Longo is very candid in judging that St. Pierre has never been the same fighter since Serra pounded him out, and suggests there is a “panic” in his posture and with his corner team whenever he is in a stand-up situation.  Never one to parse words, Longo goes further using the word “awful” when explaining St. Pierre’s current fighting style.  Read on.

Moody: Look, you guys were basically an after-thought.  Nobody, nobody … gave Matt a chance in the first GSP fight.  What is that like when the world is writing off your fighter?  Where did you see an opening with GSP?

Longo: The game plan going into GSP-1 was really to take away what GSP does good.  He has a couple of tricky kicks. We just didn’t want Matt to get drawn into that.  I knew he was a guy who did not want to get hit or get in exchanges.  My belief was that GSP thought that his striking would be superior so he was willing to stand, which was proven in the second fight.

Moody: Did you honestly think Matt could execute a right hand like that against GSP?

Longo: I always knew he could execute a right hand.  I have seen him knock guys down in sparring. I have seen him break guys jaws in sparring.  It (power) was always there.  But he is a Jiu Jitsu guy and that is what he likes to do.  You know, when he went into that GSP fight, he had won the show – he was already like ‘I’m done, this is all gravy.’  He was airing that shit out one way or another.  He was relaxed.  Go back and look at the tape. Look at him in the corner.  He didn’t care, then he started believing, I can do this.

Moody: You have an interesting take and opinion that GSP has never been the same fighter since Matt knocked him out.  Explain.

Longo: Matt really changed his (St. Pierre’s) whole career.  Because he made him fight way more conservative and it’s not good for the fans.  It is actually awful.   You ever watch … they panic in the corner any time he gets into an exchange.  They are panicking. They want to get him back to take him (opponent) down and don’t even pass the guard. Don’t do anything just stay there.

Moody: You also were cornering Luke Cummo that night in his win over Josh Haynes. Why is that important per the outcome of Serra/GSP 1?

Longo: Luke Cummo had fought Josh Haynes and hit him with an overhand right that knocked him out and he (Haynes) grabbed the referee’s leg.  I was screaming for Luke to back out.  After he dropped him, I said get out of there; the guy is on queer street.  The guy grabs the referee’s leg.  I said to Matt, if you get St. Pierre hurt, chase him but don’t over run him so he can grab you.  We went over it in the dressing room based on Cummo’s fight.  You don’t want to let it go (the dominant position) but didn’t want him (GSP) to grab you where is he going to use his strength and hold and recover.

Moody: And now.  Looking back.  Must be a great memory.

Longo: You think of the journey I had with this guy, how is that possible.  You know, he gets knocked out in his first fight (v. Shonie Carter) then he knocks out GSP to win the title.

(Stay tuned to Fighters.com for part three of our exclusive interview with Ray Longo, coming next week, as Longo talks about Serra v. Lytle at UFC 119.  How can Serra stop the surging Lytle in his hometown.)

–

Do you think Serra’s knockout of GSP has changed the way GSP fights?  Is GSP afraid to stand and box now?  Sound off!!

Twitter – @john_moody

The win facilitates an apparent New Year’s Eve champion-versus-champion rematch between St. Pierre and Fighters.com’s Lightweight Champion B.J. Penn (13-4-1), who was invited into the Octagon after the main event to challenge St. Pierre, saying, “I want to put this fight together.”

St. Pierre accepted Penn’s challenge, proclaiming, “I’m a proud champion.”

In the co-main event, Brock Lesnar (2-1) dominated a three-round unanimous decision over Fighters.com’s eighth-ranked heavyweight “Texas Crazy Horse” Heath Herring (28-14) by scores of 30-26 three times.

“I fell off the horse,” Lesnar told the 15,082 spectator hometown crowd referring to his Octagon debut loss to former UFC Heavyweight Champion Frank Mir (11-3), “but, tonight I got on that stallion and rode it out of town, baby! Wooo!”

Fighters.com’s seventh-ranked lightweight “KenFlo” Kenny Florian (10-3) won a blow-out unanimous decision over “El Matador” Roger Huerta (20-2-1) by 30-27 on all three judges’ score cards in a UFC top contender bout.

“I trained to not got to the judges,” a somber Florian confessed after the fight. “A little disappointed in myself, but I’m going to learn from this.”

An even more disappointed, but dapperly dressed Huerta in vest and tie insisted after his loss, “I played into his gameplan. I made mistakes and I’ve got to fix those things.”

Florian’s victory and presumed ascension to the UFC’s top lightweight contendership spot leaves the Boston native in limbo after the UFC’s promotion of a champion-versus-champion showdown between St. Pierre and Penn.

One got the feeling Florian knew before his victory that a win didn’t earn him an immediate title shot when he replied to UFC commentator Joe Rogan’s question about a title fight, “We’ll wait and see.”

Florian beat Huerta walking away, literally.

In round one, Florian ducked under Huerta’s unwieldy haymakers and put “El Matador” on the mat, then mounted him. Huerta rolled into a Florian rear naked choke, but defended successfully.

In round two, Florian continued to let Huerta come to him, backpedaling and tagging Huerta with right hooks as Huerta marched aggressively forward.

“I was chasing him in the fight and that’s something I shouldn’t have done,” admitted Huerta, then he chided Florian, “If I wouldn’t have chased him, there wouldn’t have been a fight.”

In round three, Florian zapped Huerta with a front kick to the face, the second one Florian connected in the fight.

Florian praised, “I had him in some tough positions, had him rocked a few times, but he came back. He has a heart of a champion. That’s what I expected.”

St. Pierre’s vanquished challenger, American Kickboxing Academy’s Fitch, showed the heart of a champion too in his first title fight.

Despite being floored in the first round by a St. Pierre straight right as Fitch launched a leg kick, Fitch, bloodied and stunned, battled into round two through an onslaught of punches and elbows from a mounted St. Pierre.

“I rock him,” St. Pierre said after the fight. “He’s got a very good chin.”

St. Pierre yanked the reigns in a paced round two, which Fighters.com scored 10-9 for Fitch after Fitch pummeled St. Pierre’s body and landed a clean left hook to St. Pierre’s head.

“I was not in trouble,” St. Pierre insisted. “I was trying to pace myself because after the first time I rock him and I couldn’t finish him, I was like, ‘Man, this guy, I’m going to have to almost to kill him to win.’”

Round two would be the last round in which Fitch would challenge St. Pierre.

St. Pierre took Fitch down at will throughout the five rounds and, in round three, replayed the G’n'P onslaught that Fitch endured in round one.

The damage accumulated; and, Fitch’s stand-up, which, ironically, produced the former wrestling All-American’s best offense, grew sloppier.

St. Pierre began to land cleaner shots and more often, including a spinning backfist in round four that drove Fitch to the cage.

Round five was dominated on the mat by St. Pierre; but, both fighters were spent and produced little meaningful offense in the round.

“This loss is maybe the best thing that happened to [Fitch],” said St. Pierre. “It will only make him stronger.”

In heavyweight undercard action, Cheick Kongo (12-4-1) out-classed Octagon debuting Dan Evensen (10-3) in a first-round TKO at 4:55, then presumptuously asked the UFC for a title shot.

Welterweight Chris Wilson (14-4) won his UFC second chance over Steve Bruno (11-4) by unanimous decision.

“I’d like to not start waiting five and six months. I need to fight more often,” Wilson revealed after his UD. “So, if Uncle Dana [White] is willing to put me in sooner… He’s the boss.”

Lightweight Robert Emerson (8-6) knocked out TUF 5 runner-up “Pitbull” Manvel Gamburyan (8-3) in twelve seconds with a right overhand, followed by a left to Gamburyan’s temple as he fell to his back.

“I saw him throwin’, so I threw. You know, luckily mine landed first,” described Emerson after his impressive second UFC win. “Things are lookin’ up for me.”

Middleweight Abu Dhabi champion grappler Demian Maia (8-0) tapped a game, but out-classed “Athlete” Jason MacDonald (20-10) in a rear naked choke at 2:44 of round three in a dramatic back-and-forth mat battle.

“I just go and fight,” Maia said matter-of-factly after the stoppage.

TUF 6 middleweight “Berserk” Ben Saunders(6-0-2) remained undefeated with an armbar submission of Ryan Thomas (9-2) at 2:28 of round two.

“People go for the takedown, get a leg. I swung around to almost like a half-back type position. Did my homework, figured out exactly what I can do from there and [the armbar] was one of them, man,” described Saunders after the fight.

Welterweight “Barn Cat” Tamdan McCrory (9-1) won a unanimous decision over TUF 2 finalist Luke Cummo (6-6).

“I thought I broke his arm [in an armbar],” McCrory said after the fight. “I felt a little ring rust, but, I mean, I felt pretty good for nine months off. I’m ready to get drunk, man.”

Light heavyweight Jon Jones (6-0) won a unanimous decision over Andre Gusmao (5-1) in his Octagon debut.

“The win feels great,” Jones said. “I thought about this many nights, dreamin’ about it.”

Andre Gusmao (5-0) will face “Travolta” Tomasz Drwal (14-2) in a light heavyweight match-up, and welterweights “The Silent Assassin” Luke Cummo (6-5) and “The Barn Cat” Tamden McCrory (8-1) will meet.

Gusmao almost signed with the UFC in February to fight David Heath (8-3), but happened to still be under contract with the IFL. His last fight was in September.

Drwal tallied a loss against Thiago Silva (13-0) by second-round TKO in September at his UFC debut, ending a thirteen-fight win streak.

TUF 2 competitor Cummo is coming off a loss by unanimous decision to Luigi Fioravanti (12-3) at UFC 82 in March.

McCrory’s only loss of his professional career came during his last fight at UFC 78 in November, when PRIDE veteran Akihiro Gono (28-12-7) submitted him with an armbar in the second round.

However, it was UFC Middleweight Champion “Spider” Anderson Silva who left Nationwide Arena big pimpin’ with a total disclosed payday of $260,000 for his second round submission of “Hollywood” Dan Henderson.

Silva received $70,000 to show, a $70,000 win bonus, a $60,000 Submission of the Night bonus, and a $60,000 Fight of the Night bonus.  Mo’ money, mo’ money, mo’ money!

Henderson received a $60,000 bonus for participating in Fight of the Night.  “The Crippler” Chris Leben received $60,000 for Knockout of the Night in his victory over “Legionarius” Alessio Sakara.

Despite making the PPV broadcast in an non-stop stand-up war, Josh Koscheck and Dustin Hazelett lost out to Silva v Henderson for Fight of the Night.

The entire run-down below:

Andrei Arlovski: $170,000
Anderson Silva: $140,000
Heath Herring: $140,000
Dan Henderson: $100,000
Diego Sanchez: $60,000
Chris Leben: $50,000
Cheick Kongo: $30,000
Yushin Okami: $28,000
Evan Tanner: $25,000
Josh Koscheck: $20,000
Alessio Sakara: $17,000
Luigi Fioravanti: $16,000
Luke Cummo: $16,000
Jorge Gurgel: $14,000
Dustin Hazelett: $12,000
Jake O’Brien: $11,000
David Bielkheden: $8,000
John Halverson: $3,000

The kickboxer from Curitiba vanquished former PRIDE Middleweight and Light Heavyweight Champion “Hollywood” Dan Henderson in a rear naked choke at 4:52 of the second round.

The first round illustrated why Henderson, 22-7, was pegged as Silva’s last great challenge at 185-pounds.

The wrestler from California nixed the champion’s world class stand-up with lateral movement that prevented Silva from setting and delivering his laser-like strikes.

Henderson grabbed hold of the “Spider” and dumped him to the mat in an awkward half guard that allowed “Hollywood” to smother Silva while peppering him with hammer fists.

The frustrated champion endured to the second frame.

In a sloppy Thai clinch, Silva slammed a knee to Henderson’s chiseled chin, causing the the top contender to crumble.

Silva pounced!  A barrage of strikes convinced Henderson to give up his back, the fatal flaw leading to a rear naked choke submission with just eight seconds to spare in the round.

While UFC broadcasters Mike Goldberg and Joe Rogan wondered allowed who could challenge the champion, Silva seemed to indicate a third tussle with former UFC Middleweight Champion “Ace” Rich Franklin was due.

In the broadcasted card’s only heavyweight rumble, “The Texas Crazy Horse” Heath Herring tumbled into a split decision “W” over Cheick Kongo of France.

The Parisian kickboxer insisted on wrestling, to the surprise of everyone including Herring.  Kongo dumped the Texan by force of will, but never capitalized on his advantageous ground positions as Herring consistently swept and reversed into safer territory.

In the end, Herring’s pitter-patter of pounding and Kongo’s cluelessness on the mat served Herring the “W” and a possible rematch with current interim UFC belt holder Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira, whom Herring came within a hair of beating last year.

In untelevised heavyweight action, former UFC titlist “The Pitbull” Andrei Arlovski wrapped-up his current UFC contract and possibly his Octagon career with second round TKO of Jake O’Brien.

Arlovski has openly entertained the idea of quitting the UFC for greener opportunities.

Another pair of middleweights made the PPV broadcast when former UFC Middleweight Champion Evan Tanner was knocked silly…er with a knee from the Thai clinch by Yushin Okami.

The fight was Tanner’s first since April 2006 and the vet seemed to gas late into the first round before eating the death blow at 3:00 of the second.

18-4 Chris Leben TKO’d 185-pound newbie “Legionarius” Alessio Sakara of Italy at 3:16 of round one.

“The Crippler” Leben knocked Sakara to his back with a left hook behind the ear, then pounced on the Roman with six unanswered punches before referee Herb Dean waved the affair closed.

Welterweights Josh Koscheck and Dustin Hazelett lit each other up for a round before a Koscheck kick found the button behind Hazelett’s ear a minute into round two.  Koschek pummeled the fallen fighter until the referee called it a TKO for Koscheck.

The PPV opened with the longest three rounds of my life between welterweight contender Jon Fitch and UFC-debuting Chris Wilson of Team Quest.

Wilson spent most of his Octagon initiation on his bicycle while Fitch tried to chase him down.  The judges awarded Fitch a unanimous decision for aggression and superior wrestling positioning.

The rest of the untelevised portion of the card included a unanimous decision  “W” for 12-3 welterweight Luigi Fioravanti over Luke Cummo, who falls to 6-5.

“Nightmare” Diego Sanchez was tossed a bit of red meat in Sweden’s David Bielkheden after dropping two consecutive fights.  Sanchez devoured Bielkheden in a first round strikes submission.

Lightweight Jorge Gurgel took a unanimous decision over John Halverson to improve to 12-3, 3-2 in the Octagon.

 UFC 82 sold out Nationwide Arena in Columbus, Ohio.