In his octagon debut, the former Strikeforce Heavyweight Champion made quick work of Lesnar, beating him by TKO at 2:26 of the first round following a body kick.

Overeem was able to stuff the few takedown attempts from Lesnar and land some powerful knees to the body that softened Lesnar up for the finish. Overeem will now face Junior dos Santos for the UFC heavyweight title in the near future.

Following the loss, his second in as many fights, Lesnar retired from competition. With a pair of bad knockout losses, his aura has faded. With a title shot not likely to come any time soon, it made sense for Lesnar to call it quits. It hurts the UFC as he was their top draw, but I am sure they can market Overeem.

In the co-main event, Nate Diaz had an impressive decision win over Donald Cerrone. Diaz used his boxing to pick apart Cerrone. The Cowboy took a number of unanswered punches throughout the 15 minutes.

In a big upset, Johny Hendricks knocked out Jon Fitch in just 12 seconds. Fitch, who had just one loss in the octagon to Georges St. Pierre, had been off for nearly a year due to shoulder surgery.

Fitch threw a couple of punches in the opening seconds but then walked in to a big left from Hendricks that put him out cold for a moment.

The loss for Fitch is devastating, as he was close to earning a title shot, and now will fall well back into the contender list. Due to a lack of exciting fights, Fitch can’t expect to headline an event any time too soon.

For complete results from UFC 141, check out the jump.

UFC 141 Results

MGM Grand Garden Arena – Las Vegas

Friday, Dec. 30, 2011

265 lbs.: Alistair Overeem defeats Brock Lesnar via TKO (Strikes) Round 1

170 lbs.: Johny Hendricks defeats Jon Fitch via KO (Strikes) Round 1

155 lbs.: Nate Diaz defeats Donald Cerrone via Unanimous Decision

145 lbs.: Jim Hettes defeats Nam Phan via Unanimous Decision

205 lbs.: Alexander Gustafsson defeats Vladimir Matyushenko via TKO (Strikes) Round 1

145 lbs.: Ross Pearson defeats Junior Assuncao via Unanimous Decision

155 lbs.: Danny Castillo defeats Anthony Njokuani via Split Decision

170 lbs.: Dong Hyun Kim def Sean Pierson via unanimous decision

155 lbs.: Jacob Volkmann def. Efrain Escudero via unanimous decision

145 lbs.: Diego Nunes def. Manny Gamburyan via unanimous decision

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.

UFC 118: Edgar vs. Penn 2 takes place tonight from the TD Garden in Boston and the card is stacked with intriguing fights from the main event UFC Lightweight title bout to the MMA vs. Boxing match featuring James “Lights Out” Toney and UFC Hall of Famer Randy “The Natural” Couture. Here are my picks for tonight’s event.

UFC Lightweight Championship Bout: Frankie Edgar (12-1) vs. B.J. Penn (15-6-1) – Edgar won a close decision in the first match where Penn was heavily favored. This time around, we should expect to see the Penn we thought we would see the first time around. While Edgar has a good skill set to beat Penn, as he is quick with sharp strikes and good wrestling, he doesn’t have the natural talent that Penn has. Look for Penn to work his jab and put together combinations on Edgar, slowly breaking him apart before choking him out in round four.

UFC Heavyweight Bout: Randy Couture (18-10) vs. James Toney (0-0) – This fight has gotten more hype than any other on the card as it marks the first time a legitimate boxing champion is stepping into the octagon. While Toney has one-punch knockout power, Couture is too smart to be beaten that easily. Couture will push Toney up against the cage early and work his dirty boxing before eventually scoring a takedown and finishing with a submission. Toney is too big and slow to be able to keep Couture from getting him to the ground.

UFC Lightweight Bout: Kenny Florian (15-4) vs. Gray Maynard (10-0) – This is a No. 1 contender’s match in the lightweight division. Maynard is unbeaten but in the biggest fight of his career tonight in terms of opponent and setting. He owns a win over the champion Edgar, but both are different fighters now. Florian has been better than everyone but the champion in his career and tonight look for him to find a way to win. Maynard is big and strong, but Florian will have the striking edge and is a better submission fighter. I expect Florian to win by choke in the third round.

UFC Welterweight Bout: Marcus Davis (22-7) vs. Nate Diaz (12-5) – Diaz is long and thin and he likes to use his jab to keep his opponents at bay before eventually getting the fight to the ground and winning by submission. Davis is a former boxer with good power, but he struggles with his grappling. In this fight, Davis will have a problem getting inside Diaz’ reach and eventually Diaz will get control and take the fight to the ground where he will lock in a choke or arm lock for the win.

UFC Middleweight Bout: Demian Maia (12-2) vs. Mario Miranda (12-1) – Miranda is a promising fighter with good striking and grappling skills, but he is new to the octagon and stepping in against the most dangerous submission fighter in MMA. Maia is coming off a poor showing against Anderson Silva and will be eager to put on an impressive performance. Look for him to win by submission in the first round.

Nate Lawson of HeavyMMA.com recently sat down with Marcus Davis, who says the fighters’ jobs are to entertain.

As a young, poor child from the East Coast, Marcus Davis set forth his goals early in life. The proud Irish-American wanted to become a professional fighter and compete in Ireland.

At the ripe age of 19, Davis made the leap to the professional level of boxing and, just a few years later, was drawn into the hype of mixed martial arts, making his professional MMA debut in 2003.

Throughout both his boxing career and mixed martial arts career, “The Irish Hand Grenade” has had a great deal of success, enjoying power in his hands that have led to several vicious knockouts, as well as an ever-improving MMA game that has allowed him to compete in the sport as a professional and even accomplish his goal of fighting in Ireland.

Yet with all the success that has come to Davis over his career, make no mistake about it, he is a fighter, first and foremost, for your entertainment.

Read the rest of the article here.

My hands were sweaty, my face was red but I wasn’t going to let the opportunity pass.

“Dana, could you tell me where you see Jose (Aldo) on your pound-for-pound list.”

The question was simple enough. I mean I ran it through my head a million times in a little over two minutes. The wording, the timing, the tone all needed to sound just right. After all, this question was directed at Dana White, President of the UFC and WEC.

Following Saturday’s WEC 48: Aldo vs. Faber pay-per-view event, which was sponsored by AMP Energy, White and select fighters addressed the media. And there I was, covering my first MMA live event thanks to the people at AMP Energy.

At 27, I have been a dedicated MMA fan for seven years. Having seen the early days of Royce Gracie and Ken Shamrock, I was re-introduced to the UFC with Chuck Liddell and Randy Couture at UFC 43 and have been hooked since.

But I am not just a fan, I am a sports writer, and have been for about 10 years now.

I knew that the opportunity of covering MMA for Bullz-Eye.com and The Scores Report was one I wanted to be a part of because I knew that I could do it objectively and with the respect and knowledge that MMA fans want from their writers. I’m not just a fan. Still, even having interviewed some of the top athletes in the world, my eyes were locked in with White’s as he awaited my question.

As any MMA fan knows, if White thinks you asked him a stupid question, he will let you know and he will probably sprinkle in a few expletives to describe his feelings.

So I asked my question.

“There is no doubt that (Aldo) is one of the best in the world, period,” White responded. “That is of all fighters, not just in his weight division. He’s definitely on the pound-for-pound (best fighters) list.”

My heart slowed down as White moved on to the next question. I conquered my fear. Shoot, I conquered many fears on this memorable trip, and they all added up to me realizing that this could be the first of many questions I would ask of White in my lifetime.

AMP Energy provided me with a first hand look at what goes on at a MMA pay-per-view event this past weekend. I got to see many fighters I have watched for years at their most vulnerable moments. The moments that aren’t caught on camera, and what I took away is that they are just people like you and me. We all have our oddities and quirks. I saw Ben Henderson just moments after the biggest win in his career, having defeated Donald Cerrone for the WEC Lightweight Championship, running sprints in the halls of Arco Arena.

I saw Cerrone, disgusted with his loss taking the tape off his hands with his head down. He had just spent three months of his life training every day for Saturday night, only to see himself lose in a matter of minutes.

I saw Leonard Garcia and Chan Sung Jung sitting across from one another backstage, both bloodied and beaten after having had a 15-minute war in the cage that I will never forget. The two were even laughing with each other about the beating they gave one another.

I saw a number of fighters like Jake Shields, Chael Sonnen, Chuck Liddell, Nate Diaz and many others like White, announcer Bruce Buffer, and even the ring girls dedicate time to taking pictures with fans to show their appreciation for their unwavering support of the sport.

And that is just what I saw.

I got to meet AMP Energy fighters Urijah Faber and Joseph Benavidez, who were both tremendously gracious and respectful despite being asked to do yet-another interview. Faber alone had just stepped off the scales to qualify for his title fight, yet made it a point to speak with the media members that AMP had brought to Sacramento.

Later that same day, as Faber headed home to host a pre-fight barbecue, he signed countless autographs and took countless photos with fans as they flocked his car while he left Arco Arena. Faber’s teammates Mark Munoz, Danny Castillo, and Justin Buchholz gave us a tour of Ultimate Fitness. The three allowed me, as a reporter, to get a better understanding of what fighters are thinking heading into the cage.

All of these interactions were amazing, but being live in Arco Arena during the PPV was incredible.
The sheer passion and energy in the crowd was unforgettable. The chorus of cheers as Faber entered the arena was as loud as anything I have ever heard and felt. (Believe me, I have had the unfortunate experience of covering competitive cheer, so I know loud.)

My body was shaking through the vibrations of the stadium due to the volume of the roar. The same could be said about the “boos” for Aldo as he followed Faber into the cage. Each punch, knee, and kick can be clearly heard and almost felt in person. You truly gain a new respect for the sport being there live and I am thankful for that experience.

The travel was long, stressful, and tenuous, but the time in Sacramento made it all worth it. I was a fan of MMA before, and now I will always be a fan. But, more importantly, I hope to continue to be an objective reporter for the readers and offer fresh perspectives and behind-the-scenes glimpses of every event I attend in the future.

Who knows? Maybe next time I won’t feel like I’m going to crap my pants when Dana White is staring daggers at me from the podium.

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

- Quinton “Rampage” Jackson’s dry-humping of a female reporter became the year’s most uncomfortable MMA viral video.

- Saturday’s monumental UFC 100 show will feature “Girl Next Door” Holly Madison as a celebrity Octagon Girl, and two very worthy additions to the UFC Hall of Fame.

- With the bookings of Alistair Overeem vs. Fabricio Werdum and Nick Diaz vs. Joe Riggs, Strikeforce’s “Carano vs. Cyborg” mega-card will now feature four title fights.

- In other Diaz Brother news, Nate Diaz is headlining the next UFC Fight Night event, despite having lost his last two matches, and plans on getting knocked dead this time.

- The UFC’s new stance on sponsorships is taking money out of the pockets of their fighters.

- After screwing the UFC by defecting to DREAM, MMA legend Mirko “Cro Cop” Filipovic has decided to screw DREAM and return to the UFC.

- The full cast of “The Ultimate Fighter: Heavyweights” was revealed. Does Kimbo Slice have a chance?

- Swing by CagePotato tonight (Saturday) beginning at 7 p.m. PT/10 p.m. ET for our liveblog of UFC 100, in which Brock Lesnar clashes with Frank Mir for the second time, Georges St. Pierre defends his belt against Thiago Alves, and Michael Bisping and Dan Henderson battle for a middleweight title shot. Get hyped for the historic event by watching this unofficial tribute, and this official one.

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.