Coming into his bout with the former UFC champion, Mir, Dos Santos was expected to win with his crisp striking, and that is exactly what led to the win.

After somewhat of an eventful first round that saw Dos Santos win thanks to his striking, the champion managed to finish off the fight in the second thanks to a big right hand that caught Mir flush on the cheek. JDS then followed up with a flurry on the ground to earn the TKO stoppage.

The win for JDS was as big for him as it was a big loss for Mir. The former champion likely won’t see another title shot anytime soon after losing his last three matches where a belt was on the line by devastating knockout.

Mir has had quite the career, but it is clear he doesn’t have the ability to contend with explosive strikers that have the ability to keep the fight standing. He has been brutally beaten by the likes of Brock Lesnar, Shane Carwin, and now Dos Santos.

In the co-main event, Cain Velasquez destroyed Antonio Silva in Silva’s UFC debut. The former heavyweight champ bloodied Silva thanks to a big elbow across the nose and he followed up with a number of strikes thereafter.

The win for Velasquez probably pushes him right back up to the No. 1 contender spot, as Dos Santos knocked him out in their meeting last November.

For complete results from UFC 146, check out the jump.

UFC 146 Results (via MMAMania.com)

Saturday, May 26

MGM Grand Garden Arena – Las Vegas

UFC Heavyweight Champion Junior dos Santos defeats Frank Mir via TKO (Strikes) Round 2

265 lbs.: Cain Velasquez defeats Antonio Silva via TKO (Strikes) Round 1

265 lbs.: Roy Nelson defeats Dave Herman via KO (Strikes) Round 1

265 lbs.: Stipe Miocic defeats Shane del Rosario via TKO (Strikes) Round 2

265 lbs.: Stefan Struve defeats Lavar Johnson via Submission (Arm Bar) Round 1

145 lbs.: Darren Elkins def. Diego Brandao via unanimous decision

155 lbs.: Jamie Varner def. Edson Barboza via TKO (strikes) at 3:23 of round one

185 lbs.: C.B. Dollaway def. Jason Miller via unanimous decision

170 lbs.: Dan Hardy def. Duane Ludwig via KO at 3:51 of round one

155 lbs.: Paul Sass def. Jacob Volkmann via submission (triangle armbar) at 1:54 of round one

205 lbs.: Glover Teixeira def. Kyle Kingsbury via submission (arm triangle choke) at 1:53 of round one

145 lbs.: Mike Brown def. Daniel Pineda via unanimous decision

Evans seemed to be the only man in the 205-pound division to pose a threat to Jones, as Evans was a former teammate of Jones, and Evans seemed to have the speed to present a problem for the champ.

However, Jones didn’t struggle much, as he used his kicks, knees, and elbows to control the spacing and pacing of the fight. Evans landed a few big strikes, but never seemed to be comfortable in the bout. Jones bruised up Evans’ face and earned all five rounds on one scorecard and four of the five rounds on the other two.

With another easy win for Jones, the question is, who is left in the division? Dan Henderson is expected to get the next shot, but he doesn’t seem to have the skills that would really be a problem for Jones.

A dream bout with Anderson Silva would seem very intriguing for the UFC, and also a possible move to heavyweight could be in the cards sometime soon. Jones is already walking around at 230 pounds, and UFC heavyweight champion, Junior dos Santos, isn’t much bigger.

Jones appears to possess the skills and composure to transcend divisions and become a true all-time great.

Speaking of all-time greats, welterweight Rory MacDonald appears to be in the early stages of that path. At 22, MacDonald has already picked up impressive wins and he added another on Saturday, beating Che Mills by TKO in the second round.

MacDonald unleashed a vicious array of ground-and-pound on Mills that left him a bloody mess. MacDonald may have the best ground striking in MMA and he continues to improve with each fight.

MacDonald trains with current champion, Georges St. Pierre, and has a similar build and style to the champ. MacDonald was just a few seconds away from earning a decision win over current interim champ, Carlos Condit. Condit earned a late TKO after MacDonald had out-grappled him for three rounds a few years ago.

It is hard to know just where MacDonald is in the welterweight rankings, but he seems to be in the discussion for top 5.

For complete results from UFC 145, check out the jump.

UFC 145 Results

Saturday, April 21

Philips Arena – Atlanta, Georgia

Jon Jones defeats Rashad Evans via Unanimous Decision

Rory MacDonald defeats Che Mills via TKO (Strikes) Round 2

Ben Rothwell defeats Brendan Schaub via TKO (Strikes) Round 1

Mark Bocek defeats John Alessio via Unanimous Decision

Eddie Yagin defeats Mark Hominick via Split Decision

Michael McDonald defeats Miguel Torres via TKO (Strikes) Round 1

Travis Browne def. Chad Griggs via submission (arm triangle choke) at 2:29 of round one

Matt Brown def. Stephen Thompson via unanimous decision

Anthony Njokuani def. John Makdessi via unanimous decision

Mac Danzig def. Efrain Escudero via unanimous decision

Chris Clements def. Keith Wisniewski via split decision

Marcus Brimage def. Maximo Blanco via split decision

The main event featured a very competitive bout for the lightweight championship where Ben Henderson defeated Frankie Edgar by unanimous decision to claim the 155-pound strap.

Henderson, who looked noticeably bigger than Edgar, was able to dictate the fight with his leg and body kicks while also using his size and strength to stay off his back for frequent periods of time.

While each of the five rounds was razor thin, the overall impact of the fight clearly took more of a toll on Edgar, who was battered an bruised, than Henderson, who looked fresh throughout.

In the co-main event, Ryan Bader earned the biggest win of his career, picking up a hard-fought decision win over Quinton “Rampage” Jackson. Bader showed some good striking and head movement to earn the nod on the feet and then managed to score three takedowns against Jackson, who has been notoriously hard to take down. Jackson, who missed weight by six pounds, looked sluggish as the fight prolonged. Bader had clearly won the fight when the final horn sounded.

The main card started off with a bang as lightweight Anthony Pettis knocked out Joe Lauzon with a vicious head kick. Pettis dominated the fight, taking little to no damage while working nice jab combinations and kicks. Pettis ended the fight with a head kick to Lauzon and then a few punches on the ground for good measure. The KO was much-needed for Pettis, who failed to have a signature win since joining the UFC. He is now right up there as a top-5 contender in the 155-pound division.

Another big highlight on the card was an incredible comeback TKO win for middleweight Tim Boetsch, who stopped Yushin Okami in the third round. Okami dominated the first two rounds with sharp striking and nearly finished Boetsch on two occasions. However, in the third round, Boetsch had the mindset of kill or be killed, and he was the one that did the killing. He attacked from the opening second of the round and used a series of uppetcuts in the clinch to fold Okami up like an accordion and earn the win, by far the biggest of his career.

For complete UFC 144 results, check out the jump.

UFC 144 Results (Courtesy of MMAMania.com)

Saturday, February 26, 2012

Saitama Super Arena, Tokyo, Japan

155 lbs.: Ben Henderson defeats Frankie Edgar via Unanimous Decision

205 lbs.: Ryan Bader defeats Quinton Jackson via Unanimous Decision

170 lbs.: Jake Shields defeats Yoshihiro Akiyama via Unanimous Decision

265 lbs.: Mark Hunt defeats Cheick Kongo via TKO (Strikes) Round 1

185 lbs.: Tim Boetsch defeats Yushin Okami via TKO (Strikes) Round 3

145 lbs.: Hatsu Hioki defeats Bart Palaszewski via Unanimous Decision

155 lbs.: Anthony Pettis defeats Joe Lauzon via TKO (Head Kick) Round 1

155 lbs.: Takanori Gomi def. Eiji Mitsuoka via TKO (strikes) at 2:21 of round two

135 lbs.: Vaughan Lee def. Norifumi Yamamoto via submission (armbar) at 4:29 of round one

185 lbs.: Riki Fukuda def. Steve Cantwell via unanimous decision

135 lbs.: Chris Cariaso def. Takeya Mizugaki via unanimous decision

145 lbs.: Issei Tamura def. Zhang Tiequan via KO at 0:32 of round two

On Saturday, he just confirmed it once again.

The UFC Featherweight Champion and top 5 pound-for-pound fighter in the world put another highlight reel KO on his resume at UFC 142, finishing Chad Mendes with 1 second left in the first round thanks to a knee to the head.

Aldo (21-1) had control of the fight from the start, as he landed a number of leg kicks that seemed to bother Mendes. The contender attempted a number of takedowns, but Aldo managed to escape them all. As the opening round winded down, Aldo landed a big knee during the exchange and followed up with two big right hands on the ground that put Mendes out cold.

Following the win, the champion sprinted into the raucous Brazilian crowd, nearly causing a riot. But, disaster was averted.

Now, the big question for Aldo is what is next, as he has wiped out the 145-pound division and left no legit contenders.

In the co-main event, another local hero, Vitor Belfort, scored a first round win over Anthony Johnson by rear-naked choke.

Johnson came in 12 pounds overweight on Friday, but it didn’t seem to hurt Belfort and only left Johnson fatigued late in the first round.

With Johnson worn down, Belfort found his striking range and sent Johnson to the ground before taking his back and securing a choke late in the opening round.

The other highlight of the night had Edson Barboza putting his stamp on the lightweight division by delivering a wheel kick KO against Terry Etim.

The two had a very competitive first two rounds, but with two minute to go in the final round, Barboza unleashed a picture-perfect wheel kick that knocked Etim out cold on contact.

Barboza has now thrust himself into the top 10 of the division and looks to be a real threat in the 155-pound weight class.

For full results for UFC 142, check out the jump.

UFC 142 Results (Via MMAMania.com)

HSBC Arena – Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

Saturday, January 14, 2012

Jose Aldo def. Chad Mendes via knockout at 4:59 of round one

Vitor Belfort def. Anthony Johnson via submission (rear naked choke) at 4:49 of round one

Rousimar Palhares def. Mike Massenzio via submission (heel hook) at 1:02 of round one

Carlo Prater def. Erick Silva via disqualification

Edson Barboza def. Terry Etim via knockout at 2:02 of round three

Thiago Tavares def Sam Stout via unanimous decision

Gabriel Gonzaga def Ednaldo Oliveira via submission (rear-naked choke) at 3:22 of round one

Yuri Alcantara def Michihiro Omigawa via unanimous decision

Mike Pyle def Ricardo Funch via TKO (strikes) at 1:22 of round one

Felipe Arantes def. Antonio Carvalho via unanimous decision

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

The two competed in the first five-round non-title fight since the UFC added the new five-round rule to any main event, and in the end, Henderson managed to narrowly out-point Rua for a unanimous decision.

It appeared that Henderson would end the fight early as he landed some big right hands on Rua, but the former UFC champion survived and pushed the fight into the later rounds where Henderson became exhausted. The final seven minutes were all Rua, but it was too little, too late, as Henderson had done enough to win 48-47 on all three judges’ scorecards.

The win pushes Henderson into the top 5 of the UFC light heavyweight division, but an immediate rematch with Rua may be in order due to the reaction from the fans and UFC brass on the fight itself.

In the co-main event, Wanderlei Silva proved he is still dangerous as he beat Cung Le by TKO in the second round in a middleweight contest.

Early in the fight it looked as if Silva may not get out of the first round, as he took a number of big kicks and punches from Le, but he survived and then came out aggressive in the second round. Silva caught Le with a big right hand and then followed up with some devastating knees in the clinch that led to the stoppage.

While Silva still has a long way to go to be near the title picture, he still remains a relevant fighter in the UFC.

In bantamweight action, Urijah Faber defeated Brian Bowles by guillotine choke in the second round to earn another title shot at Dominick Cruz. Faber controlled the fight from the start, as his hand speed and diverse striking were too much for Bowles to deal with.

For complete UFC 139 results (courtesy of MMAMania.com), check out the jump.

UFC 139 Results

Saturday, Nov. 19

HP Pavilion, San Jose, California

205 lbs.: Dan Henderson defeats Mauricio Rua via Unanimous Decision

185 lbs.: Wanderlei Silva defeats Cung Le via TKO (Strikes) Round 2

135 lbs.: Urijah Faber defeats Brian Bowles via Submission (Guillotine Choke) Round 2

205 lbs.: Stephan Bonnar defeats Kyle Kingsbury via Unanimous Decision

170 lbs.: Martin Kampmann defeats Rick Story via Split Decision

205 lbs.: Ryan Bader defeats Jason Brilz via TKO (Strikes) Round 1

135 lbs.: Michael McDonald defeats Alex Soto via TKO (Strikes) Round 1

185 lbs.: Chris Weidman def Tom Lawlor via submission (d’arce choke) at 2:07 of round one

155 lbs.: Gleison Tibau def Rafael Dos Anjos via split decision (29-28, 29-28, 30-27)

135 lbs.: Miguel Torres def Nick Pace via unanimous decision (30-27 by all three judges)

170 lbs.: Seth Baczynski def Matt Brown via submission (guillotine choke) at 0:42 of round two

155 lbs.: Danny Castillo def. Shamar Bailey via TKO (strikes) at 4:52 of round one

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.

UFC on FOX 1 Results

Honda Center – Anaheim, California

Saturday, Nov. 12, 2012

Junior dos Santos defeats Cain Velasquez via TKO (Strikes) Round 1

Ben Henderson def. Clay Guida via unanimous decision

Dustin Poirier def. Pablo Garza via submission (D’Aarce choke) at 1:32 of Round 2

Ricardo Lamas def. Cub Swanson via submission (arm triangle choke) at 2:16 of Round 2

DaMarques Johnson def. Clay Harvison via TKO at 1:34 of round 1

Darren Uyenoyama def. Norifumi Yamamoto via unanimous decision

Robert Peralta def. Mackens Semerzier via TKO at 1:54 of round 3

Alex Caceres def. Cole Escovedo via unanimous decision

Mike Pierce def. Paul Bradley via split decision

Aaron Rosa def. Matt Lucas via majority decision