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| Despite his smaller size and a broken nose in the first-round, Edgar retained his lightweight title via TKO. |
Going into Saturday night’s UFC 136, fans and media alike were dubbing the card the “best ever” or “the most stacked card of all-time”. The question of whether or not it would deliver was answered with an emphatic “yes” by the end of the night.
The first two fights on the main card, Joe Lauzon vs. Melvin Guillard and Nam Phan vs. Leonard Garcia, were more than worthy precursors to the night’s big three fights. Lauzon surprised the crowd with a rear-naked choke victory over Guillard and Phan defeated Garcia in an exciting featherweight bout that went the distance.
However, it was the final three fights that drew the crowd and earned my honors of Submission of the Night, Knockout of the Night and Fight of the Night.
SOTN: Chael Sonnen went into his middleweight bout versus Brian Stann looking to prove that he is still worthy of a shot at Anderson Silva’s title. His performance this night went a long way to prove him right. Sonnen’s second-round submission via arm-triangle showed his ability to finish an opponent with a killer instinct. His post-fight interview consisted of him calling out Silva and challenging him to a Career vs. Title fight in what was a rant taken straight from the world of professional wrestling.
KOTN: The Frankie Edgar vs. Gray Maynard trilogy came to a dramatic and climactic end at UFC 136. This lightweight title fight started in Maynard’s favor. He pushed the tempo in the first round and broke Edgar’s nose in the process. Maynard looked to be coasting, but when the fourth started he showed a bit more heart. He shot in for a takedown, which was stuffed by Edgar and it began Maynard’s demise. Edgar landed an upper-cut to shake Maynard, which he followed up with several more shots and ended up ending the fight with vicious KO blows to Maynard’s head.
FOTN: Jose Aldo vs. Kenny Florian for the featherweight title was not as hyped or had the storyline that Edgar vs. Maynard did, but it certainly delivered. This title fight went the full five-rounds with each fighter showing they had the desire and drive to walk away as champion. Both men were able to dictate certain rounds and get into some sort of a groove. However it was Aldo that caught fire at the end and walked away with the unanimous decision victory and his title.
Follow me on Twitter @NiteshDutt.
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