Going into this contest, opinion was split on who would win the fight between Rashad Evans and Thiago Silva. In the end, Evans used his superb wrestling background to defeat his Brazilian foe by unanimous decision.
Evans vs. Silva Round-by-Round
Rashad (205lbs) showed his intentions from the beginning by immediately going for the clinch, and from there shooting for a takedown. For the rest of the first, Evans used great head movement and lots of takedowns and ground control to restrict the effectiveness of Silva (205lbs).
In round two, Silva continued to have problems with the wrestling of Evans. This session went in a similar pattern to the first - Evans would clinch and get the takedown, then Silva would stand up before the whole cycle started again. Note that in this pattern, Silva is effective at no point.
He could have put Evans away in the third though, as he hurt 'Suga' with a great combination which was punctuated by two powerful right straights. However, Silva didn't have the gas required to finish the job, and Evans held on to last the duration.
There were no surprises on the scorecards as all three judges scored the bout 30-27 to Rashad Evans. With this win, his record now stands at 19-1-1 and concurrently Silva is now 14-2. A match between Rashad Evans and 'Rampage' Jackson is now slated for April.
Paul Daley Blasts Dustin Hazelett
In what promised to be an intriguing clash of styles, the explosive Paul 'Semtex' Daley showed that it's all well and good having excellent BJJ, but the fight starts on the feet on good striking can end the bout before a solid ground game is useful.
Daley (172lbs) started by using the right leg kick to his advantage while Hazelett (168lbs) tried to stay at range. It wasn't to be long before the two engaged in close though, and when they did, Daley connected with a huge left hook which sent Hazelett to the floor. 'Semtex' then unloaded with punches on 'McLovin' until the referee pulled him off after 2:24 of round one. This outstanding win takes Daley to 23-8-2, while his American foe dropped to 14-5.
UFC 108 Undercard
Junior Dos Santos (237lbs) impressed on the undercard by stopping striking specialist Gilbert Yvel (239lbs) via TKO in the very first round. The bout started evenly, but Dos Santos found a huge left hook which floored 'Hurricane' Yvel, and he then ground and pounded his foe until referee Herb Dean pulled him off after 2:07 of the round. Dos Santos now improves to 10-1, whereas Yvel decreases to 36-14-1 1NC.
Canada's Sam Stout (155lbs) is never in a bad fight, and his contest with Joe Lauzon (155lbs) didn't disappoint. Lauzon started well, getting a few takedowns early on and nearly sinking in a Kimura. Stout got up after every takedown though, and dominated the stand-up fight. Round two showed Stout mixing his striking up even more, using high kicks and knees especially well, and despite Lauzon putting in a decent effort in round three, Stout continued his dominance. This led to the judges scoring the bout 30-27, 30-27 and 30-26 in favour of 'Hands Of Stone' Stout, who moves to 16-5-1. Lauzon on the other hand drops to 17-5.
Jim Miller's fight with Duane 'Bang' Ludwig also finished in a round. Much to the surprise of the fans in attendance, Miller (155lbs) did very well on his feet against the former Muay Thai World Champion, and even dropped him with a counter right hook. After this, Miller never let Ludwig (156lbs) have a second's rest, and he finished him with an arm bar. This win takes Miller to 16-2, while Ludwig's record now stands at 27-10.
In the prelims, Cole Miller ensured that the whole Miller family would be celebrating after UFC 108 by submitting Dan Lauzon in a back and forth battle. An overhand left floored Miller at the start, but he worked his way back into the bout with good knees in the clinch. Then, Lauzon took his back, and got the takedown, making a Miller victory look impossible, but Miller then found an inverted triangle from more or less out of nowhere and forced Lauzon to tap. Miller is now 16-4, whereas Lauzon is 12-3.
Martin 'The Hitman' Kampmann (171lbs) sent a statement to the rest of the welterweight division with a submission victory over the steely Jacob 'Christmas' Volkmann. Despite being dropped twice, Volkmann put up a good fight, even rocking Kampmann with a four punch combination. However, it was not to be his night, and after 4:03 of round one, Kampmann sank in an inventive choke from the top which forced 'Christmas' to tap. This fight caused Volkmann to decrease to 9-2, while the determined Kampmann increased to 16-3.
Mark Munoz' wrestling ensured victory for him against Ryan Jensen. Jensen did OK when the pair stood, but ultimately after Munoz got the fight to the ground, Jensen was on borrowed time. Munoz transitioned to the back of his foe, and ground and pounded his way to a submission victory in round one, taking his record to 7-1. On the other hand, Jensen's scoresheet is now 14-6.
A spot on the main card also surely looms for Jake Ellenberger (170lbs) who demolished Mike Pyle (171lbs) in exciting fashion. In the first, Ellenberger got a couple of takedowns, and may have broken one of Pyle's ribs at the end with ground and pound despite his rival's decent guard. Ellenbereger then came out like a steam train in round two, flooring Pyle with a right straight and finishing off with ruthless punches to his defenceless foe. He increases to 22-5. Pyle's record now stands at 18-7-1.
