john lawrence looks at the final ufc ppv of the year…
UFC 155 was well on it’s way to go down in the books as the “Snoozefest of the Year”.
I am sure this was not how the UFC wanted to end the year. The card had really great fighters and some really great match-ups, but they were just not panning out as planned.
That was all until Joe Lauzon and Jim Miller swooped in to save the day. This fight was a perfect matchup. Jim Miller is a jiu-jitsu black belt that is more than happy to stand up and bang with anyone. Joe Lauzon is a six-time “Submission of the Night” winner and equally willing to throw down. The whole fight was fought at a ridiculous pace with neither man giving an inch. In the first round Miller opened up a huge gash on Lauzon’s face, which would later require over 40 stitches. That didn’t seem to slow Lauzon down at all. These guys continued to bang it out for 2 more full rounds. Countless punches, elbows, and submission attempts until the very last bell. Miller took the decision, with all three judges scoring it 29-28. This was an epic battle and I think should be a very strong consideration for fight of the year.
I didn’t believe there was any way the main event of the evening could be anywhere near as exciting as the co-main between Lauzon and Miller. Cain Velasquez vs Junior Dos Santos sounded like a great fight on paper, but after their last match only lasted a minute, I had pretty low expectations. In their last fight, Junior dominated Cain and knocked him out quickly. Cain was looking for redemption at UFC 155 and he got it in a huge way. He dominated the champ for all five rounds, looking like the Cain we saw manhandle Brock Lesnar. His standup was flawless and he took Dos Santos down at will. This is not to say that Dos Santos was without merit. His chin is made of iron. He took a ton of punches that would have ended most fights, and escaped a lot of submission attempts. Both men showed iron will and cardio that is unheard of in the heavyweight division. I really would have put money on the fact that this fight was not making it out of the first round regardless of who won. In the end it was Cain Velasquez regaining his title via unanimous decision. The judges card scored it 50-43, 50-44, and 50-45. I don’t believe this is the last time we will see these two greats square off against each other and I personally, can’t wait for the rematch.
Like I said earlier, the rest of the night was a little lack luster, so here are the rest of the results.
Heavyweight
Cain Velasquez def. Junior Dos Santos – Decision (unanimous) Rounds: 5 – Time: 5:00
Lightweight
Jim Miller def. Joe Lauzon – Decision (unanimous) – Rounds: 3 – Time: 5:00
Middleweight
Costa Philippou def. Tim Boetsch – TKO (punches) – Rounds: 3 – Time: 2:11
Middleweight
Yushin Okami def. Alan Belcher – Decision (unanimous) – Rounds: 3 – Time: 5:00
Middleweight
Derek Brunson def. Chris Leben – Decision (unanimous) – Rounds: 3 – Time: 5:00
Preliminary Card (FX)
Bantamweight
Eddie Wineland def. Brad Pickett – Decision (split) – Rounds: 3 – Time 5:00
Bantamweight
Erik Perez def. Byron Bloodworth – TKO (punches) – Rounds: 1 – Time: 3:50
Lightweight
Jamie Varner def. Melvin Guillard – Decision (split) – Rounds: 3 – Time: 5:00
Lightweight
Myles Jury def. Michael Johnson – Decision (unanimous) – Rounds: 3 – Time: 5:00
Preliminary Card (Facebook)
Heavyweight
Todd Duffee def. Phil De Fries – TKO (punches) – Rounds: 1 – Time: 2:04
Featherweight
Max Holloway def. Leonard Garcia – Decision (split) – Rounds: 3 – Time: 5:00
Flyweight
John Moraga def. Chris Cariaso – Submission (arm-in guillotine choke) – Rounds: 3 – Time – 1:11
• Fight of the Night: Jim Miller vs. Joe Lauzon
• Knockout of the Night: Todd Duffee
• Submission of the Night: John Moraga
