History of the UFC 08.25.08: UFC XLIX: Unfinished Business

Posted by Matt McEwen on 08.25.2008

You like highlight reel KO's? You like Fights of the Year? You like a good, old fashioned, Misfits-worthy Bloodfeast? Well, then this is the show for you...

When they fought at UFC 46, Vitor Belfort beat Randy Couture for the light heavyweight title when a grazing punch ripped open Couture’s eyelid in a freak occurrence. The fight ended in under a minute and was quite possibly the most unsatisfying main event in UFC history. Technically their rematch here – on August 21st 2004 at the MGM Grand – is a rubber match, but in reality Belfort has yet to prove he can hang with Couture, let alone be deserving of the title of champion. He gets his shot here.

Beyond that main event, we’ve got a stacked undercard with a lot of potential featuring the likes of Chuck Liddell, Karo Parisyan and Nick Diaz.

Lightweights

Yves Edwards
(5’10, 154lbs, 25-8-1, 5-2)

Vs.

Josh Thompson
(5’10, 155lbs, 7-0, 1NC, 2-0)

The Setup: There was talk of this being for the vacant lightweight title, but unfortunately, it’s not. It is however, for the unofficial title of best 155lber in the UFC. Both guys have looked good in their last few outings and the anticipation is that this one will deliver the goods.

The Fight: Thompson throws a spinning back kick to start the fight which doesn’t land but has to get Edwards attention. He uses leg kicks to keep the longer Edwards at bay. I’m surprised more people don’t use that as a jab – since the legs are longer than the arms, you actually create more distance with the kicks. In this case, Thompson comes in behind his kicks and slams Edwards down. The Bahamian has a good guard though, and is able to avoid damage and climb up the fence. Thompson locks in a body lock, and uses a beautiful hip toss to take Edwards back down, but he’s right back up. They fight in the clinch a bit and Thompson decides to try and pull guard, but Edwards lands a few punches as Thompson hangs off of him. He hops back to his feet and comes off the cage with a good right hand, but Edwards scoots behind him and takes him down with back control. Thompson pops up this time, but Edwards keeps his lock around his waist. Thompson tries to break off with a spinning back fist, but Edwards times it perfectly with a high kick that turns his lights out. GOD DAMN that was an awesome KO.

The Aftermath: I’d like to say good things since both these guys put in a good exciting showing, but this is pretty much it for the lightweight division for about 2 years. Edwards will return at that time, but he has 4 fights before he returns at UFC 58. As for Thomson, this is his last dance in the big show. He is still one of the most exciting lightweights out there though, and just upset Gilbert Melendez for the Strikeforce title. It was also his 7th win in a row.
Welterweights

Nick Diaz
(6’, 168lbs, 9-2, 2-0)

Vs.

Karo Parisyan
(5’10, 169lbs, 11-3, 1-1)

The Setup: Parisyan looked impressive in winning his UFC debut, but ran into Georges St. Pierre in his second fight and didn’t have an answer for the French Canadian. This is his first trip back in, and he has to deal with the VERY hot Diaz. He’s fresh off of a huge KO upset of former poster boy Robbie Lawler and this is his chance to make a BIG mark in the welterweight division.

The Fight: OK, basically, I can’t do this fight justice in words. Even as I watched it again, I stopped taking notes and just got into it. The first round was awesome, with Parisyan taking the fight to the ground, but Diaz’s guard negating any offense for the most part, and then Diaz peppering with light shots on his feet. I scored the first 10-9 for Parisyan.

The second round is on their feet more, and Diaz has the technical – if not the power – advantage there. He wins the second 10-9 in my book.

The third is up and down. Sub attempts (including a gogoplata!) on the ground by Diaz, but he also eats some punches there as well. Karo scores takedowns to close the round, and gets it 10-9. I score it 29-28 Parisyan.

Again, sorry for brevity, but this fight is just too damned good to explain in words. If you haven’t seen it, go find it. Now. Seriously.

The Aftermath: The Wrestling Observer Fight of the Year for 2004. Parisyan establishes himself as a title contender at 170lbs, while Diaz cements his reputation as possibly the most exciting fighter in MMA at this point. As a matter of fact, you could argue that he’s still living off of the reputation this fight gave him.

Welterweights

Chris Lytle
(5’11, 169, 16-10-5, 1-2)

Vs.

Ron Jhun
(5’11, 170lbs, 21-11-2)

The Setup: Jhun is making his debut here, coming in on the heels of a 4 fight win streak. Lytle pulled out a good win over Tiki at UFC 47 to get his first UFC W, and now wants to get some momentum in the division.

The Fight: Lytle takes the center of the Octagon to start and lands a few lighter shots. Jhun answers with a right low leg kick, but drops his left hand and eats a big Lytle right that drops him. He keeps his composure and nearly locks in an arm bar, but Lytle ends up on top looking for a guillotine. That doesn’t work, and he moves to side control before securing what Joe Rogan will eventually call the “Salavarry position” with an arm locked between his legs, the other behind his arm, and one of his free to pound away. Jhun survives and gets to ½ guard. They get stood up with about 40 seconds left where Jhun lands some good shots and takes Lytle down, but he gets swept and Lytle tries that on top guillotine as the round ends. It’s 10-9 Lytle, but Jhun showed some toughness and skill there.

Lytle gets the best of the stand up to start the second, so Jhun decides to take him down against the fence, but Lytle cage walks up, locks in the guillotine in the standing position and finishes it. He really worked hard to get that choke in.

The Aftermath: Lytle evens his UFC record and will be back. As for Jhun, this is his only trip to the Octagon. He still fights today, though he is currently on a 10 fight losing streak.

Heavyweights

Mike Kyle
(6’4, 237lbs, 7-3, 1-0)

Vs.

Justin Eilers
(6’2, 232lbs, 8-2-1)

The Setup: Kyle’s second UFC fight, while this is Eilers’ first trip in. Supposedly, these guys are friends, despite Eilers training with MFS in Iowa and Kyle being with AKA in San Jose. They both throw heavy hands though, so this should be interesting.

The Fight: They come out swinging just like they said they would. They clinch and Kyle lands a knee that hits Eilers in the junk, prompting an injury time out and a point deduction. Eilers lands a huge right hand on the restart, then shots in behind it. Kyle sprawls and lands some knees, but Eilers throws a beautiful overhand left that finishes it off at 1:14. That was another hell of a knockout.

The Aftermath: Eilers gets on the radar in the heavyweight division, while Kyle stagnates. An exciting fight that doesn’t really do much for the title picture.

Before the next fight, there’s a UFC Update. They show the scars on Tim Sylvia’s arm from the THREE fractures. Damn. Then Dana White pops up discussing a new reality show that will be debuting soon on SPIKE. I wonder how that works out? And finally, White promises that they will have a TV deal with another network soon, but he doesn’t want to talk about deals before they’re done. It’s been 4 years, and he’s still promising that.

Middleweights

Matt Lindland
(6’, 185lbs, 11-2, 7-2)

Vs.

Dave Terrell
(6’, 185lbs, 4-1)

The Setup: Lindland is the top 185lber in the UFC and wants a shot at the vacant title. As for Terrell, this might be his UFC debut, but he comes in with a lot of hype. He’s a BJJ black belt under Cesar Gracie and he dives right into the deep end taking on Lindland.

The Fight: A big left hand by Terrell about 15 seconds in – his first punch of the fight – drops Lindland. He tries to recover on his back, but Terrell puts him out could about 5 seconds later with brutal punches. God damn…that makes 3 highlight reel KO’s here.

The Aftermath: Tanner steps right in and takes Lindland’s contender status, and will fight Evan Tanner for the title at UFC 51. Lindland is sent back to the drawing board once again, and heads to Cage Rage and his own Sportfight promotion before he makes his return in 2005.

Light Heavyweights

Chuck Liddell
(6’2, 205lbs, 14-3, 9-2)

Vs.

Vernon White
(6’1, 200lbs, 20-25-2, 0-0-1)

The Setup: These two don’t like each other. AT ALL. They both claim that the other has been ducking them, and they both want to knock each other out. Good reason to fight.

Just a note on White’s record – they announce him at 11-8-1, but if you include his Pancrase record which Sherdog’s fight finder does, then it’s the less impressive 20-25-2 I used here.

The Fight: Liddell lands a big right hand right off the bat, but White answers in kind. Liddell slips, but recovers to take White down. He only does that to avoid damage though, and let’s White right back up. Another big right hand by Liddell hurts White, and he tries to pull guard, but can’t do it. He’s getting hammered from above by Liddell, but is able to get back to his feet. He throws a decent left once he’s up, but Liddell drops him with another right hand and White turtles. He looks hurt, but he survives and Liddell lets him up. White lands a nice body kick, then a good inside leg kick, but Liddell drops him again, this time against the fence. White is able to cover up and avoid damage, and Liddell lets him up again. Liddell is looking tired, and gets rocked by a big left hand. He backs off and looks to his corner, then lands a straight left hand that crumples White and finishes the fight with the night’s 4th brutal KO.

The Aftermath: That was a hell of a brawl, and now Liddell is in line for a title shot at the winner of the main event. White never returns to the Octagon, but he’s still the definition of journeyman, as he fights all over the place, currently sporting a record of 26-32-2.

Middleweights

Joe Doerkson
(6’, 184lbs, 27-5)

Vs.

Joe Riggs
(6’, 185lbs, 18-5)

The Setup: Two debuts by two guys trying to prove they’re not just Average Joe’s (sorry, couldn’t resist). Actually, both of these guys come in with some decent expectations as Doerkson is a solid all around fighter who has made a name for himself in Canada and on smaller US shows by this point. Riggs is a former 300lbs fighter who’s got himself in shape and down to 185lbs, but has retained a lot of power in his hands that make him very dangerous at this weight.

The Fight: Doerkson decides to play some Rochambeau to start, and kicks Riggs in the nuts. Ouch. He scores the takedown afterwards, but let’s Riggs up, which sounds like a bad idea if you ask me. He takes Riggs back down, but gets reversed. He looks for subs from the bottom, but Riggs pulls free and a land a couple of good punches, but Doerkson is able to get back to his feet. This time Riggs scores the takedown, but Doerkson ties him up. He’s able to pass to side control, but Doerkson sweeps, but both guys get back up. They go right back down and Riggs lands a few shots. He tries a stomp, but that’s a no no, and the ref stands Doerkson back up. Riggs takes him right back down and lands a punch as the round ends. 10-9 for Riggs in a pretty good round.

Doerkson liked the way he started the first round, so this time he kicks Riggs harder in the nuts. It’s accidental I’m sure, but damn. Once they restart, Riggs lands a nice left hand, shrugs off a takedown attempt, then takes Doerkson down himself. Doerkson tries to cover up, but gets slammed down for his trouble. He tries a butterfly guard, and his defense is good enough to avoid most of the damage for a while. Then he lets Riggs pass to side control, eats and elbow the cuts open his right eye. From there, Riggs starts teeing off and Doerkson has to tap out due to strikes.

The Aftermath: Riggs obviously makes the bigger impression here, but both guys shore up future fights in the UFC here. This was the swing fight of the night here, but next time out Riggs should be on the main card while Doerkson likely scored himself a prelim slot.

Light Heavyweight Title

Vitor Belfort
(6’, 205lbs, 12-3. 7-2)

Vs.

Randy Couture
(6’2, 204lbs, 12-6, 9-3)

The Setup: Couture made his bones in MMA and destroyed the growing legend of “The Phenom” way back at UFC 15. Their rematch for the title was ruined by Couture’s fluke eye injury, so while this is technically the rubber match, Belfort comes in with something to prove, while Couture thinks he’s in Belfort’s head and wants his title back.

The Fight: Couture – the master game planner – rushes in, clinches and pushes Belfort against the fence. Don’t let the puncher punch you. Good idea, and it’s the plan he used in 1997. After a few minutes on the fence with little action, McCarthy restarts them, but we’re quickly back against the fence. Light punches and knees – mostly by Couture, but some from Belfort – before Couture finally gets a good hold and rips Belfort to the ground and ends up in side control. Some elbows, but most just mauling him, and Belfort’s only answer is to roll into a weird position I can only describe as a modified 69 position. That’s crude, but if you can think of something better, let me know. The round ends with Couture riding on top, and him winning an uneventful opening stanza 10-9.

The second round opens up with the clinch yet again, but a slight clash heads as he comes in opens a gusher of a cut over Belfort’s right eye. It’s in a bad spot and it’s bleeding A LOT. Couture takes him down and starts pounding and landing some decent shots. Both guys are covered in blood, and McCarthy calls in the doctor to take a look. They let it go, and restart is with Belfort underneath Couture, just as they stopped it. Good call. Belfort attempts an arm bar, but Couture pulls free and finishes the round with some more punches. I’ve got say the second goes to Couture 10-8 in spite of the arm bar attempt. I think I might be a bit generous with 10-8 rounds, but Belfort really was just a bleeding punching bag in that round.

The third is more of the same as Couture takes him down without getting punched and just pounds away. Belfort is bleeding a gusher – even spraying the camera and Goldberg’s notes at cage side – and he turns Couture’s shorts from white to pink. Just nasty amount of blood here. Couture wins the round 10-8 again as Belfort’s only offense is a weak arm bar attempt and he again just eats blow after blow.

The doctor comes in and stops the fight prior to the 4th round.

The Aftermath: Belfort showed some toughness by taking his beating like a man here, and will be back in the Octagon for a long awaited showdown with Tito Ortiz in few shows. As for Couture, he’s got Chuck Liddell on his dance card, but calls out Wanderlei Silva – who happens to be in attendance and jumps into the cage. A generalized challenge is thrown out to unify the titles, and they both agree that they’d love to fight. That would have been fun, but alas, it will not happen.

The 411: Let's see....4 incredible KO's, one of the best fights in the history of the UFC and a bloody main event that features one fo the best fighters of all time winning his 4th championship. Yeah....that's a good show. If you want to check out one of the better all around shows, here you go.

Final Score:  9.5   [  Amazing ]