In the UFC’s anticipated debut on FOX, it didn’t take long for the inaugural fight to end.

Junior dos Santos won the UFC Heavyweight Championship in a little over a minute as he knocked out the champion, Cain Velasquez from the Honda Center in Anaheim.

Dos Santos came into the fight as the betting underdog, but a devastating right hand early in the first round caught the champion in the ear and sent him crashing.

With Velasquez’ equilibrium admittedly thrown off, dos Santos was able to finish the fight with a series of ground-and-pound strikes that left Velasquez face down in the octagon.

The Brazilian exploded with joy as he becomes the third Brazilian to hold a UFC title, joining middleweight champ Anderson Silva and featherweight kingpin Jose Aldo.

In the night’s co-main event, Ben Henderson earned a lightweight title shot against Frankie Edgar with his unanimous decision win over Clay Guida.

The contest was very competitive and neither man seemed to have an obvious superiority over the other, but Henderson was able to gain more dominant positions than Guida and he also exhibited more control during the fight.

For complete UFC on FOX 1 results, check out the jump.

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UFC 125 takes place on Saturday from the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, Nev. The event features five very intriguing and exciting fights, headlined by a battle for the UFC Lightweight Championship. Here are my thoughts on who will win on the main card bouts.

UFC Lightweight Championship – Frankie Edgar vs. Gray Maynard: I look for the champion to retain his belt and avenge a prior loss to Maynard in 2008. Since that time I feel like Edgar has improved greatly as a fighter while Maynard is simply a slightly better version of himself. Maynard will get some takedowns on the champ, but I expect Edgar to bounce back up and use his boxing to tire the challenger before scoring some takedowns in the later rounds to earn a decision victory.

UFC Middleweight Bout – Chris Leben vs. Brian Stann: While this fight doesn’t deserve co-main event status, it still should be exciting. Leben is riding a wave of momentum that will not be stopped on Saturday as his punching power should carry him to a third round TKO of Stann, who will put up a game effort.

UFC Light Heavyweight Bout – Brandon Vera vs. Thiago Silva: This may be Vera’s final UFC fight as I expect Silva to pressure him and not let him set up his kicks. Silva will do a good job of closing the distance and overwhelming Vera with his power and grappling ability. I like Silva to win by unanimous decision.

UFC Welterweight Bout – Nate Diaz vs. Dong Hyun Kim: Kim is a very under-rated fighter as he is kind of like the Yushin Okami of this weight class as is very strong and bigger than anyone else in the weight class. I like Kim to use that size to get Diaz to the ground and keep him from using his boxing. It probably won’t be the most exciting fight, but it will be another decision win for Kim.

UFC Lightweight Bout – Takanori Gomi vs. Clay Guida: I like Guida and the energy he brings to a fight, but his short arms tend to put him in bad spots against strikers. I think Guida will get careless early in the fight and get caught with a big punch by Guida while will lead to a TKO finish in the opening round.

Matt Brown of HeavyMMA.com compiled some great post-fight quotes from fighters of UFC 117.

Dennis Hallman

“The difference for me today was my cardio. My cardio was so much better tonight than it has been. Yeah he hit me with some good shots but I was just waiting for him to get close so I can take him down.
I want to thank Team Quest because they definitely made a difference for me this fight. The significance of the win proves that I am back and a factor in the welterweight division.
Ben Saunders is a really tough kid and he has a bright future ahead of him.”

Clay Guida

“I want to thank Rafael Dos Anjos and his camp for taking this fight. I’m in here to win. I’m not in here to hurt my opponents so I apologize for that Raffy, you’re a tough son of a gun. I want to thank my trainers and Greg Jackson for getting me ready for this fight.”

(On switching to Greg Jackson’s camp)

“[It made] a world of difference. It took me a while to realize I’m my biggest distraction. Coach is going to make me a champion. Champions aren’t born, they’re made.”

Read the rest of the quotes here.

E. Spencer Kyte of HeavyMMA.com details the 10 things that we learned from UFC 117.

It Isn’t Over ‘til It’s Over
For four-plus rounds, Chael Sonnen dominated UFC middleweight champion Anderson Silva. Manhandling him at every turn, Sonnen followed through on every pre-fight promise for the first twenty minutes of the fight.
As everyone was settling in to watch the fifth round play out just like the four before it, it happened; Sonnen gave Silva a small opening and the champion took advantage, hooking on a triangle, forcing Sonnen to tap and miss out on the middleweight championship that he looked ready to claim.

Silva was behind on every card, with scores of 40-34, 40-35, and 40-36 heading into the final frame, and finding a finish when he absolutely needed to only serves as further proof that absolutely anything can and does happen in this sport and that it really isn’t over ‘til it’s over.

Read the entire article here.

Brett C. Jones of HeavyMMA.com highlights the winner options for UFC 117.

Anderson Silva

Option 1: Chael Sonnen

It’s rare that a fighter not only loses but is stopped and has a valid claim for a rematch, but indeed Sonnen proved that he belongs in the cage with Silva for another 25 minutes. The fight could absolutely end much quicker the second time around, and while that seems likely to long time witnesses of Silva’s career, it seems even more likely at this moment that Sonnen could again put Silva on his back and batter Silva to earn a victory. He’ll have to learn to defend the armbar from the triangle position, and there’s no indication that he will do so, but you simply cannot discount Sonnen’s first 22 or so minutes of success against Silva.
It’s been suggested by several people, including Sonnen, that the two could be featured as coached on TUF 13 in a USA v. Brazil edition, and that makes perfect sense not only to hype up the rematch as much as possible but also to give the division some time to breath. Sadly, this may mean that Yushin Okami, the last man to earn a victory over Silva, may once again find himself unable to make his way into a title match, at least for another year.

Read the rest of the article here.

UFC 117: Silva vs. Sonnen takes place Saturday night from the Oracle Arena in Oakland, California and this card is stacked from top-to-bottom. The headliner is a contest for the UFC Middleweight Championship between Anderson Silva and Chael Sonnen. Here are my picks for this event.

UFC Middleweight Championship Bout – Anderson Silva (26-4) vs. Chael Sonnen (26-10-1): Sonnen gets the award for most smack talk prior to a fight, but he better make sure he backs it up, or else he is going to look like a complete jackass. Sonnen does have a good style to combat Silva, as he is an aggressive wrestler that knows he needs to get the fight to the ground. At the same time, Sonnen has struggled in defending submissions in the past, losing to lesser opponents like Demian Maia and Jeremy Horn via submission. Silva may get taken to the ground a few times in this fight, but his accurate strikes and jiu-jitsu ability on the ground tell me that sooner or later, he will end this fight. I like Silva to win by submission in the second round.

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Nate Lawson of HeavyMMA.com writes that the relentless style of MMA fighter Clay Guida has brought excitement to the Octagon.

What do you think of when you hear the name Clay Guida?

To mixed martial arts fans, the lightweight’s name has become synonymous with adjectives such as exciting, relentless, and perhaps even reckless. His style has won him a handful of fights and lost him a few as well. It’s a style that leads to him taking plenty of damage while also dishing it out.

But the biggest benefit Guida’s fighting style brings him is the fan support that comes along with being one of the promotion’s top entertainers.

Pleasing the fans seems like a very important aspect of being a fighter. Is anyone here waiting anxiously for a UFC Unleashed featuring Ben Rothwell vs. Gilbert Yvel, Anderson Silva vs. Demian Maia, or Kalib Starnes vs. Nate Quarry? Fans don’t want to see someone lay on top of his opponent, move to mount several times, and still fail to get the finish. And no one wants to see a fighter literally run away from his opponent, especially when that fighter is the UFC middleweight champion and arguably the best pound-for-pound fighter in the world.

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Here’s a weekly rundown of MMA content from Ben Goldstein of CagePotato.com:

- Rich Franklin edged out Wanderlei Silva and Cain Velasquez dominated Cheick Kongo at UFC 99 last Saturday. Also, Mirko Cro Cop defeated Mostapha Al Turk via illegal eye-pokes, then told the UFC to kiss his ass.

- We saw some crazy knockouts this week, including Tim Sylvia getting wrecked by a 50-year old boxer, a brilliant flying knee KO at a Bellator show [http://www.cagepotato.com/knockout-day-nick-pace-wrecks-collin-tebo-bellator-xi], and a 9-second head-kick finish followed by a flying referee tackle.

- Brock Lesnar is built like a black man, still not a fan of the gays.

- Team U.K.’s James Wilks cruised to the welterweight finals on Wednesday’s episode of The Ultimate Fighter, ending a season that didn’t really live up to the hype.

- MMA model Penny Mathis’s breasts may not be real, but they’re still fabulous.

- Shaquille O’Neal is seriously considering a switch to MMA after finishing his basketball career, and wants to start off by beating up the giant Korean who smashed Jose Canseco.

- When Cris Cyborg chokes out a reporter, that’s just her polite way of saying she’s finished with the interview.

- Come back tonight [Saturday] at 9 p.m. ET/PT for our liveblog of the Ultimate Fighter 9 Finale show, which will feature Diego Sanchez vs. Clay Guida, Nate Diaz vs. Joe Stevenson, and the lightweight and welterweight TUF finals. And check out our exclusive interviews with Sanchez, Stevenson, and Chris Lytle.

The Ultimate Fighter Nine Finals take place tonight with the live Ultimate Fighter Finale on Spike TV at 9 p.m. ET. The main card will feature five fights including the two championship bouts for the Ultimate Fighter reality show. Overall, it is a nice card featuring the lighter weights in the UFC, which tend to provide stronger fights and better pacing. Here is a breakdown of the card and my predictions (I was 5-for-6 last weekend!!) for tonight’s show.

Lightweight bout (155 lbs) – Diego Sanchez (23-2) vs. Clay Guida (25-9): This fight should be a war as both fighters have great motors and even better stamina. Sanchez has lost just two times in his career, both by decision, but is in just his second fight at lightweight in the UFC. His previous fight was a lackluster decision win over Joe Stevenson where Sanchez picked Stevenson apart on their feet. Guida won’t be quite that easy. The rocker has a fighting style and energy that makes it hard for you to not cheer for him and I think he will be the first fighter to really push Sanchez around in terms of pacing and octagon control. The key in this fight will be if Guida has the size to control the bigger Sanchez on the ground and if he can fight off his back. I would like to say I see Guida winning this fight, but I think Sanchez’ size and speed will ultimately earn him another decision win.

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Here’s a weekly rundown of MMA content from Ben Goldstein of CagePotato.com:

- Quinton “Rampage” Jackson scored a unanimous decision victory over Keith Jardine at last Saturday’s UFC 96. After the fight, Jackson was offered an opportunity to challenge Rashad Evans in late May for the light-heavyweight title that used to belong to him, but nagging injuries will keep him out of action until later this year. Instead, undefeated Brazilian contender Lyoto Machida will be the challenger for Evans’s first title defense.

- Charles “Mask” Lewis, co-founder of the MMA apparel/lifestyle company TapouT, died in a car accident late Tuesday night in Neport Beach after colliding with another car. The other driver survived, though he was arrested on suspicion of felony drunk driving.

For a photo tribute to Charles Lewis, click here to head to COMBATLIFESTYLE.COM.

- Following a positive steroid test after his last fight, MMA legend Ken Shamrock has been suspended from competition for one year and will not be able to take on Bobby Lashley later this month at the Roy Jones Jr.-promoted “March Badness” card. He will be replaced by Clay Guida’s ne’er-do-well brother Jason.

- New York Assemblymen Jonathan Bing and Rob Walker told us why MMA belongs in New York State, while grumpy old man Bob Reilly told us why it’s bad for society.

- UFC lightweight champ BJ Penn filed a formal complaint with the Nevada State Athletic Commission, claiming that Georges St. Pierre cheated during their UFC 94 fight though improper usage of Vaseline, and speculated that he may have ingested a substance that made his body slippery.

- The cast of “The Ultimate Fighter: U.S. vs. U.K.” was announced.

- Even legendary boxing promoter/double-murderer Don King wants a piece of the MMA action.

- At a press conference on Thursday, it was announced that former EliteXC welterweight champ Jake Shields and former EliteXC middleweight champ Robbie Lawler will face off in a non-title fight at Strikeforce’s May event. Also, Nick Diaz gave Frank Shamrock the finger.