Rain, rain, rain.  Something about rain that is conducive for writing.  Creates a pensive mood here on Broadway and 77^th in the Big Apple.

*My first MMA interview was with Kalib Starnes at UFC 71 in Las Vegas.  Starnes beat Chris Leben at that event, the under card of Chuck Liddell v. Quinton “Rampage” Jackson.  Oh how Starnes and Leben’s careers have gone in different directions.  Starnes recently lost to Patrick Cote at RingSide MMA 10 in Montreal.  Leben will be in a featured fight against Wanderlei Silva at UFC 132.

*Will we ever see a long shot outside of the top six in a division get a title shot, a la Matt Serra upset of George St. Pierre at UFC 69.  With each division so stacked (more-so with the Strikeforce acquisition), it is hard to envision. Watching VCU make a tremendous run in the NCAA basketball tournament and golfer Charl Schwartzel surprise most us at the Masters this past weekend, reminded me how fun it is for the underdog to come from nowhere to challenge for a big title.  Unfortunately, as the UFC grows and so much money is on the line with every event, I fear we will never again see a long shot get a title shot, unless a large tournament format is adopted.  Not likely.

*Frankie Edgar has a new website and branded T-Shirt.  Looks good.  I am intrigued and curious just how much money these top fighters make aside from their formal fight paychecks.  Understandably, careers are short, and they have to cash-in while their name is hot.  I suspect most make strong five figures just for the signage on their shorts.  Most now have signature T-Shirts for each fight … more $.  Then, many do seminars for a nice payday and more and more own MMA gyms.  If they play their cards right – with a solid 2-3 years on UFC PPV shows, many guys can set themselves up for a long time, as they should, this is a dangerous game.

*Mark Bocek has a fun promo video for his fight in Toronto at UFC 129.  Check it out here.

*Foo Fighters have a new album.  Very Good.

*I first met UFC fighter Matt Brown in 2007, when he was a trainer at Crunch Fitness on 83^rd St between Amsterdam and Columbus. One day, I saw him shadow boxing around the heavy bag and asked if he was a fighter. He was living in NY for a short time and soon to try out for the Ultimate Fighter show on Spike TV.  He had a very average pro record and was almost signed to the IFL, which would have prevented him from going the reality TV show route. My goodness, he turned out to be far from a typical NYC gym trainer.  Hope he picks up a win next time out.

*On the case of first encounters …  I first met Frankie Edgar in Neptune, NJ, also in 2007.  He was wielding a blowtorch installing urinals at the local high school that day.  We were doing a feature on him for NBCSports.com.  After eight hours working as a plumber he logged four hours in the gym.  I learned that day Frankie Edgar is a hard worker, to put it mildly.

*Ricardo Almeida will soon be judging MMA fights in New Jersey.  Ex fighters becoming judges is a huge plus for this sport.  Hopefully, in the future, all judges will be required to be ex fighters.

*I hope George St. Pierre watched Nick Diaz fight last Saturday.  Unfortunately, I don’t think it will change his ways any time soon.  Meaning: his preference for safety over going for it!

*I have stopped following two people today on Twitter.  Too much noise.

*Fights at UFC 129 I am excited about:

-Jose Aldo v. Mark Hominick

-Nate Diaz v. Rory McDonald

-Jason McDonald v. Ryan Jensen

-Randy Couture v. Lyoto Machida

*Charlie Sheen played Radio City Music Hall last night.  As a media strategy – he would have done better just continuing to offer himself out in short bursts, on Ustream, Twitter, Blog video.  I think we like him in short bursts of crazy talk, not sitting for two hours, 100$ poorer.

*I am glad Chael Sonnen is back on the scene.  I love his honesty, bravado, machismo, salesmanship, huge ego, and carnival barker ways … all wrapped in one.

Time to face the rain.  Cheers.

Now that both men are officially in the regional circuit in the mixed martial arts community, their hoping that with a win here, they could make it back to the big leagues.

I guess it’s just too bad that it’s two countryman pitted against one another, with the loser left embarrassed before their native Canada this April.

Patrick Cote has been officially announced as a recent signee for the Ringside MMA organization, a promotion which is based out of Montreal, Quebec, Canada–Cote’s original stomping grounds.

The likable middleweight star was recently released by the UFC following a string of three-defeats inside the octagon. Patrick originally secured his shot at the promotion’s 185-pound title against reigning title holder Anderson Silva in October of 2008 when the Quebecer was able to put together a four-fight win streak inside the cage over the likes of notables Scott Smith, Drew McFedries, and Ricardo Almeida. However, he lost any chances of claiming the title when a lingering knee injury left him unable to continue in the third round, resulting in a TKO loss.

Cote returned later in May of 2010 following extensive time spent on surgery and rehabilitation, when he took on former middleweight contender Alan Belcher. The 30-year-old ultimately succumbed to a second-round rear-naked choke. An additional loss to Tom Lawlor at UFC 121 last October officially signaled his release, and he hasn’t fought since.

For Starnes, his time spent away from the UFC has been far more extensive, and is still most likely permanent. After a “Fight of the Night” performance against Chris Leben at UFC 71 in May of 2007, Kalib inevitably lost to Alan Belcher in his next outing when he suffered a grotesque cut to his forehead, thanks to some vicious elbows. The fight was stopped on the doctors advice. However, it was bout against Nate Quarry at UFC 83 in April of 2008 that truly solidified his banishment from the organization. After suffering a broken foot in the first-round, Starnes back peddled for the next 10-minutes of their three round fight, losing a lopsided decision and ultimately drew the ire of the entire mixed martial arts community.

Since his release, the 36-year-old has gone 3-2, with losses to former top-10 middleweight Falaniko Vitale and current Bellator champion Hector Lombard.

So, MMA peeps, what do you think of the middleweight fight? How many wins will it take for Cote to reenter the UFC, or do you ever see him returning for that matter? I guess the more relevant question would be–who do you think takes this fight? It all takes place on April 9 at the Bell Centre in Montreal. Sound off in the comment section below.

Debuting with the organization in 2004, Cote took a short notice fight against former champion Tito Ortiz at UFC 50, stepping up in weight class to compete in the light heavyweight division. Though losing a unanimous decision, Cote impressed many when he was able to drop Ortiz inside of the first round, and was invited back to the promotion as a middleweight. Subsequent losses to Joe Doerksen and Chris Leben eventually signaled his release from the promotion, before he was brought back by “The Ultimate Fighter”.

Competing on the special “Comeback” series on season 4, Patrick battled his way to the finals, where he eventually lost to winner Travis Lutter, who won his shot at the middleweight title.

Cote was invited back by the promotion once again, and after a dismal 0-4 run with the worlds largest organization, came storming back with four straight victories over credible opponents. The glory days, of course, are well behind him now.

After handling Scott Smith, Kendall Grove, Drew McFedries and Ricardo Almeida en route to his title shot in 2008, Cote looked to be a live dog against middleweight kingpin Anderson Silva.

Suffering an injury inside of the third round at UFC 90, Anderson was awarded the winner when Patrick was unable to continue. Since then, things haven’t faired all that much better. After recovering from a debilitating knee injury kept him out of action for nearly two years, the Canadian striker returned at UFC 113 in front of his hometown crowd in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. His opponent, contender Alan Belcher was able to dominate Cote on the ground, and cinched up a rear naked choke in the second round.

On his last leg, Patrick returned at last Saturday at UFC 121 when he took on fellow TUF veteran Tom Lawlor. Both competitors suffered from back-to-back losses and an additional loss surely signaled an end to their UFC careers. Patrick was on the losing side of a unanimous decision, and subsequently was released.

“I had a little hope but (I) finally got the release word from the UFC,” said Cote who tweeted the news following the event. “It’s been (an) awesome experience. I’ll be back.”

So, MMA peeps, what do you make of the news? Justified? Where would you like to see Cote go from here?
Sound off in the comment section below.

In baseball it goes … “good pitching beats good hitting.”

In MMA should it go … “good wrestling beats good standup?”

Lawlor had three exciting fights, albeit going 1-2, leading into UFC 121, and showed a mixture of ground and standup skills across those matuch-ups. In a thrilling win over CB Dollaway he pulled the upset in a frantic ground battle ending with Lawlor sinking in the guillotine to finish in the first round.  Against Aaron Simpson, Lawlor stormed his opponent with improved standup, nearly ending the fight in the first, but gassed in the third to lose a close decision. However, it was highly entertaining, due to each fighter bringing strong wrestling skills to the cage, negating each other, which prompted Lawlor to look to his standup.

Wrestler v. Wrestler: ala Frankie Edgar/Tyson Griffin usually is entertaining as neither can leverage the ground game as much and one looks to stand and bang or we get a diverse multi-level fight.

Puncher v. Puncher: ala Chris Lytle/Marcus Davis usually is entertaining as each wants to use the hands and knows the other is not natively inclined to work for the takedown.

In Lawlor v. Cote, both fighters are responsible for the fight staying down.  Clearly Lawlor took the fight to his sweet spot, but Cote can be knocked for not being able to stop the takedown.  Stopping the takedown seems to be the greatest weakness pure standup fighters have.  Dan Hardy had no take down defense v. George St. Pierre, Phillipe Nover had no takedown defense against Efrain Escudero in the Tuf – 8 Finale, and Andre Winner had difficulty as well in this area against Nik Lentz.  If Hardy, Nover or Winner could stop the takedown, just half the time, all those fights may have had a different outcome and likely more entertainment value.

Note: I am not criticizing Lawlor for his strategy.  He was in a “must win” situation from a career standpoint.  He did exactly what he had to do to get a win.  I am just looking down from 50,000 feet and a business/entertainment value standpoint and all the elements a matchmaker has to consider before booking a fight.

Joe Silva may have contemplated … ‘what if Cote stuffs Lawlor’s first three take-down attempts?’  How does the fight play out?  Lawlor loses confidence, Cote inches forward and unloads his hands and we have a crowd pleasing brawl.  But Cote, couldn’t stay on his feet, Lawlor had to have a win via wrestling, so this becomes a relatively boring ground affair.  What if Lawlor came out as he did against Aaron Simpson, with fists flying?  Then, Joe Silva may have pondered, …’we have a fight of the night candidate.’

One thing I am sure Silva is learning, is that, when push comes to shove elite level wrestling always has the potential to neutralize the excitement value of an opponent with strong standup skills.

As wrestlers continue to mute opponents with strong hands and take the zing out of fights, it will be interesting to see how this affects UFC matchmaking going forward.

—

Do you agree?  How should fights be booked?  Should Joe Silva match pure wrestlers with pure boxers?

This card certainly brings the goods with Lesnar topping the slate but it is the Spike TV bouts and undercard which really makes this night shine.  Patrick Cote and Ryan Lawlor kick off the two fights on free TV while fans in the house will be treated to the always exicting Sam Stout battling Paul Taylor at lightweight and Gilbert Yvel brawling with Jon Madsen at heavyweight.

Are you ready for BROCKTOBER?  Read on for all the latest event details from the UFC.

These fights were confirmed as final for UFC 121 today by the UFC:

Back in the Octagon^® for the first time since a submission victory over Kris McCray to win Season 11 of The Ultimate Fighter^®, Court McGee (fighting out of Orem, Utah / 11-1) will put his six-fight professional winning streak on the line against Ryan Jensen (fighting out of Omaha, Neb. / 16-5). The 33-year-old is coming off a submission win over Jesse Forbes barely a minute into the fight. The pair of middleweights are sure to put on a grappling clinic, with 15 of the 27 wins between them coming by submission and each fighter winning Submission of the Night honors in their last fight.

Patrick Cote (fighting out of Quebec City, Quebec Canada / 14-6) looks to re-establish himself as a middleweight contender after blowing out his knee in a title fight against Anderson Silva after four straight UFC wins that include first-round knockouts of Drew McFedries and Kendall Grove. But first, “The Predator” will first have to get through “Filthy” Tom Lawlor (fighting out of Orlando, Fla. / 6-3, 1 NC), the last fighter to beat C.B. Dollaway, doing so in under a minute with a guillotine choke that earned him Submission of the Night in his middleweight debut at UFC 100.

In a welterweight matchup, Mike Guymon (fighting out of Lake Forest, Calif. / 13-3-1) looks to build on his recent success, having won six out of his last seven bouts, including a unanimous decision victory over Yoshiyuki Yoshida in his last fight at UFC 113 to pick up his first UFC victory. “The Joker” will meet up with Daniel Roberts (fighting out of Tulsa, Okla. / 10-1). “Ninja” boasts excellent wrestling, as an NAIA All-American wrestler, and jiu-jitsu skills, with seven of his wins coming via submission, and he is coming off a decision victory over Forrest Petz that earned him his first win in the Octagon at UFC 116.

Sam Stout (fighting out of London, Ontario Canada / 16-6-1) has quickly become a fixture in the UFC, with good reason. The 26-year old veteran, “Hands of Stone,” has received five total and three straight Fight of the Night awards in his career, including wins over Joe Lauzon, Matt Wiman and Spencer Fisher. Stout has another Fight of the Night candidate on the horizon as he takes on Paul Taylor (fighting out of Walsall, England / 10-5-1, 1 NC). “Relentless” is dropping from welterweight to lightweight for this battle, and is a three-time Fight of the Night winner himself. Taylor will look to add another award to his resume in his first-ever pro fight in the United States.

Despite breaking his jaw during a preliminary victory at the start of The Ultimate Fighter Season 11 and being unable to continue onto the show, Chris Camozzi (fighting out of Lakewood, Colo. / 13-3) refused to give up on his dream and was rewarded with a fight against James Hammortree at The Ultimate Fighter 11 Finale, which resulted in a unanimous decision win. The 23-year old will match up with the undefeated Dongi Yang (fighting out of South Korea / 9-0), who is making his UFC debut. Yang has never been to a decision, winning eight bouts by knockout and one by submission, and has allowed a fight to last into the third round only once in his professional career.

In a bout that pits experience against youth, heavyweight Gilbert Yvel (fighting out of Las Vegas, Nev. / 36-15-1, 1 NC) looks to use his extensive mixed martial arts experience to propel him to victory; “The Hurricane” has been in there with standouts like Junior Dos Santos, Vitor Belfort, Dan Henderson and many more. On the other side of the Octagon^®,Jon Madsen (fighting out of Granite City, Ill. / 6-0) has just six professional fights under his belt, but is yet to taste defeat. Madsen has been able to use his technical boxing and impressive wrestling skills to guide him to a perfect 3-0 record in the Octagon to date.

–

BROCKTOBER is finally here!  Sound off about this card.  Which fight are you most interested in?

SpikeTV officials were able to confirm that the one hour special will two bouts, both in the middleweight division.

According to Spike, winner of the eleventh season of “The Ultimate Fighter”, Court McGee will make his second appearance inside the octagon, and first after winning the competition. The former drug addict-turned sober fighter will take on veteran Ryan Jensen, as part of the “UFC on Prelims” feature, for UFC 121–headlined by a heavyweight clash between champion Brock Lesnar who attempts to defend his title against top contender, Cain Velasquez.

Additionally, fellow “The Ultimate Fighter” veteran and wild man, Tom Lawlor will take on former middleweight title challenger Patrick Cote, on the aforementioned “UFC on Prelims” special, on October 23, at the Honda Center, in Anaheim, Calif.

Lawlor, though colorful, charismatic and clearly talented, will likely be fighting for his spot in the UFC alongside Cote, as both middleweights are coming off back-to-back losses against top competition.

Cote, who returned to the UFC after a long absence due to a knee injury following a loss to Anderson Silva in a bid for his title back in 2008, returned last June at UFC 115 in Vancouver, in a losing effort to contender Alan Belcher by rear naked choke in the second round.

Lawlor, meanwhile earned his bid in the UFC after defeating fellow cast mate on the eighth season of TUF, Kyle Kingsbury by unanimous decision. The fight was contested at light heavyweight, where after the 205-pounder turned middleweight defeated CB Dollaway by guillotine choke, at UFC 100. The win nabbed the American Top Team product “Submission of the Night” honors for his efforts.

Since then, Lawlor dropped a split decision to fellow wrestler Aaron Simpson, after rocking Simpson early with a barrage of punches, and appearing to have gassed in the latter parts of the fight. He then took on late-replacement Joe Doerksen at UFC 115, losing by rear naked choke against the veteran who has competed in nearly 60 fights as a professional.

Is everyone pleased with the match ups, or would you have rather seen a different fight on the prelims special for Spike?

10-1 Court McGee will make his return to the Octagon in his second UFC fight, and his first since beating Kris McCray and becoming the Ultimate Fighter Season 11 champion. When you consider the fact that McGee has struggled with substance abuse to the point of it nearly costing him his friends, family, and even his life, McGee’s dramatic win via Rear Naked Choke was one of the best feel-good moments in MMA in 2010. Standing in Court’s way at UFC 121 will be 15-6 Ryan Jensen, a six-fight UFC veteran that is 2-2 since his return to the UFC in 2008. While it’s your basic run-of-the-mill “veteran vs. up-and-comer” match, both men have shown flashes of brilliance and should give fans a great preliminary fight.

Former UFC Middleweight Championship contender Patrick Cote will also be in undercard action at UFC 121, taking on the energetic and entertaining Tom Lawlor. Known for his hilarious spoofs of classic UFC fighters in the weigh-ins leading up to a fight, Lawlor has struggled to find success in the UFC, having lost two straight fights after a win over C.B. Dollaway at UFC 100. Patrick Cote is perhaps best known for his loss to current UFC Middleweight Champion Anderson Silva, and needs a win just as badly as Lawlor, having lost two straight as well. It’s a very real possibility that a loss could result in either man receiving his pink slip from the UFC, so the need to get back into the win column should make for an exciting match.

Veteran fighter and UFC newcomer Michael Guymon will take on submission specialist Daniel Roberts in what should be another exciting match. 2010 marked the first and only time that Roberts lost a pro MMA fight, and his 10-1 record comes with seven submissions. An eleven-year veteran of the sport, Michael Guymon would conceivably have the advantage over Roberts, when you consider that Guymon has only lost three times and that Roberts has only been competing in pro MMA for three years. However, two of Guymon’s losses were due to submission, even though he has six submission wins to his name. So there’s a very real possibility that this fight will turn into a back-and-forth ground war, with one man taking his opponent’s ligaments home as a trophy.

The final preliminary fight officially announced for UFC 121 features Sam Stout stepping inside the Octagon against Paul Taylor. A battle of the “young veterans”, both men have a combined fifteen years of experience under their belts, even though Stout is only 26 and Taylor 30. Both men are knockout specialists with eight “Fight of the Night” awards between them, so they should give fans a great brawl, and it’s very likely that somebody is getting KO’d before all is said and done.

With the addition of these preliminary match-ups, I’m looking forward to UFC 121 even more, and my anticipation of this event was already sky-high. All four preliminary fights offer something different, but they all have one thing in common: they’re all great fights on paper. Anything can happen when the cameras go live, but right now, UFC 121 is shaping up to be another impressive milestone for the world’s largest MMA promotion.

And what about you, fans and friends? How excited are you for UFC 121, and what do you think of these newly-announced fights?

Middleweight contender Alan Belcher reported via Twitter, that a detached retina will prevent him from competing opposite of Demian Maia, a match that “The Talent” had been campaigning for since his victory over former title challenger Patrick Cote.

While the Belcher-Maia match was to serve as the main event of the evening, with the loss of Alan, the UFC scrambled to find a suitable bout to headline the event.

The decision was made, and through the grape vine, Nate Marquardt and Rousimar Palhares were called to duty, and will now fill in, and will now take over headlining duties on September 25.

The date should prove beneficial for both competitors, as they will now have almost a full-month more to be able to prepare for the bout, since both competitors were originally scheduled for the main card of UFC 118, in Boston, Mass.

Demian, on the other hand, will be playing catch up, as he will now fill in at UFC 118, and will now be taking on Mario Miranda.

Miranda, who entered the UFC undefeated, has split his two bouts inside the octagon, debuting initially against budding middleweight Gerald Harris and losing by knockout in the first round, Miranda was able to bounce back at UFC 115 against former UFC middleweight contender David Loiseau, winning via TKO in the second round.

Maia, a heralded Jiu-Jitsu specialist and Abu Dhabi veteran, is probably most remembered for his most recent performance at UFC 112 against Anderson Silva, challenging for the middleweight title.

The bout saw Silva taunt, and berate the mild-mannered Maia throughout the fight, before Maia would become the aggressor in the later rounds, seemingly striking Silva at all, but ultimately lost by unanimous decision.

So, is Marquardt vs Palhares a suitable fight to covet main event honors for the Fight Night–which also serves as a lead into the 12th season of “The Ultimate Fighter–and does Maia have ample time to change his game plan, and prepare for a well versed opponent like Miranda (who has split training camps with AMC Pankration and The famed Black House team in California, training alongside the likes of the aforementioned Anderson Silva, Nogueria brothers, and Lyoto Machida)?

Cote’s knee gave out in the third round versus Silva and Cote has had two surgeries in the 16 months since he last fought.

Belcher TKO’d Wilson Gouveia (12-7) at UFC 107 in Memphis last December.

Thirty-nine seconds into the third round of his UFC title challenge versus Champion “Spider” Anderson Silva (13-5) at UFC 90 in Chicago Saturday, Cote crumbled to the mat in agony and clutching his knee.  A replay revealed a gruesome bulge where his knee had popped.

Silva was awarded the TKO victory.

The injury first occured a year ago, then was aggravated four weeks ago as Cote prepared for the biggest fight of his career.  Cote considered pulling out of the fight, but received a cortisone shot and clearance from his doctor.

Cote took Silva into the third round for the first time in Silva’s UFC career and fans have called for a rematch; but, Cote’s surgery and rehabilitation makes a rematch unlikely before Silva’s planned retirment.

Top welterweight contender “Pitbull” Thiago Alves (16-3) easily beat fourth-ranked Josh Koscheck (11-3) by unanimous decision. Scores were 30-27 twice and 29-28 once.

Fourth-ranked heavyweight “Vai Cavalo” Fabricio Werdum (11-4-1) was devastated by fellow Brazilian, but virtual unknown “Cigano” Junior dos Santos (7-1) via first-round TKO at 1:21.

Fifth-ranked lightweight “Muscle Shark” Sean Sherk (33-3-1) won a unanimous decision over Tyson Griffin (12-2) by judges’ scores of 29-28 twice and 30-27 once.

Thales Leites (14-1), “Bully” Gray Maynard (6-0), “King” Spencer Fisher (22-4), Dan Miller (10-1), “Drago” Pete Sell (8-4), and Hermes Franca (19-7) were all winners inside the Octagon.

Silva Wins Via Cote Injury

Fighters.com’s Middleweight Champion “Spider” Anderson Silva (23-4) won by TKO when “Predator” Patrick Cote‘s (13-5) knee popped at 39 seconds of round three.

It was an odd conclusion to Silva’s longest fight since 2004. At the beginning of round three, Cote was visibly excited to make it further than any of Silva’s previous UFC opponents, but, 39 seconds later, he was on the mat holding his knee and grimmacing in pain.

“It’s an old injury,” Cote explained. “I busted my knee in the second round and I tried to come back in the third and my knee just popped out.” Cote added, “I’m so sorry.”

Silva said, “I came here to fight. Patrick came here to fight. He was exchanging. It was a fine fight, but unfortunately he got hurt.”

In fact, in round one, it didn’t seem as Silva came to fight as he circled Cote for two full minutes before slapping a low kick to Cote’s thigh. Cote scored with a body kick; but, Silva followed-up with a knee that split Cote over his right eye.

In a bit of showboating, Silva actually offered to help Cote off the mat in round two. Cote had pulled guard and landed elbows from the mat before Silva stood out of Cote’s guard and extended his hand.

Silva landed elbows and knees more frequently in the second round.

The third round and, really, the fight had barely began when Cote’s knee gave and ended the night.

Silva is probably on his way to a 205-pound match-up at UFC 92 in Las Vegas 27 December.

Alves Easily Defeats Koscheck

Top welterweight contender “Pitbull” Thiago Alves (16-3) easily beat fourth-ranked Josh Koscheck (11-3) by unanimous decision. Scores were 30-27 twice and 29-28 once.

With the win, Alves should cement himself into the UFC’s top contender spot to fight the winner between Welterweight Champion “Rush” Georges St. Pierre (17-2) and Ligthweight Champion “Prodigy” B.J. Penn (13-4-1); though, UFC President Dana White has already begun floating a St. Pierre versus Silva match-up if St. Pierre wins.

Alves hammered Koscheck’s legs to mush over three rounds. By the third round, Koscheck was wobbly and vulnerable to a Superman punch.

Throughout the fight, Koscheck answered Alves’s aggressive striking consistently; but, Alves’s strikes added up, earning him the decision.

“Cigano” Crumbles Werdum

Fourth-ranked heavyweight “Vai Cavalo” Fabricio Werdum (11-4-1) was devastated by fellow Brazilian “Cigano” Junior dos Santos (7-1) via first-round TKO at 1:21.

“I knew that once my hand would get in there and hit him, I could knock him out,” explained dos Santos after the fight. “I just waited for the right time and I put my fist in his face.”

Werdum crumbled at the end of a “Cigano” right uppercut; and, dos Santos followed-up with several shots as Werdum lay on the mat.

“The uppercut is one of my best punches,” dos Santos added. “Once I hit him with a couple of jabs I knew that he always dropped his head.”

“Cigano”, a pupil of second-ranked “Minotauro” Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira (31-4-1) was making his UFC debut.

Werdum had been guaranteed a title shot with a victory.

Sherks Wins First in 15 Months

Fifth-ranked lightweight “Muscle Shark” Sean Sherk (33-3-1) won a unanimous decision over Tyson Griffin (12-2) by judges’ scores of 29-28 twice and 30-27 once.

“This is the first win I’ve had in 15 months, believe it or not,” Sherk said after he dominated the young talent most of the fight. “I definitely want to get back out there and get a shot at that belt.”

Sherk took Griffin’s back twice in the first round, once after taking Griffin down and another transitioning from a Griffin takedown attempt. Griffin defended both times.

In the second round, Sherk countered Griffin’s leg kicks with jabs and Griffin’s punches to the body with left hooks.

“People really do underestimate my hands,” explained Sherk.

Griffin landed punches more frequently in round three; but, Sherk often answered him with his own punches.

“He rocked me a few times,” Sherk admitted. “The kid hits hard. The kid’s really aggressive. He’s 24-years old, he’s not going anywhere.”

After winning, Sherk emphasized, “I want to be a two-time UFC champion.”

Leites Quick To Tap McFedries

UFC middleweight contender Thales Leites (14-1) wasted no time tapping “Massacre” Andrew McFedries (7-5) in a rear naked choke.

Leites took down McFedries quickly; and, McFedries rolled to his stomach to escape. Leites hopped on McFedries’s back and wrapped up the choke at 1:18 of the first round.

Maynard Takes Decision Over Clementi

Lightweight “Bully” Gray Maynard (6-0) remained undefeated after a unanimous decision over “No Love” Rich Clementi (32-13-1) by judges’ scores of 30-27 three times.

“He’s a vet, man; and, I could tell,” Maynard said after the fight. “So, I was like, ‘Alright. Let’s try the takedown.’”

Maynard slammed Clementi in every round.

Maynard said, “He’s crafty! Like, tied me up, like, at all times. He would just keep close and keep it tied up.”

Neither fighter did much damage on the mat. In the second round Maynard locked up a guillotine; but, Clementi freed himself and attempted an armbar moments later.

Maynard spent most of the third round controlling the fight from the top position.

“King” Fisher Taps Gugerty

“King” Spencer Fisher (22-4) tapped lightweight Shannon Gugerty (11-3) in a triangle choke at 3:56 of round three.

Gugerty wrestled Fisher down in the third and landed inside Fisher’s guard, from which Fisher applied the choke and forced the tap.

Fisher had dominated the fight with aggressive striking and work in the clinch; but, Gugerty nearly caught Fisher in a guillotine choke in round two.

Miller Wins Again, UD Over Fellow Ex-IFLer Horwich

In his Octagon sequel, middleweight Dan Miller (10-1) spoiled fellow former IFL fighter “Suave” Matt Horwich‘s (22-11-1) UFC debut in a unanimous decision by judges’ scores of 29-28 three times.

Miller opened each round with a takedown of Horwich, but got swept and nearly tapped in a rear naked choke in round two. Miller defended the choke and Horwich had to settle for landing shot from the mount as the round ended.

However, in rounds one and three, Miller controlled position and landed shots from the top position to pick up his second UFC “W”.

Sell Wins First in Octagon Since 2005

Welterweight “Drago” Pete Sell (8-4) served “The People’s Warrior” Josh Burkman (18-8) his third consecutive loss in a unanimous decision by judges’ scores of 29-28 three times.

After losing the first round to Burkman on the mat, Sell tagged Burkman to the body repeatedly in rounds two and three. After softening Burkman up, Sell took Burkman to the mat and ended the fight latching a guillotine choke around Burkman’s neck. Burkman defended the choke to the final bell.

The win is Sell’s first in the Octagon since February 2005.

Franca Dispatches Former Training Partner Aurelio

Lightweight Hermes Franca (19-7) won a unanimous decision over “Maximus” Marcus Aurelio (16-7) by judges scores of 29-28 twice and 30-27 once.

Unfortunately, little of the bitterness between the two former training partners motivated them between the first and final bell; though, Franca pushed Aurelio inside the Octagon before the fight; and, Aurelio refused to shake hands with Franca after the fight.

Franca won the judges’ favors by consistently landing a leg kick throughout the three largely uneventful rounds.

Trigg also welcomed a son, Stone, to his family in September.  Congratulations from Fighters.com.

The remainder of the Middleweight Top Ten was on holiday last month…well, at least at middleweight.

Top contender “Ace” Rich Franklin (23-3) made a successful return to light heavyweight in Atlanta 6 September.  He remains wishy-washy about his future in either division.

But, before Franklin could move-up to 205, Fighters.com’s Middleweight Champion “Spider” Anderson Silva (22-4) beat him there.  Franklin must wonder whether Silva is going to move to Cincinnati and start teaching high school math too.

Silva is preparing to defend his Fighters.com and UFC titles versus “Predator” Patrick Cote (13-4) in Chicago 25 October.

Third-ranked “Ely” Paulo Filho‘s (16-0) WEC title defense versus Chael Sonnen (20-9-1) was postponed from tonight to 5 November due to Hurrican Ike.

Fourth-ranked EliteXC champ “Ruthless” Robbie Lawler (16-4) is rumored to be considering a rematch versus Joey Villasenor (26-6), whom Lawler KO’d in 22 seconds in 2006.

Seventh-ranked “Jacare” Ronaldo Souza (9-1) will fight “Benkei” Zelg Galesic in DREAM’s Middleweight GP semi-final in Saitama 23 September, then, if Souza wins, the winner of Gegard Mousasi (22-2-1) versus “Marvelous” Melvin Manhoef (22-4-1) in the final the same night.

Ninth-ranked “Grabaka Hitman” Kazuo Misaki (20-8-2) will fight “Diesel” Joe Riggs (28-10) in Beverly Hills, north of Los Angeles, 20 September.

Fifth-ranked Yoshihiro Akiyama (11-1), sixth-ranked “Thunder” Yushin Okami (22-4), nor tenth-ranked “Mayhem” Jason Miller (20-5) have fights on their dockets.

September Middleweight Rankings

1. “Spider” Anderson Silva (22-4)

“Spider” fights like he’s hacked the matrix, making top-tier opponents look like they’re clumsily swatting at a web. In March he choked out former PRIDE champ Hendo’. His two-year record has both volume and quality with a “W” next to each challenger.

2. “Ace” Rich Franklin (23-3)

Despite two stoppages to Silva, Franklin is still the best of the rest, even according to Silva himself. “Ace” finessed from a Travis Lutter armbar to pick the TUF champ apart in April and outwrestled notoriously powerful Okami for a decision last year.

3. “Ely” Paulo Filho (16-0)

Filho’s perfect rap sheet lists solid foes, but only an ’06 KO of Misaki among top-tenners. Chael Sonnen gave him hell in a controversial stoppage, but Filho missed the March rematch. A strong comeback in the November rematch will solidify Filho’s ranking.

4. “Ruthless” Robbie Lawler (16-4)

“Ruthless” rides a five-fight “W” streak since being choked out by Miller in ’06, including a KO of Trigg and stoppages of solid fighters Scott Smith, Murilo Rua, and Joey Villasenor.

5. Yoshihiro Akiyama (11-1)

The Zainichi judoka ran the gauntlet of weight-mismatched spectacles before bursting into 185-pound contention with a KO of Denis Kang. Akiyama drew Misaki on NYE, but the the result was a NC. He choked out Katsuyori Shibata in his July comeback.

6. “Thunder” Yushin Okami (22-4)

Okamihas been most active among the top ten in the last two years and comes off a knockout of former UFC champ, the late Evan Tanner.  His only UFC loss was to Franklin, but could’ve conceivably been a “W” had he went after “Ace” before the final two minutes.

7. “Twinkle Toes” Frank Trigg (17-6)

With all Trigg does, you may have missed his comeback at middleweight the last two years, starting with a TKO of Miller and a UD over Misaki. Lawler iced him at Icon, but he’s returned with a quick stoppage of Edwin Dewees and UD of Makoto Takimoto.

8. “Jacare” Ronaldo Souza (9-1)

“Jacare” finally fulfilled the hype surrounding the BJJ world champion by overwhelming Miller on the way to a UD in June, but besides “Mayhem” his record needs bolstered with two big wins to take the DREAM GP.

9. “Grabaka Hitman” Kazuo Misaki (20-8-2)

Misaki has made successful hits on Denis Kang and Hendo’, but also dropped decisions to Trigg and Hendo’ and a stoppage to Filho. Regardless, he’s won and lost among the division’s best, and may have added a “W” versus Akiyama if PRIDE rules ruled K-1.

10. “Mayhem” Jason Miller (20-5)

Always entertaining “Mayhem” has thrown in a stoppage over Lawler, a stoppage by Trigg, and a lost decision to Souza into a mixed bag of competition the last two years.

The UFC seemed intent that sixth-ranked “Thunder” Yushin Okami (21-4-1) miss his de facto UFC top contender challenge of Silva, marketing Cote versus “Cachorrao” Ricardo Almeida (9-3) in Las Vegas 5 July as an eliminator fight even before Okami pulled up lame with a broken hand.

Cote won by split decision.

Okami, who holds a DQ “W” over Silva from 2006, dropped a rank for August on the ascension of fourth-ranked EliteXC Middleweight Champion “Ruthless” Robbie Lawler (16-4).

In Stockton, east of San Francisco, 26 July, Lawler erased the ellipsis left at the end of his May No Contest with “Hands of Steel” Scott Smith (13-5) and etched in a exclamatory second-round TKO over Smith.

To make the scattering of middleweights across promotions more frustrating, the entire top three – Silva, second-ranked “Ace” Rich Franklin (23-3), and third-ranked “Ely” Paulo Filho (16-0) – are throwing their hats into 205-pound bull ring.

Filho, who announced in February that he intends to move to 205-pounds, will rematch Chael Sonnen (20-9-1) in Hollywood, north of Miami, 10 September.

Perhaps Filho’s announcement was amidst his mysterious malaise, for which he’s been successfully treated; but, the WEC will shit-can their middleweight division before the end of 2008 and Filho, who signed with the WEC to avoid a confrontation with his pal Silva, will have to make a decision about which UFC weight class to compete in: the middleweight division Silva rules or the light heavyweight division Silva’s getting his kicks in.

Fifth-ranked Yoshihiro Akiyama (11-1) returned from an eight-month holiday to tap woefully mismatched Katsuyori Shibata (2-5) in Osaka 21 July.

Sixth-ranked “Twinkle Toes” Frank Trigg (16-6) will return from a nine-month holiday to fight Olympic judoka Makoto Takimoto (4-4) at Sengoku in Saitama, north of Tokyo, 24 August.

Trigg’s deal with Sengoku could lead to a rematch versus eighth-ranked “Grabaka Hitman” Kazuo Misaki (20-8-2), but not before Misaki makes his North American debut versus a yet-to-be-named opponent at Strikeforce 19 September in Los Angeles.

Ninth-ranked “Jacare” Ronaldo Souza (9-1) has drawn legit kickboxer “Benkei” Zelg Galesic (9-3) in DREAM’s Middleweight GP, to be fought in Saitama 23 September.

“Mayhem” Jason Miller (21-6) holds steady at tenth without any announced or rumoured bouts.

August Middleweight Rankings

1. “Spider” Anderson Silva (22-4)

“Spider” fights like he’s hacked the matrix, making top-tier opponents look like they’re clumsily swatting at a web. In March he choked out former PRIDE champ Hendo’. His two-year record has both volume and quality with a “W” next to each challenger.

2. “Ace” Rich Franklin (22-3)

Despite two stoppages to Silva, Franklin is still the best of the rest, even according to Silva himself. “Ace” finessed from a Travis Lutter armbar to pick the TUF champ apart in April and outwrestled notoriously powerful Okami for a decision last year.

3. “Ely” Paulo Filho (16-0)

Filho’s perfect rap sheet lists solid foes, but only an ’06 KO of Misaki among top-tenners. Chael Sonnen gave him hell in a controversial stoppage, but Filho missed the March rematch. A strong comeback in the September rematch will solidify Filho’s ranking.

4. “Ruthless” Robbie Lawler (16-4)

“Ruthless” rides a five-fight “W” streak since being choked out by Miller in ’06, including a KO of Trigg and stoppages of solid fighters Scott Smith, Murilo Rua, and Joey Villasenor.

5. Yoshihiro Akiyama (11-1)

The Zainichi judoka ran the gauntlet of weight-mismatched spectacles before bursting into 185-pound contention with a KO of Denis Kang. Akiyama drew Misaki on NYE, but the the result was a NC. He choked out Katsuyori Shibata in his July comeback.

6. “Thunder” Yushin Okami (22-4)

Okami has been most active among the top ten in the last two years and comes off a knockout of former UFC champ Evan Tanner.  His only UFC loss was to Franklin, but could’ve conceivably been a “W” had he went after “Ace” before the final two minutes.

7. “Twinkle Toes” Frank Trigg (16-6)

With all Trigg does, you may have missed his comeback at middleweight the last two years, starting with a TKO of Miller and a UD over Misaki. Lawler iced him at Icon, but he’s returned with a quick stoppage of Edwin Dewees. He’s my division wildcard to watch.

8. “Grabaka Hitman” Kazuo Misaki (20-8-2)

Misaki has made successful hits on Denis Kang and Hendo’, but also dropped decisions to Trigg and Hendo’ and a stoppage to Filho. Regardless, he’s won and lost among the division’s best, and may have added a “W” versus Akiyama if PRIDE rules ruled K-1.

9. “Jacare” Ronaldo Souza (9-1)

“Jacare” finally fulfilled the hype surrounding the BJJ world champion by overwhelming Miller on the way to a UD in June, but besides “Mayhem” his record needs bolstered with better opponents.

10. “Mayhem” Jason Miller (20-5)

Always entertaining “Mayhem” has thrown in a stoppage over Lawler and a stoppage by Trigg into a mixed bag of competition the last two years.

‘‘There is no better way to introduce UFC to Chicago than with the championship fight between Anderson Silva and Patrick Cote,’’ UFC President Dana White said.

Silva made his debut as a light heavyweight 19 July with a 61-second knockout of “Sandman” James Irvin (14-5).

Cote also won his last fight, a split decision over “Cachorrao” Ricardo Almeida (9-3) 5 July.

Fifth-ranked “Thunder” Yushin Okami (26-4), who has a win via disqualification over Silva, was expected to be next in line for the title shot, but broke his hand during training.

New UFC Light Heavyweight Champion Forrest Griffin (16-4) demoralized and upset former Champ “Rampage” Quinton Jackson (29-6) by unanimous decision Saturday night in Las Vegas.

“This is the greatest night of my life,” Griffin said after toppling the odds.

Though Jackson won the first round by staggering Griffin with a left, then dropping the challenger with a right uppercut, Griffin laid the groundwork for his decision victory by whittling away at Jackson’s lead leg with low kicks.

“He jacked my leg up,” Jackson admitted.

In the second round, Griffin buckled the champ with a leg kick and passed to mount on the mat, grinding elbows into Rampage’s head, but doing little damage.

Rampage limped into round three searching for a knockout, but managed only a combination that Griffin weathered, though he admitted, “Every punch that motherfucker threw hurt.”

Jackson scored a fourth-round takedown; but, Griffin wrapped a leg triangle, then transitioned to an omoplata when Jackson freed himself from the triangle.

Jackson stood out of the submission and cracked Griffin with a right hand, opening a cut on the challenger’s right eyelid, then followed with a left as the bell ended the round.

It was back-and-forth and both fighters felt they needed the final round to win; but, Jackson seemed disappointed by the situation, while Griffin was inspired.

Griffin got back to game plan in the fifth round, stinging Rampage’s lead leg, as Jackson threw desperate haymakers without landing.

The judges scored the fight 48-46 twice and 49-46 once for Griffin. Fighters.com scored it 48-46 for Griffin, our new champion.

“He whupped my ass,” Jackson admitted after the battle; but, Griffin said, “It was close and I think we’re gonna have to do it again.”

Cote Wins Title Shot

“Predator” Patrick Cote (14-4) won a spot in line to the UFC Middleweight Championship owned by Fighters.com’s Middleweight Champion “Spider” Anderson Silva (21-4) by winning a split decision over “Cachorrao” Ricardo Almeida (9-3) Saturday night in Las Vegas.

Cote explained the split decision, “I got three knockouts in a row. I can’t do that all the time, especially against this kind of guy.”

Judges scores were 29-28 twice for Cote and 29-28 once for Almeida. Fighters.com scored the fight 29-28 for Cote.

But, it didn’t feel like Cote’s night in the first round.

Almeida pulled guard into a guillotine to open the fight; but, Cote defended; and, the fighters regained their feet.

Almeida shot and passed into Cote’s half-guard where “Cachorrao” stuffed lefts down Cote’s throat, winning the round with G’n'P.

Between the first and second round, there was a curious delay as Almeida’s glove seemed to have busted at the seams and needed to be repaired.

Cote may have changed the tide at the end of a slow second round when a right hand found Almeida’s head as the horn ended the round.

“My game plan was to sprawl’n'brawl and that’s exactly what I did the last two rounds,” Cote said after the fight.

Almeida was winded by round three; and, it was a Cote kickboxing academy in the third as “The Predator” lined-up straights with both fists and lit-up Almeida’s legs with kicks.

“My conditioning was there. I was running against him in the third round and my conditioning was still there,” said Cote.

Cote pleaded in the locker room after the victory, “I want some credit, man. I want some credit that I’m well-rounded. I’m not just a slugger. I proved tonight that I’m able to wrestle, I’m able to do on the ground, I can kick, I can elbow, I can do jiu-jitsu.”

Daddy Guillotines Tibau

After a first round spent bothered, but not troubled in a Gleison Tibau (15-6) omoplata attempt, “Daddy” Joe Stevenson (34-8) caught the Brazilian in a guillotine when Tibau shot for a double-leg takedown at 2:57 of the second round.

Fought mostly on the mat, and lingering for several minutes in a Tibau omoplata attempt, Stevenson and Tibau decided to compare BJJ belts.

Tibau came up short, though defended two guillotines before Stevenson locked in the winner as Tibau shot.

Stevenson explained after the fight, “Honestly, you know, he just put his head there and I took it. It was nothing fancy.”

Koschek’s Elbows Open Up Lytle

Fighters.com’s fourth-ranked welterweight “Kos” Josh Koscheck (13-2) chiseled crevices above both eyebrows of “Lights Out” Chris Lytle (25-16-5) during a UD for “Kos” Saturday night in Las Vegas.

Koscheck planted Lytle on the mat in all three rounds and worked elbows and leather like pistons to Lytle’s forehead, opening gashes in the second round.

“I thought they were going to stop it,” Koscheck said after the fight, “because he had some pretty bad cuts.”

Lytle wasn’t “Lights Out” though, catching Kos in two guillotines at the shots and a heel hook in round one; but, Koscheck was ice cube-cool defending the subs and returning to work on Lytle’s head.

“The only [guillotine] that got really tight was the last round there,” Koscheck explained, “But, I’m pretty good at getting out of them. I just roll…like an alligator.”

With his blood puddled on the mat, Lytle mustered one final flurry after referee Yves Lavigne stood the fighters in round three.

Kos avoided any damage and walked out of the Octagon with crimson-tinged hair and a decision by 30-26, 29-27, and 30-28, but declaring respect for the man he had just mangled.

Dominant Tyson Griffin UD

Lightweight Tyson Griffin (12-1), known as a wrestler, performed a breakout kickboxing display in a UD over “Maximus” Marcus Aurelio (16-6) Saturday night in Las Vegas.

Over all three rounds, Griffin tenderized Aurelius’s ribs and nearly spun his BJJ blackbelt opponent around with leg kicks.

The body barrage left “Maximus” worn by round two. He made only weak attempts to take Griffin to the mat, but stayed away from most of Griffin’s upstairs bombs.

Griffin admitted after the fight, “I hit him with some good shots; and, he didn’t fall down, so…hey!”

Unable to put Aurelius away on his feet, Griffin scored a single-leg takedown in round three.

“I don’t want to be a guy that dominates two-and-a-half rounds and gets caught,” Griffin explained, “so, you know, I decided to take him down, control the rest of the fight, and, you know, get that ‘W’.”

Aurelius sucked up Griffin’s left arm, then his right; but, Griffin defended and bloodied the right side of Aurelius’s face until time ended the fight.

Griffin scored 30-27 three times for the “W”.

Gonzaga Mauls McCully

Tenth-ranked heavyweight “Napao” Gabriel Gonzaga (9-3) wasted no time getting back to winning by tapping Justin McCully (8-4-2) in a Kimura 1:57 of round one.

Gonzaga dropped McCully with a leg kick, pounced, passed to mount, and applied the shoulder lock surgically to force the tap.

“I come from real Brazilian jiu-jitsu school and I’m proud of my Brazilian jiu-jitsu skills,” said Gonzaga after the fight.

Miller Taps Gurgel With 12 Seconds Left

American Top Team lightweight “Magrino” Cole Miller (14-3) tapped Jorge Gurgel (12-4) in a triangle with 12 seconds remaining in their fight.

It was a hot one!

The first round was a back-and-forth brawl that saw both fighters score in combinations, with Gurgel getting the best of Miller.

Miller decided to take Gurgel to the mat in round two and scored from top position with G’n'P while passing to half-mount.

“I was just getting out-pointed, so I thought on the ground would be the best bet,” explained Miller after his victory.

Gurgel scrambled free, but found himself in a guillotine, which he defended.

After three Gurgel takedowns led to nothing for the Cincinnatian, Miller took advantage of the final trip from Gurgel. During a scramble, Miller locked in the triangle choke and forced Gurgel to tap at 4:48 of round three.

“The biggest mistake I think he made was just not being in as good of shape as me,” Miller reflected. “He left his hand in there. He was a little more tired than me.”

Guillard Big Punchin’

“Young Assassin” Melvin Guillard (22-7-2) registered a hit on German lightweight Dennis Siver (11-6) in a 36-second TKO.

Guillard fired a big right at the opening bell, dropping Siver.

Siver wasn’t out though. The German defended Guillard’s follow-up G’n'P with an armbar attempt.

But, Guillard yanked free and finished the job with strikes.

After the TKO, Guillard said, “If I get [Roger] Huerta after [Kenny] Florian done with him, that’s good. If I don’t, oh well. But, that’s a rematch I want. I want to avenge that to myself. That’s something personal.”

Buchholz Taps Hill

Lightweight Justin Buchholz (8-2) tapped stringbean-physiqued Corey Hill (2-1) in a rear naked choke at 3:57 of round two.

The young fighters burned a furious pace into the second round. Buchholz pulled guard for the second time in the fight and tried to contort a gogo’ that Hill defended.

In defense, Hill gave his back; and, Buchholz scrambled behind Hill and locked in the choke.

Buchholz described the finish after the fight, “Got the rear naked and choke just started praying, ‘Please God tapout. Please God tapout!’”

Rampage weighed in at 205-pounds, as did eighth-ranked title challenger Forrest Griffin (15-4).

Xtreme Couture’s Griffin said, “It’s nice to fight in your hometown.  Thank you, guys.”

Griffin smirked in the gaze of an intense Rampage stare down.

All fighters on Saturday night’s card made weight.

Only lightweight Gleison Tibau (15-5) missed the mark, but by the allowed one pound at 156-pounds.  Tibau will fight “Daddy” Joe Stevenson (33-8).

6’4″ lightweight Corey Hill (2-0) looked absolutely emaciated at 155-pounds.

All the weights from Vegas are below.

“Rampage” Quinton Jackson (28-6) 205-pounds v Forrest Griffin (15-4) 205-pounds

“Predator” Patrick Cote (13-4) 185-pounds v “Cachorrao” Ricardo Almeida (9-2) 185-pounds

Fourth-ranked“Kos” Josh Koscheck (12-2) 170-pounds v “Lights Out” Chris Lytle (25-15-5) 170-pounds

Tyson Griffin (11-1) 155-pounds v “Maximus” Marcus Aurelio (16-5) 155-pounds

“Daddy” Joe Stevenson (33-8) 155-pounds v Gleison Tibau (15-5) 156-pounds

Tenth-ranked“Napao” Gabriel Gonzaga (8-3) 249-pounds v Justin McCully (8-3-2) 236-pounds

Jorge Gurgel (12-3) 155-poundsv “Magrino” Cole Miller (13-3) 155-pounds

“Young Assassin” Melvin Guillard (21-7-2) 155-pounds  v Dennis Siver (11-5) 155-pounds

Corey Hill (2-0) 155-pounds v Justin Buchholz (7-2) 155-pounds

But, the cold, hard ledger reveals Hendo’ hasn’t had a win at 185-pounds in two years.

Hendo’s previous rank was filled by tenth-ranked “Mayhem” Jason Miller (20-6), falling a notch to newly ninth-ranked “Jacare” Ronaldo Souza (9-1).

Souza debuted in the top ten after pulling off a tight two-round unanimous decision over Miller in DREAM’s Middleweight Grand Prix 15 June.

Also in June Japanese action, “Grabaka Hitman” Kazuo Misaki (20-8-2) cemented his seventh ranking with a UD over “Pink Pounder” Logan Clark at Sengoku.

Misaki now seeks revenge over new Sengoku add-on, seventh-ranked “Twinkle Toes” Frank Trigg (16-6).

No Sengoku match-up has been announced for Trigg; but, one would assume Misaki’s home nation promotion wants to match the old enemies as soon as Trigg is ready.

Sixth-ranked “Ruthless” Robbie Lawler (15-4) was pulling away from “Hands of Stone” Scott Smith (13-4) in the third round of their EliteXC title fight 31 May in Newark, west of New York City, when a thumb to Smith’s eye rendered the result a No Contest.

Lawler held steady in June, as did the entire middleweight top five.

Fighters.com’s Middleweight Champion “Spider” Anderson Silva (21-4) wisely avoided a move to 205-pounds to fight fourth-ranked light heavyweight “Iceman” Chuck Liddell (21-5) in September.

The UFC’s July match-up between “Predator” Patrick Cote (12-4) and “Cachorrao” Ricardo Almeida (9-2) is being marketed as winner-get-Silva.

Baffling, since the UFC’s obvious top contender is fifth-ranked “Thunder” Yushin Okami (22-4), who seems to be lingering in limbo after knocking out former UFC Champion Evan Tanner (32-7) in March.

Fighters.com predicts Okami will draw “Hitman” Martin Kampmann (16-2).

Fourth-ranked Yoshihiro Akiyama (10-1) continues to flirt with DREAM and will probably be the Middleweight GP champion’s first mandatory.

Third-ranked “Ely” Paulo Filho (16-0) is out of rehab and training for a September WEC title defense rematch versus Chael Sonnen (20-9-1).

Second-ranked “Ace” Rich Franklin (22-3) is being pressured by the UFC to move to 205-pounds to clarify their middleweight rankings, but Franklin is resisting.

June Middleweight Rankings

1. “Spider” Anderson Silva (21-4)

“Spider” fights like he’s hacked the matrix, making top-tier opponents look like they’re clumsily swatting at a web. In March he choked out former PRIDE champ Hendo’. His two-year record has both volume and quality with a “W” next to each challenger.

2. “Ace” Rich Franklin (22-3)

Despite two stoppages to Silva, Franklin is still the best of the rest, even according to Silva himself. “Ace” finessed from a Travis Lutter armbar to pick the TUF champ apart in April and outwrestled notoriously powerful Okami for a decision last July.

3. “Ely” Paulo Filho (16-0)

Filho’s perfect rap sheet lists solid foes, but only an ’06 KO of Misaki among top-tenners. Chael Sonnen gave him hell in a controversial stoppage, but Filho missed the March rematch. A strong comeback in the September rematch will solidify Filho’s ranking.

4. Yoshihiro Akiyama (10-1)

The Zainichi judoka ran the K-1 gauntlet of weight-mismatched spectacles before bursting into 185-pound contention with a KO of Denis Kang. Akiyama drew Misaki on NYE, but the end was deemed illegal and the result a NC. He also needs a strong comeback.

5. “Thunder” Yushin Okami (22-4)

Okami has been most active among the top ten in the last two years and comes off a knockout of former UFC champ Evan Tanner.  His only UFC loss was to Franklin, but could’ve conceivably been a “W” had he went after “Ace” before the final two minutes.

6. “Ruthless” Robbie Lawler (15-4)

“Ruthless” rides a four-fight “W” streak since being choked out by Miller in ’06, including a KO of Trigg and stoppages of solid fighters Murilo Rua and Joey Villasenor. Upcoming versus Scott Smith won’t prove much unless he loses.

7. “Twinkle Toes” Frank Trigg (16-6)

With all Trigg does, you may have missed his comeback at middleweight the last two years, starting with a TKO of Miller and a UD over Misaki. Lawler iced him at Icon, but he’s returned with a quick stoppage of Edwin Dewees. He’s my division wildcard to watch.

8. “Grabaka Hitman” Kazuo Misaki (19-8-2)

Misaki has made successful hits on Denis Kang and Hendo’, but also dropped decisions to Trigg and Hendo’ and a stoppage to Filho. Regardless, he’s won and lost among the division’s best, and may have added a “W” versus Akiyama if PRIDE rules ruled K-1.

9. “Jacare” Ronaldo Souza (9-1)

“Jacare” finally fulfilled the hype surrounding the BJJ world champion by overwhelming Miller on the way to a UD in June, but his besides “Mayhem” his record needs bolstered with better opponents.

10. “Mayhem” Jason Miller (20-5)

Always entertaining “Mayhem” has thrown in a stoppage over Lawler and a stoppage by Trigg into a mixed bag of competition the last two years.

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.