UFC - Leben, Bonnar Suffer Setbacks

I love the UFC, you all know it, and Ultimate Fight Night Live is a special treat. Kind of like a free pay per view in the middle of the week. As a big fan of Stephan Bonnar and Chris Leben last night was a big night for them to move up the ladder of contention towards a future title shot. Well much like Tracy Williams said when I asked her out in grade 10; "Forget it, it's not gonna happen anytime soon."

• Mark Hominick outpointed season two alum Jorge Gurgel (pronounced George gurzhel) in a stand up battle. Hominick did everything to avoid a takedown and Gurgel didn't press when he made good strikes and when the smoke cleared it was a narrow decision (that drew boos) for the Canadian Hominick.
• Jonathan Goulet fought season two runner up Luc Cummo in a back and forth submission fest. The elaborately decorated Goulet looked much better in this fight than his last when he was knocked out in 1 punch after an 11 second embarrassment. Luc seemed to have a bit of an edge in the 2nd but came out gassed in the 3rd. Goulet nearly got choked in the final minute but managed to escape and won the bout on the scorecard
• Rob MacDonald vs Kristian Rothaermel - I had no excitement about this fight going in as TUF season two whiner MacDonald drove me nuts and Kristian from season 3 looks finished. Quick fight with Rothaermel doing absolutely nothing but I loved how MacDonald finished the fight! Quickest arm bar I have seen. Impressive win for the Canadian.
• Leben vs Silva - many people didn't realize until tonight that Anderson Silva is an established MMA star. Leben, who has been solid since his UFC debut looked to possibly contend if he could get by Silva, but Silva obviously missed the memo. The bout lasted 49 seconds and while Leben landed 1 good shot that cut Silva over the eye, the rest of the (short) fight belonged to Silva. To Leben's credit he should have been out after the first bomb but he stuck around for another couple of barrages and actually tried to trade while stunned...Bad move. Silva finished off with a solid knee and a couple of hammer fists that left Leben in dreamland, much to the delight of Josh Koschek who was seen cheering after it happened. I haven't seen that kind of a massive assault since June 6, 1944 (D Day).
• Bonnar vs Evans - Stephan Bonnar was coming off a controversial decision over Jardine and was trying to redeem himself. His skills have improved greatly and the guy can take a hit. Evans has never impressed me as he is predominantly a wrestler. I figured Bonnar would pound him out and if it went to ground it would be a submission....as in many things, buy was I wrong! This was a very boring fight and if you saw 1 minute of it, the rest of the fight was like an instant replay, Bonnar swings, Evans shoots, slams Bonnar, full guard, Bonnar tries for a kimura and they both get back to their feet. Repeat. Evans was all over Bonnar like paparazzi on celebrity offspring. when the final bell sounded everyone, including a very dejected Bonnar knew who won. I still don't like Evans.

So to recap , a good night for Canadians, Goulet, Hominick and MacDonald and a big setback for Bonnar and Leben. Silva emerged as a real threat to Franklin in the months to come and overall a good appetizer for the main event on July 8th, UFC 61 Bitter Rivals. I can't wait for Ken Shamrock to get beaten down! Until next time remember, no Payne no gain!