But perhaps even more frustrating for the UFC light heavyweight contenders, Jones didn’t cower in the face of adversity as many though he may.

After taking his first significant damage in a UFC fight in the result of a collection of straight punches from Lyoto Machida in the main event of UFC 140 on Saturday, Jones rallied and finished off another opponent in the second round to retain his UFC Light Heavyweight Championship.

Jones looked a little unsure of himself in the first round against Machida, as the challenger landed some nice counter punches that staggered the champion. Machida looked confident and won the first round in my book.

However, in the second round, Jones closed the distance between the two and used his wrestling to take Machida to the ground. From there, he landed a devastating elbow that opened up a big gash on Machida. Moments later, the two simultaneously threw left hooks, but Jones’ landed first. Machida crashed to the ground and Jones got a hold of his neck and finished him with a modified standing guillotine that choked him out cold.

Jones looks to be the real deal, as he overcame a slow start to still put on a dominant finish. Rashad Evans has to be the only man in the division to possibly stand a threat to Jones’ title, and even that seems doubtful.

In the co-main event, Frank Mir earned something even more rare than a UFC title, he submitted Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira.

After being the first man to finish him by TKO back at UFC 92, this time Mir broke the arm of the legendary jiu-jitsu master. Big Nog seemed to be on the verge of knocking out Mir as he landed a series of big punches, but Mir managed to keep his senses and eventually locked in a kimura. Nogueira tried to roll out of it, but Mir held on. When Big Nog refused to tap, Mir had to break the arm and force the stoppage from the ref.

For the full results for UFC 140, check out the jump.

UFC 140 Results

Air Canada Center – Toronto

Jon Jones defeats Lyoto Machida via Submission (Guillotine Choke) at 4:26 of Round 2

Frank Mir defeats Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira via Submission (Kimura) at 3:38 of Round 1

Antonio Rogerio Nogueira defeats Tito Ortiz via TKO (Strikes) at 3:15 of Round 1

Brian Ebersole defeats Claude Patrick via Split Decision

Chan Sung Jung defeats Mark Hominick via TKO (Strikes) at 0:07 of Round 1

Igor Pokrajac def Krzysztof Soszynski via KO (punches) at 0:35 of round one

Constantinos Philippou def Jared Hamman via TKO (strikes) at 3:11 of round one

Dennis Hallman def John Makdessi via submission (rear-naked choke) at 2:58 of round one

Yves Jabouin def Walel Watson via split decision

Mark Bocek def Nik Lentz via unanimous decision

Jake Hecht def Rich Attonito via TKO (strikes) at 1:10 of round two

John Cholish def Mitch Clarke via TKO (strikes) at 4:36 of round two

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.

Nate Lawson of HeavyMMA.com downloads the news that UFC 123 is heading to Auburn Hills, Michigan this November.

UFC 123 now has a venue, according to UFC president Dana White.

MMAFighting.com reported the news earlier today that the November 20 event is set for Auburn Hills, Michigan and will take place at The Palace at Auburn Hills.

UFC 123 features a light heavyweight match up between two former champions in Lyoto Machida and Quinton “Rampage” Jackson, along with a welterweight contest between Matt Brown and rising prospect Rory MacDonald. Neither fight has been made official by the promotion, but are anticipated to make the card nevertheless. No other fights have been rumored yet.

The event will be the first UFC event to be held in Michigan since 1996 and the second UFC event of November.

Read more mixed-martial arts articles at HeavyMMA.com.

UFC Light Heavyweight Championship – Lyoto Machida (16-0) vs. Mauricio Rua (18-4) – Shogun exposed weaknesses in Machida’s once-thought unstoppable style in the first meeting at UFC 104. Now, in this rematch, look for Machida to approach the fight from a different style and make the proper adjustments to win this fight decisively. Shogun gave one of his best efforts at UFC 104 and he has the potential to win this fight, but Machida has a better team around him to have him prepared to win this contest. I like Machida to win by TKO in round four.

UFC Welterweight Bout – Josh Koscheck (16-4) vs. Paul Daley (23-8-2) – This fight will determine who will coach alongside UFC Welterweight Champion, Georges St. Pierre, in the next Ultimate Fighter and also be the new No. 1 contender to St. Pierre’s title. This fight can be won by Koscheck if he checks his ego at the door and takes the fight to the ground as Daley is the better and more powerful striker but struggles on the ground. Look for Koscheck to feel Daley out early, but eventually rely on his wrestling skills to get the fight to the ground where he will sink in a choke in round two.

UFC Heavyweight Bout – Kimbo Slice (4-1) vs. Matt Mitrione (1-0) – As much as the UFC tries to deny it, they are setting up Slice with as easy of opponents as they can to allow him to build up some wins to sell pay-per-views. Mitrione can win this fight, but his inexperience in the octagon and his poor conditioning will probably allow Slice to earn a TKO in round two. Slice has started training with American Top Team, so one has to assume that he is developing into a better all-around fighter.

UFC Lightweight Bout – Sam Stout (16-5-1) vs. Jeremy Stephens (17-5) – This could be the fight of the night as both like to scrap. Stephens has more power in his hands, but Stout is the superior striker in terms of technique and combinations. Look for Stout to use his speed and quickness to out-strike Stephens early and then take the fight to the ground where he will unleash some ground-and-pound to secure a unanimous decision victory.

UFC Middleweight Bout – Patrick Cote (14-5) vs. Alan Belcher (14-5) – These two are evenly matched but Cote is coming off a lengthy layoff after knee surgery following his last bout with Anderson Silva. It has been about 18 months since that fight and during that time, Belcher has had three impressive performances against respectable opponents. Belcher has improved greatly over the last two years and Cote may be biting off more than he can chew in this return bout. Look for Belcher to take over the fight the longer it goes as Cote will tire from the layoff. I like Belcher by unanimous decision.

Be sure to tune in to UFC 113 tonight and take part in the WEC 48: Aldo vs. Faber giveaway for your chance to win a pair of official WEC gloves and a t-shirt each signed by Urijah Faber. For more on the contest, check it out here.

It has been some time since I released a top 10 pound-for-pound list, with my last edition coming all the way back in August of last year. There have been some changes and the bottom of the list was tough to determine, but I feel pretty good about this group. I am basing this list over the past few years and using this criteria to make my choices: Quality of wins (i.e. stoppages), Quality of opponents, Amount of damage taken in fights, and Establishment of all-around skills in the cage. Now that the criteria has been addressed, here we go.

1. Anderson Silva – 26-4 – UFC Middleweight Champion: Silva’s last fight was embarrassing for the UFC, but it again displayed how dominant he is. He literally took two rounds off and still won a unanimous decision and in the three rounds he tried, he landed every shot he threw while dodging every shot Demian Maia threw at him. When he gets challenged, Silva quickly runs through his opponents, like Forrest Griffin and Rich Franklin. When guys don’t come at him, like Patrick Cote and Thales Leites, the fights are unwatchable. Bottom line, it is hard to see someone beating this guy and I still think he could step up to heavyweight someday and give Brock Lesnar a run for his money.

2. Georges St. Pierre – 20-2 – UFC Welterweight Champion: GSP hasn’t been challenged since facing Josh Koscheck at UFC 74. The champion has cruised through his opponents and the only complaint against him has been his inability to finish recent opponents. Still, stopping B.J. Penn and dominating Thiago Alves, Jon Fitch, and Dan Hardy is pretty impressive and a potential fight with Koscheck again or slugger Paul Daley or even Jake Shields keeps things exciting with GSP.

3. Fedor Emelianenko – 31-1 – WAMMA Heavyweight Champion: You can certainly argue Fedor is the top P4P fighter in the world as he hasn’t lost since 2000 and he has finished his last eight opponents, but the need to see him in the octagon and against some of these newer, fresher faces in the UFC Heavyweight division keep me from putting him on top. Yes, he is the most dominant heavyweight of all time, but Matt Hughes was once the most dominant welterweight of all time, then he ran into the new crop of fighters and things went south quickly. Lesnar, Carwin, and Velasquez are all fights I would like to see Fedor in today to see just where he stacks up.

4. Jose Aldo – 17-1 – WEC Featherweight Champion – Aldo has been on my radar for a while but with the win over Urijah Faber last weekend and the fashion in which it came leads me to believe that this guy is among the best in the world. His explosive striking has allowed him to tear through his last seven opponents. We haven’t even seen his jiu-jitsu, but he is a black belt there under the Nogueiras. It is hard to see anyone taking Aldo out at 145, but as we have seen, there is always a bad matchup for every fighter.

5. Lyoto Machida – 16-0 – UFC Light Heavyweight Champion: Machida is unbeaten in his career and until his most recent fight with Mauricio “Shogun” Rua, he was nearly untouched in his UFC career. Machida has lacked finishing ability until the last year and a half, but he showed that he could be beaten when he fought Shogun. Consequently, that could have been Machida at his worst and Shogun at his best, and Machida still found a way to get the victory.

6. Jake Shields – 25-4-1 – Strikeforce Middleweight Champion: Shields deserves credit for his win over Dan Henderson. He is fighting up in weight and still dominated four-of-five rounds against him. Shields hasn’t lost since 2004, but he still had trouble with his stand up against Henderson and Paul Daley while also struggling at times on the ground with Jason Miller. You have to give credit where it is due, but Shields appears to have an obvious weakness that could cause problems with his venture into the UFC, if that all plays out.

7. Brock Lesnar – 4-1 – UFC Heavyweight Champion: Lesnar doesn’t have a lot of experience, but he has dominated top heavyweights Frank Mir and Randy Couture. The question still remains if Lesnar can beat the young bucks in the division, but that will be answered in his upcoming fight with Shane Carwin. Lesnar is explosive and powerful which gives him the complete package. Lesnar is going to be tough to get to the ground for submission fighters and his hand speed and size will be tough for a striker to deal with as well.

8. Cain Velasquez – 8-0 – UFC Heavyweight Contender: Velasquez has rolled through everyone in his short MMA career, including an impressive knockout of Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira. An All-American wrestler in college, Velasquez has developed into a powerful striker. His all-around ability will give anyone in the division problems, including Lesnar or Carwin. Velasquez could very likely be the UFC champion a year from now.

9. Shane Carwin – 12-0 – UFC Heavyweight Contender: I struggled with the decision on Carwin because we have yet to see him pushed passed the first round, but that is what ultimately earned him a spot on this list. Carwin has exploded on each of his UFC opponents, including Mir last month. Carwin is a big, burly guy that will be tough to takedown, and his explosive hands make him dangerous on his feet. We saw that he could take a punch against Gabriel Gonzaga, now we see he can man handle a superior grappler like Mir. With Lesnar awaiting him, that fight will likely be about which fighter can land the first clean punch.

10. B.J. Penn – 15-6-1 – UFC Lightweight Contender: Sure Penn just lost his last fight, but it was an off night for Penn while Frankie Edgar fought the perfect fight and still barely won. Penn will get his rematch and then Edgar’s talents will truly be revealed. It is always tougher to beat someone twice. Penn knows how important beating Edgar will be and he should come out with more urgency and explosion. Penn still has the best combination of striking, wrestling, and jiu-jitsu in the lightweight division. His ability to finish guys like Sean Sherk, Kenny Florian, and Diego Sanchez still puts Penn on my top 10 P4P.

Honorable Mention: Rashad Evans (UFC Light Heavyweight), Vitor Belfort (UFC Middleweight), Thiago Alves (UFC Welterweight), Frankie Edgar (UFC Lightweight Champion), Kenny Florian (UFC Lightweight), Gilbert Melendez (Strikeforce Lightweight Champion), Dominick Cruz (WEC Bantamweight Champion), Jon Fitch (UFC Welterweight), Junior dos Santos (UFC Heavyweight).

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