UFC 140 prelims: Hecht pulls off great comeback, Cholish and Bocek also winners

UFC 140 prelims: Hecht pulls off great comeback, Cholish and Bocek also winners

A fight can change in a split second when you hit someone behind the ear. Jake Hecht drilled Rich Attonito from an odd position, but the effect was the same.

Attonito went out for a second and Hecht took advantage pounding him out at the 1:10 mark of round two in the second fight of the night at UFC 140 in Toronto.

It was a startling turnaround after a first round where Attonito worked over Hecht on the ground. The UFC veteran aggressively pursued a takedown in the opening seconds of the second round. Hecht showed good balance through a single-leg takedown attempt, so Attonito dropped down to his knees for a double-leg try.

With Attonito's head sitting in his abdomen, Hecht threw a wicked elbow that hit his opponent on the ear. The next elbow was planted directly to Attonito's temple. The effect was just like getting hit with a standing hook. Attonito's legs gave out and he went down. Hecht (11-2, 1-0 UFC) poured it on with 13 unanswered right hands on Attonito, who turtled up. Referee Josh Rosenthal had to stop it.

Attonito (10-5, 3-2 UFC) cruised in the opening round. He scored a takedown with 3:38 left and worked body-head combinations until the close of the round. Hecht never got off his back, but he avoided a fight changing shot from the bottom by staying active and at least threatening to land a submission. Maybe Attonito was overconfident when he left himself in a prone position so long going for that second round double-leg attempt.

UFC 140 prelims: Hecht pulls off great comeback, Cholish and Bocek also winners

Cholish impressive in debut against Canadian Clarke

John Cholish has trained under some of the best grapplers in the world and it showed tonight. The New Yorker got the fight where he wanted and showed a slick ground game in finishing Mitch Clarke at the 4:36 mark of the second round.

Clarke looked solid at the start, but quickly grew sluggish.

Cholish, a Brazilian jiu-jitsu black belt under Renzo Gracie, saw his opening in the second. The fight's momentum shifted Cholish's way after he scored a takedown in the middle of the second. Clarke got up, but for some reason decided to take it to the ground himself. After a scramble, he found himself in a submission predicament. Clarke survived a quick kimura attempt, but Cholish was able to transition and take his back.

It was over from there as Cholish got both hooks in and flattened out Clarke. With multiple strikes, he opened up a cut. Referee John McCarthy had to save the defenseless Clarke after he absorbed abuse for nearly 30 seconds.

In battle of grapplers, Bocek too much for Lentz

Nik Lentz is a pretty good one-trick pony, but tonight, he met his match against a better wrestler and grappler.

Mark Bocek landed takedowns in all three rounds and maintained top position for over 13 of the minutes on his way to a unanimous decision victory, 30-27 on all three scorecards, in fight No. 3 of the night at UFC 140.

Lentz's style isn't pretty, but he came into the match riding a 15-fight unbeaten streak. This was a good win for Bocek (10-4, 6-4 UFC) against a guy who's very crafty on the ground.

Lentz's issue tonight was working with a one-tracked mind on the ground. He either played defense or went for Bocek's neck.

Bocek, a Brazilian jiu-jitsu black belt, wasn't going to fall victim to a choke. Lentz threatened with a solid attempt in the first and second, but Bocek freed himself and regained top control in both cases.

Bocek was far from dominant, but when a fighter has top control for that long, there's no way judges are going to side with the fighter who spent the majority of his time on the bottom.

Lentz (21-4-2, 5-1-1 UFC) has made his bones by wrestling and working top control of his own. He just couldn't control the direction of the grappling tonight and lost as a plus-135 underdog.

You can watch UFC 140 right here on Yahoo! Sports

Source: http://sports.yahoo.com/mma/blog/cagewriter/post/UFC-140-prelims-Hecht-pulls-off-great-comeback-?urn=mma-wp10560

Phil Cardella Roan Jucao Carneiro Shane The Engineer Carwin  Jason Hollywood Chambers

Inside MMA 12/19/2011 Video ? UFC heavyweight Alistair Overeem Previews His Upcoming UFC 141 Fight With Brock Lesnar

Inside MMA 12/19/2011 Video – UFC heavyweight Alistair Overeem Previews His Upcoming UFC 141 Fight With Brock Lesnar.

Source: http://www.mmatko.com/inside-mma-12192011-video-ufc-heavyweight-alistair-overeem-previews-his-upcoming-ufc-141-fight-with-brock-lesnar/

Tony Bonello Stephan Bonnar Lorenzo Borgomeo  Kyle Bradley 

Brock Lesnar vs Alistair Overeem Fight Video UFC Undisputed 3

Brock Lesnar vs Alistair Overeem Fight Video UFC Undisputed 3. Hayabusa Alistair Overeem UFC 141 Walkout Shirtfrom: MMAWarehouse.com Punch Buddies Brock Lesnar “Brocked and Loaded” Shirt Death Clutch UFC 141 Brock Lesnar Redemption Walkout T-Shirt (EXCLUSIVE with Full Sponsors)

Source: http://www.mmatko.com/brock-lesnar-vs-alistair-overeem-fight-video-ufc-undisputed-3/

Hermes Franca Rich Franklin Ian Freeman Don Frye

UFC 142: Jose Aldo vs. Chad Mendes Betting Odds

To the surprise of no one, champ Jose Aldo is favored to retain his featherweight crown when he meets Chad Mendes at UFC 142. However, unlike the lopsided lines Aldo has enjoyed in previous title defenses, he is only a -240 odds-on favorite to beat “Money” in Brazil. Mendes, on the other hand, checks in [...]

Source: http://www.5thRound.com/100704/ufc-142-jose-aldo-vs-chad-mendes-betting-odds/

Chris Dolman Edson Drago  Tomasz Drwal Joe Hybrid Duarte

Carlos Condit Opens as Favorite Over Nick Diaz at UFC 143

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As if Nick Diaz needs a reason to motivate himself for his upcoming UFC 143 main event matchup with Carlos Condit -- a bout that will determine a UFC interim welterweight champion -- Diaz can turn to the oddsmakers for some fuel.

Diaz has voiced a displeasure at a perceived lack of respect for his achievements, and despite winning 11 fights in a row and vacating the Strikeforce welterweight belt to fight in the UFC, that apparently wasn't quite enough for linesmakers, who installed Condit as the favorite at UFC 143.

Condit was only slightly favored in the opening line listed at several online sports books. He was listed at -125 while Diaz was -105.

Since then, however, bettors have already closed the gap, and the fight is now a pick 'em, with both fighters at -115.

At UFC 137, Diaz (26-7, 1 no contest) made his first start in the UFC since 2006 and romped in a unanimous decision win over BJ Penn. Afterward, he was bumped ahead of Condit and into a title fight with Georges St-Pierre, but a torn ACL sidelined the bout, paving the way for Diaz and Condit to collide.

Condit is also in the midst of a strong run, having won four in a row and 12 of his last 13 overall. He's finished each of his last three opponents -- Rory McDonald, Dan Hardy and Dong Hyun Kim -- by KO or TKO.

UFC 143 takes place on Feb. 4 at the Mandalay Bay Events Center in Las Vegas.

 

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Source: http://www.mmafighting.com/2011/12/22/carlos-condit-opens-as-favorite-over-nick-diaz-at-ufc-143/

Spencer Fisher Jon Fitch Kenny Florian Jesse Forbes

Jon Jones wins the chess match, puts Lyoto Machida to sleep to defend his title at UFC 140

Jon Jones wins the chess match, puts Lyoto Machida to sleep to defend his title at UFC 140

Jon Jones refers to the often brutal sport of mixed martial arts as "a game he loves to play." It's seems like a strange way to refer to MMA, but Jones showed again tonight that he's quickly becoming the master of the game.

The UFC champ was getting outmaneuvered early in the fight, but as always made the necessary moves to first cut Lyoto Machida and then turns the lights out with a standing guillotine in the second round to successfully defend his UFC light heavyweight title at UFC 140.

"He's just smart. He kicked really hard. He knew his range. He has great tactics and definitely he was a very tough puzzle," Jones told UFC analyst Joe Rogan.

Jones, who won the title back in March at UFC 128, has successfully defended in two times. All four of his wins in 2011 have come via stoppage.

Amazingly, he's posting these dominant victories by different means each time out. His physical gifts are off the charts, but it's the way he's mastering the mental game that makes him look more unbeatable each time out.

Machida (17-3, 9-3 UFC) is also a brilliant tactician, who really confused Jones in the opening round. The champ looked sloppy with his fists and landed a few leg kicks, but it was the challenger who landed the heaviest shots with a few well-timed flurries. When drilled Jones with overhand left with 5o seconds left, Machida locked up the first round.

"He didn't have me hurt, but he did punch me pretty good and it wobbled me a bit," Jones said. The champ looked at eating that punch as a positive. "It was good. One of my biggest critic points is that I can't take a punch, so I'm glad to prove it to myself, and to everyone that I can take a legit hit."

Jon Jones wins the chess match, puts Lyoto Machida to sleep to defend his title at UFC 140

Instead of turning up the aggression on Jones, Machida dialed it down a bit in the second. He let Jones get comfortable again.

With three minutes left in the round, Jones landed a right that stopped Machida in his tracks and worked the clinch for a big slam takedown. That's Jones' world and he immediately went to work from half guard. At 6-foot-4, Jones is a huge 2o5er. He imposed his size from the top and scraped a nasty elbow across Machida's forehead. The result was a deep gash that leaked blood into Machida's eyes.

"I know Lyoto's a black belt so I was expecting a lot more motion on the bottom, but he didn't move a lot and i was able to open him up," said Jones.

Machida got to his feet, the stop was stopped to check the cut for a few seconds and then reset. The fighters separated momentarily and both tried to throw the left hand. Machida's was a wide left hook and Jones was a short chopping left. The Jones shot landed and Machida went to his knees. His head was exposed as he stood back up where Jones landed a knee and locked on the standing guillotine along the cage.

The taller athlete cranked up and eventually Machida's right arm went limp. Referee John McCarthy stopped it and when Jones released the choke Machida fell flat on his face. He was out cold.

"It's not really a move that I practice. I think it's something that comes natural from wrestling for years. But yeah, it was a great lock. I realized that I had it, that I just needed to be tough and hold the position and eventually he'd run out."

Jones is showing off new weapons all the time. The fact that he finished off a top five light heavyweight with a move he's never practice is more proof of his greatness.

Source: http://sports.yahoo.com/mma/blog/cagewriter/post/Jon-Jones-wins-the-chess-match-puts-Lyoto-Machi?urn=mma-wp10631

Tony DeSouza  Edwin Dewees  Nick Diaz  Tadhg Steamfist Dixon

UFC 140 weigh-in: Jon Jones may need to get used to the villain role

UFC 140 weigh-in: Jon Jones may need to get used to the villain role

What's gone wrong with the relationship between Jon Jones and some MMA fans? The brightest young star in the sport is starting collect a sizable group of haters. The fans in Toronto at today's UFC 140 weigh-in greeted Jones with lots of booing.

Jones easily made weight at 205 pounds and was respectful during the staredown with Lyoto Machida (204), but he heard from the Canadians. We weren't sure why the fans in Toronto booed Jones, so we asked for feedback on Twitter.

UFC 140 weigh-in: Jon Jones may need to get used to the villain role

That's a small sample, are Cagewriter readers on board with this growing anti-Jones sentiment?

Only Dennis Hallman had major issues with his weight. It's almost shocking considering the bad press he got from the blue Speedo he wore at UFC . Hallman wasn't even close to lightweight at 158.5 and failed to get down to the allowable 156. He was fined 20 percent of his purse.

UFC 140 weigh-in (Courtesy MMAjunkie)

MAIN CARD (Pay-per-view)
Jon Jones (205) vs. Lyoto Machida (204)
Frank Mir (260) vs. Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira (239)
Antonio Rogerio Nogueira (204.5) vs. Tito Ortiz (206)
Brian Ebersole (170.5) vs. Claude Patrick (171)
Mark Hominick (145) vs. Chan Sung Jung (145.5)

PRELIMINARY CARD (ION Television)
Igor Pokrajac (205) vs. Krzysztof Soszynski (206)
Jared Hamman (185) vs. Constantinos Philippou (185)
Dennis Hallman (158.5)* vs. John Makdessi (155.5)
Yves Jabouin (136) vs. Walel Watson (135.5)

PRELIMINARY CARD (Facebook)
Mark Bocek (156) vs. Nik Lentz (156)
Rich Attonito (170.5) vs. Jake Hecht (170.5)
John Cholish (156) vs. Mitch Clarke (154.5)

You can watch UFC 140 right here on Yahoo! Sports

Source: http://sports.yahoo.com/mma/blog/cagewriter/post/UFC-140-weigh-in-Jon-Jones-may-need-to-get-used?urn=mma-wp10538

Tony Bonello Stephan Bonnar Lorenzo Borgomeo  Kyle Bradley