UFC 125 RESULTS

Pretty good card with lots of great finishes and an excellent main event (though it ended rather oddly):

MAIN CARD

1. Frankie Edgar vs. Gray Maynard for the Lightweight Championship - 
Draw (48-46, 46-48, 47-47)

UFC 125 MAIN EVENT REVIEW

I picked Maynard for this one. It's not that I was underestimating the champ, Frankie Edgar. It's just that, seeing Edgar's style and how he beat BJ Penn (especially in that extremely impressive second outing), I figured Maynard was the man to take him out. Edgar's style is to use his amazingly quick footwork and go in and out a hundred percent of the time and outpoint his opponent, and attempt to finish as quickly as possible if an opening arises, which is very similar to how UFC Bantamweight champion Dominick Cruz does battle.

WHAT TO LOOK FORWARD TO IN 2011 MARTIAL ARTS MEDIA

There's quite a bit to look forward to in terms of martial arts media in 2011, and here's a quick look at what the year has in store:

MIXED MARTIAL ARTS

MMA KOMBAT!

Okay, now this is just perfect! I love Mixed Martial Arts and I love Mortal Kombat, so mixing them together in a single video this well done is just amazing to me! Expertly put together and genuinely funny, this is a treat for any fan of MMA and Mortal Kombat. Thanks very much to lookoutawhale for this presentation! Check it out:

CHUCK LIDDELL RETIRES FOR REAL

It's official. After countless urgings by UFC President Dana White for him to hang up his gloves, Chuck Liddell finally made the decision he thought he'd never have to. A pure competitor by heart, if it weren't for his currently suspect chin, "The Iceman" would have never retired.

UFC 125 PICKS

MAIN CARD

1. Frankie Edgar vs. Gray Maynard - Gray Maynard
2. Chris Leben vs. Brian Stann - Leben
3. Brandon Vera vs. Thiago Silva - Vera
4. Nate Diaz vs. Dong Hyun Kim - Diaz
5. Clay Guida vs. Takanori Gomi - Guida

UFC 124: JABBING HIS WAY TO VICTORY

Aaaand STILL Welterweight champion of the world! That's right, folks, GSP comes out smiling again, at UFC 124, as I predicted. The fight went the distance and he wins it via unanimous decision.

GSP controlled the entire fight by utilizing his strikes extremely well, primarily his jab. GSP showed true mastery of the technique by controlling the distance the entire time, and landing almost a hundred percent of the time. By the third round, Koscheck's right eye had swollen so badly that, at one point, the fight doctor even seriously considered stopping the match because Kos couldn't see anymore. Herb Dean, thankfully, let the fight go on. Kos is no Daredevil, though, so there was really no way he could have won that fight blind, unless a miracle would occur.

UFC 124 PREDICTIONS

MAIN CARD

1. Georges St-Pierre vs. Josh Koscheck - St-Pierre
2. Stefan Struve vs. Sean mcCorkle - Struve
3. Jim Miller vs. Charles Oliveira - Oliveira
4. Joe Stevenson vs. Mac Danzig - Stevenson
5. Thiago Alves vs. John Howard - Alves

Agree or disagree? Share your thoughts by leaving a comment below!

UFC 123 REVIEW: PHIL DAVIS VS. TIM BOETSCH

ROUND 1

After more than 2 minutes of feeling each other out, Davis takes Boetsch down and attempts an Arm Triangle.  Davis is unable to complete the submission, so lets Boetsch's arm go and rains down some ground and pound instead. It's not the most exciting ground and pound ever seen, but it at least allows Davis to maintain a dominant position over Boetsch and control him for the rest of the round. Despite not showcasing the most exciting match in MMA, though he admittedly try to finish early, Davis easily takes the round because of Octagon control.

UFC 123 REVIEW: GERALD HARRIS VS. MAIQUEL FALCAO

ROUND 1

The round starts out slow, as both fighters patiently circle each other. This process is very typical of almost any mixed martial arts match, but what is not typical is the fact that this lasts for 3 whole minutes. The crowd boos as expected, but there is unfortunately no change in the fighters' demeanor.

UFC 123 REVIEW: GEORGE SOTIROPOULOS VS. JOE LAUZON

Crazy. That's one way this fight could be described. Back and forth incredibly fast striking, nonstop scrambles on the ground, and, at least for me, a very surprising ending. I'm a big fan of both of these fighters and feel that they are true top prospects that will eventually get title shots. I predicted that Lauzon would take this, though. Both look to be about equal on the ground, but I figured that Lauzon has the faster, crisper boxing and footwork, and would be able to outmatch Sotiropoulos that way.

ROUND 1

UFC 123 REVIEW: HUGHES VS. PENN

Wow, just ... wow. I never would have predicted it in a million years. Yup, it's all true. BJ Penn just knocked out Matt Hughes in only 21 seconds. Penn caught him with a right, dropped him, and immediately swarmed on him with some ground and pound. Hughes never knew what hit him and he was out like a light. After he came to, the first thing said he was "what happened?"

UFC 123 REVIEW: RAMPAGE VS. MACHIDA

Fast action, fighters getting knocked down, mind games on the ground; this match had it all! I really like both of these fighters and have been eagerly awaiting this fight. I'm a bigger fan of The Dragon's, though, and it's the primary reason I predicted that he'd take it.

My prediction wasn't all subjective, though. Rampage's primary method of success in the Octagon is getting hold of guys, slamming them, dealing huge ground and pound, or catching them on their feet with just one punch. I was sure that Lyoto's legendary elusiveness would allow him to avoid all that, and that he would be able to slip past Rampage's defenses and either knock him out like he did Rashad, or take him down and submit him somehow.

THE ULTIMATE FIGHTER SEASON 12 EPISODE 10 REVIEW

This episode was surprisingly average, given that there two fights and a mind-boggingly awesome guest appearance. It's still one of the better ones of the season, I suppose.

AARON WILKINSON VS. KYLE WATSON

THE ULTIMATE FIGHTER SEASON 12 EPISODE 5 REVIEW

John Fitch, who actually appeared in the last episode, is recognized only this time around. He shares that attitude is the most important thing in fighting. It's much better to be an out of shape fighter who listens and has a great attitude, than the best athlete in the world who doesn't listen and has a bad attitude.

Back at the house, the annoying pranks continue. Alex Caceres places bleach in Nam Phan's fabric softener in order to prank Team Koscheck, but his teammate, Micheal Johnson, uses it first and gets seriously pissed off.

UFC 123 PREDICTIONS

MAIN CARD

1. Quinton Jackson vs. Lyoto Machida - Machida
2. Matt Hughes vs. BJ Penn - Hughes
3. Gerald Harris vs. Maiquel Falcao - Harris
4. Phil Davis vs. Tim Boetsch - Davis
5. George Sotiropoulos vs. Joe Lauzon - Lauzon

UFC 122 REVIEW PART 6: THE PRELIMS

SETH PETRUZELLI VS. KARLOS VEMOLA

Vemola's strategy is painfully evident from the very beginning. He wants to take Petruzelli down and use his impressively massive frame to his advantage by raining down ground and pound and finishing the fight.

He charges in like a bull at the sound of the bell and, when he eventually grabs hold of Petruzelli, viciously slams him onto the mat. Petruzelli immediately manages to get back up, though, but Vemola is persistent and just charges in to grab hold once again and slams his opponent to the mat. Petruzelli counters, though, and attempts a Triangle Choke, but is unable to lock it in.

UFC 122 REVIEW PART 5: OSIPCZAK VS. LUDWIG

NICK OSIPCZAK VS. DUANE LUDWIG

The fight starts out as a stand up brawl, but when Ludwig lands an early head kick, Osipczak immediately clinches to recover. Ludwig quickly breaks free, and lands a knee to the head and rocks Osipczak once again. Osipczak can really take since, after two direct hits to the head, he's still standing, though obviously hurt. In fact, he comes back and drops Ludwig with a left hook! Outstanding! Osipczak jumps on Ludwig and rains some ground and pound on him, but is unable to finish.

UFC 122 REVIEW PART 2: SIVER VS. WINNER

DENNIS SIVER VS. ANDRE WINNER

This was a great fight, though I wonder greatly why Winner chose his game plan. Dennis Siver is a renowned German kickboxing champion. As such, it would seem that the appropriate plan of attack would be to utilize wrestling to get him down to the ground, control him with some ground and pound, and eventually submit him. Winner is a good enough striker himself, and thus chose to stick to his own personal style, but that, unfortunately, was his undoing.

UFC 122 REVIEW PART 1: THE MAIN EVENT

NATE MARQUARDT VS. YUSHIN OKAMI

I was a bit disappointed in this fight, primarily because it's not one of the most exciting main events in UFC history. Also, despite the fact that both warriors are competing for a title shot, there's no belt on the line yet, so there isn't any tension to add to the lack of action.