Going into this bout, optimism in the UK was high. There was the general feeling that Dan Hardy, the first Brit ever to fight for a UFC Title could spring an upset, and do what Matt Serra did several years ago and knock out Georges St. Pierre. However, it was not to be, and 'GSP' dominated 'The Outlaw' from bell to bell.
St. Pierre and Carwin Make Statements
Georges St. Pierre (170lbs) showed he is certainly a pack leader in the race for the crown of best 'Pound for Pound' fighter in the world by beating legitimate number one contender (to the UFC Welterweight Title) Dan Hardy (also 170lbs) in every area.
Grappling wise, 'GSP' was sublime. He maintained top position with the greatest of ease throughout the fight, and his transitions to side control and full mount were seamless. However, Hardy proved his resillience by refusing to tap to a horrific arm bar in the first and an equally disgusting Kimura in the fourth. There was no doubt who was winning on the ground though, and even when the British challenger attempted triangle chokes throughout, they were blocked/reversed with the greatest of ease.
People thought 'The Outlaw' had a chance standing up, but St. Pierre didn't give him the time to get anything off. Double and single leg takedowns were both used to great effect, and there was simply nothing Hardy could do to stop the irresistable force.
The judges scored the bout 50-43, 50-44 and 50-45 respectively, all in the favour of the obvious winner 'GSP,' who is now 20-2. Hardy, even in losing will surely gain a ton of respect from this performance, as he showed there is no quit in his mentality whatsoever. He decreases to 23-7 1NC.
Shane Carwin (265lbs) remained undefeated and has still never been out of the first round after dominating Frank Mir (265lbs) before stopping him just 3:48 into the bout. Carwin threw short left uppercuts in the clinch which forced Mir's legs to leave him, before claiming the UFC Interim Heavyweight Title and a shot against Brock Lesnar by using horrific ground and pound until referee Dan Miragliotta (rather belatedly) pulled him off. A legitimate threat to the 'full' champ Lesnar, Carwin moves to 12-0, while this was Mir's 5th setback in his 18 fight career.
UFC 111 Pay-Per View Undercard
Kurt Pellegrino (155lbs) looked outstanding in submitting BJJ specialist Fabricio Camoes (155lbs) in the second stanza of their contest. The New Jersey man had to come through sticky moments at the start, including escaping from a standing rear naked choke, only for him to reimpose his will and outwrestle and outpostition his foe en route to finding a rear naked choke which led to Camoes, now 10-5-1 tapping after 4:27 of the second. Hometown hero Pellegrino improves to 15-4.
The fans in attendance in New Jersey didn't seem particularly impressed with Jon Fitch's (171lbs) victory over Ben Saunders (169lbs) but in reality, no more could have been asked of the AKA man. Fitch simply took 'Killer B' out of his game, using grinding wrestling ability and ground and pound to his advantage. This takes him to 25-3 1NC, while Saunders drops to 8-2-2, but he is young enough to learn and come back from this defeat stronger.
Fights don't get much closer than Jim Miller's (155lbs) win over Mark Bocek (154lbs) and the unanimous decision (with all three judges scoring the fight 29-28) didn't reflect the back and forth nature of the bout. In the first, Miller secured a tight Kimura, which threatened to finish the contest, and while Bocek used his excellent ground skills to get out, this, along with good wrestling won Jim the round. In contrast, the second was a torrid session for the hometown fighter, with Canada's Bocek controlling his foe for the duration of it. Round three could have been given either way, but Miller, now 17-2 largely outwrestled his opponent who's now 9-2, and earned a deserved decision.
Prelims End Early At UFC 111
Even though Rory Markham (177lbs) came into his bout with Nate Diaz (171lbs) well over the welterweight limit (forcing the bout to be contested at middleweight) the extra poundage wasn't to help him. After dominanting striking exchanges through sheer technical ability, Diaz forced his foe to submit after 2:47 of the very first round with a rear naked choke. Iowa's Markham drops to 16-6, in contrast to the victor whose win transforms his record to 12-5.
While Matt Brown (170lbs) gave his all, Ricardo Almeida (170lbs) was just too skilful for him, and he eventually lost by submission after being forced to tap from a rear naked choke 3:30 into round two. Almeida dominated the grappling centred action, and made sure the bout was fought on his terms. The 'Mad Dog' improves to 12-3, while Brown's record now stands at 13-8.
A mistake cost Thomas Drwal (185lbs) dearly in his fight on the undercard, after a slip allowed BJJ black belt Rousimar Palhares (186lbs) to sink in a deep leg lock, and force the submission after just 45 seconds of round one. Brazilian, Palhares now holds 11 wins against just two losses. Drwal, whose knee looked to be seriously injured dropped to 17-3.
Jared Hamman (205lbs) came through a war to beat Rodney Wallace (206lbs) via unanimous decision. The VMAT man, now 11-2 came through some bombs but showed a good technical base to win by 29-28, three times. Wallace's scoresheet is now 9-2, and the exit door could be looming for the North Carolina native.
