Alexander “The Mauler” Gustafsson vs Cyrille “The Snake” Diabate

Round 1:
Gustafsson landed a nice left hook and a combination in the opening round, then dropped Diabate with a right. He punched from the top in side-control and opened a cut on the top of Diabate’s head. Diabate worked back to his feet, but Gustafsson clinched and floored him with an uppercut. Diabate recovered and time was called to replace his mouthpiece. The fight resumed and Diabate landed a body kick and a combination. Gustafsson replied with more uppercuts and scored another takedown. He once again punched from the top in side-control. Dominant 10-9 round for Gustafsson.

Round 2:
Gustafsson slammed Diabate to the mat in the second round and worked from the top in half-guard. Diabate tried to scramble, but wound up mounted and soon gave up his back. Gustafsson secured a rear-naked choke, but Diabate would not submit. Gustafsson landed punches and secured the choke again. Finally, on a third try, he managed to secure a better grip on the choke and Diabate was forced to submit.

Winner: Alexander Gustafsson by Submission (Rear-Naked Choke) at 2:41 of round two. He improves to 10-1-0.

Rob Broughton vs Vinicius “Spartan” Kappke de Quieroz

Round 1:
Quieroz opened the fight with big punches and he landed a right hand and a leg kick that hurt Broughton. Quieroz took Broughton down and landed big punches from half-guard. Broughton regained full guard, but Quieroz kept the pressure on with more punches. Quieroz took Broughton’s back in a scramble, but soon stood up and Broughton followed. Quieroz landed jabs and a knee, then took Broughton down again. Broughton attempted a heel hook, but Quieroz easily escaped. 10-9 Quieroz.

Round 2:
Broughton missed badly with a wild haymaker to start the second round and Quieroz took advantage by taking his back while standing. Broughton shrugged him off and landed jabs and a hook. Quieroz scored a takedown, but little transpired and the fighters were stood up. Broughton landed more jab-hook combos and Quieroz countered with a head kick and a takedown. Broughton struck from his back while Quieroz did almost nothing. The fight returned to the feet and Broughton landed combinations, but Quieroz took him down before the bell. 10-9 Broughton.

Round 3:
Jabs and right hooks scored for Broughton in the final round and he countered a takedown attempt with a standing guillotine choke. He used the hold to put Quieroz on his back on the ground. Quieroz attempted to work back to his feet, but Broughton kept him down and tried for a straight armbar. Quieroz rolled to escape, but Broughton teed off with left hands from back control and secured a rear-naked choke. Quieroz tapped out.

Winner: Rob Broughton by Submission (Rear-Naked Choke) at 1:43 of round three. He improves to 15-5-1.

Paul “Sassangle” Sass vs Mark “Boots” Holst

Round 1:
Sass pulled guard early on and tried for a triangle choke and an omoplata. Holst escaped and stood up. Sass followed and promptly pulled half-guard again. Holst threw short punches to the body from the top, but Sass attempted a heel hook as Holst stood. Sass then worked for more submissions from his back until the fight returned to the feet.

Holst hurt Sass with a kick to the body and fell into Sass’s guard. Sass locked on a heel hook and Holst spun out. He stood and Sass followed. Sass threw a Superman Punch and pulled guard. Holst was unable to do much of anything from the top and Sass locked on his signature triangle choke. Holst fought it, but was forced to submit late in the round. Good win for Sass.

Winner: Paul Sass by Submission (Triangle Choke) at 4:45 of round one. He improves to 11-0-0.

Spencer “The King” Fisher vs Kurt “The War” Warburton

Round 1:
Fisher opened the fight with kicks, but Warburton promptly answered with some of his own. The fighters continued to trade kicks and Warburton got the better of it, forcing Fisher to clinch. Warburton reversed against the cage and landed knees to the thigh. He took Fisher down and worked for a guillotine choke. Fisher eventually managed to escape and regained full guard. Warburton landed a handful of elbows in the final minute. 10-9 Warburton.

Round 2:
The second round began with another exchange of kicks. Fisher caught one and clinched. Warburton reversed again and both landed knees to the thighs. Warburton’s strikes were more effective, but the referee separated the fighters and Fisher threw a spinning back kick. He clinched again and the fighters traded knees in close. Fisher landed a nice right hand and stuffed a takedown. He tripped Warburton and attempted an axe kick, but was forced to spin out of a heel hook attempt. Fisher punched from the top, then went for another axe kick. Very close round. 10-9 Fisher.

Round 3:
Punches were exchanged in the final round and Fisher connected with a Superman Punch. He clinched and a lengthy battle for position followed against the cage, with neither fighter holding an advantage. The referee broke them apart and Fisher countered a leg kick with a lead right hook. He followed with a double flying knee and reversed a takedown. Fisher took Warburton’s back and worked for a rear-naked choke, then moved to mount. He tried again for the choke and settled for punches in the final ten seconds. 10-9 Fisher.

Winner: Spencer Fisher by Unanimous Decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28) after three rounds. He improves to 24-6-0.

Fabio Maldonado vs James “The Hammer” McSweeney

Round 1:
McSweeney opened up round one with leg kicks and sidestepped a flurry of punches from Maldonado. More kicks and a hard right hand scored for McSweeney, but a kick strayed low and Maldonado was given time to recover. Action resumed and Maldonado rushed forward with more punches. McSweeney countered with a knee from a Thai clinch and backed Maldonado up to the cage. He ducked under a wild right hand and drilled Maldonado with knees and a head kick. Maldonado taunted and McSweeney obliged by punching him repeatedly until the bell. 10-9 McSweeney.

Round 2:
McSweeney landed leg and body kicks in the second round, but the pace slowed and Maldonado hurt him with a right hand to the body. He swarmed with more body shots and McSweeney fell to the ground. Maldonado worked from the top in side-control until McSweeney managed to regain half-guard. Maldonado moved back to side-control and tried for a keylock. McSweeney escaped, but ate punches for his efforts. Maldonado took his back and dragged McSweeney down as he tried to stand. The fight returned to the feet and Maldonado landed a combination. 10-9 Maldonado.

Round 3:
A fatigued McSweeney attempted to keep Maldonado at bay with front kicks in the final round, but slipped. Maldonado allowed him to get back to his feet, then teed off with punches to the body that backed McSweeney up against the cage. More punches followed for Maldonado and the referee stopped the fight.

Winner: Fabio Maldonado by TKO (Punches) at 0:48 of round three. He improves to 18-3-0.

While the event lacked the excitement level that recent cards have offered, UFC 120 was still a successful event for the Ultimate Fighting Championship and featured impressive performances from Mike “Quicksand” Pyle and “The Natural Born Killer” Carlos Condit. In the main event, British star Michael “The Count” Bisping outpointed Yoshihiro Akiyama to take a well-earned Unanimous Decision that will put him one step closer to the title shot that he craves.