He especially doesn’t like losing over what he thinks is politics.

In the main event of UFC 143 on Saturday night in Las Vegas, Diaz lost a unanimous decision to Carlos Condit for the UFC Interim Welterweight Championship.

It was a close bout from start to finish with Diaz getting off to a fast start and then Condit finding his groove in the later rounds. Each round was debatable, but Condit inflicted more damaged and controlled the pace for the final three rounds. The judges scored the bout 49-46, 49-46, and 48-47 for Condit.

Following the fight, Diaz said he was quitting MMA because he felt he won the fight and Condit did nothing but run from him. Instead, how I saw it was Condit used footwork to stay out of the pocket and then hit Diaz with leg kicks and hooks to win rounds.

Now, with Diaz out of the picture, Condit will face Georges St. Pierre to unify the UFC titles once GSP returns from a torn ACL.

In the co-main event, Fabricio Werdum made a big statement with his dominant decision win over Roy Nelson in the heavyweight division. Known for being a submission specialist, Werdum used his striking to get the victory on Saturday night. Werdum locked Nelson up in a thai clinch in the first round and then worked some powerful knees to Nelson’s face and body that took “Big Country” out of the match.

Over the final two rounds, Werdum did enough to win the round against a tired Nelson. The win was an impressive one for Werdum, who now legitimately thrusts himself into the top 5 of the division alongside Junior dos Santos, Alistair Overeem, Cain Velasquez, and Frank Mir

For complete results from UFC 143, check out the jump.

UFC 143 Results

Mandalay Bay Events Center – Las Vegas

Saturday, Feb. 4, 2012

Stephen Thompson def. Daniel Stittgen by first round KO (4:13) via head kick

Rafael Natal def. Michael Kuiper by unanimous decision

Matt Riddle def. Henry Martinez by split decision

Matt Brown def. Chris Cope by second round TKO (1:19) via punches

Edwin Figueroa def. Alex Caceres by split decision

Dustin Poirier def. Max Holloway by first round submission (3:23) via triangle armbar

Ed Herman def. Clifford Starks by second round submission (1:43) via rear-naked choke

Renan Barao def. Scott Jorgensen by unanimous decision

Josh Koscheck def. Mike Pierce by split decision

Fabricio Werdum def. Roy Nelson by unanimous decision

Carlos Condit def. Nick Diaz by unanimous decision to win UFC Interim Welterweight Championship

Did you eat to much turkey and stuffing on Thanksgiving? This is the time of year where most people lose any progress they’ve made all year. Athletic builds suddenly add a spare tire around the belly.

It’s the perfect time to start an intense workout regiment, and emulating the MMA guys is not a bad idea.

MMA World Welterweight Champion Georges St-Pierre is now a legend in the MMA community, and now he’s sharing his workout program and training secrets with a new series of MMA workout DVDs.

We love MMA, but now it’s more than just a sport or a form of entertainment. It has spawned a new lifestyle approach, and central to that is the sculpted look you see with the best MMA fighters. Women love that look and guys are inspired by it.

It’s only attainable, however, if you’re willing and able to undergo an intense workout program. You have to be committed, and you have to be the type of person that sets the bar high. You might not be able to fight like St-Pierre, but you can achieve that same look through persistent hard work.

So get ready for the holidays the right way!

The last Strikeforce Welterweight champion overcame a slow start to dominant the final two rounds against UFC legend, B.J. Penn, as Diaz picked up a unanimous decision win for perhaps the biggest win in his career.

Diaz survived the opening round as Penn came out with a fast start, using dirty boxing and grappling to control the round. Penn had Diaz’ back at one point, but Diaz was able to get out of the dominant position and get into the later rounds, where he started to work his boxing.

Diaz used relentless jabs and combinations to pick apart the tiring Penn, who ended up with a busted nose and bruised face before the final bell sounded. The decision wasn’t really in doubt, as Diaz had clearly closed out the final two rounds.

Following the win, Diaz called out UFC welterweight champion, Georges St. Pierre, whom Diaz was originally scheduled to face before being pulled from the title bout by the UFC as a disciplinary action for missing pre-event press conferences.

Still, Diaz is likely in line for a title shot against GSP or Carlos Condit, who will be fighting for the title in early 2012.

Penn announced his retirement from the sport following the loss, his third in his last five fights. Penn will go down as one of the all-time greats as he held titles in two different weight classes and was arguably the top pound-for-pound fighter in the world during his prime.

For full UFC 137 results, check out the jump.

UFC 137 Results

Saturday, Oct. 29, 2011

Mandalay Bay Events Center, Las Vegas

Nick Diaz def. B.J Penn by unanimous decision

Cheick Kongo def. Matt Mitrione by unanimous decision

Roy Nelson def. Mirko “Cro Cop” Filipovic by TKO at 1:30, R3

Scott Jorgensen def. Jeff Curran by unanimous decision

Hatsu Hioki def. George Roop by split decision

Donald Cerrone def. Dennis Siver by submission (rear naked choke) at 2:22, R1

Bart Palaszewski def. Tyson Griffin by KO at 2:45, R1

Brandon Vera def. Eliot Marshall by unanimous decision

Ramsey Nijem def. Danny Downes by unanimous decision

Francis Carmont def. Chris Camozzi by unaimous decision

Clifford Starks def. Dustin Jacoby by unanimous decision

HeavyMMA.com has released their pound for pound rankings for the month of May.

We’ve long hoped to see a fight between Anderson Silva and Georges St. Pierre. We thought it would be the ultimate super-fight, a way to truly see who the best fighter in the world is while watching both men etch their superb careers even further into the annals of history.

After UFC 129, we’re not really interested in seeing that fight any more. It doesn’t hold the same kind of intrigue, not after you’ve seen St. Pierre struggle with Jake Shields and realize that the much-larger Silva would almost certainly have his way with the current welterweight champion.

Let’s take a look at our pound-for-pound rankings after UFC 129:

1. Anderson Silva
It’s becoming obvious that we’re not going to see Silva face Georges St. Pierre, and that’s fine. We’ve gotten to the point where we’re not sure how well St. Pierre would do in a fight against the much-bigger Silva, anyway. Instead, the pound for pound king will focus his attention on Yushin Okami, who he’ll face in the main event of UFC 134 in August. Okami was the last man to beat him. Sure, it was by disqualification, but you don’t have to put that in the marketing materials.

Check out the rest of the rankings.

Out of the 24 suspensions given out, UFC welterweight champion Georges St. Pierre and six others earned the lengthiest with 60 day suspensions. The other six include Mark Hominick, who fought featherweight champion Jose Aldo in the evening’s co-main event, Randy Couture, Jason Brilz, Kyle Watson, Charlie Valencia, and Sean Pierson. Hominick and St. Pierre were the only ones out of the seven to avoid being knocked out.

From the evening’s preliminary card, Nate Diaz was given a suspension of 45 days following his loss to Rory MacDonald, while Jake Ellenberger will be out the same amount of time following his knockout victory over Sean Pierson.

UFC 129 took place at the Rogers Centre in Toronto and featured St. Pierre’s welterweight title defense against Jake Shields. In the co-main event of the evening, featherweight title-holder Aldo managed to outpoint Hominick on the judges’ scorecards.

Read the full article.

LAST NAME EVER. FIRST NAME GREATEST.
Quoting Toronto’s Drake seems fitting in the wake of the UFC’s debut in his backyard, but also because the lyrics ring true for UFC 129; this was the greatest event in UFC history.

Plus, Drake was in the building.

The magnitude of this event will remain the benchmark for the organization for some time. It was the UFC’s first stadium show, and it was a resounding success both inside and outside of the cage.

Each of the first four fights ended with a finish, with Pablo Garza’s opening bout flying triangle choke earning Submission of the Night honors, and John Makdessi replacing Shonie Carter as the man attached to a spectacular spinning back fist knockout inside the Octagon.

When you add the 55,000 exhilarated fans who packed the Rogers Centre with the tremendous layout and outstanding production of the event, it will be hard to top this event. Of course, you can be sure that Dana White and the UFC will try, and after being blown away in Toronto, I wouldn’t be surprised to see them pull it off down the line.

Read the full article.

Here are my picks for each of the five main-card bouts. The PPV begins at 9PM ET.

Also, be sure to check out MMABlitz.com for more UFC 129 coverage and news.

UFC Welterweight Championship – Georges St. Pierre (21-2) vs. Jake Shields (26-4-1) – Shields may be the toughest opponent St. Pierre has faced in a while, but I still see the champion running through him. Shields’ striking is miles behind GSP and Shields’ takedown ability is nothing St. Pierre hasn’t seen before. I see St. Pierre keeping the fight standing and picking Shields apart before finishing him in the fourth round by TKO.

UFC Featherweight Champion – Jose Aldo (18-1) vs. Mark Hominick (20-8) – Aldo is an absolute beast and seems unstoppable. Hominick has very quick and powerful hands, but he has not had to deal with someone that has the leg kicks of Aldo. I see Aldo landing a few leg kicks in the first and throwing Hominick off his strategy. From there, look for the champion to pounce and eventually knock the challenger out in the second round.

Light Heavyweight Bout – Randy Couture (19-10) vs. Lyoto Machida (16-2) – My heart says Couture, but my head says Machida. I think Couture will have a good strategy and look to leave it all in the cage, but Machida has some solid grappling ability and will be too elusive in the striking to allow Couture to really implement his game plan. Give me Machida by decision in Couture’s retirement fight.

Lightweight Bout – Mark Bocek (9-3) vs. Ben Henderson (12-2) – Henderson is making his UFC debut and looking to make a statement against Bocek. I see Henderson controlling the fight on his feet and on the ground as he will be too strong for Bocek in both areas. Henderson is smart enough to stay out of submission attempts by Bocek, and that is all the Canadian really has to offer. Give me Benson by decision.

Light Heavyweight Bout – Vladimir Matyushenko (25-5) vs. Jason Brilz (18-3-1) – This fight should be competitive, but I like Brilz to win by decision. He has a good chin and he is relentless with his pursuit to grapple. I suspect once Brilz gets a hold of Matyushenko, he will be able to consistently get him to the ground and get the win in the judges’ eyes.