Despite the lack of title fights, UFC 85 managed to produce enough excitement and controversy to supply the MMA community for at least the next week. There are a few prevailing thoughts following this event:

• Thiago Alves does NOT deserve a title shot.
• Brandon Vera needs to drop down to the light heavyweight division.
• Michael Bisping looked great.
• Nate Marquardt was robbed (i.e., the elbow was not to the back of the head).

While I can’t really add much to those points, there were a few other observations that I took away from UFC 85:

• Matt Wiman looked like a different fighter. Wiman is one of those fighters that is always looking to get in there and “bang” rather than formulating a gameplan or use his jiu-jitsu (which has been known to be pretty good). Yesterday, he displayed some beautiful jiu-jitsu, particularly his use of it defensively. His power on the feet was also nothing short of impressive. Tavares took some hard shots in his fight against Tyson Griffin but nothing came anywhere close to knocking him out. Wiman managed to do that and then some.
• When did Matt Hughes get so small? I know that Thiago Alves came in 4 lbs over but damn! Hughes looked like a child next to Alves. I remember Frank Trigg talking about when he tried to choke Hughes out and referring to his neck as a tree trunk. I could not picture it being described that way yesterday. (Insert corny joke about Contry Breakfast here.)
• Nate Marquardt robbed Nate Marquardt. The point deduction for the knee to a downed opponent was warranted and the one for the elbow to that back of the head made up for the one he wasn’t deducted for the blatantly illegal pile-driver.
• Marcus Davis lost.
• Joe Rogan and Mike Goldberg can never say the phrases “on the button” and “come over the top” again respectively. I have listened to them use these same phrases for years now and enough is enough. I’ll admit that they were less prevalent at UFC 85, but they were used nonetheless. They are, without a doubt, my favorite commenting team but they can do much better.
• Wasn’t there supposed to be some big announcement at UFC 85?

So what did you guys think of UFC 85? Leave some comments below and let me know.

Today’s fighter of the day? Only one day after his loss to Thiago Alves at UFC 85 in London; Matt Hughes. Caleb over at MMA Predictions has created a MMA Fighter of the Day Google Gadget to place on your iGoogle homepage.

While you’re there, you can also pick your fighters for Adrenaline MMA, Dream, UFC 86, and more! Check it out!

The Hughes/Alves fight has already been taken down, but here are some others!

Brandon Vera vs. Fabricio Werdum

Michael Bisping vs. Jason Day

Thales Leites vs. Nate Marquardt

Jason Lambert vs. Luis Crane

Thiago Tavares vs. Matt Wiman

Jorge Rivera vs. Martin Kampmann

It was a big deal last April when Pride superstar Mirko Cro Cop Filipovic was set to face off against Gabriel Gonzaga at UFC 70. It was then that Gonzaga, a big Brazilian known for his Jiu-Jitsu, knocked Cro Cop out with a head kick that dropped the Croatian lifeless onto the canvas. So it’s not to surprise to learn that, after UFC 75 and UFC 80, the next two international UFC events, were filled with controversy over bad judging and blood drinking, big upsets have returned to the UFC in the form of an international event.

It’s not just one fight, it’s about oh maybe five or six, if you erred on one particular fighter coming back to reclaim his title of an exciting fighter after his snore-fest with Tim Sylvia at UFC 77. All of these upsets except for two occurred during the main event.

So, what happened last night at the 02 Arena?

Let’s start at the top with Thiago Alves TKO of Matt Hughes at 1:02 of Round 2. It was another missed-weight scenario with Alves failing to make weight and coming in bigger and heavier, but just like the Gina Carano and Kaitlyn Young fight, it wasn’t just size that won the fight. Alves was able to show that Hughes is lacking the ability to manage the fight. Hughes is a big guy, but he’s not showing that he can handle all aspects of the game anymore. We’ll see what he can do against Matt Serra.

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MMA Junkie is reporting the winners of the $50,000 “fight night” bonuses:

• KO of the Night - Thiago Alves
• Submission of the Night - Kevin Burns
• Fight of the Night - Matt Wiman vs. Thiago Tavares

MMA Junkie also makes an interesting observation: these “fight night” bonuses were $25,000 less than the ones awarded at UFC 85 ($75,000). Although this event was said to be sold out, I would assume the pay-per-view buys would be considerably less due to the lack of any relevant fights.

I debated the third person title. I promise my ego isn’t that big, even though I’m a prophet of MMA.

I’ll give some detail on the main card and some other interesting fights (though there aren’t very many).

Matt Hughes vs. Thiago Alves

The fight is going to the ground. Matt Hughes is too good a wrestler, and Alves’ recent failure to make weight has led me to question his conditioning. If people think that size is going to be an issue, Alves isn’t the first guy to come in over weight, hoping to bang with Matt Hughes. Those who remember, remember the fight with Joe Riggs, and those who remember, remember how it ended. I expect this to end similarly.

Matt Hughes by submission, round one

Michael Bisping vs. Jason Day

Bisping is supposed to win this fight, and I think he will. He’s being brought in as a way to get the British fans excited, and I think he’ll do that. He’ll probably beat Day in his bread and butter: the stand-up. There has been a lot of interesting talk about Bisping challenging Silva, and if he wins in the first round, I think that he’ll have a delusion of power and authority, fighting that high up on a card in a country where he’s treated like the greatest. If he does get his way, he’ll lose to Silva, but I think he wins at UFC 85.

Bisping by knockout/TKO, late round one or early round two

Marcus Davis vs. Mike Swick

Hard to say if Swick has the boxing chops to stand with Davis, who’s an accomplished boxer. I think he does, and I think he’ll come out aggressive. I thought about the possibility of a war between the two, but I think that that’s unlikely. I expect Swick to remind us that he’s a bigger, stronger fighter, because he feels he needs to make a showing now. Expect fireworks and there’s a good chance Davis could catch him, so be on guard. This is the one fight I’m not sure about calling, but I’m giving it to Swick.

Swick by TKO, round two

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The fight will take place at a catch-weight of 174 pounds, and Hughes has agree to take the fight, still enthusiastic to get back on track.

Weigh-in results:

Matt Hughes (170) vs. Alves (174)

Jason Day (184) vs. Michael Bisping (184)

Mike Swick (170) vs. Marcus Davis (170)

Thales Leites (185) vs. Nate Marquardt (185)

Fabricio Werdum (247) vs. Brandon Vera (228)

Martin Kampmann (186) vs. Jorge Rivera (185)

Thiago Tavares (154.5) vs. Matt Wiman (155)

Roan Carniero (171) vs. Kevin Burns (170)

Luiz Cane (204) vs. Jason Lambert (205)

Jess Liaudin (169) vs. Paul Taylor (169)

Eddie Sanchez (244) vs. Antoni Hardonk (247)

This Saturday, the UFC will invade the O2 Arena in London to yet again show the world that they are still the top MMA organization in the world. After a week that has provided fans with the first ever show on regular television, as well as the most viewed event (and possible fight of the year) in the WEC, the UFC will put on a show that many are saying is subpar. I am here to tell you that is not the case and UFC 85 is worth the buy! The fight card is full of talent, and new fighters that are looking to make a case for themselves. In this preview I will break down the top 4 fights.

Matt Hughes vs. Thiago Alves

We at MMAOpinion have beaten this horse to death… For a full preview of this fight, check out this article I wrote. Stop by, read the article, and see if you agree with me or new commenter Willis.

Prediction: Hughes, by submission

I see Matt pushing early, taking this fight to the ground. He will continue to work on the mat and Thiago will start to wear down. Eventually in this fight I see Alves making a mistake and Hughes taking advantage, possibly giving up an arm bar or his back leading to a choke.

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Matt Hughes is hands down the best fighter at the 170 pound weight class in the history of mixed martial arts. You can not find another welterweight fighter that has been as dominant and you don’t have to take my word for it; his 42-6 record says it all. If that doesn’t work, how about the fact that he is a 9x world champion? How about the fact that he was a 4x All American as a D-1 NCAA wrestler, or the fact that his last 2 years in high school he went undefeated and won the state wrestling tournament? His victories are over some of the best in the game. Names such as B.J. Penn, Joe Riggs, Frank Trigg, George St. Pierre, Sean Sherk, and the legendary Royce Gracie make up just a few of his 42 wins. He is hands down the best welterweight ever.

This Saturday at UFC 85 Hughes will look to add another chapter to his life, as he will step into the cage with rising star Thiago Alves. Only 6 months ago he was possibly at one of the biggest crossroads of his life and In a position that only the likes of Michael Jordan, Barry Sanders, and Brett Favre would understand, he was forced to make a decision. With no major injury he had to decide if it was time to hang it up and walk away or return to the sport he loved.

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