UFC 113 Recap

Tonight we got to witness some interesting fights and results. A lot was proved tonight, and the light heavyweight belt changed hands, or waists if you will.

In possibly the most devastating knockout in his career, Mauricio "Shogun" Rua proved all doubters wrong and knocked the previously unbeaten Lyoto Machida out cold in the first round. It wasn't exactly the most dominant performance. For the whole three minutes or so it lasted, Machida was checking those leg kicks that plagued him in their first bout and was countering, and even took Shogun down twice. Maybe Shogun felt the need to pressure, and did just that, landing a glancing blow to the top of Machida's head and mounting him after he hit the mat. He teed off on Machida until referee Yves Lavigne stepped in to stop it, making him the new undisputed UFC Light Heavyweight champion. Barring a significant health setback, or suspension, Rua will defend against the winner of UFC 114's main event between "Sugar" Rashad Evans and Quinton "Rampage" Jackson.

Another impressive performance tonight was from the middleweight Alan Belcher. He stood and banged with Patrick Cote, and proved to be the more well rounded striker and grappler for that matter. He traded with him and when it came down to it, ended up slamming Cote and locking up a rear naked choke. He's proving to be a very well rounded fighter, and even called out Anderson Silva in his post fight interview. I don't think that will happen anytime soon, but look for him to take on the winner of either the Nate Marquardt and Rousimar Palhares fight or the Wanderlei Silva and Yoshihiro Akiyama fight. I've expected big things from this guy since he head kicked Jorge Santiago to sleep, but he's now really starting to realize his potential.

The most disappointing part of the night had to have been the fight between Josh Koscheck and Paul Daley. Trash talk, not touching gloves, and bad blood is one thing, but to act on it outside of the fight is ludicrous. Daley did just that, frustrated after being controlled on the ground for three rounds, he threw a punch and hit Josh Koscheck. I'm sure Daley had to have some pent up aggravation, especially after Koscheck faked getting hit with an illegal knee, and milked it, but this is exactly what separates the professionals from the amateurs, or even UFC fighters from say, Strikeforce fighters? Expect steep disciplinary action for Semtex, perhaps even a straight release from his UFC contract. And Koscheck will now be coaching against Georges St. Pierre in the next installment of the Ultimate Fighter reality series.

Another fighter may be seeing a lengthy layoff. Kevin Ferguson, or as most of the public know him, Kimbo Slice, took a beating to his legs. My sister works in a physical therapy clinic in Ft. Lauderdale, and has seen Kimbo come in for treatment. He has well known issues with his knees. Mitrione knew that, and went for his knees with leg kicks all fight long. He could barely stand, and therefor couldn't deliver any power in takedowns or in throwing punches. The way he took punishment on his knees in this fight, with his history, I can see that taking a big toll on his recovery period. As for Mitrione, he really impressed with his quickness and boxing. I see him fighting someone like Stefan Struve or perhaps a rematch with James McSweeney.

The Montreal crowd was ruckus as usual, and proves Canada have some of THE best fight fans in all of the world.

Results - Results courtesy of Sherdog