It was billed as the biggest night in Mixed Martial Arts history. UFC 100 from the sold out Mandalay Bay Events Center in Las Vegas was hyped and highlighted with a triple header of exciting main events including 2 championship bouts. Most of the talk was centered around the Heavyweight rematch pitting interim champ Frank Mir and the man he defeated last year in his first career MMA fight, and current UFC title holder Brock Lesnar.
The former WWE star and amatuer wrestler, Lesnar (4-1) came out like a man on a mission. He overpowered Mir (12-4) in early in the first round, taking him to the ground. There the 265 pound champ, suffocated Mir with ground-and-pound for most of the first round. Punishing the former champ with short, hard punches.
Round 2 featured more of the same, with the bloodied-up Mir once again being taken to the ground. In their first fight, Mir was able to catch Lesnar with a leg-lock and force a submission early in the first round, but this time around, Lesnar appeared to have a game-play of not allow the ju-jitsu black-belt any room to work on the ground, while utilizing his freakish size, strength and speed. Referee Herb Dean finally put an end to Mir's night by calling the fight towards the end of the 2nd round.
That's where things went from exciting to just weird. Lesnar then proceeded to fall back to his roots coming from his years in the WWE. He celebrated his win by getting into the face of Mir while his corner and the events doctors were attending to him. Then after the crowd began to show their distaste for the champ, Lesnar followed it up by "flipping the bird" to those in attendance.
Color Commentator Joe Rogan then interviewed Lesnar as he told the crowd to "Keep it up" and "I love it". Lesnar made himself the heel, weather intentional or just caught up in the moment, which did not please the brass at the UFC who have spent years developing the sport into a mainstream athletic event, as opposed to just brutality. Focusing on the athleticism and skills of their athletes. Lesnar continued his rant by snubbing one of the event's main sponsors "Bud Light" by saying he was "going to drink a Coor's Light, because Bud Light won't pay me." Lesnar also told the crowd that "Maybe I'll go home and get on top of my wife?"
After the post-fight antics, UFC president Dana White had a 1-on-1 with Lesnar in the bathroom of his lockerroom in a meeting Lesnar described as a "beat the dog session." In the post fight press conference Lesnar apologized for his actions and explained that he is a sore loser and was so jacked up for the fight, he lost it for a minute. He also appeared at the press conference drinking a "Bud Light".
Aside from the post-fight actions, it was an entertaining night of fights. Welterweight Champion George St. Pierre (20-2) defeated previously unbeaten in his last 7 fights and top-contender Thiago Alves (16-4) in a unanimous 5-round decision. St. Pierre took the bigger Alves down 9 times and was able to control the action for most of the fight, staking his claim as one of the best pound-for-pound fighters in the world.
In a grudge match in the Middle-Weight division, it was a matchup of coaches from the latest season of the Spike TV reality show "The Ultimate Fighter, Britain v. USA". Dan Henderson watched as Britains most popular MMA fighter, Michael Bisping repeatedly talked trash about not only his upcoming fight with the 38-year old Henderson, but in reference to the USA fighters throughout the show. Henderson quietly went about his business and Saturday night settled the score.
Henderson (25-7) scored a vicious Knockout in the 2nd round of Bisping (17-2) as he caught him with a powerful right-cross that sent the Brit flying back to the mat and asleep before his head touched the ground. Before the referee could stop Henderson, the former Pride and UFC champion landed a hard forearm to the chin for good measure. White also was unhappy about the final blow, but Henderson said it still felt good. Henderson also won the $100,000 "Knockout of the Night" prize.
All in all it was a pretty successful night for the UFC. And as the pay-per-view numbers are released I'm sure they will see the numbers as high, if not higher, than ever before. UFC 101 will take place August 8th at the Wachovia Center in Philadelphia with the double-main event as BJ Penn defends his Lightweight Championship against Kenny Florian and in a Light Heavyweight bout, Anderson Silva, considered by many to be the best fighter in the world, will take on the original Ultimate Fighter, Forrest Griffin in a superbout.
