UFC 77: "Hostile Territory" Results
by Robert Sargent
In a night of 10-8 rounds, fight-ending cuts and hometown fighters suffering defeats, Anderson "The Spider" Silva retained his UFC Middleweight Championship at UFC 77 by defeating Rich "Ace" Franklin by TKO early in the second round.
In a heavyweight battle, Tim "The Maine-iac" Sylvia used his size to dictate the pace against Brandon "The Truth" Vera, emerging with a Unanimous Decision victory after three rounds.
UFC Middleweight Championship
Anderson "The Spider" Silva vs Rich "Ace" Franklin
Unfortunately for Franklin, this fight went very similarly to his first fight with Silva.After some initial striking exchanges, Silva attempted to utilise some Muay Thai knee strikes from the clinch, as he did in the first fight. Franklin, to his credit, escaped the clinch twice and eventually scored a takedown on Silva, who promptly got back to his feet and went for the clinch once again. The round continued with striking exchanges, with Silva getting the better of them but Franklin landing a few good shots as well, but, with mere seconds left in the round, Silva rocked Franklin with a right hand, crumpling Franklin to the canvas. Franklin, barely conscious, was saved by the bell and carried to the stool in his corner.
The second round began exactly how the previous round had ended, with Silva dominating the standup war and landing punches, kicks and knees at will. Backing Franklin into the cage, Silva unleashed a furious combination of punches to the head, knee strikes, a kick to the body and two kicks to the head, before Franklin once again crumpled to the canvas. The fight was stopped, with Silva as the winner, once again, by TKO. Official time was 1:07 of the second.
It is uncertain whom each of these fighters will next face, with Franklin now dominated in back-to-back fights with Silva and Silva seemingly unbeatable in the UFC. With Silva's only major competition fighting mostly outside of the UFC - Denis Kang in K-1 HERO's and Paulo Filho (Silva's close friend) the Middleweight Champion in the WEC - his foes are now essentially limited to Dan Henderson, Yushin Okami and, should he get past Karo Parisyan and return to middleweight, Silva's old nemesis, Ryo Chonan. Full credit to both fighters for a classy display after the fight, especially to Franklin for urging his hometown fans to support Silva. Such class is often missing in many aspects of MMA today.
Brandon "The Truth" Vera vs Tim "The Maine-iac" Sylvia
Unlike the main event, this fight delivered little excitement. Sylvia's size was simply too much for Vera, with Sylvia pushing Vera up against the cage for 80% of the fight, and Vera unable to do anything about it except hold on and throw knee strikes.The very brief striking exchange in the first round was actually won by Vera, though he still lost the round due to Sylvia controlling position for nearly the entire duration. However, Vera's best punch of the round was also his downfall in this fight, as he broke his left hand landing a solid left hook to Sylvia's skull near the end of the round.
The second round was very similar to the first, with Sylvia controlling position for most of the round. The striking exchanges were again won by Vera, with punches and a few of his trademark kicks. Near the end of the round, after Vera had taken Sylvia down, Sylvia was rising back to his feet when Vera kneed him in the head - an illegal blow. After a warning and timeout for Sylvia to regain his composure, Vera came out flying for the remaining seconds of the round, landing punches and three excellent kicks to the body, winning the round in the process. At this stage, it was 1-1.
The third round went all wrong for Vera, who was likely feeling the ill effects of his broken hand and was forced to resort to standing elbows instead of left crosses. Sylvia dominated the entire round, including the striking, peppering Vera with punches throughout the latter half of the round. It was one-sided enough that one judge scored it 10-8 for Sylvia. Sylvia wins by Unanimous Decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-27). Afterwards, Sylvia calls out Cheick Kongo and Vera says he'll be back as soon as his hand is healed, and will continue to fight as a heavyweight, despite being small for the division.
Eric "Ravishing Red" Schafer vs "The American Psycho" Stephan Bonnar
Schafer scored an early takedown in the first round, following some brief striking exchanges, but Bonnar was able to get back to his feet relatively easily. Schafer, undeterred, put Bonnar back on the ground with a nice slam. He worked to Bonnar's back, sinking in both hooks, and looked to finish with a rear naked choke. Schafer almost got the submission, but Bonnar escaped and landed a few solid shots before the end of the round.The second round was much different from the first, with Bonnar getting Schafer down and securing top position before raining down a series of punches. Schafer seemed dazed, and offered little defence before turtling up. Bonnar continued landing strikes and Schafer did not defend himself, so the fight was stopped at 2:47 of the second round. Bonnar wins by TKO.
Alan "The Talent" Belcher vs Kalib Starnes
This was an exciting fight, but ended with a very unfortunate stoppage.The first round was filled with a series of striking exchanges, with the Muay Thai practitioner, Belcher, landing numerous hard punches, knees and kicks and Starnes replying with dozens of jabs and crosses of his own. Starnes landed far more punches, but Belcher's strikes did more damage. An elbow, followed by a knee from Belcher, opened up a gigantic and very deep cut above Starnes's right eye. After a timeout in the first round to check the cut, the fight was allowed to continue. Although Starnes landed considerably more strikes, Belcher won the first round on damage dealt.
The second round was very similar to the first, with Belcher landing hard shots and Starnes retaliating with a number of strikes of his own, dealing damage to Belcher and putting him on the defensive momentarily. However, after more strikes from Belcher to the cut on Starnes's head, the doctor examined the cut once again, stated that he could physically see Starnes's skull and called a halt to the fight.
After the fight, in a very classless display, a member of Starnes's corner team apparently complained to Starnes, accusing him of quitting. Starnes had clearly stated twice that he wished to continue, and was told that he could not do so by the doctor, who halted the bout. Starnes angrily shouted at the member of his corner, and with good reason. It was an unfortunate end to a good fight, but Starnes has absolutely nothing to be ashamed of. The gruesome cut was one of the largest and deepest cuts in major MMA history. Belcher officially wins the fight by TKO (cut) at 1:39 of the second round.
Jorge Gurgel vs Alvin "Kid" Robinson
This was a very bizarre fight. The first round was completely dominated by Gurgel, the Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu Black Belt, who took Robinson down and controlled position for the entire round. Robinson managed to avoid being caught in a submission, but Gurgel passed Robinson's guard at will, eventually getting full mount with mere seconds remaining in the round. If Gurgel had gone for more submission attempts, this could have easily been scored 10-8 in his favour.The second round was the complete opposite from the first. Robinson got Gurgel down and held top position for nearly the entire round, landing dozens and dozens of punches and hammerfists from the top on a bewildered Gurgel. Gurgel went for repeated weak attempts at armbars, but Robinson continued pounding away until the end of the round. Gurgel's face was swollen and bleeding.
The third round was one of the most lopsided rounds in UFC history, with Robinson again taking Gurgel down and retaining top position for the entire round. Robinson again landed dozens and dozens of punches and hammerfists on Gurgel, who literally did nothing except hold on and survive the round. It was so one-sided that two judges scored the round 10-8 in favour of Robinson. Gurgel's face was a battered mess, and Robinson won the fight by Unanimous Decision (29-28, 29-27, 29-27). Great first round for Gurgel, terrible, terrible second and third rounds.
Demian Maia vs Ryan Jensen
This fight immediately went to the ground, with Maia, a Brazilian Jit-Jitsu Black Belt and multi-time Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu World Champion, scoring a takedown seconds into the round and working to side control. After a minute, Maia took Jensen's back and began working for a rear naked choke. Although Jensen gamely defended the submission attempts, Maia capitalised on a split-second dropping of the hand by Jensen, securing the choke and winning by Submission (rear naked choke) at 2:40 of the first round. Maia could be a force to be reckoned with in the future.Yushin Okami vs Jason "The Athlete" MacDonald
Sadly, this fight did not make it onto the PPV telecast, though it should have.The first round was fairly slow, as is typical in Okami fights and the reason (he's a "boring fighter," according to UFC management - far from the truth) why this fight was not broadcast. Okami defended against the Canadian, MacDonald's, takedown attempts, landing strikes before MacDonald countered with a high kick just before the end of the round.
The native of Japan turned up the pace in round two, scoring with numerous strikes and a takedown. Okami used his patented ground and pound to batter MacDonald's head, causing MacDonald's eye to swell shut.
The third round was dominated by Okami, as is the custom in most of his fights that go to the third, with Okami pounding MacDonald from top position with effective ground and pound throughout the round. Okami wins by Unanimous Decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27) and has to be next in line for a title shot with Anderson Silva. The two have fought once before, at a Rumble on the Rock event in Hawaii, but the fight was halted after Silva knocked Okami out with an illegal upkick and was disqualified. A rematch, with a clear victor, could be extremely entertaining.
Forrest "The Meat Cleaver" Petz vs "The People's Warrior" Josh Burkman
This fight did not air on the PPV, but it was a very close decision.The first round began with a clinch, and Burkman secured a takedown and went for a guillotine choke. Petz escaped, then pushed Burkman up against the cage on the ground. Burkman countered and rose to his feet before slamming Petz to the mat. Petz struck from the bottom and the two rose back to their feet soon after. Burkman started landing heavy punches and scored a takedown before the end of the round.
Both fighters were visibly fatigued in the second round, with Petz winning the standup and cutting Burkman below the eye. The third round was similar, with Burkman now cutting Petz with strikes. Petz continued to get the better of the standup, however, but Burkman landed a solid punch with a minute left in the round that sent Petz crashing to the canvas. Petz survived the round, but the damage was done and Burkman won a razor-thin Split Decision (29-28, 29-28, 28-29).
Jason Black vs Matt "The Real One" Grice
Grice scored an early takedown on Black, but Black worked for submissions for most of the round, including a triangle, kimura and guillotine choke. Grice escaped, but with 90 seconds remaining, Black appeared to have Grice's arm locked up, but Grice rolled out and escaped. After a brief striking exchange, the fight went back to the ground, with Black going for arm submissions until the end of the round.Grice began the second round with a series of strikes, hurting Black. Black regained his composure and locked in a tight combination triangle/kimura, striking Grice in the face with his free hand. Unfortunately for Black, the round came to a close and Grice was saved by the bell.
The fight went to the ground once again in the third round, with Black going for a guillotine choke. Grice escaped, and the two traded punches on the ground. As the round came to an end, Grice began landing more powerful strikes and it was just barely enough to edge out a Split Decision that was so close that a scoring error originally listed it as a Draw. Grice wins with scores of 29-28, 29-28 and 28-29. Black is an extremely good fighter, but after going 19-0-1 in his first 20 professional fights, age may be catching up to the 35-year-old, as he has lost four of his last six fights. It is unfortunate that his long-awaited arrival to the UFC has gone so poorly for him thus far, especially since he was seconds away from winning this fight in the second round.
With his dominance over Rich Franklin for the second time, Anderson Silva may next look to avenge his last loss in a fight with Yushin Okami.
