In a new report from MMA Weekly, the UFC recently made “UFC on Versus 6” official and have added an interesting rematch to the event. Mac Danzig will be taking on Matt Wiman. Their first fight ended in a lot of controversy: after securing a choke, Wiman was awarded the victory when the referee thought Danzig had been choked unconscious.  That turned out not to be true, but Wiman was awarded the victory anyway.

In addition to Danzig/Wiman, the only other fight currently being rumored for this event sees Charlie Brenneman take on Anthony Johnson. “UFC on Versus 6” is currently scheduled for October 1 at the Verizon Center in Washington, D.C. This will be the first time in UFC history that the promotion has held a show in the nation’s capital.

Mac Danzig won the sixth season of “The Ultimate Fighter” while already being a veteran of over twenty fights. Like many former TUF champions and even TUF finalists, Danzig has been given a lot of leeway with the promotion. At one point, Danzig was on the dreaded three-fight losing-streak and still allowed to compete in the UFC. Luckily for him, he would turn it all around in his next fight and he’s currently 2-1 in his three most-recent encounters, the sole loss before the aforementioned controversial submission to Matt Wiman. Danzig is coming off of a great victory back in December of last year, earning a “Knockout of the Night” win over former UFC Lightweight Championship contender Joe Stevenson.

Matt Wiman has been fighting in the UFC since 2006, and has a respectable record of 7-4 with only one stoppage loss. In his time inside the Octagon, Wiman has both (T)KO’d and submitted his opponents. That versatility carried Wiman through a tough three-round war with rising Lightweight Dennis Siver, and it was a fight many thought Wiman should have won. He didn’t, and he expressed his frustration by storming out of the cage when Siver’s hand was raised and not his.

To be honest, I’m not the biggest fan of either of these two fighters. I think they’ve both got their fair share of talent, I’ve just never been that high on them throughout any point in their careers.

It really rubbed me the wrong way when Wiman stormed out of the cage following his loss to Siver. I get that he was angry and upset, but that just struck me as unprofessional and even a bit classless. He’s not the first person to feel like they won a fight that went to the judges, and it wasn’t even that bad of a decision considering how close the fight was.

It also rubbed me the wrong way that Mac Danzig, Mac Danzig of all people, was allowed to fight past the unwritten rule of a three-fight losing-streak getting you the axe. He’s definitely an entertaining fighter most of the time, but with so many good fighters being released from the UFC on three-fight, two-fight, and even one-fight losing-streaks… Mac Danzig just doesn’t seem like a fighter the UFC absolutely has to have, to the point where they’d make an exception to their own unwritten rule.

But in the end, I’ll put aside my misgivings and say that this will probably be a good fight. I’ll even go one step further and say that “UFC on Versus 6” will probably be a pretty good event as well.

The event takes place on June 11 at the Rogers Arena in Vancouver, Cananda. The main-event of the evening will pit former heavyweight champion Brock Lesnar against top contender Junior dos Santos, which will likely generate huge numbers for the pay-per-view event, which spells good things for Cerrone, who is still being introduced to the main stream mixed martial arts fans.

His opponent is none other than “The Ultimate Fighter” season six winner in Mac Danzig, who has had some choice words in the past for Cerrone and will now be able to release some of those frustrations come this June.

Cerrone, a three-time title challenger in the WEC, successfully made his UFC debut in February at “UFC 126: Silva vs. Belfort” where he submitted UFC vet Paul Kelly with a second-round rear-naked choke. The win nabbed Donald the evenings “Fight of the Night” award and put all of the other lightweights on notice. Especially one Mr. Danzig, but that came well before Donald made his way to the UFC.

“So all you have to do to secure a fight you haven’t earned is wear a silly hat, call yourself “cowboy” and talk trash? Seems strange”, tweeted Danzig in January once Cerrone accepted his bout with Kelly on short notice, after Canadian Sam Stout had pulled out due to injury.

Mac was last seen in action when he was pitted against former title challenger and top ranked fighter Joe Stevenson at UFC 124 this past December, recording arguably one of the biggest wins of his career, when he knocked out the fellow TUF vet with a first-round KO which earned him the evenings “Knockout of the Night” award.

Both Danzig and Cerrone are known for their aggressive styles, and this should play out to be an exciting fight for the fans to watch.

So, MMA peeps, what do you think of the news? Who do you favor? Sound off in the comment section below.

Based on the fan vote, Georges St. Pierre vs. Josh Koscheck received “Fight of the Night”. Both men ended up taking an extra $100,000 home with them, thanks in no small part to their rampant popularity, or in Josh Koscheck’s case, “infamy” would probably be a more appropriate term. For his highlight-reel KO over Joe Stevenson, Mac Danzig earned “Knockout of the Night” and an additional $100,000 as well. The $100,000 “Submission of the Night” bonus was split into two $50,000 chunks and given to both Jim Miller and Mark Bocek. Bocek caught Dustin Hazelett in a wicked Triangle Choke while Miller snatched up a leg and ultimately tapped out the highly-regarded Charles Oliveira.

According to UFC President Dana White, fans were allowed to select “Fight of the Night” for one night and one night only. Here’s what the always-controversial UFC head honcho had to say over at MMA Weekly: “[The fans are] always chirping about how we messed it up, and here we are… They blew their chance. That’s it… [Sean Pierson vs. Matt Riddle] was the ‘Fight of the Night’ in my book.”

I have to admit, fans and friends, I too was baffled by the decision to give the main event “Fight of the Night”. GSP certainly gave the best performance of the night, but to have a one-sided five-round domination be awarded “Fight of the Night” when Pierson and Riddle fought their hearts out and gave us an awesome three-round war? It doesn’t make sense, at all, and I think Dana White is perfectly right to abandon the fan vote.

I hate to come down so harshly on the viewing public, but I think the whole vote was nothing more than a popularity contest. Considering the winners, how can you really say anything different? With absolutely no disrespect meant to Georges St. Pierre, his fight was not the most entertaining on the card. It was a brilliant performance and a one-sided beatdown, but one-sided beatdowns that last twenty-five minutes just don’t hold up in terms of overall fight quality and entertainment value when compared to a three-round war of attrition that saw constant action and several almost-finishes.

Other than that, though, I think everyone else got the right reward. Danzig’s KO of Stevenson will probably go on and stay on his highlight reel for the rest of his career. Jim Miller and Mark Bocek both pulled off crazy “blink and you’ll miss it” submissions that I really enjoyed. I look forward to seeing what the future holds for all three men, including Mac Danzig, who I never really followed or bought into in the past.

All in all, UFC 124 was a great event. But the fans dropped the ball in giving GSP and Koscheck “Fight of the Night”. Then again, that’s just my opinion. What about you, fans and friends? How do you feel about UFC 124’s post-fight awards/bonus winners?

Next for Thiago Alves: It’s going to take one more fight for everyone to stop hounding him about going to Middleweight. I think it’s great that he came in at weight and put on a classic performance, but this was simply the first step in a process. I still think Thiago Alves could make Middleweight with his eyes closed, so I’d like one more great performance before I can firmly call his new weight-cutting regiment a success. As it stands, though, I’m more than willing to admit that we may just have witnessed the start of an epic comeback.

Next for Jim Miller: With this big win, Miller has taken a firm, large step into title contention. It wouldn’t surprise me in the least if the UFC made a fight between Jim Miller and George Sotiropoulos to determine the next man in line to challenge for the UFC Lightweight Championship after the winner of Frank Edgar vs. Gray Maynard and the winner of Ben Henderson vs. Anthony Pettis fight. If not Sotiropoulos, perhaps Kenny Florian. Either way, look for Miller’s next fight to be a high-profile one.

Next for Charles Oliveira: Charles made the classic mistake of being too overconfident in the area of the game he thought he was best at. As 2010 has proven in abundance, no one is unbeatable and your greatest strength could end up being your biggest weakness against the right opponent. I think this loss will be a great thing for Oliveira, it’s going to motivate him considerably and we’re going to see a much better Charles Oliveira the next time he steps into the Octagon. He may not be the next young gun to skyrocket to the top, but his future is still quite bright.

Next for Stefan Struve: Let’s see if the third time really is the charm: I think Struve is ready for another top-division UFC Heavyweight. Perhaps he could face the down-on-his-luck Cheick Kongo in a Heavyweight tilt that would either help re-establish Kongo’s relevance or prove that Struve can hang against the upper-division talent. Even if it’s not Kongo or a top-division fighter, look for the UFC to show a renewed focus on Struve, since it was a gamble putting him in the main event and he responded by putting on a great performance and pounding his opponent’s face in.

Next for Josh Koscheck: It’s tough to say, really. How does any fighter come back from that kind of outclassing? Some are never able to get over it, but others, BJ Penn for example, respond by KO’ing their opponent in under half a minute in their next fight. Despite what anyone else says, I honestly think it’s simply too soon to say whether or not Koscheck will rise from the ashes or whether this defeat will haunt him for the rest of his career.

Next for Georges St. Pierre: Jake Shields, of course. In Shields, GSP faces a great grappler and a decent striker. Shields is a force to be reckoned with on the ground, and he’s shown an uncanny ability to get someone to the ground and beat them on the ground no matter how good their takedown defense is or how good of a wrestler they are. However, based on the performance he gave last night, I just don’t see Jake Shields beating Georges St. Pierre. It’ll be another amazing performance turned in by one of the best Welterweights of all time, and after that I think GSP’s heavily-hyped move up to Middleweight will finally happen.

So those are my predictions, fans and friends. What about you? What do you think the future holds for the big winners and losers of UFC 124?

Georges St. Pierre defeats Josh Koscheck via Unanimous Decision to retain the UFC Welterweight Championship. Stefan Struve defeats Sean McCorkle via TKO (Strikes) at 3:55 of Round 1. Mac Danzig defeats Joe Stevenson via KO (Strikes) at 1:54 of Round 1. Thiago Alves defeats John Howard via Unanimous Decision. Jim Miller defeats Charles Oliveira via Submission (Kneebar) at 1:50 of Round 1. Dan Miller defeats Joe Doerksen via Split Decision. Mark Bocek defeats Dustin Hazelett via Submission (Triangle Choke) at 2:33 of Round 1. Sean Pierson defeats Matt Riddle via Unanimous Decision. John Makdessi defeats Pat Audinwood via Unanimous Decision. Jesse Bongfeldt and Rafael Natal Ends in a Majority Draw. Ricardo Almeida defeats T.J. Grant via Unanimous Decision.

From the very beginning, this fight was loaded with quality. Thiago Alves vs. John Howard was an excellent match, and proved once and for all that Thiago Alves is far from done as a premiere-level Welterweight. It seems as if Alves has finally put all the pieces back together after dealing with weight issues for his last several fights, as his performance against Howard mirrored his epic 2008 run that saw him dismantle Josh Koscheck, Karo Parisyan, and Matt Hughes. Not only did Alves ensure that his spot as a Welterweight is secure, he also gave his career the shot in the arm it so badly needed ever since losing to Georges St. Pierre at UFC 100 back in July 2009.

I never bought into Mac Danzig’s hype, not for one second… but maybe I should have. I really can’t say anything negative about the man, he saw an opportunity, timed it picture-perfectly, and scored an amazing knockout. Danzig’s career was in need of a good shot in the arm even moreso than Thiago Alves’, and Danzig also managed to deliver. Not only did Danzig keep himself gainfully employed, he also put his career back on the upswing for the first time in what feels like forever.

I was really impressed by the performances of both Jim Miller and Stefan Struve, who both won after pulling off epic counter-moves. It was literally a pair of “blink and you’ll miss it” moments: one second it looks like Oliveira is going to lock something in, the next it’s “Do Bronx” that ends up tapping out. One second I think Struve’s chances are looking bad, the next he’s in mount and pounding McCorkle’s face into mush. I think Jim Miller took a huge step “into the mix” with this win, while I think Stefan Struve may have proven that he’s once again ready to test the waters as a top-division athlete.

In regards to Josh Koscheck being utterly dismantled… I guess it’s once again time to sit myself down and enjoy what seems to be my favorite dish: a nice big serving of humble pie. But you can hold the sour grapes: no excuses, no regrets, GSP was GSP and once again proved why he’s one of the best of all time. I suppose this is what I get for picking against Georges St. Pierre. Make no mistake, fans and friends… that’s definitely not happening again. So I hereby throw myself at the mercy of the GSP bandwagon and humbly request to be reinstated amongst its ranks. Because no one is beating Georges St. Pierre. Not for a long, long, long… long time.

So that’s it, fans and friends. UFC 124 is now a thing of the past. And what about you? How do you feel about the card?

Before his stint on The Ultimate Fighter, Mac Danzig had spent time in the King of the Cage, WEC, and even the PRIDE FC promotions. Danzig’s two-fight losing streak was broken when he beat Tommy Speer to win the sixth season of TUF, and since then Danzig’s run has been less than spectacular. Danzig has compiled a 3-4 record in his time with the UFC, which includes a three-fight losing streak. His status as a TUF champion seems to be one of the few things keeping him out of the unemployment line.

Joe “Daddy” Stevenson, however, has had a much longer and much more successful run in the UFC than Danzig. Stevenson may have lost five fights in his UFC tenure… but he’s won eight. He’s even challenged for the UFC Lightweight Championship. Stevenson does have some tough losses to top-level competition like BJ Penn, Kenny Florian, and George Sotiropoulos, but he’s also beaten the likes of Melvin Guillard, Kurt Pellegrino, and Nate Diaz.

As if you couldn’t tell already, I’m heavily favoring Joe Stevenson to win this match. I just never really saw what all the fuss was about when it comes to Mac Danzig. He’s never really been all that impressive. He does fight hard, and he can put on a good performance, but he’s lost twice by submission and gotten handed a Unanimous Decision loss twice as well. When Danzig loses, he loses decisively.

However, the same can be said for Joe Stevenson. He’s also lost a majority of his fights by Unanimous Decision and submission. In fact, his loss to BJ Penn stands out as one of the most decisive wins of Penn’s career- the visual of Penn choking Stevenson so hard that blood spurted out of Stevenson’s face is one that will likely stay on BJ Penn’s highlight reel forever.

However, the key difference here is that Joe Stevenson has faced better competition more often, and has even beaten a few of them on several occasions. Stevenson has been floating around the mid-to-upper-level of the UFC for quite some time, and that’s both a knock on him as well as a compliment. However, I think Danzig is once again on the way down. With the recent release of Efrain Escudero proving once and for all that no TUF champion is safe unless they continue to excel, I think Danzig will be out of the UFC by 2012 at the very latest.

But at the end of the day, this fight does have potential to be a very good, very close encounter. I don’t think Danzig will ever realize his full potential, but then again, I’m not exactly Nostradamus. Either way, UFC 124 is shaping up to be a can’t-miss card, and this bout is a very worthy addition to the card.

And what about you, fans and friends? Who wins it and how when Mac Danzig vs. Joe Stevenson goes down?

While most would indicate that Edwards is either past his prime, or not caught up with the present botch of talent that exists in the lightweight ranks nowadays, Edwards is exciting and an old-school commodity.

Winner of his last 4 out of 5 fights, Edwards returns to the UFC to face IFL veteran John Gunderson, after John’s original opponent, season 8 winner of “The Ultimate Fighter” Efrain Escudero was pulled from the match in order to face Wiman, who was originally to face fellow TUF veteran Mac Danzig in a rematch, in the co-main event of the evening on Sept. 15, for UFC Fight Night 22.

Wiman, as previously reported, had pulled out from his bout with Escudero after breaking his arm in practice.

Many people may remember Edwards from his early UFC days, especially his highlight reel knockout over former UFC contender and former Strikeforce lightweight champion, Josh Thomson, back in 2004 at UFC 49.

And while the years’ after haven’t been the nicest to Edwards, who is 3-3 in his last 6 outings, his experienced is virtually unmatched, and he should prove to be a formidable opponent for anyone he faces.

In his last bout, Edwards defeated Luis Palomino at Bellator 24, the same man who bested division standout Jorge Masvidal by split decision not too long ago.

So, do you think Edwards has what it takes to defeat Gunderson, let alone, make a run in the UFC’s 155-pound division, or are his best days behind him?

The season 8 winner of “The Ultimate Fighter” has faced some hurdles since his inception into the UFC, not so long ago. After suffering his first career loss to contender Evan Dunham last January, via arm bar submission in the third round of their lightweight affair, “Hecho en Mexico” bounced back against Dan Lauzon last May on the preliminary card.

And while Efrain aspires still to be a contender in his weight class, they just couldn’t make it easy on the proud Mexican-fighter.

After garnering preliminary honors for the second time, Efrain was to face John Gunderson, however was pulled to compete as the new co-main event, opposite of Matt Wiman, after Wiman’s original opponent and fellow TUF veteran Mac Danzig had pulled out due to injury.

Well now the news has made it around the bend, and it looks like Wiman has suffered a broken arm, and in steps in arguably the best Jiu-Jitsu practitioner in the 155-pound division, Charles Oliveira. The dynamic Brazilian, who has already been likened to the “Jon Jones of the lightweight division”, made his UFC debut against Darren Elkins, needing less than a minute to submit the gritty-lightweight with a first round submission, arm bar (ironically enough).

MMAWeekly reported the news Thursday, after learning of Wiman’s injury.

Will the shift change anything for Escudero come Sept. 15, for UFC Fight Night 22? Who does the match up favor more? Logic would say, Escudero is a natural wrestler, but taking it the ground this time might not be the greatest idea. I guess we’ll have to wait and see.

Lightweight Danzig has had a rocky road since winning TUF 6 in 2007.  He’s on a three-fight skid, most recently losing a unanimous decision “Mongoose” Jim Miller (15-2) at UFC 100 in Las Vegas July 11.

Danzig will matchup versus Justin Buchholz (9-3) who was TKO’d by “Li’l Heathen” Jeremy Stephens (9-4) at UFC Fight Night 19 in Oklahoma City September 16.

Tuchscherer, training partner of Fighters.com’s second-ranked heavyweight and UFC champion Brock Lesnar’s (4-1), will matchup versus “Thrashing Machine” Tim Hague (8-2).

Tuchsherer lost his UFC debut to “Napão” Gabriel Gonzaga (11-4) at UFC 102 in Portland August 29.

The same night, Hague was at the wrong end of a historical highlight reel knockout versus American Top Team’s Todd Duffee (5-0).

Danzig announced his fight via MySpace and Catone confirmed the bout to iguillotine.

Catone and Sadollah were originally scheduled to fight at UFC 91 in November, but Sadollah was forced to withdraw days before the bout due to a leg infection.

Danzig will look to rebound from a unanimous decision loss to “Carpenter” Clay Guida (24-9) at Fight Night 15 in September.

Neer also lost his last fight at the same event via split decision to Nathan Diaz (10-2).

Catone, who will be making his UFC debut, won his last three fights via first-round TKO.  Most recently he defeated Eric Tavares (5-9) in June.

Sadollah last fought in June, submitting “Doberman” CB Dollaway (7-1) with an armbar to become the winner of TUF 7.

Danzig never got into the fight.  The best he could do was stall Guida with a Kimura attempt after being taken down in the first, then work to his feet; but, Guida slammed him back to the mat.

In the second round, Danzig tagged Guida with a front kick to Guida’s face; but, Guida countered with a straight left and ran Danzig to the mat.

Near the end of the second round, Guida downed Danzig again with a suplex slam.

The pattern of Guida takedowns continued through round three.

The judges’ scores were 30-27 once and 29-28 twice, all for Guida.

Last month, Danzig denied rumors that he would fight Guida in Minneapolis, but left open the possibility of eventually fighting the relentless scrapper.

Guida TKO’d Samy Schiavo (10-5) in 4:15 in Denver 2 April and is considered a test for any fighter vying for contendership in the UFC.

In Montréal 19 April, Danzig hammered knees to the head of Mark Bocek (5-2) before catching the BJJ fighter in a rear naked choke at 3:48 of round three.

In a bulletin entitled “Some MMA blogs will post anything.”, Danzig posted the following on MySpace Thursday:

“Mac is NOT fighting at UFC 87 and never was supposed to (despite the rumors on websites).”

Fighters.com reported Tuesday that MMA Junkie had reported Danzig had signed to fight “The Carpenter” Clay Guida (29-9) at UFC 87.

Danzig added, “There are talks of Clay Guida as a possible opponent, but nothing is signed yet.”

Danzig, winner of The Ultimate Fighter 6, submitted his most recent opponent, Mark Bocek (5-2), at April’s UFC 83 via rear naked choke at 3:48 of the third round.

“The Carpenter” was tapped in a rear naked choke in the main event of The Ultimate Figher 6 by “El Matador” Roger Huerta (20-1-1), but TKO’d Frenchman Samy Schiavo (15-5) in the first round on Ultimate Fight Night 13 last month.

Edgar will be looking to bounce back from his first professional loss. At Ultimate Fight Night 13, “The Bully” Gray Maynard (5-0, 1 NC) won a UD over Edgar.

Former UFC Middleweight Champion and Fighters.com’s second-ranked 185-pounder “Ace” Rich Franklin (23-3) also found the land of maple leaf friendly in a second-round TKO of “The Serial Killer” Travis Lutter (9-5).

TUF Champions “The Count” Michael Bisping (15-1) and Mac Danzig (18-4-1) debuted in new weight classes with stoppages.

Les habitants “The Athlete” Jason MacDonald (20-9), “Dooms” Jason Day (17-5), and Jonathan Goulet (22-9) also had success for the home team, while “The Rock” Nathan Quarry (10-2), Demian Maia (7-0), “No Love” Rich Clementi (31-12-1), and Cain Velasquez (3-0) scored wins as visitors to the true north, strong and free.

Though seven of the 11 duels on 83′s lineup featured St. Pierre’s fellow countrymen, this French-Canadian bon soirwas entirely the Quebecois phenom’s. He entered the Octagon blazing a crimson gi with the strength of 22,000 at the Centre Bell.

Serra had played a clever villain during the event’s promotional tour, but had no quips for “Rush” as St. Pierre packed him into the mat upon stuffing Serra’s initial shot.

St. Pierre mauled “The Terror” with short, sharp elbows as Serra pedaled through guards, all passed by St. Pierre. Serra finally crawled up the cage to his feet.

In the center of the cage, St. Pierre blasted Serra with a Superman punch, setting up a double-leg takedown near the end of round one.

Serra, a mouse puffing beneath his right eye, emptied his tank about 90 seconds into round two as “Rush” tagged “The Terror” with five snapping jabs before planting him back onto the mat with a double-leg takedown.

St. Pierre’s G’n'P onslaught poured on, driving Serra into turtle guard. A series of unanswered rib-rattling knees persuaded referee Steve Mazzagatti to end the fight at 4:45.

“I tired him out,” explained the best 170-pound fighter in the world.

Serra countered, “I ended up coming up short, no pun intended.”

Welterweights Goulet and Kuniyoshi Hironaka (11-5) both pocketed 75 grand for battling the “Fight of the Night” in the card’s opening bout.

Goulet got the worst of it in the punch-up’s first round. Attempting to press his striking advantage, Goulet got tagged with a short Hironaka left hook. The Japanese fighter fell the Canadian and followed with a mix of fists and elbows to close the round.

“He tried to finish me,” Goulet admitted after the fight, “but he got too excited. I was careful because of my experience.”

The two fighters traded evenly to open the second before Hironaka was stunned with a punch that backed him to the cage. Goulet stalked with a flurry that dropped his opponent for a TKO at 2:07.

In the co-main event, Franklin also rebounded from a lost first round in which Lutter took the former champ to the mat and worked his jiu-jitsu juju. Franklin was nearly tapped in an armbar before he countered in a nifty maneuver that rolled him into Lutter’s full guard.

Lutter had worn himself weary by the second round and got caught with head kick as he shot for single-leg takedown. Franklin hammered “The Serial Killer” and motioned for the referee to stand him up. “Ace” picked Lutter apart on their feet with a combination of slick boxing and knees until the referree stopped the fight at 3:01

Danzig predicted to Fighters.com that Mark Bocek (5-2) is susceptible to a knee and the debuting 155-pounder delivered three big knees to set Bocek up for a rear naked choke submission at 3:48 of the third round.

“I paced myself, and I needed that; because, if I didn’t pace myself I wouldn’t have been able to do what I did in the last round,” Danzig said.

His fellow TUF Champion Bisping debuted at 185-pounds with a dominant TKO “W” over “Chainsaw” Charles McCarthy (10-5), who was unable to continue due to an arm injury after round one.

“Charles couldn’t get up,” “The Count” expalined after the fight.

Middleweight Quarry chased down a timid Kalib Starnes (8-3-1), who probably ran himself out of the UFC, for a unanimous decision.

Middleweight MacDonald added $75,000 to his bank balance with a “(T)KO of the Night” versus Joe Doerksen (39-12) at 54 seconds of the second round.

Middleweight Maia also earned 75 grand for “Submission of the Night”, a triangle choke of “Short Fuse” Ed Herman (14-5) at 2:27 of round two.

Middleweight Day made a successful UFC debut with a 3:58 TKO of “The Talent” Alan Belcher (12-5).

Lightweight Clementi ruined Canadian “Hands of Stone” Sam Stout‘s (13-4-1) homecoming with a split decision victory.

Finally, touted heavyweight Velasquez only spent 2:10 in his Octagon debut before TKOing Brad Morris (9-3).

Fighters.com: Are you the type of guy who watches tapes and have brushed-up your jiu-jitsu to fight Mark Bocek; or, do you just train to fight your game?

Mac Danzig: A little bit of both.  I watch as much tape on a guy as I can; but, I train to fight my fight. A guy like Bocek, with only six fights, is still evolving.  He’s not the guy you see in the fight with Frankie Edgar.  He’s susceptible to an uppercut or a knee; and, I’ve been training for that; but, Bocek is the type of guy who, if you miss, will take advantage of it.

Fighters.com: I’ve talked to Bisping and Evans about their TUF championships and both agree it’s a major career accomplishment.  You were an established fighter prior to TUF.  Do you agree it’s an important fighting accomplishment for you or more of a career move to gain exposure?

Mac Danzig: Yeah, it’s an accomplishment; but, mostly it’s been a vehicle to get exposure.  I was at a point where I was trying to find my place in the sport.  It was after PRIDE had fallen and I didn’t know if I was going to be able to get another fight in a big organization.  Not that I was thinking about retiring; but, I wasn’t able to support myself fighting.  Now, I’m able to support myself and focus on fighting.

Fighters.com: Do you think your serious attitude on TUF against the backdrop of some the knuckleheads illustrated the difference between professional fighters and tough athletes?

Mac Danzig: I wasn’t 100% with how the producers edited the show; but, on that point, yeah, I think it came across.  A lot fans tell me they liked the show because it showed who was serious.  Only about five or six of us were serious about fighting on the show and the rest were there just to get on TV.

Fighters.com: Tell me about your move to Xtreme Couture.

Mac Danzig: There’s no egos here.  Everyone is here to help each other.  It’s like a big family.  If anyone did show up to start problems, it wouldn’t be tolerated.

Fighters.com: At your photography site: www.macdanzigphotography.com, there are a lot of desert landscapes.  Why do you like the desert?  Have you been able to get out into the Nevada desert since moving to Las Vegas?

Mac Danzig: It’s just desolate; but, there’s so much going on that’s not human.  So much nature.  There are all these old ghost towns.  I’ve got some things planned after my fight in Montreal.

Fighters.com: Are you a serious hobbyist or could you see yourself paying the bills on photography one day?

Mac Danzig: I’d love to make a living as a photographer after fighting; but, it’s hard for someone like me because I want to stay on the artistic side.  Most working photographers have to take assignments.  I want to continue photographing what I like and if people want to buy it or use it, that’s great.

Fighters.com: I just read a piece about Kenny Florian being “not your average” fighter because he’s a smart guy.  Noguiera was in law school, Liddell has a college degree,  Rich Franklin and Jeff Monson have masters degrees.  How much does intellect play in the field of fighting?

Mac Danzig: You have to be intelligent to stay focused and control your emotions. 

The fight card’s big bout features interim UFC Welterweight Champions Matt Serra and Georges St. Pierre.

“To be the champion, I have to beat the champion,” St. Pierre clarified.

St. Pierre, 15-2, was TKO’d by “The Terror” Serra at UFC 69 last April, but has dominated his subsequent two opponents.

“A bit of an underdog?  Is that what you heard?” Serra teased a reporter.  “What were the odds?  Something ridiculous, like 14 to one?”

Serra’s “W” was the upset of ’07, a year which included “Rampage” Jackson’s KO of top-ranked former UFC Light Heavyweight Champion Chuck Liddell and Forrest Griffin‘s submission of highly-touted PRIDE standout Mauricio Rua.

Serra, 9-4, echoed St. Pierre, “That’s what I always heard: You beat the guy, you’re the guy.”

Serra’s championship is considered a fluke.

Serra lamented, “If I beat [St. Pierre] again, they’ll want to give him the best three out of five!”

“Serra likes being Rocky,” White explained, likening Serra’s role to Sylvester Stallone’s character in “Rocky IV”.  “I want to thank Matt Serra for taking this fight in Canada.  I don’t think there’s going to be a lot of Matt Serra fans here in Canada.”

UFC 83 will be the preeminent MMA promotion’s debut in Canada.

Quebec Boxing Council Commissioner Mario Latraverse announced, “In April, we have our Super Bowl.”

Quebec was the first Canadian province to sanction MMA in 1998.

White told a curious Canadian press corps, “People in Canada don’t even realize how big this sport is in Canada.”

Tickets went on pre-sale yesterday and White claimed “13,700 were sold on the first day.  We’re almost sold out now.  This event here will be the biggest UFC event ever.”

“It’s a dream come true,” a swaggering St. Pierre boasted of fighting in his hometown.  “I can’t be more happy than I am right now.”

St. Pierre’s loss to Serra is blamed on his mental focus.

“I had a lot of issues before,” St. Pierre admitted.  “It’s done now.”

However, fighting in his hometown will compound distractions unimaginably.

“My life might change,” St. Pierre mentioned thoughtfully.

White confirmed the card will also feature former UFC Middleweight Champion Rich Franklin versus TUF champion Travis Lutter, Brit TUF champion Michael Bisping, lightweight TUF champion Mac Danzig, and Canadians Patrick Côté and “Hands of Stone” Sam Stout.