Recommendation: After the event ends, I’ll be putting my recommendation on whether or not to buy the replay at here at the top.  So if you want to know whether the card is solid without seeing the spoilers, this is the place you’ll want to check out.

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Alright, people.  It’s 3:00pm in here in the East, and we are coming to you live from Belfast (well, I’m not, but the broadcast is), with UFC 72.  So you know what that means.  Cue the horrid gladiator montage!  Hear the interviews in black and white!  See the fight highlights in sepia tones to the tune of generic heavy metal!  It’s time for UFC 72: Victory!

We start off with some analysis of Franklin-Okami and Griffin-Ramirez.  They run down the main card, and then we see that the first fight they’re showing is a prelim!  It’s Ed Herman-Scott Smith, which many were hoping would make the main card.  This tells me that either (a.) the fight was good, or (b) the fight was quick.  We shall see.

FIRST FIGHT:  SCOTT “HANDS OF STEEL” SMITH vs. ED “SHORT FUSE” HERMAN (Middleweight)

Smith makes his way to the Octagon to the strains of “Iron Man”, which rules.  Herman walks to the beat of that Phil Collins song that I hate, about it being in the air tonight.  I can’t remember the title, but it makes me angry.  Maybe it makes him angry too, and that’s why he chose it.  Big ovation for both guys, which is cool.  I love European crowds.

ROUND ONE:  Herman shoots immediately and takes Smith down without problems.  He works body shots from inside the guard.  He lands some shots to the head.  Smith spins and Herman almost takes his back, but they make their way back to the feet.  Herman throws an errant knee.  They face up and clinch against the fence.  Herman looks to knee in the Thai clinch.  He looks for a takedown but gets caught in a guillotine.  Smith seems a bit dazed, though, and Herman escapes the loose choke.  Herman drops a couple of short elbows to the face.  Smith seems to have recovered his senses a bit, and is defending rather well until he is nailed with a big elbow that cuts him wide open.  That is a nasty gash and blood is everywhere.  The replay looks like Smith’s nose is broken.  Herb Dean calls time and gets the cut looked at.  It’s not bad enough to stop the fight, as it won’t affect his vision, but boy is it nasty.  They get back into position, and Herman continues to inflict punishment.  He grabs an arm and looks to get an Americana, but is unsuccessful.  Smith reverses and gets top position for about half a second, then grabs a leglock.  Herman grabs a leg in kind, but neither is able to cinch anything.  Herman takes Smith’s back and wails some punches, then goes for a rear naked choke.  Smith escapes, but the round ends.  That one goes to Herman easily. 

ROUND TWO:  They come out not quite as fast this time, and Herman shoots.  Smith sprawls and grabs a guillotine, and Herman pushes him up against the fence.  Herman continues to push, and the fight goes down where Smith gets full guard.  He is unable to cinch the choke long enough, and Herman escapes.  It takes Herman a minute to regain energy, and his shots don’t have quite the zip that they had before.  He continues to throw those elbows, though.  This is one of the fights you could bring up in an argument against using elbows in MMA.  Smith avoids an elbow and Herman takes his back, cinching the rear naked choke and causing Smith to tap.

RESULT:  Herman by submission at 2:25 of round 2.

STAR RATING:  (***-)  Impressive performance by Herman, and Smith held his own on the ground for far longer than I would have expected.  (I should note at this point that this fight was actually live.  It wasn’t advertised as a main card fight, though.)

RAMIFICATIONS:  Herman proves his mettle and he’ll get another fight on the main card.  Smith may find himself back in the WEC, which suits him better anyway until he can improve his wrestling skills. 

We get a promo for UFC 73, which by all indications will be awesome, and our next fight is the highly anticipated (for me, anyway) clash between Clay Guida and Tyson Griffin. 

SECOND FIGHT: TYSON GRIFFIN vs. CLAY “THE CARPENTER” GUIDA (Lightweight)

Guida jumps and dances his way down to the ring, using none of his endless gas tank.  Seriously, Goldberg and Rogan are talking up Guida’s conditioning, and it is not hyperbole.  This guy can go all day and all night, and never get tired.  Guida gets beat up by his cornerman before entering the Octagon.  Griffin makes his way to the fight with “Eye of the Tiger” playing over the loudspeakers.  Joe Rogan says “Aw, no he didn’t.”  Funny.  During the intros, the camera pans the crowd but gets distracted by three girls. 

ROUND ONE:  They circle to start out, and Griffin throws a leg kick, which is caught by Guida.  Guida lands some shots while holding Griffin’s leg, which is cool.  They move against the fence, where Guida still has Griffin’s leg, and he tries a slam, but Griffin defends well.  Griffin is able to get a hold of Guida’s head, then pulls guard and turns it into a guillotine.  The choke is tight, but Guida continues to struggle against it.  Griffin loses guard and Guida escapes the choke.  They work their way to the feet, where Griffin looks for a rear naked choke and Guida grabs his foot, taking away his base.  They get back to their feet against the fence and clinch.  Guida throws a knee.  They continue to jockey for position and Griffin lands a knee to the head.  They separate and trade big shots.  Nice exchange.  Guida shoots and Griffin sprawls nicely.  Griffin is able to land some stiff jabs to Guida’s head, and his boxing is much more crisp than Guida’s.  Guida knows this, and grabs a leg.  Griffin defends, and stands back up, where Guida nails him with a right hand.  Griffin answers and they go back to the ground as the round ends.  A furious, excellent first round goes to Griffin.

ROUND TWO:  Griffin throws an overhand right to start, then another jab.  Head kick followed by a jab by Guida, and he grabs a leg.  In a ridiculous showing of takedown defense, Griffin stays standing as Guida lifts Griffin’s left leg up over his head.  Guida persists, and finally goes to the ground for about a second, then they pop back up.  Griffin continues to pick Guida apart with jabs.  Guida throws a flurry and shoots, but is thwarted.  Guida has a leg and turns over to get Griffin’s back, but is unable to keep it as Griffin reverses position, getting Guida’s back while standing.  He goes for a belly to back suplex, but Guida is able to slip out.  Griffin still has Guida’s back, and Guida grabs a leg, transitioning into a kneebar.  Griffin is in position to throw punches, and begins wailing away at the body of Guida from behind.  Griffin leans back and grabs Guida’s ankle, looking for a heel hook, but Guida gives up the kneebar and spins out, taking Griffin’s back.  He gets a hook in and attempts a rear naked choke on the standing Griffin.  Griffin continues to stand for a minute, but then falls forward, almost throwing Guida from his back.  Guida is relentless, though, and continues to cling to Griffin’s back, albeit in a higher position.  Round two ends, and it goes to Guida.  This fight is fantastic.

ROUND THREE:  Griffin throws some hard punches to start out.  Guida answers with a jab as Griffin closes.  They continue to exchange on the feet, and Griffin lands a nice punch-knee combo, followed by a body kick.  He lands another right hand, and Guida shoots.  Griffin defends and escapes, then lands some more stiff shots.  Guida throws a combo and shoots.  Griffin is able to get back up to his feet, but Guida still has a hold of him and drags him down.  Guida grabs Griffin’s back, but Griffin spins and lands on top of Guida, with both men on their backs, and Guida’s head right around the middle of Griffin’s back.  Griffin lands a nasty back elbow, and Guida looks for a leg.  Griffin throws some nasty hammer fists in response, and Guida spins into another weird position, with Guida’s back to Griffin, but Griffin still prone on the ground.  Guida throws a couple of backfist combinations, then spins again to get to his feet.  He dives back down with a punch, then spins into position for a guillotine, but not for long, as Griffin transitions into position for a leglock.  Guida escapes and briefly obtains the mounted position.  Both men inflict punishment, with Griffin landing some elbows from the bottom.  Guida gets to his feet and eats an upkick.  He comes back down and throws hammer fists.  Guida maneuvers to pass guard, and Griffin is keeping half guard very well.  Guida is able to stay on top and land some knees from the side, and he throws a flurry of punches from the top to end the fight.  Absolutely unbelievable fight, and I think Guida got the third round, and the fight, by a hair.  I normally don’t have a problem keeping up with a fight as far as play-by-play, but I had to rewind multiple times in each round to get the details in this one.  Just fantastic.  Guida could run a marathon right now.  Ridiculous.

RESULT:  Griffin by split decision.  Wow.  I’m really surprised by that decision, and so is the crowd.  And so are both fighters.  But Griffin hits it right on the head by saying that you can’t expect decisions to go your way.  The crowd is booing, which is understandable, but it’s also too bad after such a tremendous fight.  Maybe Griffin got extra points for his entrance music.

STAR RATING: (****+)  I almost took something away from the fight because of the decision, but I can’t do it.  That was absolutely amazing.  Guida gets a big ovation during his post-fight interview, where he says that he dedicated the fight to the late Jeremy Williams.

RAMIFICATIONS:  Losing a decision like that can’t do too much damage to Guida, and I think both guys took a step up the ladder here.  Just an amazing fight, and these guys are destined to fight again.

We get promos for the next 14 UFC events.

THIRD FIGHT:  RORY “VERSION 2.5” SINGER vs. JASON “THE ATHELETE” MACDONALD (Middleweight)

Singer has a little outburst as he enters the Octagon, and MacDonald enters to “Turn the Page”, by Metallica.  That’s one of those songs where I really like both the original and the cover version.  Great song.  An apt selection, too, as MacDonald looks to turn the page after a loss to Rich Franklin.  (Get it?  Eh?)  He enters the ring looking angry.

ROUND ONE:  Inside leg kick by MacDonald to start, and he looks to take Singer down.  They clinch on the fence, and MacDonald lands some inside knees.  MacDonald looks for a throw, but Singer defends well.  Foot stomps by both men.  MacDonald drops for a single leg, then drops again for another, but Singer grabs a hook and lands some knees to the body, followed by a big combination and some knees from the clinch.  MacDonald looks to counter and they tumble to the ground, MacDonald landing in Singer’s guard.  MacDonald looking to posture up, and he lands some shoulder strikes.  MacDonald stands and looks for a diving punch, but Singer lands some big upkicks.  They stand, and MacDonald shoots, but he slips.  He gets a leg in the process, but Singer is able to posture up and lands some punches and knees.  Singer looks to take MacDonald down, and he lands in the mount.  MacDonald spins, and Singer takes his back.  MacDonald looks a little dazed, but he is able to spin into Singer’s guard.  MacDonald lands a couple of punches.  MacDonald looks for some more strikes, and Singer grabs a triangle choke with 13 seconds left in the round.  MacDonald is able to hold on and escaphe round.  Close round goes to Singer.

ROUND TWO:  Inside leg kick by MacDonald, and MacDonald shoots, landing in Singer’s guard.  The action stalls for a couple of minutes as MacDonald looks to land shots, and the crowd gets a little restless.  MacDonald is able to land some decent body shots, but nothing spectacular.  MacDonald gets the mount and begins to rain down punches on Singer.  Singer defends relatively well, but MacDonald is relentless with punches and elbows, and the ref stops the fight.  The stoppage may have been a tad premature, as Singer was able to defend a lot of the punishment, but he wasn’t fighting back or looking to escape, so it was a matter of time anyway.

RESULT:  MacDonald by TKO at 3:18 of round 2.

STAR RATING:  (**)  Singer put in a better showing than I had expected, which made the fight more entertaining, but MacDonald didn’t seem completely on his game for whatever reason.

RAMIFICATIONS:  MacDonald gets back on the horse, as Singer probably just saw his last fight in the UFC, at least for a while.  I’ll be interested to see how they match up MacDonald in his next fight.

Michael Bisping is shown getting pictures with fans, and then we see Martin Kampmann with a leg brace, giving the camera a thumbs-down and driving home the point that he was not able to fight tonight, in case you didn’t believe it.

Promo for UFC 73.

FOURTH FIGHT:  FORREST GRIFFIN vs. HECTOR “SICK DOG” RAMIREZ (Light Heavyweight)

Enormous ovation for Griffin throughout the entrances and intros, and a chant of “Forrest, Forrest” breaks out before the fight even starts.

ROUND ONE:  Griffin comes out and peppers Ramirez with punches and kicks.  Leg kick by Griffin, and Ramirez gets a takedown and is in Griffin’s half guard.  Ramirez works to pass, but Griffin defends well, and they get back to the feet.  High kick by Griffin, and another kick misses.  Nice leg kick by Griffin, and Ramirez seems to be thinking more than attacking.  Right hand by Ramirez, and Griffin lands a couple more leg kicks.  Left hand lands for Ramirez, and he chases Griffin for a second.  Big left hook for Ramirez stuns Griffin, but Griffin answers with a few knees to the head.  Griffin continues to work the leg kicks, as the “Ole, Ole” soccer chant breaks out.  Head kick and leg kick by Griffin, followed by a right hand.  Leg kick and and uppercut combo lands for Griffin, and Ramirez counters, but is blocked.  More kicks to the head and body by Griffin, and he backs away as Ramirez chases.  Griffin doesn’t seem to have a ton of zip on his strikes, but he’s using a lot of diverse strikes to pick Ramirez apart.  The round ends, with Griffin getting the better of it.  Ramirez seems frustrated, and Griffin is somewhat reminiscent of a less technical Ryoto Machida in the first.

ROUND TWO:  Ramirez lands a punch to start out, and Griffin gets a clinch, landing some knees.  I don’t think he has the power to put Ramirez away tonight without using ground and pound.  Nice combination lands for Griffin.  We get more of the same, with Griffin landing combinations.  Ramirez lashes out with some punches, but nothing spectacular.  Griffin throws a high kick.  Ramirez needs to do something, but he doesn’t seem to know what that something is.  Right hand by Griffin stuns Ramirez briefly, and Griffin backs off.  Not sure why he’s not going in for the kill when he gets the upper hand.  More leg kicks by Griffin.  Big combo for Griffin, and Ramirez is on the ropes.  Griffin lands a knee to the marbles, and the action halts.  They get right back into it, with Griffin landing another big right hand.  Overhand right by Ramirez misses.  Griffin lands a leg kick and a punching combination.  More leg kicks by Griffin.  Ramirez catches a leg kick but is unable to do anything with it.  They flurry to end the second round, and Griffin is in control.  Either something’s going to give in the third, or Griffin cruises to a decision.  Randy Couture, in Griffin’s corner, tells him that the “one-two-step-kick” is killing him, and that’s accurate.

ROUND THREE:  They engage to start out, with Griffin getting the better of the exchange, then backing off.  Ramirez shoots, and Griffin defends but catches some punches on the way up.  Ramirez has been out of the fight since the middle of the first round.  Another “Ole” chant breaks out, as the crowd is going easy on these guys.  Griffin continues to pick Ramirez apart, using combinations then backing off.  There’s not too much more to say about the details, guys.  Seriously.  Combination, back off.  Combination, back off.  I think a better-conditioned Forrest Griffin stops this fight in the second.  Apparently he had to cut a ton of weight this week, so maybe that had some bearing on his being less willing to go for the kill tonight.  He’s hurting Ramirez, but never staying on him while he’s hurt.  Third round goes to Griffin as well.

RESULT:  Griffin by unanimous decision.

STAR RATING:  (**+)  Solid fight, but nothing spectacular.  Griffin landed combination after combination, and it looks like his affiliation with Randy Couture is going to be very beneficial for him. 

RAMIFICATIONS:  Griffin acknowledged that it’s hard to fight a guy when he’s running away from you (acknowledging how he continually backed off during the fight).  Of course, that’s kind of the point of backing off, right?  Anyway, Ramirez may or may not get another shot in the UFC right away, but he’ll probably be back eventually.  He just looked mentally defeated for most of the fight.

We get a promo for UFC 73, and we’re moving on to the main event.  That means we’re joined by the heavyweight champ, who changed his clothes pretty quickly from cornerman garb into commentator garb.  Couture mentions that this is the guy who knocked Franklin out in Japan, but I believe Couture is thinking of Ryoto Machida.  Joe Rogan must not have caught it, because he surely would have called the champ on it.

MAIN EVENT:  RICH “ACE” FRANKLIN vs. YUSHIN OKAMI (Middleweight)

Okami comes to the ring listening to the Kill Bill theme, as Couture corrects himself on the Machida thing.  Maybe Joe told him during the pre-fight vignettes.  Is it just me, or does it seem like Mike Goldberg is interrupting the real play-by-play every time he talks?  Franklin enters to the best entrance music in the UFC, “For Those About to Rock”.  (Yes, it’s better than “A Country Boy Can Survive”.)  Franklin is all business, and he’s got that look like he’s about to kill someone.  As a side note, the crowd loves Big John McCarthy.  Nice ovation for Okami, even though Franklin is obviously the crowd favorite.  Did I mention I love European crowds?  And did I mention that when we get to see a Mexican crowd, they’ll put all other crowds to shame?

ROUND ONE:  The first thing Goldberg says is that if Franklin wins and Silva wins in his title defense, Franklin will get his rematch.  Let’s not get ahead of ourselves, shall we?  They circle to start out, each measuring the other.  Franklin throws a few punches, and Okami backs off.  High kick blocked by Franklin.  They’re still a little tentative here, looking for openings.  Big body shot by Franklin.  Body kick lands for Okami.  Franklin lands a couple more to the body.  He seems to be ducking his head when he throws jabs, as Couture points out.  That could be trouble.  Franklin swings and misses, and they clinch.  Franklin looks for knees, but can’t find them.  The crowd gets a bit restless, and they are separated, as the action stalled.  Big nasty leg kick by Franklin. Franklin looks for a left hand, but Okami evades.  Franklin ducks another punch by Okami, then lands another big leg kick.  Okami backs off as Franklin comes in with punches, but Franklin lands another leg kick.  Round one ends in lackluster fashion, and it goes to Franklin.

ROUND TWO:  Franklin said to his corner in between rounds, “He’s not that strong.”  Just shows the disparity within weight classes.  Franklin lands another leg kick and looks for punches, but Okami is not engaging.  Franklin continues to chase and land leg kicks.  Franklin runs in with punches and lands a head kick.  Franklin wings a punch, and Okami ducks and looks for a takedown.  They clinch against the fence and stall again.  Franklin looks to trip, but is unsuccessful.  They stall again and are separated.  We get more of the same, with Franklin landing leg kicks and moving in with the occasional flurry. Okami lands a couple of punches here and there.  Franklin lands a big left hand as the round ends, and he may have hurt his thumb there.  Round two goes to Franklin, and it was only slightly more eventful than round one. 

ROUND THREE:  In the most exciting moment of the fight, Franklin looks to shake hands, but Okami comes flying at him with a knee.  It misses, and Franklin smiles and wags his finger.  Okami seems a little more willing to engage, and Franklin lands a leg kick, followed by a body punch and a body kick.  They clinch again, and Okami gets a takedown into side control.  Okami looks to mount, but Franklin defends.  Okami looks for punches, but is unable to land much.  Okami gets full mount.  He doesn’t inflict much damage before Franklin looks to improve position.  He gets a knee under Okami and works him into the butterfly guard.  Okami moves up and grabs a guillotine as they stand, and he pulls guard.  Franklin is able to escape rather easily and he looks to transition into mount.  Okami looks to stand, but Franklin takes his back and throws him back down.  They get back to the feet and Franklin gets a single leg.  Okami grabs a kimura and pulls guard again, but Franklin weathers and escapes.  Very impressive work by Franklin on the ground.  Franklin gets on top and looks to punish Okami as the round ends.  Close round…I’d probably give it to Okami by just a little.  He got some submissions, but Franklin looked very good in escaping and inflicting punishment.

RESULT:  Franklin by unanimous decision.

STAR RATING:  (**)  Boy, if all three rounds looked like the third, that would have been a great fight.  Had Okami pushed the pace the whole time and tried to get the takedowns, he may have had a chance.  But his tentative nature in the first two rounds cost him the opportunity.

RAMIFICAITONS:  Okami isn’t going anywhere, as there’s no shame in losing to Franklin.  He’ll need to start engaging though, before he gets another big shot.  It looks like Franklin will get the winner of Silva-Marquardt, and that’s the way we should see a former champion earn his rematch.

SIXTH FIGHT (Prelim):  MARCUS “THE IRISH HAND GRENADE CELTIC WARRIOR” DAVIS vs. JASON TAN (Welterweight)

This looks like it’s the first prelim of the night, and the arena is packed.  Are you watching, casino crowds? 

ROUND ONE:  Tan looks for leg kicks and misses.  Inside leg kick followed by ouside leg kick by Tan  both land.  High kick misses, but he lands a leg kick.  Another leg kick for Tan.  Davis lands an uppercut.  Straight left lands for Davis as well.  Left-right combo floors Tan, and Davis follows him down to end the fight.  The replay shows that the right hand follow-up crushed Tan. 

RESULT:  Davis by KO at 1:15 of round 1.  Davis says that he just lived his dream by fighting in Ireland.  Good to see Davis show some personality in the post-fight interview.

STAR RATING:  (**-)  Pretty fun minute and a quarter.  Also, fighters with gray hair are badass.

RAMIFICATIONS:  Davis continues his run with his ninth straight win, and as Jerry and I talked about in the podcast, this is a guy who could really sneak up on some people in the division.  Tan could return on a future European card, but they won’t be in any hurry to bring him back.