The Ultimate Fighting Championship held its first event in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates today with UFC 112: “Invincible.” The card was headlined by a dreadful UFC Middleweight Championship bout between champion Anderson “The Spider” Silva and challenger Demian Maia.

In the co-main event, “The Prodigy” BJ Penn was shockingly upset by new UFC Lightweight Champion Frankie “The Answer” Edgar, while legends Matt Hughes and Renzo Gracie did battle in a lacklustre welterweight bout. MMARising.com has live play-by-play for the ten-fight card.

 

UFC Middleweight Championship

Anderson “The Spider” Silva vs Demian Maia

Round 1:
Maia cautiously looked to close the distance early on and Silva kept his distance. Silva landed a front kick to the leg and sent Maia off-balance with a hard leg kick. Silva turned up the pace and landed a spinning back kick to the ribs. He began showboating and stunned Maia with a straight left hand.

Silva landed a leg kick and backed up. More kicks followed for Silva and he began to showboat again. Maia tried to pull guard, but Silva stepped free. He dropped Maia with a flying knee and kicked at Maia’s legs. Maia got to his feet and Silva stood still. He shuffled forward and landed a right hand before the bell. Ridiculous round. 10-9 Silva.

Round 2:
Maia threw a lead right hook and missed wildly. Silva backed him up and threw right hands. Silva landed a kick as Maia dove for a takedown. Maia stood up and Silva threw flashy kicks. Maia dove in again and tried to pull guard, but Silva evaded. Again, Silva stepped free of a takedown. Silva’s clowning rose to a new level as he beckoned Maia to hit him.

Silva sidestepped a one-two from Maia and replied with punches and a leg kick. Maia refused to engage and the crowd finally began to grow restless. Silva threw a hard body kick and stuffed a takedown. He sent Maia backpedalling with a leg kick and quick punches. A stiff jab landed for Silva and he just missed with a one-two. The highly bizarre round came to an end. 10-9 Silva.

Round 3:
Maia landed a left hook to begin the third round and Silva shrugged it off. He threw kicks to the body of Maia and added two leg kicks soon after. The pace slowed, but Silva threw single kicks to the lead leg of Maia. The crowd voiced their displeasure and Silva threw a spinning back kick. A wild exchange followed and Silva landed a glancing head kick.

He stuffed a takedown, but Maia cracked him with a solid left hand. Silva replied with a body kick and backed Maia up with a one-two. Maia landed another left hook and Silva targeted the body again. Maia tried to pull guard and Silva stepped free. Maia stood and nothing happened in the final 20 seconds. Very tedious fight. 10-9 Silva.

Round 4:
Maia opened round four with an overhand left as his battered face continued to bleed from the previous rounds. Another looping left hook partially landed for Maia, but Silva seemed content to circle away and do nothing. Silva finally threw a one-two that narrowly missed. The crowd began to chant for Maia.

Maia finally began to show frustration at Silva’s nonsensical antics and Silva threw one leg kick. The crowd switched to chants of “GSP!” Referee Dan Miragliotta, obviously as bored as the crowd, implored the fighters to work. Silva danced around Maia and did nothing. Maia, his face a bloody mess, continued to try to push the pace. More chants for Maia. Silva danced in a circle. 10-9 Maia.

Round 5:
Maia threw quick jabs in the final round and Silva replied with a glancing left hand. He backed up and danced some more, then sidestepped a takedown. Silva threw a leg kick, but Maia replied with his best combination and backed Silva up to the cage. Another nice flurry scored for Maia and he threw punches from his knees. The crowd began to passionately chant Maia’s name and Silva returned to sparse jabs.

Maia threw a lead right hook that just missed. He latched onto Silva’s leg and tried to pull guard, but Silva escaped. Maia, again bleeding heavily and with his left eye completely swollen shut, walked Silva down as Silva pranced around the cage. Silva circled some more and the crowd booed. Referee Dan Miragliotta called time to warn Silva for inactivity. Maia threw a wild left hand and missed. He tried to land a haymaker before the horrendous fight came to an end. 10-9 Maia.

No scores were immediately given, but were later released. Silva was awarded with a Unanimous Decision as the frustrated crowd voiced their displeasure. Dreadful performance from Silva in the latter half of the fight.

Winner: Anderson Silva by Unanimous Decision (50-45, 50-45, 49-46) after five rounds. He improves to 26-4-0 and remains the UFC Middleweight Champion.

 

UFC Lightweight Championship

Frankie “The Answer” Edgar vs “The Prodigy” BJ Penn

Round 1:
Edgar circled early on and the fighters traded quick jabs. Edgar landed a nice leg kick and ducked under a counter hook. More leg kicks landed for Edgar, but he ate a left hook. Jabs landed for both fighters and Edgar threw a quick combination. Edgar landed a lunging left hook and avoided one from Penn.

Another stiff leg kick scored for Edgar and he clinched, but Penn punished him with uppercuts. Edgar landed a combination, but Penn countered with a short left hook. Penn followed with a one-two and countered another combination from Edgar. Edgar continued to throw punches and Penn tagged him with more counter hooks. Very close round. 10-10. Possibly Edgar’s round, barely.

Round 2:
Snapping jabs landed for both fighters early in the second round and Penn connected with a straight left hand. He avoided a takedown attempt and checked a leg kick from Edgar. Quick punches landed for both in a pair of exchanges. Penn continued to find a home for his counter left hook and Edgar kept his distance. Edgar briefly looked for a takedown, then threw a high kick.

The fighters returned to jabs and Edgar ducked under a combination. Edgar kept the pressure on, but Penn threw big punches in return. A nice one-two landed for Penn and Edgar answered with an overhand right. Edgar pressed forward with a combination and Penn stopped his momentum with a left hand. Edgar took Penn down for all of two seconds, but Penn immediately returned to his feet. Another even round. Very tough to score. 10-10.

Round 3:
Edgar threw more quick punches in the third round and Penn replied with a right cross and a three-punch flurry. Penn countered Edgar’s combinations nicely and easily avoided a takedown. Penn scored with a looping left hook and Edgar backed up. Edgar landed a nice left hand of his own, but Penn was undeterred and threw a one-two.

Edgar landed a body kick and two quick jabs. He began to mix up his strikes with kicks and tried briefly for a takedown. Penn scored with a glancing one-two and both fighters threw big, looping punches. Edgar faked a shot and landed a body kick. Edgar ducked under a left hand and clinched, but Penn landed a knee and broke free. Both landed flurries before the bell. Scoring this fight is a nightmare. 10-9 Edgar. This could conceivably be 30-27 Edgar.

Round 4:
The fighters traded quick combinations in the fourth round and Penn just missed with an uppercut. Edgar kept the pace high and backed Penn up with short punches. He followed with more combinations and briefly looked to clinch. A leg kick landed for Edgar and he just missed with a head kick. Edgar landed an overhand right and ducked under a one-two from Penn.

Edgar missed with a lunging left hook, but landed a leg kick and a short uppercut in close. Edgar began to target the body, but Penn scored with two stiff jabs. Edgar backed Penn up with a flurry of punches and just missed a flying knee. Penn circled free and the fighters traded more punches in the final seconds. Another close round. 10-9 Edgar.

Round 5:
Edgar came out aggressively with punches in the final round and scored a big takedown. Penn scrambled to his feet, but Edgar continued to throw quick punches and followed with a head kick. Edgar sidestepped a right hand, but Penn landed a leg kick. Edgar clinched and Penn shrugged him off with a solid right hook. A hard right hand found the mark for Edgar seconds later.

Penn threw a high kick that missed and Edgar replied with a lead left hook. He tried for a takedown, but Penn stuffed it. He stuffed another takedown, but Edgar landed a stiff jab. A one-two and a leg kick landed for Edgar and he followed with a flurry. The fighters traded right hands and Edgar scored with a body kick. Edgar landed another one-two and the fighters teed off in the final seconds. 10-9 Edgar.

Winner: Frankie Edgar by Unanimous Decision (50-45, 49-46, 48-47) after five rounds. He improves to 12-1-0 and becomes the new UFC Lightweight Champion.

 

Matt Hughes vs Renzo Gracie

Round 1:
The fighters cautiously kept their distance early on and Hughes threw a kick to the body. He jabbed forward, but Gracie circled away. 90 seconds in, Gracie landed a pair of short left hooks that backed Hughes up. He landed a one-two, but Hughes clinched and pressed Gracie against the cage. Gracie broke free, but Hughes punched his way into another clinch.

Gracie landed a knee to the body and once again escaped the clinch. Hughes threw a leg kick and Gracie just missed with a lunging three-punch flurry. Gracie landed a counter right hand and stuffed a takedown. Hughes returned to leg kicks and missed badly with a Superman Punch that drew the ire of the crowd. A short left hook and a front kick to the body landed for Gracie. Uneventful round. 10-10.

Round 2:
Gracie opened round two with a pair of jabs and Hughes answered with hard leg kicks. A kick and a short hook landed for Gracie and he avoided a clinch attempt from Hughes. Gracie threw a one-two, but Hughes locked on a clinch and briefly took him down. Gracie got right back to his feet and Hughes punished him with another leg kick. Gracie targeted the body and Hughes landed another leg kick. The crowd grew restless.

Both fighters landed quick punches in an exchange and Gracie landed a big leg kick of his own. He continued to throw punches to the body of Hughes, but Hughes was quick to counter with kicks. The fighters exchanged jabs and Hughes landed a nice punch-kick combo. Gracie replied with a right hook and added a second soon after. Hughes secured a standing front choke and landed a knee and a punch before the bell. Close round. 10-9 Hughes.

Round 3:
Hughes threw leg kicks early in the final round and Gracie looked to answer with punches to the body. Gracie clinched briefly and Hughes punched free, then landed another leg kick. He landed a solid overhand right, but backed off. Gracie was unfazed, but Hughes punched his way into a clinch against the cage. Gracie escaped, but Hughes rocked him with a combination and an uppercut. Once more, Hughes stunned Gracie with a right hand and followed with leg kicks.

The kicks to Gracie’s lead leg took their toll and he fell to the mat. Hughes helped him back up and dropped him with another leg kick. He struggled back to his feet and landed a one-two, but Hughes punished him with more kicks and punches. Gracie fell again and Hughes allowed him to stand. More leg kicks and jabs buckled Gracie and Hughes finished the fight very late in the round with a combination against the cage. Fairly lacklustre fight, but a reasonable win for Hughes nonetheless.

Winner: Matt Hughes by TKO (Punches) at 4:40 of round three. He improves to 44-7-0.

 

(Photo Credit: UFC.com)