Just this week alone FiveOuncesOfPain.com has learned that Rich Clementi, Luigi Fioravanti, Derek Downey, Christian Wellisch, and Eddie Sanchez have all been cut within the past week and past month. Five Ounces of Pain has also confirmed that light heavyweight Reese Andy has been dropped from the roster as well.

Andy, a former amateur wrestling standout from the state of Washington, made his UFC debut at UFC Fight Night 14 this past July against Brandon Vera in a bout that was a part of Spike TV’s broadcast. Andy ended up losing the fight via unanimous decision.

He then returned at UFC 92 in Las Vegas this past December where he was matched up against another former standout amateur wrestler in Matt Hamill. While Andy was able to go the distance with Vera, he ended up succumbing to Hamill when he was TKO’d due to punches at 2:19 of round 2.

According to a source close to Andy, he was released from his contract almost immediately after suffering his second consecutive UFC loss at UFC 92.

Prior to signing with the UFC, Andy had competed as a heavyweight in the now-defunct International Fight League where he compiled a 5-1 record with notable victories over Jamal Patterson and current UFC fighters Krzysztof Soszynski and Mike Ciesnolvevicz. He also holds a win against former ICON Sport middleweight champion Kala Kolohe Hose.

According to records obtained by FiveOuncesOfPain.com through NSAC, the 12 fighters tested were Rashad Evans, Forrest Griffin, Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira, Frank Mir, Brad Blackburn, Matt Hamill, Antoni Hardrock, Yushim Okami, Cheick Kongo, Quinton “Rampage” Jackson, C.B. Dollaway, and Pat Barry.

NSAC Executive Director Keith Kizer stated that all of the fighters tested negative for street narcotics and performance enhancing drugs.

And while the figures do not contradict the total attendance of 14,166 fans and gate figure of $3,468,440 offered by UFC President Dana White to the media during the post-fight press conference for the event, they do provide an interesting detail that left out.

According to NSAC records obtained by FiveOuncesOfPain.com, 4,465 fans of the 14,166 total in attendance were at the event courtesy of complementary tickets. That means that of the 14,166 total attendees, only 9,701 actually paid for their tickets.

Despite distributing nearly one third of the tickets for UFC 92 on a complementary basis, the final house for the event still rates as one of the UFC’s largest in Nevada history.

One of the major topics discussed during the interview was Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira losing the interim UFC heavyweight title to Frank Mir following a second round TKO. The win by Mir was considered a major upset and White shared his thoughts as to why the surprise outcome may have occurred.

“Nogueira had some other problems too going into [UFC 92]. Nogueira had just gotten over a Staph infection and he had some other problems but when [Nogueira] fought in PRIDE. PRIDE put on such freak shows — guys fighting out of their weight class, things like that. That’s why I’m so against it. That’s how you ruin guys early. If you’re a professional athlete, time is not good to you. Time catches us all.”

One of the “freak show” fights that White was referencing was Nogueira’s 2002 bout vs. Bob Sapp during PRIDE’s “Shockwave” event. Sapp is a 350-plus pound former NFL offensive lineman who outweighed Nogueira by over 100 pounds.

Despite the disparity in weight, Nogueira still submitted Sapp with an armbar at 4:03 of round 2. However, the win came with a price as the former PRIDE heavyweight champion suffered a sustained amount of punishment during the vast majority of the content.

What’s next for Nogueira is not know, however, White did not rule out the possibility of a fight between him and former UFC heavyweight champion Randy Couture.

White also expressed that he’d “love” to see a UFC light heavyweight title match between Rashad Evans and Quinton “Rampage” Jackson while also once again offering his theory as to why WAMMA heavyweight champion Fedor Emelianenko is not the best heavyweight in the world.

You can hear the audio in its entirety below. The audio has been made available to FiveOuncesOfPain.com through special permission by Dave Carmichael. We’d like to thank Carmichael for making the audio available to our readers and remind everyone to run into his show every Monday through Friday from 9-12 midnight PT.

[playlist id=1]

According to the NSAC documents obtained by FiveOuncesOfPain.com, it appears that former UFC light heavyweight champion Forrest Griffin may have suffered a broken left hand in losing his title to Rashad Evans courtesy of a third round TKO.

The NSAC records reveal that Griffin has received a minimum medical suspension until February 12, 2009. He must also avoid all contact until January 28, 2009. The commission is also mandating that the Las Vegas resident have his left hand X-rayed by an orthopedic specialist. Furthermore, while Feb. 12 is the earliest he can compete again, his suspension could last up until June 27 of next year unless he receives medical clearance to return sooner.

Other notable fighters to receive medical suspensions were both Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira and Wanderlei Silva. Nogueira, who lost the interim UFC heavyweight title to Frank Mir following a second round TKO, is suspended through February 27 and ordered to avoid contact until February 12.

Silva, who was TKO’d by a left hook at 3:21 of round 1 during his fight with Quinton Jackson, is also suspended through February 27 and must avoid contact until February.

The complete lists of medical suspensions handed out to fighters from UFC 92 is listed below:

• Forrest Griffin - Maximum suspension of no contest until 6/27/09. Must visit an orthopedic specialist to have left hand X-rayed. Suspension could be reduced to 2/12/09 if he receives proper medical clearance. Also ordered to avoid all contact until 1/28/09.
• Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira – Suspended until 02/27/09 with no contact until 02/12/09. No injury specified.
• Wanderlei Silva – Suspended until 02/27/09 with no contact until 02/12/09. No injury specified.
• Mike Massenzio – Suspended until 01/28/09 with no contact until 01/19/09. No injury specified.
• Mostapha Al-Turk - Must clear broken nose with Ear, Nose, and Throat specialist or no contest until 06/27/09. Also given a minimum suspension of no contest until 02/27/09 with no contact allowed until 02/12/09 due to lacerations over left eye and on top of head.
• Mike Wessel – Suspended until 02/12/09 with no contact until 01/28/09. No injury specified.
• Matt Hamill - Suspended until 02/12/09 with no contact until 01/28/09 due to cut under left eye.
• Reese Andy - Must have a CT scan of face to rule out orbital fracture and doctor’s clearance or no contest until 06/27/09. His minimum suspension of no contest is until 02/27/09 with no contact allowed until 02/12/09.
• Brad Blackburn - Must be cleared by a neurologist before next fight due to tingling/numbness in his left arm. Also must clear nasal fracture with Ear, Nose, and Throat specialist or no contest until 06/27/09. His minimum suspension of no contest is until 02/12/09 with no contact allowed until 01/28/09.
• Patrick Barry - Suspended until 01/28/09 with no contact until 01/19/09 due to an injured right elbow.
• Dan Evensen – Must have orthopedic clearance on his left knee or no contest until 06/27/09. His minimum suspension of no contest is until 01/28/09 with no contact allowed until 01/19/09.

I’ve wised up since beginning this column not too long ago. The UFC, regardless of what their competitors (or lack thereof) do, is going to do what they do, the way they want to do it, and when they want to do it, end of story.

Is this a bad thing? No, because the UFC and Zuffa do a fine job of producing their televised events as they are.

However, this won’t stop me from offering my opinions on what I think they could do if they chose to tweak things here and there.

If the UFC and Zuffa wanted a platform to make some tweaks to their televised shows, especially their pay per views, UFC 92 would be the perfect fit. It’s the biggest show of the year and has three main-event caliber fights on the card.

It’s time to break down UFC 92 from the MGM Grand Garden Arena in quiet, boring, Las Vegas, Nevada.

ANNOUNCING:

Mike Goldberg and Joe Rogan were calling the action as usual. And I have to say; this may have been their best work in 2008.

I’ve always believed that Goldberg’s job was to set up Rogan, plain and simple. Tonight, he did it well. My past criticisms of Goldberg usually come when he talks too much and becomes more analyst than blow-by-blow man. The analyzing is Rogan’s job – and tonight, he served up an A-plus effort.

Rogan was absolutely on-point, doing a fantastic job of providing not only stellar, in-depth MMA analysis, but slickly inserted humorous comments, none of which took anything away from the telecast.

Before Cheick Kongo destroyed Mustapha Al-Turk, Rogan foreshadowed, saying, “He’s (Kongo) an attractive challenger if he wins tonight…especially if he wins in spectacular fashion.” Only time will tell if Kongo gets the Frank Mir – Brock Lesnar rematch winner, but Rogan was spot on. By the way, I’d never used the term “spot on” until I watched Kitchen Nightmares and Hell’s Kitchen with world-famous chef Gordon Ramsay. Feel free to use it, free of charge.

During the fight, Al-Turk accidentally kneed Kongo’s Kongos. Kongo later responded with a not-so-accidental kneeing of Al-Turk’s Turks, prompting Rogan to state, “I’ve seen more guys get hit in the balls…(than) in any other sport in real life.” Rogan says what John Madden wishes he could have said during his heyday: “Boom! He tackled him helmet-first, right in the balls! Boom!”

Rogan’s description and analysis of how Quinton Jackson turned his life around before his rubber match with Wanderlei Silva may have seemed like slight overkill at first. But Rogan clearly did his homework, saying, “This is a different ‘Rampage’…very important to point out.” Rogan went out on a limb, knowing Jackson had been dominated twice by Silva. And like the Kongo fight, was spot on.

From a pure humor point of view, Rogan, when recognizing that Matt Hamill’s corner man was giving him profanity-laced instructions during his fight with Reese Andy, said, “This guy’s been taking lessons from Dana White.” Obviously, Hamill, who is deaf and can read lips, got the entire message, winning by TKO in the second round.

During Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira’s walk to the octagon to face Mir, I stated to my friends how boring Nog’s choice of The Rolling Stones was as entrance music. Rogan, on the other hand, said, “Man, it’s hard to root against a dude who comes in to The Stones.” Well, if you put it that way.

Then Rogan, referring to Nogueira’s near-death experience as a child, added: “They didn’t think he was going to be able to walk again. Now he strangles people for a living.” “They didn’t think he’d bounce back from his torn ACL…now, he makes defenders not only miss, but piss themselves as well….BOOM!”

Goldberg and Rogan also did a very nice job of setting up the Mir – Nogueira fight by reminding viewers just how tough Nog is. Looking back, it made Mir’s stoppage of him even more shocking.

And wrapping up the Rogan love fest, he added this response when seeing that text voters had Forrest Griffin as a big favorite over Rashad Evans: “It’s a lot of Irish gambling money right there.” In other words, Rogan believed the fight was going to be closer than what those people thought. And again, he was spot on.

OVERALL PRODUCTION VALUE:

Aside from a couple of minor issues, the UFC-Zuffa turned in a typical, very solid performance.

Showing the intense weigh-in footage between Silva and Jackson at the top of the show was a good call in hyping up the grudge match, especially for those who had not seen the footage prior to the broadcast.

In the cutaways department, two stood out in my mind: the cutaway of a disappointed Chuck Liddell after Jackson’s KO of Silva and Lesnar’s “You’re next” reaction after Mir’s upset win. Good preparation by the crew and well-timed cutaways, indeed.

Regarding the Evans versus Griffin fight, knowledgeable fans are aware of the gold mine that is the light heavyweight division in the UFC – especially if Anderson Silva decides to return there. I would have liked to see the UFC-Zuffa take an ode from HBO’s boxing telecasts and break down the division, giving the viewers a list of top contenders and potential opponents to the winner of this fight.

There was very good use of the underutilized full-screen graphics before this fight though. As we saw in Griffin versus Jackson, Griffin’s leg kicks can be very effective. He’s also known for being a well-conditioned warrior who will fight into the later rounds. Both of these facts were supported by strong stats, one of which stated that Griffin “lands 72% of leg kicks per fight.” Another stat showed that Griffin’s strike attempts rise as the fight progresses.

With Evans, we learned that in his 18-fight UFC career, he had never attempted a submission. We also learned that Evans, an accomplished wrestler, is successful on 60% of his takedown attempts, with Goldberg adding in that the UFC average is just 45%.

It often boggles my mind at how easy it would be to insert these simple, well-researched graphics for every bout. I get it – the UFC saves them for their main events to give those fights a “main event” kind of feel. But UFC fans aren’t stupid; they know a main event fight from a preliminary fight. So why not utilize these graphics for every televised fight? Rather than choosing to “enhance” one fight, it would enhance the production of them all, even if only by a slight margin. My wish would be to replace the “three-fact bullet point” graphics for non-main event fighters with the full-page ones. Ahhh, one can only dream.

While the replay of Al-Turk kneeing Kongo in the Kongos was slightly botched, the top-notch audio picking up Kongo’s elbows and hammer fists while ambushing Al-Turk’s face was outstanding, especially if you had the luxury of hearing it in surround-sound like I did. It sounded like a young Michael Myers killing his sister all over again in Halloween. Not that I’m bragging. Fact is, I’m extremely handsome and also own a 42-inch flat screen HDTV with a home theater system. Sue me.

On a more negative note, during Rogan’s preview of the Mir – Nogueira fight, footage of the UFC Undisputed video game was abruptly rolled in without any set up, which caused a bit of awkwardness within Rogan’s analysis. It was a minor glitch, but it threw Rogan off slightly and prevented the video game from getting the proper plug they had probably scripted. On a side note, the game looks freakin’ awesome….BOOM!

My Bloody Valentine? In 3D????????

I know I’m being incredibly nitpicky and that advertising money talks, but here we are watching the UFC event of the year, and all of a sudden we’re treated to a useless preview of a useless remake of a 1981 slasher flick? Making it even worse was the fact that the production crew botched the roll-in of the clip by letting what is sometimes known as the “slate” (graphic) appear on-air before the clip rolled. I would have preferred that the UFC-Zuffa figure out another way to use this airtime…like, for example, with some of my suggestions you’ll read below.

PACING & PACKAGES:

I loved having the Jackson vs. Silva fight as the second fight of the night. To the viewer, it immediately hammered home just how big of a card this was, especially because this fight alone would headline most UFC pay per views. Otherwise, I felt that the solid pacing was along the lines of most UFC telecasts.

The UFC-Zuffa also deserves props for producing main-event caliber pre-fight packages before the Jackson – Silva, Mir – Nogueira and Evans – Griffin fights. Like the full-page graphics, I wish they’d enhance their production and do this for all televised bouts.

QUICK HITS:

– Who doesn’t love Wanderlei Silva when he graciously attempts to conquer the English language? Some Wanderlei-isms from the broadcast:

“I want to knock out him” or “I’m going to beat him this time…again.”

– The set up of the Silva – Jackson rubber match, at both the beginning of the show and right before the fight, was a solid example of the UFC making good use of their rights to the Pride FC video library.

– C.B. Dollaway’s after-party plea during his post-fight interview didn’t exactly make me want to party. It made me want milk and cookies.

– What’s Junie Browning think about Frank Mir now?

– How classy is Griffin? During the fight, Evans blew a kiss at him and then grabbed his Rashads (as if he were inviting Griffin to kiss those too). Then Evans destroyed Griffin and took his light heavyweight belt. Yet Griffin greets Evans after the fight as if they’re buddies, like McCartney and M.J. in the Ebony and Ivory video. Athletes in this sport get what sportsmanship is about. Too bad some athletes in other sports often don’t.

THE FINAL WORD:

You really can’t complain about not getting your money’s worth with UFC 92. We saw three main-event caliber fights, and regardless of whether you saw those fights as upsets, one word can be used to describe their outcomes: stunning.

Jackson’s left hook knocking Silva flat out…Mir crushing Big ‘Nog…Evans teeing off on Griffin? Those weren’t just victories – they were victories with a BOOM!

Since it’s the last major card of 2008 and the holiday season, here’s what I would I wish I could have seen from UFC 92:

– This is the biggest card of the year – “The Ultimate 2008” – so how about a Year In Review package? I think this would have worked as a rollout during the credits that Goldberg could have tossed to while wrapping up the telecast. Think One Shining Moment montage/NCAA March Madness on CBS.

– I enjoyed the pre-fight packages before the big-three fights, but here’s a wish list of packages I would have liked to have seen inserted before some of the other fights:

– Why not a package featuring highlights from the top five fights of 2008? This could have been something that UFC fans could have voted on at www.UFC.com for two weeks (or more) prior to the telecast, with the results being revealed during the package.

– The same online voting concept could have been applied to other packages that could have been interspersed throughout the telecast: Newcomer of the Year, Fighter of the Year, Top Five Knockouts of 2008 and Top Five Submissions of 2008. If nothing else, these ideas could have been used for an end-of-the-year special on Spike TV.

It’s easy for me to wish, wish, wish. But in reality, there’s only so much non-fight airtime to insert these packages into. So, what would I have done?

Personally, I would have eliminated the Octagon walks for the non big-three fights and replaced them with these packages, mainly because they’re more entertaining and would have provided a faster pace to the telecast.

Again, these are just wishes, most of which I don’t expect to see anytime soon on a UFC-Zuffa telecast. There’s a better chance that my other wish – re-enacting the “scene” from Monster’s Ball with Halle Berry – will happen before those do. Regardless, I thoroughly enjoyed the show. The fights lived up to the hype, and Goldberg and especially Rogan were on top of their game.

The highest paid athlete on the show was former UFC light heavyweight champion Quinton “Rampage” Jackson, who earned a total of $385,000 for his first round knockout victory over former PRIDE middleweight champion Wanderlei Silva .

According to the NSAC documents, Jackson received a guaranteed purse of $225,000 plus an additional $100,000 in the form of a win bonus. The UFC also announced after the event that Jackson received an additional $60,000 “Fight Night” bonus after having earned the promotion’s “Knockout of the Night” award.

Despite losing, Silva still earned $200,000 for the effort. In an interesting development, the NSAC records indicate that Silva would not have earned any additional money in the form of a win bonus had he defeated Jackson.

New interim heavyweight champion Frank Mir received a total of $90,000 for his second round TKO over Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira. Mir’s guarantee for the fight was $45,000 with an additional $45,000 in compensation coming in the form of a win bonus. Nogueira received $250,000 and would had earned an additional $150,000 had he won.

New UFC light heavyweight champion Rashad Evans earned a total of $190,000 for his third round TKO over Forrest Griffin. Evans’ guaranteed purse was $65,000 with an additional $65,000 being paid to him as a win bonus. The UFC also awarded him an additional $60,000 “Fight Night” bonus to him as a reward for taking part in the “Fight of the Night.”

Griffin received a guaranteed purse of $150,000 and lost out on an additional $100,000 that would have been paid out as a win bonus. However, like Evans, he also received an additional $60,000 for having been a part of the “Fight of the Night.”

Complete salary figures are listed below, but it first must be noted that the figures do not include undisclosed locker room bonuses, compensation paid through sponsorships, and any other financial remuneration that is not a matter of public record:

1. Quinton Jackson: $385,000 ($225,000 to show; $100,000 to win; and $60,000 “Fight Night” bonus)
2. Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira: $250,000 (would have earned an additional $150,000 had he won)
3. Forrest Griffin: $210,000 ($150,000 to show and $60,000 “Fight Night” bonus; would have earned an additional $100,000 had he won)
4. Wanderlei Silva: $200,000 (no win bonus)
5. Rashad Evans: $190,000 ($65,000 to show; $65,000 to win; and $60,000 “Fight Night” bonus)
6. Frank Mir: $90,000 ($45,000 to show and $45,000 to win)
7. Cheick Kongo: $90,000 ($45,000 to show and $45,000 to win)
8. Yushin Okami: $32,000 ($16,000 to show and $16,000 to win)
9. Antoni Hardonk: $28,000 ($14,000 to show and $14,000 to win)
10. Matt Hamill: $20,000 ($10,000 to show and $10,000 to win)
11. Clarence Dollaway: $20,000 ($10,000 to show and $10,000 to win)
12. Dean Lister: $19,000 (would have earned an additional $19,000 had he won)
13. Ryo Chonan: $18,000 (would have earned an additional $18,000 had he won)
14. Reese Andy: $15,000 (would have earned an additional $15,000 had he won)
15. Brad Blackburn: $14,000 ($7,000 to show and $7,000 to win)
16. Patrick Barry: $10,000 ($5,000 to show and $5,000 to win)
17. Mostapha Al-Turk: $7,000 (would have earned an additional $7,000 had he won)
18. Mike Massenzio: $5,000 (would have earned an additional $5,000 had he won)
19. Dan Evensen: $4,000 (would have earned an additional $4,000 had he won)
20. Mike Wessel: $4,000 (would have earned an additional $4,000 had he won)

Even the most fickle of critic is going to have a tough time finding flaws with last night’s “Ultimate 2008” as the event delivered in just about every regard.

Good production? Check.

Strong commentary? Check.

Good pacing? Check.

Efficient judging and officiating? Check.

An effort to show more than the five guaranteed fights on the PPV broadcast? Check.

Compelling matchups featuring stars vs. stars? Check.

Highly-anticipated fights that delivered strong action? Check.

Surprise outcomes that will keep fight fans and the media talking for days? Check.

Alright, you get the idea.

UFC President Dana White said in his post-fight press conference that UFC 92 lived up to the hype and a sane human-being cannot make a rational argument against that statement.

On a fight card filled with highlights, at the top of the list was the night’s main event which saw Rashad Evans procure the UFC light heavyweight title from Forrest Griffin following a third round TKO.

The fight had a little bit of everything: drama, action, and a major change in momentum. But most impressive of all was the degree of skill that was on display during the bout.

Critics of MMA often complain that the sport is nothing more than bar room brawling in a cage. However, Griffin vs. Evans exhibited too much technique to ever be confused with a street fight.

Neither Evans or Griffin will ever be confused with championship-caliber boxers, but they applied compact and crisp striking that made for a very aesthetically appealing fight.

If you were going to force a critic of MMA to watch a fight in hopes of changing their opinion that the sport lacks skill, you could have shown them Griffin vs. Evans. Meanwhile, also showing strong standup skills on the card were both Quinton “Rampage” Jackson and Frank Mir.

In knocking out Wanderlei Silva in the first round and avenging two previous losses to the former PRIDE middleweight champ, Jackson showed improved defensive standup capabilities. While Jackson still needs to work on his standup defense from the waist down and start checking kicks, he exhibited good head movement and controlled the range between him and Silva.

When Silva did land strikes to the upper body of Jackson, the impact was usually minimized by Jackson diverting his upper body in the opposite direction in which the blow was coming from.

As for Mir, the jiu-jitsu black belt not only displayed improved head movement and footwork, but he employed tactical mastery. With Nogueira known for being able to absorb unconventional amounts of punishment, Mir avoided several gambles that would have caused him to expend too much energy in an attempt to finish Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira. Instead, Mir was patient and waited for his opening in the second round.

The amazing knockout by Jackson coupled with the upsets by Mir and Evans provided more memorable moments on one card than we had seen combined over the course of multiple recent events promoted by the UFC. Even the show’s other televised fights involving Pat Barry vs. Dan Evensen, C.B. Dollaway vs. Mike Massenzio, Cheick Kongo vs. Mustapha Al-Turk, and Antoni Hardonk vs. Mike Wessel all offered strong entertainment value.

Not only were the fights themselves good, but the outcomes were definitive and created intriguing matchups heading into the new year. The UFC now finds itself with a huge rematch between Brock Lesnar and Mir on its hands to unify the UFC heavyweight title. And a rebound win by Jackson gives the UFC an option of matching him up with new UFC light heavyweight champion Rashad Evans in a bout that has the potential to draw a strong buyrate on pay-per-view.

Additionally, the exposure that Kongo, Hardonk, and Barry all received during impressive wins on a high-profile card will help strengthen the promotion’s depth in its heavyweight division.

Without a single disappointing fight on the card and strong matchups created for 2009, the UFC delivered one of its most successful events in company history with UFC 92.

Following his third round TKO victory over Forrest Griffin during the main event of Saturday’s UFC 92 event, Evans became the rightful owner of the most prestigious title in all of mixed martial arts. Yet part of the prestige factor behind the UFC’s 205 pound title has to do with the fact that it is a division that is overflowing with the world’s greatest light heavyweight fighters.

The fact is that there might be no crown heavier in MMA than the light heavyweight one currently being worn by Evans.

When Griffin suffered an upset knockout loss at the hands of Keith Jardine two years ago at UFC 66, the light heavyweight winner of the first season of The Ultimate Fighter practically had a nervous breakdown inside the cage. Yet following last night’s defeat in his first-ever defense of the UFC light heavyweight title, a cool and calm Griffin took the loss in stride.

While it’s nothing more than pure conjecture, perhaps Griffin was able to keep his emotions in check because he felt a slight sense of relief now that he will be able to return to the role of hunter as opposed to the role of the hunted?

The role of the hunted now will be played by Evans, the heavyweight winner from the second season of The Ultimate Fighter. Counted out at almost every turn in his UFC career, it wouldn’t be surprising to see Evans once again doubted by the critics.

Winning a title in MMA is one thing but holding onto it is a completely different achievement into itself. There will be no shortage of world class fighters in the UFC that will now attempt to make Evans’ reign as the promotion’s 205 pound king as brief as possible.

At the top of the list of light heavyweight assassins looking to pick Evans off is none other than former UFC light heavyweight champion Quinton “Rampage” Jackson. Jackson made everyone forget about his summer bout with delirium by avenging two previous losses to Wanderlei Silva courtesy of a big left hook at UFC 92 that floored “The Axe Murderer” during the fight’s first round.

While UFC President Dana White stopped short of guaranteeing Jackson the first crack at Evans during the post-fight press conference for UFC 92, he came pretty close.

“It does make sense for Rampage to get a title shot,” White informed the media in attendance. “There’s a lot for us to get back to the office and talk about.”

While Jackson wouldn’t mind a shot at becoming a two-time UFC light heavyweight champion, he also expressed an equally strong desire for redemption against Griffin.

“I’m ready to get my title back,” began Jackson. “Everybody wants to be the champion. Everyone wants to be the best. But to be quite honest, I’d rather go and fight Forrest. That’s the fight that haunts me when I go to sleep. I have nightmares about it. That’s the fight. I won the belt. I was the champion. But I’d like to get Forrest first, but it’s up to the UFC.”

It almost seems like a lock that Evans’ first defense will either be against Jackson or the winner of the January 31 light heavyweight clash between unbeaten Thiago Silva and the inconvenient truth, Lyoto Machida. That’s because Chuck Liddell lost to Evans as recently as September and has just one win in his last four fights. Meanwhile, Wanderlei Silva has lost four out of his last five. Jardine would normally be an option following is his UFC 89 win over Brandon Vera in October but as a teammate and friend of Evans, it’s a matchup that can never happen. And Jackson isn’t fighting Griffin, there is no way Griffin deserves an immediate rematch before Jackson gets his shot.

If the UFC gives Griffin to Jackson first, then the only other viable option might be to grant the first title shot at Evans to the winner of the Machida vs. Silvas. A Evans vs. Silva or Evans vs. Machida light heavyweight title fight has limited box office appeal but the UFC may find itself in a position where it has no other alternative than to schedule the match and pair it with a bigger main event.

While Machida and Thiago Silva have yet to break out as legitimate stars, they are already legitimate top ten light heavyweights who have the potential to end Evans’ title reign before it even gets a chance to start.

Silva is 13-0 overall and 4-0 in the UFC with wins over James Irvin, Tomasz Drwal, Houston Alexander, and Antonio Mendes. That’s hardly an impressive win resume but a win over Machida would certainly enhance his case. A former member of Chute Boxe who now trains out of American Top Team, Silva’s aggressive standup style and solid ground skills would make him a threat to Evans.

But the even bigger threat would be Machida, a 13-0 fighter who has a elusive defensive style that gives opponents absolute fits. Despite a well-earned reputation for being a boring fighter, Machida could force the UFC’s hand and earn a title shot if he improves his record inside the Octagon to 6-0 with a win at UFC 94.

With career wins over Stephan Bonnar, B.J. Penn, Rich Franklin, Kazuhiro Nakamura, Rameau Thierry Sokoudjou , and Tito Ortiz, the balance between sport and entertainment within the UFC could be compromised if Machida doesn’t get a title shot if he beats Silva.

With potential fights with Jackson, Machida, and Thiago Silva looming, there lies a second wave of potential challengers that Evans will have to face if he’s successful during the initial going. As it stands now, the UFC’s light heavyweight division is also home to Vera, Rich Franklin, Luiz Cane, and Mauricio “Shogun” Rua.

And we can’t overlook the possibility of a darkhorse candidate being enlisted to challenge Evans. If the UFC opts to make Jackson vs. Griffin II and determines that if can’t afford to match the winner of Silva vs. Machida against Evans, do not rule out the possibility of Randy Couture attempting to win the UFC light heavyweight title for a third time.

Couture will soon be busy filming a movie and has expressed no interest in cutting to light heavyweight again. However, an opportunistic Couture ended a one-year retirement in 2007 because he saw a heavyweight champion in Tim Sylvia that he perceived to be vulnerable.

If Couture happens to be one of Evans’ many doubters, the lure of furthering his legacy may be too much to resist. And while Couture is coming off a loss to Lesnar at heavyweight, the UFC might find the idea of a Evans vs. Couture fight to be very attractive, as it would provide a win-win scenario for the promotion. Having Couture as its light heavyweight champion would be great for business while a win over a legend would help Evans become an even bigger star.

Regardless of what direction the UFC chooses for Evans, the breadth of world class fighters at 205 could make his hold on the light heavyweight title a tenuous one.

Frank Mir's striking coach, Ken Hahn

As one of the many pundits who not only picked Frank Mir to lose to Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira during their UFC 92 interim heavyweight title fight but to lose in dominating fashion, I cannot continue to write this article without acknowledging how wrong I was.

But I am still left wondering just exactly who we saw become the first fighter to ever finish the only man to hold heavyweight titles in PRIDE and in the UFC? I mean, was that really Frank Mir that we watched last night put down Nogueira last night?

Anyone who has been following the sport of MMA for more than a few months is well aware of Mir’s world class submission abilities. When it comes to jiu-jitsu for MMA, there are few heavyweights that can be ranked ahead of Mir.

However, the missing element in Mir’s seven-year career has always been his striking. Has it improved over the years? Sure. But for a guy that has been in the game as long as Mir, you would have expected that his standup game would have evolved much more than it had in recent years.

Yet following last night’s impressive showing on his feet, the persistent questions about Mir’s standup have likely evaporated.

Sure, the outcome of last night’s heavyweight tilt was surprising, but I watched the entire Mir vs. Nogueira fight with my jaw wide open as I was in disbelief at just how comfortable the jiu-jitsu black belt looked on his feet. What we saw last night wasn’t just improved striking from Mir — it was a complete and total transformation.

The striking display we saw from Mir won’t be confused with a premium-level K-1 striker, but it was a 180 degree change from his past efforts on his feet. And I am still trying to figure out what was the bigger surprise: Mir’s victory or the manner in which he earned the interim UFC heavyweight title.

All throughout the month of November I received calls from sources in Vegas complaining about Mir’s lack of work ethic during his training camp. They said Mir was taking weeks off at a time and was suffering from a back injury. They also added that when Mir did show up to train, he was often uninspired and lacked the “eye of the tiger.”

Was it all a ruse? Was the Mir camp leaking information out to the public in an attempt of giving Nogueira a false sense of confidence? I trust my sources and I don’t suspect subterfuge. After all, Mir didn’t exactly look shredded in the cage last night and this wasn’t the first fight in which questions about his work ethic have been raised.

We’ll apparently never know the answer to the question posed in the above paragraph because Mir didn’t win the fight based on stamina; he won it purely on skill. The fight never reached the championship rounds and by ending early, Mir’s cardio was never put to the test. However, Mir gave credence after the fight to those who doubted him by revealing that he had even doubted himself.

Mir has always been a naturally gifted athlete and those gifts allowed him during the pre-TUF era to become the clear cut number one heavyweight in the UFC. Natural talent made up for a lack of training in most of Mir’s early UFC fights but after being involved in a severe motorcycle accident that nearly cost him his leg, Mir was no longer able to get by on his natural ability upon his return.

In losses to Marcio “Pe de Pano” Cruz at UFC 57 and Brandon Vera at UFC 65, Mir looked like a fighter not long for the UFC. In hindsight, those losses appear even worse now than they did then. After upsetting Mir, Cruz lost his next two fights in the UFC and was cut. Meanwhile, Vera failed to deliver on his potential while in the heavyweight division and now resides in the promotion’s 205 pound division.

Now those losses appear to be nothing more than a distant memory following wins over Lesnar and Nogueira but it might not be entirely accurate to say that the old Mir is back. That’s because the Mir we saw last night is a much more dangerous fighter than we saw during his first UFC heavyweight title run. If UFC 92 is not an aberration and Mir’s striking has truly become that good, he has now finally managed to become a well-rounded martial artist after seven years in the game.

And while Mir’s stock is soaring coming out of UFC 92, the man whose stock might be rising even more is his striking coach, Ken Hahn.

Hahn, who owns the fight gym Striking Unlimited in Las Vegas, had been relatively anonymous to the mainstream prior to seeing his profile increase while serving as Mir’s assistant coach during the eighth season of The Ultimate Fighter.

Mir had talked up Hahn’s influence in interviews that led up to TUF 8 but his endorsements did not begin to resonate until Hahn began to receive some camera time coupled with a regular blog on the popular mixed martial arts website MMAjunkie.com.

Hahn was once again visible in the corner of Mir at UFC 92 and following Mir’s impressive striking display, his already successful fight gym stands to gain an acute increase in business. There are only so many fighters that can go to renowned MMA striking coaches such as Shawn Tompkins and Mark Della Grotte for help and fighters are constantly in search of the latest trend that can provide them a competitive edge.

A quick look at the website for Striking Unlimited reveals some impressive credentials for Hahn. In addition to holding second degree black belts in both Enshin Karate and Tae Kwon Do, he is also a certified Fairtex instructor in Muay Thai and an official trainer for K-1′s various brands. As a competitor, he was the 2000 Sabaki Challenge Open Weight South American Champion and the 2001 Sabaki Challenge Middlweight World Champion.

While verbal endorsements from Mir and world class credentials are nice, there was no better advertisement for the expertise that Hahn can offer a fighter than the performance turned in by Mir at UFC 92. As such, don’t be surprised to see an influx of fighters show up on Hahn’s doorsteps in a quest to take their striking to the next level.

In gaining a share of the UFC’s divided heavyweight title, Mir also earned a rematch against current UFC heavyweight champion Brock Lesnar. When Mir defeated Lesnar last February, it was via submission. However, thanks to Hahn’s influence, we could easily see Mir defeating Lesnar by way of knockout the second time around.

However, another prevailing theme from UFC 92 was the continuing demise of the old Brazilian guard of PRIDE. If I could just escape my manufactured “AP-style persona” with you for a few seconds and keep it real by getting “fanboi” on you for a few moments, PRIDE will always have a special place in my heart. It was just such a unique brand of MMA, the likes of which we had never seen and will probably never see again.

PRIDE had so many dynamic elements working in its favor but what always stood out the most to me were the stars that the promotion was able to create. The top stars that at one time made PRIDE the number one MMA promotion in the world will always be known as some of the most iconic in the history of this sport. And two of PRIDE’s biggest icons were none other than two of UFC 92′s primary principals, Wanderlei Silva and Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira.

While a lot of people wanted to “Be Like Mike,” I wanted to be like “The Axe Murderer.” Having trained and competed in martial arts and also having worked as a bouncer, if I ever was involved in a violent confrontation, I aspired to be like Wanderlei and show absolutely no fear and be able to steamroll my opposition. Now bear with me, because things rarely, if ever, worked out that way for me during violent confrontations. But how many people who tried to emulate Michael Jordan were ever able to put up 63 points in a pickup basketball game?

Hopefully you get the idea of what I’m getting at. Just like the average human being who idolized Jordan could never quite hit that turnaround fade away jumper with seconds running out, I never quite put a drunk patron in a clinch and delivered knees until they collapsed. But one can dream, right?

As for Nogueira, he was this stately sportsman with a world class knowledge of the art of Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu who could overcome just about anything. He was afraid of no man and took on all comers. He was seemingly indestructible and able to recover from any beating. Watching him taught me that no matter how badly I was getting my ass handed to me in a sparring session to never give up and take my beating like a man.

I apologize if it sounds like I had man crushes on Nogueira and Silva but martial arts isn’t just a hobby for me, it changed my life. And Nogueira and Silva were two of my super heroes. But while they appeared to be immortal in PRIDE, they have looked oh too mortal in the UFC. In fact, they look like two completely different fighters.

In PRIDE, Silva was this savage warrior who would just straight beat opponents down. However, in the UFC, against Chuck Liddell and Jackson, he’s been the guy who has been subjected to the beatdowns. Sure, his UFC 84 fight vs. Keith Jardine was vintage Wanderlei, but that was just one brief moment in time.

The dismantling of Jardine is not enough to mask the fact that Silva is now 1-4 in his last five fights with three of the contests ending via crushing knockouts. His fall from grace raises the legitimate question about just how much left he has in the gas tank at 32-years of age.

However, falling from grace isn’t exclusive to Silva. As great as Nogueira is, even his most ardent supporter has to admit that his body of work in the UFC has been nothing special. In their two previous meetings in PRIDE, Nogueira handled Heath Herring for the most part. But in a match scheduled to showcase Minotauro in his UFC debut at UFC 73, Herring was more than just a handful for the big Brazilian and had Nogueira in trouble on several occasions.

Against Tim Sylvia at UFC 81, I thought Nogueira was done. Sylvia mauled him until he pulled out his trademarked Hail Mary comeback. And since winning is all that matters to so many of us, Nogueira’s overall performance that fight was swept under the rug.

Last night’s fight vs. Mir began to unfold in typical Nogueira fashion but the ending was one we had never seen. Nogueira was in trouble on multiple occasions in he first round but Mir was unable to put him away.

With four rounds to go, I was convinced it was only a matter of time until Nogueira turned the tide much like he did in PRIDE during epic encounters vs. Bob Sapp, Mark Coleman, and Semmy Schilt. But the comeback never happened and the legend who had never been TKO’d or submitted in a fight was finished by a man who just a few short years ago appeared to be on the brink of expulsion from the UFC.

Nogueira’s performance at UFC 92 cannot be considered anything but disappointing. Coming into the fight, I was a vocal critic of Mir’s well-earned reputation for having poor conditioning. But while Mir looked anything like a chiseled Adonis, one has to be fair in pointing out that Nogueira did not appear to be in peak physical condition either. As much as it pains me to say it, he was carrying a lot of weight last night and appeared to be a little pudgy.

But the most bitter pill to swallow was witnessing a man who used to train with the Cuban National Boxing Team get smoked in the standup aspect of the fight against a guy in Mir whose striking had been perceived as a weakness throughout his entire seven year career.

So where do Silva and Nogueira go from here? For Silva, there is no shortage of big-name opponents for him to be matched up with at 205 pounds in the UFC. But how many of them can he actually beat at this stage of his career? The UFC isn’t going to pay him six-figures a fight to lose in devastating fashion.

However, economics are the least of the concerns regarding Silva’s UFC future. This is a human life we are talking about and there are other factors that need to be addressed. Silva has been the victim of several brutal knockouts over the course of a relatively short span. It’s important to not forget that former UFC competitor Sean Salmon had his license suspended in the state of California because he absorbed one brutal KO too many. Another bad knockout for Silva and the Nevada State Athletic Commission may find itself in a position where it has to intervene.

During a recent interview leading up to UFC 92, Silva once again was asked the question about whether he’d consider a move to middleweight. Unlike the past, he didn’t rule the possibility out. But forget about considering the move, it’s time to just go ahead and make it. Silva is not what he once was and can no longer swim with the sharks in the UFC’s stacked light heavyweight division. He needs to move down in weight in an attempt to reinvent himself in a division that isn’t anywhere near as deep as 205 and contains fewer power punchers.

For Nogueira, I’d say he just needs some time off but he was already coming off a long layoff following his stint as a coach on the eighth season of The Ultimate Fighter. Perhaps the answer isn’t time off but to simply get right back into the cage within the next 2-3 months against a mid-tier heavyweight that he can dominate?

Whether my recommendations for the next career moves for Silva and Nogueira are the proper courses of action is uncertain. But one thing I am certain of is that both are in the midst of prolonged downward spirals and the free-falls both are experiencing need to come to an end soon before they hit rock bottom.

Courtesy of the UFC and ESPN.com, below is video of their comments. Mir once again pointed out his family as his inspiration for continuing to pursue a career in fighting following a horrific motorcycle accident while Nogueira said he would welcome the opportunity to compete against former UFC heavyweight champion Randy Couture.

However, after a slow start, it would appear that UFC 92 made up a lot of lost ground at the box office in recent weeks with UFC President Dana White revealing strong attendance figures for the event during last night’s post-fight press conference.

According to MMAjunkie.com, White stated that UFC 92 drew 14,103 attendees for a total gate of $3.47 million. Those numbers fall short of last month’s UFC 91 event at the MGM, which drew a reported 14,272 attendees for a total gate of $4.82 million. However, at a time in which both the national and Las Vegas economies are struggling, the totals for UFC 92 have to be viewed as strong considering that the promotion had just held a major event in the same market six weeks ago.

The official box office totals for UFC 92 will not be made public by the Nevada State Athletic Commission until later this week. However, if White’s preliminary totals are accurate, then last night’s event will stand as the MGM’s fifth largest gate for a UFC-promoted event behind only UFCs 66, 91, 71, and 84.

Following the completion of the event, UFC officials announced that Quinton “Rampage” Jackson, Rashad Evans, and Forrest Griffin were all recipients of $60,000 “Fight Night” bonuses.

Evans’ third round TKO over Griffin courtesy of ground and pound punches not only brought him the UFC’s light heavyweight title, but also a share of the UFC’s “Fight of the Night” bonus along with Griffin.

Jackson received his 60K “Knockout of the Night” bonus thanks to his dramatic KO victory over Wanderlei Silva which saw Silva laid out cold following a left hook that put an immediate stop to the fight at 3:21 of round 1.

In addition to its regular “Fight of the Night” and “Knockout of the Night” bonuses, the UFC normally also awards a “Submission of the Night” bonus. However, with none of the ten scheduled bouts on the card having ended via tapout, no such award could be given.

In the main event of UFC 92, subtitled “The Ultimate 2008,” season two heavyweight winner of The Ultimate Fighter Rashad Evans became the new UFC light heavyweight champion following a stunning third round TKO over Forrest Griffin.

Griffin, the light heavyweight winner from the inaugural season of The Ultimate Fighter, was making his first defense of the title he won from Quinton “Rampage” Jackson following a unanimous decision victory this past July at UFC 86.

Following a dominant second round showing, it appeared Griffin was well on his way to earning a successful defense in his first bout as the promotion’s 205 pound king but Evans turned the tide in the third after catching a kick and taking to Griffin to the mat.

Utilizing a loose guard in an attempt to pull off a submission, Griffin gave Evans plenty of room to work his ground and pound and the former police officer became dazed following a series of brutal hammerfists by Evans. As Evans began to rain down punches, Griffin turned to his side with his body flailing as a result of the furious momentum that were behind the blows being delivered by Evans.

Amid the barrage from Evans in which Griffin failed to intelligently defend himself, referee Steve Mazzagatti stepped in to call a stop to the fight at 2:46 of round 3 with Evans being declared the new UFC light heavyweight champion via TKO by way of punches.

Despite being a former wrestling standout at Michigan State, Evans’ ascension to the rank of the number one light heavyweight fighter in the world is one that had been considered unlikely. Even in spite of his devastating second round knockout over former UFC light heavyweight champion Chuck Liddell this past September at UFC 88, Evans entered the fight vs. Griffin as a underdog.

While considered to be a good fighter, Evans was not viewed by many industry insiders as a future champion in one of the UFC’s deepest divisions. Counted out by critics at numerous times of his career, Evans proved the pundits wrong yet again by taking possession of what is considered by many to be the most prestigious title in mixed martial arts — a belt not only once held by Liddell, but also fellow UFC icons Randy Couture and Tito Ortiz.

But Evans isn’t the promotion’s only new unlikely champion to come out of UFC 92, with former UFC heavyweight champion Frank Mir taking his career resurrection to new levels following a second round TKO over Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira.

Like Evans, Mir was also an underdog heading into the bout but shook off rumors of a disappointing training camp leading up to the fight by turning in the best striking performance of his career. Nogueira was considered to be the better striker coming into the fight having trained heavily in the past with the Cuban National Boxing Team, but it was Mir who dominated the standup aspect of the fight.

Showing surprisingly good head movement and fancy footwork, Mir pressured Nogueira in the first round en route to not one, but two knockdowns which garnered him a probable 10-8 round on the judges’ scorecards. Mir had Nogueira in trouble on multiple occasions in the first round but displayed tactical mastery by electing not to punch himself out in an attempt to finish a fighter known for his ability to absorb incredible amounts of punishment.

In spite of Nogueira’s legendary reputation for escaping the brink of defeat and coming back to win, UFC 92 would mark the first time in his career in which he would be TKO’d. Following two stiff left hands courtesy of Mir, a grounded Nogueira was finished for good with the referee calling a stop to the contest at 1:54 of round 2. The former PRIDE heavyweight champion rose to his feet soon after the stoppage but any question as to whether the fight was stopped prematurely was erased as Nogueira wobbled while walking in the center of the Octagon.

With the win, Mir became the new interim heavyweight champion, earning the opportunity to unify his interim title with the official UFC heavyweight title in an upcoming rematch with incumbent Brock Lesnar.

Lesnar won the title from Randy Couture during UFC 91 on November 15 following a second round TKO. With Mir’s victory, he will now be afforded the opportunity to earn a measure of revenge stemming from their encounter at UFC 81 last February in which Mir secured a first round submission following a kneebar. The loss is the lone blemish on the former NCAA heavyweight champion’s MMA record.

In addition to Evans vs. Griffin and Mir vs. Nogueira, UFC 92 also offered a third highly-anticipated main event-caliber matchup between Jackson and former PRIDE middleweight champion Wanderlei Silva.

Jackson overcame personal turmoil caused by a July episode in which he was arrested on felony evading, hit-and-run and reckless driving in order to knock out Silva with a brilliant left hook.

With the win, Jackson not only began to distance himself from his disappointing title defeat at UFC 86 but avenged two previous losses to Silva while the two men competed in Japan for PRIDE. Jackson now could find himself in a position to challenge Evans for the light heavyweight title while Silva will have to reassess his career following three severe knockouts within the last two years.

In addition to the hook that knocked him out cold at UFC 92, Silva also was taken out by a high kick delivered by Mirko Cro Cop at PRIDE’s “Final Conflict Absolute” in 2006. The Cro Cop knockout was then followed by another major knockout at the hands of Dan Henderson at PRIDE 33 in which Silva lost his middleweight title.

The show’s two other main card bouts saw Cheick Kongo TKO Cage Rage heavyweight champion Mostapha Al-Turk via strikes at 4:37 of round 1 and C.B. Dollaway TKO Mike Massenzio via strikes at 3:01 of round 1 in a battle of former Junior College wrestling rivals.

Results from the five-bout non-televised undercard included former K-1 standout Pat Barry make a successful UFC debut following a first round TKO over Dan Evensen due to injury. Additionally, Brad Blackburn defeated Ryo Chonan via unanimous decision; Matt Hamill TKO’d Reese Andy at 2:19 of round 2; Antoni Hardonk TKO’d UFC heavyweight newcomer Mike Wessel at 2:09 of round 2; and Yushin Okami defeated Dean Lister via unanimous decision. The victories by Hardonk, Barry, and Hamill all aired during the UFC 92 PPV telecast on a tape-delay basis.

Full results are below:

• Patrick Barry def. Dan Evensen via (injury) TKO at 2:36, Round 1
• Brad Blackburn def. Ryo Chonan via unanimous decision
• Matt Hamill def. Reese Andy via TKO at 2:19, Round 2.
• Antoni Hardonk def. Mike Wessel via TKO at 2:09, Round 2
• Yushin Okami def. Dean Lister via unanimous decision
• Cheick Kongo def. Mustapha Al-Turk by TKO (strikes) at 4:37, Round 1
• Quinton Jackson def. Wanderlei Silva by KO at 3:21, Round 1
• C.B. Dollaway def. Mike Massenzio by TKO at 3:01, Round 1
• Frank Mir def. Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira by TKO at 1:54, Round 2
• Rashad Evans def. Forrest Griffin by TKO at 2:46, Round 3

Below is an outline of the storylines that FiveOuncesOfPain.com will be tracking, along with strategically placed hyperlinks to highlight much of the preview-related content we published this week to help get you in the mood for tonight’s stellar card.

1. Rashad Evans’ bid to become the number one ranked light heavyweight in the world - If someone told you three years ago that Evans would be the top ranked light heavyweight in the world how would you have reacted? If they had said it two years ago what would you have said? If they had set it a year ago, how would you have responded? And if someone came to you and made that prediction just months ago before he knocked out Chuck Liddell, how would you have felt? Evans has been counted out by numerous pundits multiple times, present company included. However, doubters such as myself will have no choice but to rank Evans as the number one light heavyweight in the world should he manage to procure the most prestigious world title in mixed martial arts.

2. Quinton Jackon fighting for redemption – Jackson comes into this fight with enough baggage that if he was checking in for a flight, he’d be hit with $2,000 worth of surcharges. He’s coming off an upset loss to Forrest Griffin in July; a messy “divorce” with former manager and trainer Juanito Ibarra; his two previous losses to Wanderlei Silva; and of course a manic episode this summer on a Southern California freeway that saw him being led away in handcuffs.

Simply put, many of the industry’s leading pundits do not believe Jackson has any business fighting right now. It’s a prevailing line of thought summed up rather succinctly by Dann Stupp of MMAjunkie.com during this week’s edition of “The Duel”:

“This fight may look competitive on paper (even with Jackson’s two previous losses to Silva), but there are some very important real-world issues the odds-makers seemed to have forgotten,” Stupp began to write. “Just five months ago Jackson was in a police chase. Let that sink in: an actual police chase in which he fled from cops, dodged spike strips and allegedly hit other cars before he was apprehended at gunpoint. It’s not exactly a fender-bender we’re talking about. He was also went to a mental-health facility after friends and family were worried about his sanity and well-being. He broke up with a longtime trainer who was also like a best friend, and every indication points to a less-than-amicable split with some very serious allegations about money.”

I’m picking Jackson to win, but no one can make a legitimate argument over the case that Stupp makes. But while covering the NFL, NBA, and Major League Baseball, there was a tired cliche I heard over and over: winning cures everything.

If Jackson loses in disappointing fashion, you’re going to see a lot of editorials blasting the UFC, Jackson, his family, and his friends for allowing him to fight. However, if he wins, all will be forgotten and the headlines will read “Jackson is back and better than ever.”

Winning cures everything and Jackson needs this win in the worst way because who knows how he will react in the aftermath of another loss?

3. Frank Mir attempts to overcome a less than ideal training camp - While watching HBO’s telecast a few weeks back of Wladimir Klitschko defending his heavyweight title vs. Hasim Rahman, Jim Lampley came right out and said at the top of the fight that Rahman had less than “an ideal training camp.” That was a politically correct way of saying Rahman was out of shape.

Well, I don’t live in Vegas and I’ve never met Mir so I couldn’t tell you exactly how he prepared for this fight. However, FiveOuncesOfPain.com has had multiple “informants” in recent months claim that Mir “had less than an ideal training camp.” He dealt with a back issue along with one other undisclosed injury. He was involved with not one, but two WEC telecasts. He did a lot of media for this fight and to promote the TUF 8 finale. He also was at the finale itself coaching some of his fighters.

We all know Mir’s reputation for not training as hard as he should at times and it appears that he hasn’t done anything this time to dispel that notion. Picking off Antoni Hardonk and Dan Christison when you don’t have your A-game is one thing but trying to defeat a legend like Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira in a fight scheduled for five rounds when you’re not in top shape is another.

Mir got by with his pure talent early in his career but the motorcycle accident changed that. If Mir manages to pull off the upset tonight, it means that in spite of the severe accident in which his leg almost required amputation, he managed to retain more of his natural athletic gifts than we previously thought.

4. The foundation for the 2009 light heayweight title picture being laid out - UFC President Dana White hasn’t labeled Silva vs. Jackson III as a fight to determine the number one contender for the UFC heavyweight title, but c’mon! It’s either the winner of Jackson vs. Silva that gets it or the winner of Thiago Silva vs. Lyoto Machida at UFC 94.

It would seem like a no-brainer to call this fight a number one contender’s match but perhaps there is more than meets the eye. I’m not sure what Jackson’s contract situation is but tonight will mark Wanderlei’s third fight in the UFC. Perhaps he’s up for re-negotiation and the UFC isn’t going to back itself into a corner by guaranteeing him a title shot just before it goes to the bargaining table?

Politics aside, the winner of this fight will be a worthy title challenger and regardless of who wins, the UFC will win. Griffin vs. Silva would be a great fight; Evans vs. Silva wouldn’t be anywhere near as big, but it wouldn’t be bad; Jackson vs. Evans could be a good way to try and attract more African-American fight fans because it will help dispel the myth that the UFC is nothing more than a “bunch of white guys from the midwest.”

But I think the most lucrative matchup that could be bred out of tonight would be Griffin vs. Jackson II. There’s a lot of drama there and the fact that Jackson has said he thinks about the loss every day is the type of storyline that translates well for television ads and countdown shows.

No matter what, at the very least we will have a slightly greater sense of clarity about how the light heavyweight title picture will unfold heading into 2009 after tonight’s two huge 205 pound encounters.

5. The identity of the first fighter to challenge Brock Lesnar for the UFC heavyweight title being revealed - After tonight, the first round of the so-called “mini-heavyweight tournament” will be over and the finals will be set. And in just a few short hours, we’ll be a major step closer towards determining the undisputed heavyweight champion of the UFC. Will we see Lesnar vs. Nogueira or Lesnar vs. Mir II? Either way, the UFC wins. Lesnar vs. a legend will attract a lot of interest but Lesnar going for revenge against the only man to ever beat him might have even bigger box office potential.

6. Mike Massenzio seeks revenge against C.B. Dollaway - When you think UFC 92, you think of the big three matches. However, Massenzio vs. Dollaway is a nice little bout for the televised main card to have to complement the big three. This isn’t just some random wrestler vs. wrestler bout as their is some history here.

Massenzio was a wrecking machine as a amateur wrestler on the Junior College level until he ran into Dollaway in the JUCO finals several years ago. Dollaway pulled off the mild upset and being the uber-competitor he is, Massenzio became obsessed with seeking revenge. He trained like a mad man for the following year’s JUCO tourney and while he made it to the finals, Dollaway got picked off before they could meet. In a strange twist of irony, Massenzio’s shot at redemption will now come inside of the cage.

Public money will come in on Dollaway because the casual fans know him from TUF 7 while Massenzio is still a virtual unknown to the mainstream. Living in Philly and being a supporter of anything with local sports ties, I have followed Massenzio’s MMA career closely, just as I have with most Philly and Jersey-based fighters. Having watched Massenzio up close, I can tell you he is going to make waves in the UFC’s middleweight division and while I was singing the praises of Dollaway as a top MMA prospect long before he made it to TUF, I consider Massenzio to be the better fighter at this moment in time.

If I am correct in my belief that Massenzio wins this fight, then what happens to Dollaway? Despite a strong career wrestling for Arizona State and working with a tremendous camp at Arizona Combat Sports, the two losses to Amir Sadollah via submission are still a little too fresh. If he loses to Massenzio, is a July win over Jesse Taylor enough to keep him on the UFC roster? I hope so, because I think the best from Dollaway is still yet to come.

7. Yushin Okami and Dean Lister likely fighting for the right to remain in the UFC – UFC President Dana White hasn’t called Okami vs. Lister a “loser leaves town fight,” but Dave Meltzer speculated as much in the Wrestling Observer several weeks ago. With the UFC cutting several mid-level salary fighters, Meltzer’s reporting carries a lot of logic. If it’s Lister who loses his job, I think outage will be at a minimum. However, if Okami is sent packing with a 6-2 lifetime Octagon record how many editorials from the blogosphere are we going to read proclaiming that the “UFC is more sports entertainment than sport?”

8. The debut of Pat Barry - When the casual fan hears the name “Pat Barry” their automatic response is “Who?” However, next to Cheick Kongo, he could easily be the second-best pure heavyweight striker in the UFC. He makes his debut against Dan Evensen, a fighter whose greatest attribute is striking. However, Barry’s striking is on a different level and we could see an absolute demolition that is so good it wins “Knockout of the Night” and gets promoted to the main card telecast on tape-delay. I’m working on a “Breakout Stars for 2009″ article and Barry is a leading candidate to be on it. Is it obvious yet that I am excited about the former K-1 fighter’s arrival in the UFC? A friend called me from Vegas telling me the odds on this fight are even money. Man, if I was in Vegas right now I’d be betting the house on Barry.

9. Mike Wessel looks to defeat Antoni Hardonk on two weeks notice - Having trained out of several fight gyms, I can tell you that it’s a big deal when a fighter gets a chance to fight for a major national promotion. Everyone in the gym begins to politic to travel with the fighter and be in his corner. The reason? Because they want the exposure. Prior to cornering Rolando Delgado for the TUF 8 finale, Mike Wessel was an 8-1 prospect known only to the hardest of hardcores. But Delgado pumped up his boy at every turn and made sure UFC Vice President of Talent Relations Joe Silva knew who he was at the TUF 8 finale. The introduction paid off because when Silva suddenly needed a last-minute replacement to fight Antoni Hardonk after Mark Burch was scratched due to injury, Wessel got the call.

Wessel is a great heavyweight prospect but there are questions whether or not he’s ready right now for the UFC. There is also a question of whether he can hang with such a strong striker as Hardonk after just a few weeks of preparation? If Wessel pulls off the victory, it’s going to be a tremendous upset and earn him a lot of capital with the UFC brass. If he loses, he’ll likely be given at least one more chance as a reward for taking a fight on short notice.

Despite his upside potential, Wessel is still the underdog against Hardonk. And if Hardonk wins, it will create an interesting situation because it will be his third consecutive win inside the Octagon. Once thought to be on the brink of being dropped, a win tonight for Hardonk could catapult him into a televised spot against an established heavyweight in his next bout. Where have you gone Heath Herring?