed of Emerson’s knockout was right there when Duane “Bang” Ludwig took out Jonathan Goulet and when James Irvin dropped Houston Alexander with that Superman punch. I had low expectations for this fight but I was wrong to question its placement on the card because the action was exciting while it lasted. It’s hard to go wrong with a fight that can be immediately replayed in its entirety at full speed.

Emerson needed the win badly and it means he’ll live in the UFC to fight another day and probably step up in class as far as competition is concerned. It was a bad loss for Gamburyan but it his first in the UFC so he’s not going anywhere. However, he might want to consider a drop to 145 lbs. and a trip to the WEC because last night’s loss could be an example of Gamburyan’s lack of range catching up to him.

It’s also important to note that the competition he’s faced in his three UFC fights since losing the TUF 5 finale after re-injuring his shoulder have come against Emerson, Jeff Cox, and Nate Mohr. The three are respectable fighters but hardly the cream of the crop. Against that lineup, a 2-1 record isn’t impressive. He should be 3-0. TUF 5 winner Nate Diaz likes to complain about the quality of competition that he’s been given, but it’s vastly superior to what Gamburyan has faced.

Cheick Kongo TKO Dan Evensen in the second round - Wow, this was one of the most bizarre entrance sequences I have ever seen. It felt like the main event of an MMA pay-per-view emanating from the Canary Islands. The entrance music from both fighters was extremely bizarre and Evensen’s body language during his cage-walk was quite unique.

And then the post-fight interview with Rogan and Kongo was even more strange. I don’t want to sound like Larry King in one of his old USA Today columns, but if I ever get to submit an interview request to the UFC, Cheick Kongo won’t be on the top of my list. He reacted to Rogan like Rogan owed him money. I realize a culture barrier could be an issue, but wasn’t Kongo’s behavior rude no matter what country you come from?

As for the fight itself, just total dominance on the part of Kongo. Evensen is a brawler and there was no way he was going to get the better of Kongo in the standup.

Did anyone also find it strange that former Quinton Jackson trainer Juanito Ibarra was cornering Kongo with Jackson clearly audible at cageside? I am curious to see how long Ibarra will be involved in MMA after getting dropped by Jackson. While fighters like Kongo and Michael Bisping worked with Ibarra as a part of Jackson’s training camps, it remains to be seen whether fighters will continue to work with Ibarra, whose credentials are pretty much purely boxing.

Ibarra really turned off a lot of people with his behavior following Jackson’s loss to Griffin at UFC 86 and he doesn’t exactly have a sterling reputation following his split with Jackson. I think he could be yet another boxing figure forced out of the MMA scene due to taking the multi-faceted fight disciplines and cultures of the sport lightly. MMA fighters definitely need to become more technical boxers, but in order to be someone’s primary trainer in MMA, you need more than just a boxing background. You can be a boxing expert in MMA, but being a boxing expert does not make you an MMA expert.

Brock Lesnar defeats Heath Herring via unanimous decision - I predicted Herring to win but was happy to see Lesnar get the victory. I think Lesnar is already a star by MMA standards but has room to become the biggest thing going in the sport. Once he gets more experience under his belt, he will become unbeatable and will eventually claim the UFC heavyweight title.

I’ve been bullish on Lesnar in MMA before he even debuted against Min Soo Kim and I took a lot of heat for it. Needless to say, I feel validated. The bottom line is that his wrestling is simply too good and there is no one in the sport who can rival his athleticism. Seeing a man that big move that quickly, well, it just makes Lesnar appear as though he was genetically engineered in a laboratory.

An apparently healthy and in-shape Herring came to fight and still couldn’t keep the fight on the feet or inflict any damage on Lesnar. My only complaint is that I would have preferred to have seen Lesnar a little more active on the ground, but he had to be mindful of position in order to prevent himself from getting submitted.

Overall, watching Lesnar compete inside of an Octagon is still very surreal having watched his work in the WWE for a couple of years. Even though he was an NCAA champion, I still identify him as a pro wrestler and it’s still strange seeing a former pro wrestler come in and dominate in a legitimate sport like this. And aside from getting caught in a knee bar for a few seconds, Lesnar has been nothing but dominant in his three MMA fights.

I think in a year from now that Lesnar will be the UFC heavyweight champion and that we will no longer be talking about Randy Couture vs. Fedor Emelianenko, but instead, Lesnar vs. Fedor. When I wrote an article in FIGHT!’s debut issue titled “Five who could beat Fedor,” people scoffed at me for including Lesnar. I think a lot more people are coming around to my point of view and even more will perceive him as a legit challenger over time.

Georges St. Pierre defeats Jon Fitch via unanimous decision – Fitch deserves all the credit in the world for going the distance. After the first round, I really didn’t think it was going past three. But Fitch survived several knockdowns and never recovered from some of those strikes he took early on. Coming into the fight, I believe Fitch’s cardio was pretty strong but a lot of your stamina goes out the window after taking damage.

Had his cardio not been as good as it was he wouldn’t have been able to fight through all the punishment he took. Fitch was clearly rocked at various points and flat out refused to be broken or fall on his sword. There were a couple of times where he could have given up his back and taken the easy way out and not really been blamed for doing so. But Fitch worked hard to get his shot and wasn’t about to walk away from it. He deserves to be commended for that. Fitch is a warrior.

While St. Pierre didn’t get the finish here, against most other fighters, the bout would have been stopped much earlier. St. Pierre fought well enough to finish Fitch but Fitch brought intangibles with him to this fight that took the ability to end the fight early out of GSP’s hands.

Last night’s fight will make Fitch a bigger star despite the losing effort. This was a high-profile fight and a lot of people got to see him for the first time. When they see him again they will rember how much heart he showed vs. GSP and they will pull for him.

GSP is clearly the gold standard at 170 much like Anderson Silva is at 185 and B.J. Penn is at 155. But unlike Silva and Penn, there are some intriguing challenges that still lay ahead. A rematch vs. a fully-committed B.J. Penn is not a fight in which St. Pierre is a given to win. In fact, I can tell you I know many people inside the industry who believe Penn will win that fight. Also, the winner of Thiago Alves vs. Diego Sanchez at UFC 90 will bring an interesting challenge.

Alves might be the only 170 lbs. fighter in the UFC whose athleticism can rival St. Pierre’s. And there will be a tremendous backstory if a St. Pierre vs. Sanchez fight ever happens because Sanchez has great resentment that Greg Jackson took St. Pierre into his camp. Sanchez felt slighted that Jackson started working with St. Pierre because he didn’t understand why Jackson would want to work with someone Sanchez could possibly face down-the-line. We haven’t heard much about it lately but you better believe that the tension will be played up if St. Pierre and Sanchez ever fight.

The one thing about the St. Pierre vs. Fitch fight that seemed out of place to me were the “U-S-A!” chants at the beginning of the fight even though St. Pierre received a huge ovation. Was it a split crowd in Minneapolis? Or is St. Pierre so popular that Americans have adopted him as one of their own? Or, did “Hacksaw” Jim Duggan make an appearance at the show?

MMA Weekly has their hands on the UFC 87 Awards and Bonus figures for the night. They are as follows:

• Jon Fitch and Georges St. Pierre each pocketed an extra $60,000 for Fight of the Night following their five round war for the welterweight title.
• Demian Maia was awarded Submission of the Night and also pocketed an extra $60,000 for his rear naked choke submission against Jason MacDonald in the opening bout of the pay-per-view portion of the show.
• Rob Emerson was awarded Knockout of the Night and also took home an extra $60,000 for his brutal 12 second knockout victory over TUF 5 castmate Manny Gamburyan.

Georges St. Pierre is on another level at 170 lbs.

Jon Fitch proved tonight that he is a man’s man and has zero quit in him. His tenacity, recovery speed, and aggression were all extremely admirable. What he also showed is that no one, and I mean no one, in the weight class has what it takes to contend with St. Pierre’s overall game. Standing or on the ground, St. Pierre is dominant. If he can’t finish you with his strikes, he will take you down. If he can’t take you down, he’ll work you over on the feet. He is as multi-dimensional of a fighter as there is in all of mixed martial arts right now and that includes the current consensus pound-for-pound king, Anderson Silva. No one in the weight class has a prayer right now to beat him. Not Thiago Alves, not Jake Shields, not Karo Parisyan, nobody. B.J. Penn is the only fighter with a sliver of a chance and with Penn’s in-ring challenge after the fight, it’s looking like we’ll get to see that superfight sooner than later, hopefully in December.

Jon Fitch is the second best welterweight in the world, hands down.

Jake Shields, Thiago Alves, Josh Koscheck, Diego Sanchez, and Carlos Condit, please have a seat. Jon Fitch is far and away ahead of all of you. And that’s no disrespect, it’s just plain fact. No one thought that Fitch would last all five rounds tonight. A lot of people didn’t even think Fitch would last into the championship rounds. Not only did he do both of those things, but he was threatening almost the entire way. His recovery speed was absolutely insane. Normal fighters don’t take clean punches followed up by a knee to the head and recover like Fitch did. Not only did he take those shots and recover, but he kept coming forward. He showed us all tonight that he belonged in the same cage as St. Pierre even if he was dominated. At this point, who at 170 lbs. wouldn’t be dominated by St. Pierre? No one. The fact that Fitch took that kind of beating and lasted all five rounds speaks volumes about not only his talent, but his character as a fighter as well. Fitch should hold his head high for hanging tough against one of the best fighters in the entire world of combat sports.

Brock Lesnar proved that he belongs in the UFC.

With a decisive victory over Heath Herring, one of the best gatekeepers in MMA, Brock Lesnar proved to all of the doubters tonight that he belongs in the major leagues of mixed martial arts, the UFC. From the opening bell, Lesnar was dominant, dropping Herring with a crushing right hand and suffocating him from there on out. His back control was ridiculous. His fists are the size of watermelons and inflict so much damage from very small punches. Lesnar played to his strength tonight and used his world class wrestling to dominate a dangerous opponent. If Lesnar can continue his progress and start to learn how to use his dominant position to finish, he is going to be a force to be reckoned with in the UFC’s heavyweight division. The win for him tonight was huge for the UFC, especially as far as making Lesnar a legitimate MMA fighter and marketing him in the future.

Kenny Florian spoiled Roger Huerta’s big payday.

Kenny Florian did what most pundits thought he would do, and that’s beat Roger Huerta with a technical game. Not only did he beat Huerta but he most likely ruined his demands for a big time contract with the UFC. Huerta reportedly has been asking for a contract that’s bigger than current lightweight champion B.J. Penn’s contract. Florian most likely put a stop to all that talk tonight. The surprising thing was that Florian dominated the striking game. It was a given that if the fight hit the floor that Florian would have the advantage. What wasn’t evident, though, was that Florian would so soundly beat Huerta standing. Huerta is a good talent and a great young fighter with a lot of heart. His antics, his maturity, and his skills, however, need some work. His striking is wild. He throws big looping punches that leave him open to counters. The antic with spitting to the side in the Octagon cost him a takedown. Florian looked better in all aspects of MMA tonight. Huerta just looked flat.

Demian Maia is ready for a step up in competition.

Maia has beaten two of the middleweight division’s best gatekeepers in Jason MacDonald and Ed Herman and now it’s clear that he’s ready to face some of the division’s top dogs. The fight tonight against MacDonald started out as one of the most technical grappling battles that we’ve seen in quite some time. It was a fantastic way to start the show and the transitions that we saw take place were just out of this world. Maia, however, is on another level when it comes to the jiu jitsu game. He is so technically and fundamentally sound in his game that he sometimes makes good jiu jitsu fighters, like MacDonald, look silly. He’s ready for a step up in competition. Perhaps the winner of Palhares vs. Henderson? Perhaps a fight against Yushin Okami when he comes back? Whatever it may be, Maia is very for real and deserves to move up to the next level of competition.

Other musings…

• You could tell from Dan Evensen’s ridiculous intro that he was getting knocked out at some point during the fight. That had to be the worst combination of music and antics that I’ve ever seen walking out to the cage. Evensen got what was coming to him. Put aside the fact that Kongo is on another level. Anyone who acts like that deserves to get their teeth smashed in.
• The Minnesota crowd was phenomenal. One of the best UFC crowds in a long, long time. When they were cheering the ground work between Maia and MacDonald it became clear that not only were they educated MMA fans but also enthusiastic about the evening’s fights. It made for a great at home viewing experience.
• Say what you will about Brock Lesnar’s post fight antics, but I personally loved it. The guy has legitimate skills and he can talk a little trash and hype a fight. Josh Barnett does the same kind of thing and people love him for it. Lesnar is good for the popularity of the sport and if he wants to add some theatrics to the deal then so be it. Tito Ortiz has done far worse.
• Rob Emerson is probably taking home a knockout bonus tonight for his knockout of Manny Gamburyan. Let’s hope he spreads the wealth around to The Lords of South County.
• I’m very interested in seeing the McCrory vs. Cummo fight. By all accounts it was the best undercard fight of the evening.
• Best show of the year? It’s very possible. UFC 84 was my top choice for than honor going into tonight’s event but I may have to re-evaluate following tonight’s top notch show. No matter what, it’s a solid #2 at the least. The UFC is doing a great job of putting on very good shows this year.
• 8-3 on picks for the evening. I’ll take it.

Brock Lesnar dominated Heath Herring from start to finish on Saturday night, setting the tone of the fight by dropping Herring on his rear end with a crushing right hand to his left eye in the opening seconds of round one. From there, it was all Lesnar for the rest of the fight.

Lesnar controlled Herring’s back for most of the fight with Herring absorbing a massive amount of punishment from Lesnar’s boulder-sized fists and a ridiculous amount of knees to the body. Herring proved his worth as one of the best gatekeepers in all of MMA, taking a beating and not folding. Herring has taken beatings from some of the world’s best heavyweights and this one was just another day at the office in his book.

Herring tried valiantly to escape Lesnar’s top control but was largely unable to do so and in the end, Lesnar came away with a dominant victory, sending his record to 2-1 and proving to the MMA world that he belongs in the UFC. Time will only tell what’s next for Lesnar as the UFC’s heavyweight division isn’t as strong as it used to be but he certainly proved to the doubters tonight that he is for real.

• Georges St. Pierre def. Jon Fitch via Unanimous Decision
• Brock Lesnar def. Heath Herring via Unanimous Decision
• Rob Emerson def. Manny Gamburyan via Knockout Rd 1. (12 secs into round 1)
• Kenny Florian def. Roger Huerta via Unanimous Decision
• Demian Maia def. Jason MacDonald via Submission (Rear Naked Choke) Rd 3.

Undercard:

• Tamdan McCrory def. Luke Cummo via Unanimous Decision
• Cheick Kongo def. Dan Evensen via TKO (Strikes) Rd 1.
• Jon Jones def. Andre Gusmao via Unanimous Decision
• Chris Wilson def. Steve Bruno via Unanimous Decision
• Ben Saunders def. Ryan Thomas via Submission (armbar) Rd 2.

WHEN: Tonight, Saturday, August 9th, 8:00 PM ET

WHERE: Five Ounces Of Pain LIVE Results and Chat!

Main Card:

• Georges St. Pierre def. Jon Fitch via Unanimous Decision
• Brock Lesnar def. Heath Herring via Unanimous Decision
• Rob Emerson def. Manny Gamburyan via Knockout Rd 1. (12 secs into round 1)
• Kenny Florian def. Roger Huerta via Unanimous Decision
• Demian Maia def. Jason MacDonald via Submission (Rear Naked Choke) Rd 3.

Undercard:

• Tamdan McCrory def. Luke Cummo via Unanimous Decision
• Cheick Kongo def. Dan Evensen via TKO (Strikes) Rd 1.
• Jon Jones def. Andre Gusmao via Unanimous Decision
• Chris Wilson def. Steve Bruno via Unanimous Decision
• Ben Saunders def. Ryan Thomas via Submission (armbar) Rd 2.

(Photo courtesy of MMAjunkie.com)

UFC President Dana White has done a ton of media for tonight’s UFC 87 event to take place from the Target Center in Minneapolis, Minn.

During the press tour, which includes his own video blog, TV, radio, and press conference appearances, he has made several intriguing statements.

There are four particular quotes from White that I’ve found to be extremely intriguing:

On Quinton “Rampage” Jackson’s current legal situation:

“That one is out there like, ‘He hit her and she lost her baby.’ It was a week later. He knocked her mirror off her car. Rampage said, and he’ll tell you when you talk to him, ‘I care about everybody. I care about all life. I would never hurt anybody.’

“That’s the way he is. Now he’s in a situation where somebody’s trying to civil sue him and make some money. Absolutely not. Absolutely not, this is not a criminal thing. No way. I’m no lawyer and I’m no judge, (but) this stuff will be worked out in the court.”

Regarding Roger Huerta and his recent comments in FIGHT! mazgine:

“Roger Huerta’s a guy who’s been reading the headlines a little too much. You get out there and promote the guy and he’s like, “Look at all the papers I’m in, look at all the promotion I’m getting, I want a lot more money.’ Well he hasn’t fought anybody to get the money yet. He beats Kenny Florian, that’s a whole different ballgame.

“Roger Huerta has contract problems? What’s his contract problem? He signed a contract, he’s under contract, when his contract is up he’ll re-negotiate a new one. … What he was bitching about was doing PR. In his thing he said, ‘They got me out there doing PR.’ Yeah, moron. How do you think you make money? You don’t make money unless people know who you are and want to see you fight. Am I supposed to pay Roger Huerta to go out and do PR? Is that how it works?

“That’s not how it works. When Oscar De La Hoya fights, he’s on Leno and Letterman. The night before his fight, he weighs in in Las Vegas, and then flies to Los Angeles to do PR for the fight. Because he makes more money. Because he becomes more popular and more people want to see him fight. …What happens is these guys turn into pussies, is what happens.”

On Tim Sylvia during a recent edition of Tagg Radio:

“Look, we cut Tim Sylvia, he couldn’t cut it in the UFC anymore…. Tim has been boring people for years, I was glad to get rid of him.”

On the real reason why the UFC signed Mirko Cro Cop away from PRIDE:

“Fifty times we thought it was over and we were buying PRIDE, then we hear they were talking to these guys and these guys and kept string us along. So when Mirko Cro Cop’s deal came up, we went after Mirko aggressively, signed him, and that really started to unravel PRIDE. He was really tight with them, so once we were able to take him away, all the other fighters started talking to us too. And that was basically the last nail in the coffin for those guys. It was really a business move to buy PRIDE. That’s why we signed Cro Cop.

“It wasn’t like we brought Cro Cop in and thought he was going to take over the heavyweight division or anything. I think that’s what the fans thought — the hardcore fans who really knew a lot about PRIDE — but it was a business move to kill PRIDE.”

In his most recent post, MacDonald discussed his upcoming bout with Demian Maia and how a lot of fans are focusing solely on Maia’s jiu-jitsu skills. MacDonald said, “Everyone’s talking about Maia’s jiu-jitsu, and there’s no doubt he’s a superb jiu-jitsu fighter. But I’m not going to turn this into a jiu-jitsu fight. I’m going to make this a mixed martial arts fight. That’s the bottom line. So, my prediction: I’ll TKO Maia in the second round.”

MacDonald is entering the fight as a +220 underdog but he feels he’ll flourish in the role. The last time the UFC considered MacDonald a stepping stone he submitted The Ultimate Fighter alumni Chris “The Crippler” Leben and Ed “Short Fuse” Herman.

MacDonald is currently 4-2 in the UFC but has failed to secure the necessary wins to consider him a legit contender. MacDonald’s two defeats came to former UFC middleweight champion Rich Franklin and Yushin Okami.

Another interesting note from MacDonald’s blog was that he used an IV to re-hydrate following Friday’s weigh-ins. “Afterward, when I got back to the hotel, I actually got an IV, which is I believe is one of the safest ways to re-hydrate,” said MacDonald, “I was probably already back up to 200 pounds by the evening.”

– My UFC 87 Preview: Complete with predictions on the entire card

– Weigh-in coverage: Video of the weigh-ins and the actual written results

– UFC 87 Pain Poll: Our entire staff breaks down the event

– 5 Oz of Pain Presents: The Duel: Luke Thomas of BloodyElbow.com and Jordan Breen of Sherdog.com star in this special star-studded UFC 87 edition

– Our entire UFC 87-content catalog: Click here and celebrate it much the same way the two Bobs in “Office Space” celebrate Michael Bolton’s entire catalog. Seriously though, Adam Morgan posted a ton of UFC 87 video and this is where you can see it.

If anything breaks during the day, we’ll have it here. And be sure to check back tonight and tomorrow for full results and analysis.

Enjoy the fights!