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BENT: UFC 100 breakdown and review
Jul 14, 2009 - 9:07:47 AM BENT: UFC 100 breakdown and review

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UFC 100 took forever to get here and was gone as quickly as it had arrived. Our expectations had never been higher for an event and for once, I feel it is safe to say that everyone went home happy in some respect. The PPV broadcast lasted a full three hours, and it felt as if it had only lasted a third of that in my opinion.

This was Mike Tyson vs. Michael Spinks from 1988 in Brock Lesnar vs. Frank Mir at UFC 100. My ninety-second prediction was off by eighteen seconds...and five minutes. I was correct in stating that Lesnar would blow through him like the "double leg freight train" that he is, and in doing so has firmly placed himself as the biggest star in all of the world. Fans will pay to admire him as he destroys top heavyweights and those who hate him will pay just the same in hopes of him getting his comeuppance.

Either way, the term "Lesnar fight" will now become part of the lexicon; and there will be UFC Pay-Per-Views and there will be "Lesnar fights," and believe you me, there will be a BIG difference in terms of the buyrates.

The opening bout of UFC 100 was a fantastic sprint which earned both men "Fight of the Night" honors and a $100,000 payday for the award as a tie-in to the significance of the event. It was indeed a very, very good fight but I would not go so far as to deem it great. However, this is not meant to slight it but to truly reserve such hyperbole for those fights which leave my jaw slacked a la Guida vs. Sanchez from a few weeks back.

Yoshihiro Akiyama vs. Alan Belcher

This was, as I stated previously, a very good fight. Very, very good, but not great, and the outcome was indeed one of things which lessens my opinion as it left a sour taste in my mouth. I still want to know just what fight Adelaide Byrd was watching.

Adelaide Byrd is the worst judge in boxing or MMA combined.

Period.

When Joe Calzaghe defeated Bernard Hopkins and handily so, it was Byrd who scored it in favor of Hopkins by a score of 114-113 while Chuck Giampa scored it 116-111 for Calzaghe and Ted Gimza saw it 115-112 for Calzaghe as well. Byrd saw it for Hopkins and it was a travesty. I, like the few out there who still enjoy the sweet science, watched this bout and was pleased with the final outcome since the right man won, but was left shaking my fists at any commission which would employ Ms. Byrd.

Well, she scored Akiyama-Belcher even worse than she did boxing's Calzaghe-Hopkins fight as she saw it a shutout in Akiyama's favor. 30-27 was her tally and I have no clue how she came to this conclusion. She is incompetent and I have no clue how she has not been stripped of her duties by now. Judging is not an exact science but it is not like every single round in every single fight can legitimately go both ways, and Byrd always seems to go one way. The wrong way.

I scored the fight 29-28 in favor of Alan Belcher. By no means am I saying I am completely right, but Douglas Crosby scored it 29-28 for Belcher, Joe Rogan felt that Belcher was "robbed" and even Dana White admitted that he "wasn't one-hundred percent sure of the decision." Some fights can go either way and some rounds can be tough to score, but my scoring added up to a Belcher win and before considering how I scored each round, it was clear to me that the "Talent" had pulled off the upset.

For Akiyama's sake, and the UFC's, it is probably best that Akiyama won and it is not as if Belcher loses any face for his performance in the bout. The right guy in terms of the UFC and their global push, won this fight but the right fighter did not get his hand raised.

I scored the first round 10-9 for Belcher, round two 10-9 for Akiyama and the third and final round 10-9 for Belcher.

-Bent's Score: 29-28 Alan Belcher-

Official Scores: 30-27 Akiyama, 29-28 Belcher, 29-28 Akiyama

Winner is Yoshihiro Akiyama by way of Split Decision

The father in 'Walk Hard: The Dewey Cox Story' had a running gag which consisted of him popping up and constantly stating that, "the wrong kid died." It got old quickly, and it is likely my railing against this decision is heading down the same path, but one more time I would like to say that the wrong fighter won.

Dan Henderson vs. Michael Bisping

The coaches from season nine of 'The Ultimate Fighter' entered the Octagon in just the second fight of the evening in order to win bragging rights, as well as the chance to face Anderson Silva in an upcoming bout. This is a fight which would have meant nothing to many without the promotional power of the television program, and for both fighters it was indeed a boon for them to have coached on the show. Henderson is a legend, but most UFC fans today have no real grasp on who he is or where he ranks, and Bisping was largely considered to be an overrated fighter who had not been adequately tested as yet. This bout would be the chance for Henderson to get himself back into the title picture, or for Bisping to take that next step.

A touch of gloves opened the night and Bisping immediately began working the jab. Henderson lunged forward and ate a right hand for his troubles but immediately established the fact he was the stronger of the two. Henderson began to land his shots and each one hurt. As Dan teed off, it was Bisping backpedaling and flicking front kicks to create some distance. An overhand right landed for Bisping and "The Count" was making his footwork count as he regrouped. Henderson would get Bisping against the cage and both men traded knees before separated once more. Bisping shot in for the takedown and grabbed nothing but air and Henderson landed a stiff right hand to end the round.

-Bent's Score: 10-9 for Dan Henderson-

Bisping would once again flick the jab to open the second round but kept circling to the left and into Henderson's right hand. His corner had implored him to correct this following the first round, but it was clear he was incapable of changing his game on the fly. It had nothing to do with him not listening, in my opinion, because I feel he has been too comfortable for far too long in doing the wrong things in terms of his boxing. I had expected him to show marked improvement but was wrong. His jab looked ok and his footwork much, much better, but circling into the right hand was hard to watch and ended brutally.

Henderson got Bisping up against the cage early and while he was not connecting on his shots, it was evident he was doing all of the stalking. Bisping would continue to move well and work behind the jab even landing a right hand followed by a three punch combination. Nothing remarkable landed until Bisping then circled into Henderson's wheelhouse and was crushed by a right hand. Bisping was out cold and ate one unnecessary shot before Mario Yamasaki could dive in and stop this fight.

Winner is Dan Henderson by way of KO at 3:20 of Round 2

Henderson stated that the extra shot was to "shut him up," but in my opinion this was not the case and he was simply fighting as he was trained to do and this meant going until the referee stops you from fighting anymore. With this victory it is Henderson who gets a much deserved rematch with Anderson Silva down the road and Michael Bisping gets back to work.

Bisping is still a major player in terms of the MMA landscape and due to his value to the United Kingdom, but he is going to need a softer touch next time out. Henderson is one of THE best at middleweight and there is no shame in getting iced by him. Bisping is simply not on his level yet and may never be but he still has time to correct his flaws and continue working on his game. Bisping's memory of this fight is likely to be foggy and it would be best if he forgets it entirely. His camp needs to start from scratch because the mistakes he made against "Hendo" could get him crushed by many other opponents just the same.

UFC Welterweight Championship

Georges St. Pierre vs. Thiago Alves

You know you have a stacked card when the UFC Welterweight Championship bout is the third of the night and Dan Henderson had already taken care of his business as well. B.J. Penn was supposed to give St. Pierre the biggest challenge at UFC 94 and was stomped into submission before quitting on his stool. At UFC 100, it was Thiago Alves who was supposed to give St. Pierre his toughest test ever at welterweight, and many had even predicted the "Pitbull" would win.

Those people were as wrong as Adelaide Byrd scoring a fight.

Remember how Bob Barker used to close 'The Price is Right' by reminding you to get your pets spayed or neutered?

Well, GSP could join him in a public service announcement because he most certainly neutered the "Pitbull" on Saturday night at UFC 100. I was waiting on Michael Vick to show up between rounds with his "Rape Stand" instead of the stool in Alves' corner due to just how badly he was being treated by St. Pierre.

There is absolutely no point in breaking this one down round by round as it played out as simply as the instructions on a bottle of shampoo. Instead of lather, rinse and repeat it was kick, takedown and pound for the welterweight king.

Georges St. Pierre used the inside leg kick to his fullest advantage all night long and established it from the beginning of the very first round. His takedowns could not have been better and he overpowered Alves, which is no small feat to say the very least. Against Penn, it was clear GSP could dominate Penn from the onset of the bout, but much of this was chalked up to the size difference between the two. I, like many others, imagined he would have a much harder time with the larger Alves and this just wasn't the case at all. Georges St. Pierre is one of the best wrestlers in all of MMA and while I still feel he would have troubles in a purely amateur bout against a top grappler, it is now clear to me how much he has improved and evident that he would more than hold his own.

MMA is not wrestling. It is also not Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu. One cannot be an ace in one category and expect to dominate his opponents along the way. One only has to look at Vinny Magalhaes from 'The Ultimate Fighter 8' to quickly realize that being the best in one discipline will no longer punch your ticket to the top. Magalhaes was a Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu king, and most rated him far ahead of such MMA stalwarts as Frank Mir and Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira, and while this may be true, it did not give him the necessary tools to win it all and find a home in the UFC. Same goes for wrestling, and while St. Pierre is not as purely skilled as a Matt Hughes or as powerful as Brock Lesnar or Mark Coleman, it is an absolute fact that in the world of MMA he is as dangerous as the aforementioned fighters and perhaps even moreso at this point in time.

St. Pierre is the best wrestler in MMA and his game has evolved to the point that you could even say his wrestling is one of his best attributes. Which would be wrong. St. Pierre is the best at everything, and this is at least true in the welterweight division. He took Thiago Alves down whenever he wanted and kept him down while consistently improving position, working for submissions and pounding the hell out of his challenger. After watching this bout against Alves and looking at his dominance over Penn, in hindsight it is abundantly clear there are truly no further challenges at welterweight and hard to believe this man once lost to Matt Serra.

-Bent Scores The Fight: 50-45 for Georges St. Pierre-

Official Scores: 50-45, 50-44, 50-45 all for St. Pierre

Winner is Georges St. Pierre by way of Unanimous Decision

I can see having scored this one 50-44 but at the same time stand by having not scored it as such. This was as dominant a performance as you will see but what kept me from scoring any of the rounds 10-8 was the fact that Alves was never hurt enough to have nearly been finished, and he wasn't nearly submitted as well. This was dominance but it was a cautious dominance and the equivalent of a football team not wishing to run up the score against a less talented squad.

This was the USC Trojans going up against the team from Dodge City Community College and Coach Pete Carroll benching all of his starters in exchange for the practice squad, several cheerleaders and the grandfather of one of the offensive linemen. It was a massacre, and Thiago Alves at his best had no answers for Georges St. Pierre in 2009. I will not say St. Pierre was at his best, and this is because I feel we have not seen this yet. Alves will be back and give everyone else fits but for now it is a GSP world and everyone else at welterweight is just lucky to live in it.

St. Pierre stated that he hurt his abductor ligament somewhere in the third round and admitted that this hindered him throughout the final two rounds. This shows you that with one hand tied behind his back and the other one holding a Gatorade, that St. Pierre could have beaten Alves and had time to maybe post to his Twitter feed. His post would have read, "not impressed with Alves performance. hurt abductor ligament and girl in second row of section E is showing side boob." St. Pierre has nowhere to go but up and we should be seeing a superfight with Anderson Silva sometime after the first of the year.


Jon Fitch vs. Paulo Thiago

I know this fight went on last, and technically you could even say that it was the main event of the PPV due to its placement, but on this show it really was what they call, in boxing, a "walk out" bout. Fitch is the second or third best welterweight in the world and against Thiago he would get the chance to prove he deserves to be considered the best in the class not named Georges St. Pierre.

Fitch landed an excellent kick to the body to open the first round and took down Thiago soon after. Thiago, in full guard, was working towards an arm-in guillotine and looking as cool as Royce Gracie in any of his fights. Paulo Thiago is just a serene fighter who probably never even strains on the toilet from the looks of him. Fitch fought his way out of danger once and then again as Thiago switched things up. Fitch was able to take his back but Thiago held onto his leg and the two jockeyed for position as the round came to an end.

-Bent's Score: 10-9 for Paulo Thiago-

A hard right hand snapped Thiago's head back in the early moments of round two and then Fitch scored the takedown. Thiago did well to defend and even rolled toward a kimura but Fitch again took his back. The two scrambled to their feet and Thiago had hold of a leg but Fitch took him immediately back down. Fitch would have Thiago's back and worked to flatten him out while landing shots in the meantime. Fitch rolled and got even better control as the round came to an end and this was a supremely dominant round for him.

-Bent's Score: 10-9 for Jon Fitch-

Thiago swung for the fences and missed with an uppercut to start the second round and Fitch scored the takedown. Thiago again calm as Fitch took his back once more. Thiago worked towards the kimura again but Fitch was able to roll and move towards the mount. Thiago rolled and was up on his feet as Fitch hung onto his back like a knapsack. Thiago slammed himself backwards in hopes of jolting Fitch but no such thing would happen. From here, Thiago would again show off some skills as he began working towards an anaconda choke but Fitch was able to escape with ease. Fitch began landing clubbing right hands as he took the Brazilian's back and finally sank his hooks in. Fitch slapped on a body triangle and was well on his way to working towards a rear naked choke while punching Thiago's face as the fight came to an end.

-Bent's Score: 10-9 for Jon Fitch-

Bent Scores The Fight: 29-28 for Jon Fitch

Official Scores: 30-27, 29-28, 29-28 all for Fitch

Winner is Jon Fitch by way of Unanimous Decision

Jon Fitch looked impressive but it was Paulo Thiago who really earned my respect with his performance here. Thiago is a rock. This guy seems to not sweat, or ever get flustered, and he showcased much talent against the guy widely considered to be the number one contender in the division. The biggest problem for both men is that this bout seems an afterthought to the Lesnar-Mir bout which had just taken place, and will clearly get lost in the shuffle for now due to everything else. Both men will be back but there is really nothing to fight for in the division as St. Pierre holds that belt hostage.


UFC Heavyweight Championship

Brock Lesnar vs. Frank Mir

Due to some worries about time, this bout took place before Fitch vs. Thiago, but this was in fact the main event. In fact, this could have been the only bout on the show and it still would have done boffo at the box office. We all knew going in that Mir had one win over Lesnar, and that both fighters had improved since then, and all eyes were watching to see just what would happen.

I predicted it would be the 2009 MMA equivalent of Tyson-Spinks and I truly feel that this indeed was what we witnessed. Mir is a great fighter, and if he shows up in this shape, he will beat damned near everyone else. He just will not beat Brock Lesnar. This one was as dominant as St. Pierre's win over Alves, but rather than benching the star players, this time the coach kept his guys on the field and ran up the score before spiking the ball onto the face of each mother of the opposing team's players. This was assault.

Alan Belcher was robbed in his loss to Yoshihiro Akiyama.

Michael Bisping was murdered by the right hand of Dan Henderson.

Frank Mir was savagely sodomized (figuratively, of course) by the fists of Brock Lesnar.

This was the fistic equivalent of the shower rape scene in 'American History X' and Frank Mir took Edward Norton's place in front of the tiled wall. This was like watching a heavyweight crime as the incredibly ripped and vastly improved Mir had no answer for the extra large heavyweight phenom. The crowd in the Mandalay Bay were like the onlookers in the bar scene from 'The Accused' and no one called 911 until Herb Dean stepped in and stopped this brutal, brutal assault.

I scored the first round 10-9 for Brock Lesnar, but so did everyone else on the planet. Well, except maybe for Adelaide Byrd who probably saw it for Mir. It was just raw and brutal to watch the technically sound Mir again prove that MMA is not just about proficiency in any one discipline and that size does indeed matter. All of us like to claim that size does not matter, and sort of like the guy in the Extenze ad whose girlfriend says he needed the tablets, it is hard for us to come to grips with the realization that this is true.

See, you can't change size. Well, unless you fought in PRIDE where guys would have probably pissed so hot that it burned holes through the cup, but it matters not what Mir or any other heavyweight learns in the gym when they come face to face with triple XL fists courtesy of the Minnesota wrecking machine. No one can stand toe to toe with Lesnar and not even Dana White can instill fear in him. This became evident following the bout with Lesnar's post-fight comments which would have gotten nearly every other fighter in the promotion a punishment. Which comes back to size. You cannot punish your biggest star when that which he does is likely to make him a bigger star and draw more people to his next title defense.

Winner is Brock Lesnar by way of KO at 1:48 of Round 2

Lesnar truly showed his development when he dropped Mir at the start of round two and then let him back up. Brock has a little bit of patience now, or else he was just a large UFC version of Lenny from 'Of Mice and Men' or the Abominable Snowman from old Looney Tunes carttoons who used to grab Bugs and threaten to "hug him, squeeze him, pat him and call him George". Brock hugged Mir, squeezed him, pounded him and called him everything but George as he landed the right hand at will.

This is not to say Mir didn't enjoy a moment. He did land a jumping knee which at least made Lesnar blink momentarily. Following this, he was taken down and beaten savagely until Dean stopped the bout. Mir got up and drunkenly wobbled away as Lesnar screamed, "talk all the sh*t you want now" and added insult to injury following the stoppage. Lesnar went further and flipped the double bird to the fans as if he where Nate and Nick Diaz' large, tow-haired adopted brother. Lesnar's face was unmarked and he looked very, very fresh. Mir was treated worse than 'Diesel' was in the sex scene from the movie 'Bruno'. In fact, I am surprised Brock didn't open a bottle of champagne in the very unorthodox manner and then pour a glass for Joe Rogan to celebrate the win.

Lesnar implored the fans to keep going with the boos and shouted that he loved it as the catcalls came cascading down. Lesnar said he, "pulled the horsehoe out of his ass and took that sumbitch and beat him over the head with it" in reference to his comments regarding Mir's luck at UFC 81. Lesnar followed this up by declaring he would go home and drink a Coors Light because Bud Light won't pay him ,and I can only imagine that Dana White's sphincter puckered up worse than someone with bitter beer face in the old Keystone advertisements. ONLY Brock Lesnar could slam a mega sponsor and live to tell about it. Trust me when I say that if another fighter would mention in an interview that he doesn't like Harley Davidson that he would be found in the desert with a fat boy sticking out of his ass.

Lesnar was not finished with his post-fight announcements and even let us know that he was planning on getting on top of his wife after downing a few of those Coors Light beers. This line is surely to inspire wrath from those who hate Lesnar, if only for the sheer fact that they have no idea what it is like to either drink a beer or climb atop a woman. No, rubbing against one on the bus doesn't count, either. While Lesnar "heeled" it up following the fight, I have to ask what did anyone expect?

The bulk of MMA fans spend their days expressing such hate for him on the internet that it would seem half of them are just trying to cover up the fact that they do have eyes for the big fighter. It reminds me of how an 8 year old boy will tell you girls are "yucky" but really, really, really keep pointing out one girl who is especially "yucky". We all know this means he truly likes her, and the bulk of these hating fans do at least harbor some desire to like Lesnar. You can knock him for his previous vocation and slam him for his lack of technical skills, but you have got to give him his just due for putting butts in the seats and welts on faces of fighters thought to be the best. Herring, Couture and now Mir have all tasted more leather than someone into S&M after having faced Lesnar.

At the same time, one would think that while Lesnar's comments may have been out of line, that it is in some way a small victory for those fighters who get fired for wearing the wrong t-shirt. Ask Matt Lindland what would have happened to him were he to slam a sponsor in the middle of the Octagon following the biggest show ever. Was Lesnar good to Bud Light which pays a gang of cash to the UFC? No. Was he good for business in the long run? You had better believe it, and Bud Light will want to be placed firmly on the canvas each and every time Lesnar fights for the simple fact that their target demographic is watching and will continue to watch this product.

For those who act as if Lesnar took out a Holy Bible and used the sheets as toilet paper, I ask you one simple question, are you angry because of what he did or because it was Brock Lesnar who did it? I have reason to believe it is the latter, and that a bulk of the fans are just glad to finally have a somewhat tangible reason to hate the man. "Rampage" Jackson was worse for the sport when he took his monster truck off-road last summer than Lesnar was in dissing a beer company, and I cannot for the life of me see why everyone is acting like he did something on par with a crime. The only crime he committed was during the fight when he savagely beat Mir into submission, and that my friends, is perfectly legal. Brutal and hard to watch for the squeamish, but this sport isn't just a grappling competition. It is a fight and right now Lesnar is the most savage of the bunch. He hits and it hurts. Badly.

UFC 100 exceeded my expectations and firmly delivered us a reason to adjust our "pound for pound" rankings thanks to St. Pierre's dominance, as well as it launched Brock Lesnar into the stratosphere as a superstar who quite possibly could be the only fighter to become bigger than the UFC. This card had a little bit of something for everyone, and for those who wanted someone to "Just Bleed" it satiated that thirst the same.

The welterweight title is going to be held hostage for a while, and so too will the heavyweight title and yet, the UFC will reach even bigger heights thanks to the men in charge of those respective divisions. UFC 100 was big, but here is to hoping UFC 200 will be even bigger, to which I hoist my glass and toast the prospects of seeing once in a lifetime fighters and the dream bout of Fedor vs. Lesnar.

Fedor vs. Lesnar will be big, and is one bout which can and will eclipse this very event. Right now, I see Lesnar winning and finishing the job Arlovski could not take care of. With that, I leave the various message boards to fight amongst themselves over the notion of Lesnar toppling the deity that is Fedor and let the two sides duke it out. I think we can all at least agree on one thing, and that is that Lesnar vs. Fedor is the new dream match to say the least. Just personally, I feel that Rena Lesnar threw more back at Brock during their post-fight sex than any other heavyweight in the world can inside of the Octagon.

Although both she and Frank Mir are walking funny today.