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By: Jamie Penick, MMATorch Editor-in-Chief
UFC 135: JONES VS. RAMPAGE
SEPTEMBER 24, 2011
LIVE FROM DENVER, COLO.
=====SPIKE TV PRELIMS======
-Mike Goldberg introduces the broadcast discussing the top two fights on pay-per-view and introducing the two fights scheduled for this hour long lead-in broadcast. Joe Rogan joins him as always to discuss the fights tonight as well.
FIGHT ONE: TIM BOETSCH VS. NICK RING (MIDDLEWEIGHT)
ROUND ONE: Boetsch landed a straight kick to the body early with the first strike of the contest. He stalked Ring and missed a right. Ring blocked a left and circled away. Ring threw a high kick that was blocked. Boetsch continued to stalk, chasing Ring around the cage. Ring caught a kick and got Boetsch to the ground in a sprawl. Ring landed a couple of knees to the shoulders. The position became a stalemate and then Boetsch made his way to his feet, and immediately began stalking again. Boetsch landed a left. Ring landed a straight kick to the body. Boetsch missed a right. Ring caught a kick again but Boetsch got his foot loose. Ring landed a couple of jabs as Boetsch tried to pop in. Boetsch landed a couple of strikes as the crowd began booing the tentative start. Boetsch got in a few more punches and a kick. Ring landed a right and Boetsch responded. Boetsch popped Ring with an uppercut. Boetsch blocked a head kick as the round ended to boos.
Penick's Scorecard: 10-9 Boetsch. Not much to the round, but Boetsch pressed the action and picked up his punching output in the final minute to take the round.
ROUND TWO: Ring threw a couple of high kicks early that were blocked. Boetsch moved in and had a leg caught again but got loose. Boetsch connected on a nice right. Ring came in with a clinch but ate a right on the separation. He threw a couple of jabs but Boetsch continued to walk him down. Boetsch landed two hard rights but Ring circled out and landed a left. Boetsch dropped Ring with a right but Ring popped back up and pressed Boetsch to the cage in the clinch. He landed a few knees. Boetsch caught a leg and took Ring down. Ring got back up, but Boetsch locked on a guillotine and pulled guard. Ring finally popped out of it and got into Boetsch's guard. Boetsch got Ring off him and rolled to his knees. Ring tried to control him and looked for a guillotine but Boetsch got up and landed an uppercut. He cracked Ring with a right as he backed off. He landed a few big shots to Ring, who finally backed off. Boetsch tagged Ring with a couple more and kept the chase on. Boetsch pulled off a really nice trip and grabbed for a kimura but the round ended. Very good round for Boetsch.
Penick's Scorecard: 10-9 Boetsch. The final couple of minutes were really good for Boetsch, as he hurt Ring and, had he had more time, would have finished at the end with that kimura.
ROUND THREE: Boetsch came right across the cage and stalked again. Ring landed a short left and circled. Boetsch got in close and landed a right. Ring tried to clinch but then backed off. Boetsch landed a hard left hook. He got in with a right and a knee and tossed Ring toward the cage and clinched. Ring turned him around but he got Ring right back to the cage. Boetsch landed a couple of knees and a foot stomp. They were separated from the clinch and Boetsch went back to stalking. He landed left and a few good punches in a brig clinch. Ring landed a knee and they clinched. Boetsch got a nice trip takedown against the cage with half the round to go. Boetsch wasn't doing much in the guard and Mario Yamasaki stood them up. Both were very tired with a minute and a half left. Ring threw a hugh kick that missed. Boetsch then pulled off a great throw into side control, and he trapped Ring in the mounted crucifix. Ring turned over, but Boetsch briefly got the mount. He almost got an arm but Ring got out. Boetsch turned over and ended the fight with a few strikes from the top.
Penick's Scorecard: 10-9 Boetsch. Controlled the round from the start, hurt Ring standing, took him down a couple of times including a beautiful throw near the end. Good finish from Boetsch.
WINNER: Boetsch via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 30-27)
STAR RATING: (**) It was a bit ugly at times, but Boetsch continued putting the pressure on Ring throughout and wore him down to the point where he could start taking over in every category. Good performance.
RAMIFICATIONS: Boetsch continues on in his move up the middleweight ladder, but he's still got a long climb ahead of him. Ring suffers his first career loss, and will look back on this fight with some things to learn from.
FIGHT TWO: TONY FERGUSON VS. AARON RILEY (LIGHTWEIGHT)
ROUND ONE: Riley engaged first and landed a couple of punches. Ferguson missed a huge uppercut attempt. Riley threw a kick high that was blocked. Ferguson landed a leg kick and circled as Riley continued to walk him down. Ferguson landed another inside leg kick. Ferguson got in a straight right and Riley landed a hard inside leg kick. Ferguson threw Riley off after blocking a high kick. Ferguson connected on a short combo. Ferguson landed a couple more. Riley landed a body kick. Ferguson landed a right. Ferguson connected on a short legt. He hurt Riley with an uppercut and started putting on the assault on the cage, but Riley circled away. He landed a body kick. Riley landed another left. Ferguson pawed some strikes in half heartedly and landed a left. He ate a low kick and landed a hard straight punch. Riley began bleeding. Ferguson landed a hard punch to the body. Ferguson got in an uppercut again and an elbow. Riley's surviving, but he's getting beat up. They traded leg kicks. Ferguson went for the superman punch but it was blocked. Riley landed a punch but ate a counter from Ferguson. Ferguson landed a hard body kick. Riley landed a short right. He got in a body kick. Ferguson threw a knee and a punch to finish the round.
Penick's Scorecard: 10-8 Ferguson. Huge round for Ferguson. And the fight is called as Riley's jaw is broken. Hugely impressive performance by Ferguson to kick off his lightweight career in the UFC.
WINNER: Ferguson via TKO (doctor's stoppage) at 5:00 of the first round
POST FIGHT: Ferguson said he wished he could have given more of a show and apologized for the fight getting called early.
STAR RATING: (**+) That was a great performance from Ferguson. There was reasonably a lot of reservations about the entire cast of The Ultimate Fighter 13, but Ferguson was the bright spot talent-wise throughout that season this spring, and he's got a lot of upside with his striking game. Riley's a tough guy, and Ferguson blasted him tonight.
RAMIFICATIONS: Tough loss for Riley, who was returning after a lengthy layoff, but very impressive win for Ferguson. He's going to be featured in his fights because of TUF, and if he continues putting forth effort like that he'll earn those spots.
-They re-air James Te Huna's Facebook prelim victory over Ricardo Romero.
-Goldberg and Rogan begin discussing the pay-per-view fights, breaking down some stats on Matt Hughes, Josh Koscheck, "Rampage" Jackson and Jon Jones.
-Rogan and Dana White begin their shouting match to give a final sell before the pay-per-view broadcast.
======PAY-PER-VIEW BROADCAST======
-Another main card run down begins the pay-per-view for all those just now tuning in from Goldberg and Rogan.
FIGHT THREE: NATE DIAZ VS. TAKANORI GOMI (LIGHTWEIGHT)
ROUND ONE: Gomi took the center to start as Diaz pawed with his jab and circled. Diaz dropped Gomi early with a strike but Gomi got back to his feet. Diaz began stalking. He landed a couple of hard strikes. Diaz landed a right. Gomi landed a hard body shot. Diaz cracked Gomi again. Gomi landed a decent counter. He over-swung on a punch and Diaz countered. Diaz landed another left. Diaz landed a nice jab and dropped his hands to his side. He's looking to toy with Gomi here. He dropped Gomi with a two punch combo but Gomi worked to his feet. Gomi dropped and Diaz took his back. Gomi got back to his feet. Diaz landed a few hard jabs and follow up strikes. He's teeing off on Gomi here. He landed another hard strike, but Gomi took him down. Diaz immediately went for an armbar and then went for a triangle. Gomi slammed him but he was in trouble. Diaz moved it to an armbar and forced the tap. That may have been the best fight of Nate Diaz's career.
WINNER: Diaz via submission (armbar) at 4:27 of the first round
POST FIGHT: Diaz said he was happy to get the win, and said Gomi was and still is one of his favorite fighters. He gave a shout out to his teammates in Gil Melendez, Jake Shields and his brother Nick.
STAR RATING: (***) Nate Diaz looked fantastic in this fight. He picked Gomi apart on the feet, and as soon as the fight hit the ground he started attacking, transitioning beautifully from the triangle attempt to the armbar. That was just excellent.
RAMIFICATIONS: If Diaz can build off this win and continue shoring up the weaknesses that led to his first departure from lightweight, he can still be a legitimate threat in the division. This was a great performance, and I can't wait to see how he follows it up.
FIGHT FOUR: TRAVIS BROWNE VS. ROB BROUGHTON (HEAVYWEIGHT)
ROUND ONE: Browne missed an overhand right early. He landed a leg kick. He missed another big swing and they clinched. They traded knees and punches to the thighs. Browne landed a good knee and punch to the thigh again. He landed a knees they separated. Browne threw a kick high but it didn't land. Browne got in a good leg kick. Browne missed a left but landed a follow up right. Browne threw a straight kick high that missed. He landed a hard right as Broughton landed a leg kick. Browne landed a good leg kick outside. Browne landed a left. They clinched briefly but then separated. Browne landed couple punches in combination. He got in another kick. He landed a hard left that hurt Broughton. He went for a flying knee but missed and they clinched. Browne took Broughton down with 20 seconds left and got full mount briefly. He landed a few strikes but Broughton got half guard and held him up to the end of the round.
Penick's Scorecard: 10-9 Browne. Good start to the fight for him. He out-struck Broughton heavily and controlled the pace. Not a ton to the fight thus far, though.
ROUND TWO: Broughton came straight ahead, attempting to press the pace early. Browne got in with a short counter left. Browne landed a hard leg kick after feigning a punch. Broughton caught a straight kick but Browne backed out. The crowd started booing right before Browne connected on a couple of big punches and then landed a few big knees against the cage. Broughton took the punishment, however, and they ended in the clinch. They separated. Broughton clinched again and Browne spun him around against the cage. They separated again. Browne landed a leg kick and backed off. Browne grabbed a single leg, took Broughton down and immediately got to mount. He postured up and landed a few strikes. Broughton turned to his knees and ate a few big strikes before the round ended.
Penick's Scorecard: 10-9 Browne. Another decent round for Browne.
ROUND THREE: They clinched early. Browne got a takedown a minute in and landed a couple of big strikes in half guard. Broughton held control of him from the bottom. Browne finally tried to pass, and after a scramble got to full mount. The crowd booed as nothing much happened and they scrambled again with Broughton. Broughton went for a kimura and wrenched, but Browne passed and they sprawled. Broughton tried to walk up and got to his feet as the round ended.
Penick's Scorecard: 10-9 Browne. Not a good round, but Browne held top control throughout. Not a good fight.
WINNER: Browne via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
STAR RATING: (*) Not a good fight. Browne looked ok, Broughton did not, and both were exhausted by the final round. Not a good fight.
FIGHT FIVE: BEN ROTHWELL VS. MARK HUNT (HEAVYWEIGHT)
ROUND ONE: Rothwell shot early but Hunt backed away. Hunt landed a left. Rothwell stalked and landed a couple of jabs. Hunt landed a right as Rothwell tried to engage. Rothwell finally got the takedown and move right to mount. Hunt got out of the mount but Rothwell kept him on the ground. He landed a hard forearm. Hunt scrambled and got to his feet. Rothwell grabbed another takedown attempt but Hunt held it off. Hunt landed a right. Hunt got Rothwell on his back but Rothwell got back up and clinched. Hunt fell to his back in a sloppy moment and they both stood. Rothwell took him down again on the cage. He landed some big elbows against the cage and tried to pin Hunt's arm. He landed a short series of strikes as the round ended.
Penick's Scorecard: 10-9 Rothwell. Sloppy round, but Rothwell got a couple of takedowns and did some damage on the ground.
ROUND TWO: Hunt landed an early left, breathing heavily. Rothwell barely missed an uppercut. Hunt landed a hard leg kick. Rothwell got in with a right. Hunt started swinging wildly as Rothwell tried to engage. Hunt stuffed a takedown attempt. Hunt landed an uppercut and then pulled off a trip takedown of his own. Rothwell regained guard from side control. Hunt landed a couple of strikes. The cut over Rothwell's eye was opened up again. Hunt moved to side control. Rothwell was exhausted as Hunt continued to land strikes. Rothwell scrambled and Hunt got on Rothwell's back and landed a few strikes. Hunt moved to mount and went for an armbar. Rothwell fought it out to the end of the round.
Penick's Scorecard: 10-9 Hunt. Rothwell is done. He's got no energy left, and the fact that he allowed Mark Hunt of all people to get into position to attempt an armbar tells you all you need to know about that round.
ROUND THREE: Rothwell swung with a couple of punches. Hunt landed a couple of strikes. Rothwell missed a takedown and Hunt connected on a big right. Hunt got a takedown as Rothwell failed on another one with no energy. They were stood up to inactivity. Rothwell tried to walk ahead and Hunt was gassed as well. They traded strikes and Rothwell again tried for a takedown. Hunt got out again and then took Rothwell down. Hunt landed a few strikes from side control as the crowd booed heavily. They were stood up with a minute left, which was nonsense with Hunt in side control. Hunt landed an uppercut. Rothwell put his hands on his knees. Hunt went for a takedown, failed, and Rothwell went for a choke with time running out. He spun and got to half guard as the round ended. Awful, awful, awful fight.
Penick's Scorecard: 10-9 Hunt. Both were tired as hell. Hunt did more that round. I guess.
WINNER: Hunt via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-27, 30-27)
STAR RATING: (-) Just a terrible fight for any card, let alone a "UFC level" fight. Rothwell looked awful and made Hunt look relatively decent by comparison despite a gassed out performance himself. Just a really bad fight all around that had no business being on this card.
FIGHT SIX: JOSH KOSCHECK VS. MATT HUGHES (WELTERWEIGHT)
ROUND ONE: Hughes popped in with a jab early. Tentative start to the fight. Hughes landed another jab a minute in. Koscheck got in with a short combo and then backed out. Hughes landed the jab again. Hughes landed a couple more strikes and Koscheck engaged with a short two-punch combo. Hughes landed a couple more jabs and a short uppercut. Hughes landed a couple short strikes and got his head out of the way of the counter. Koscheck shot in and Hughes stuffed it. Koscheck landed a couple of punches and Hughes landed a knee. Hughes landed a short strike. Koscheck hurt Hughes with a big right. He cracked him again. Koscheck landed again. Hughes tried to throw a knee and fell to his back. Koscheck landed a bunch of strikes as the round ended and Hughes was out. The hammerfists at the end finished it.
WINNER: Koscheck via TKO at 4:59 of the first round
POST FIGHT: Koscheck said he was proud to have the opportunity to fight a legend in Matt Hughes. He said it was nice being on the shelf. He said he was growing as a fighter and a person. Hughes said he's not retiring, he wants the UFC to put him on the shelf and they'll see what happens from there. Hughes said the fight didn't go as planned.
STAR RATING: (**+) It was an interesting dynamic to see Hughes take control striking early, but as soon as he got tagged by a good strike it became a matter of time. Koscheck has the ability to finish a lot of fighters if the opening presents itself, and that's just what he did here.
MAIN EVENT FIGHT SEVEN: JON JONES VS. QUINTON "RAMPAGE" JACKSON (LIGHT HEAVYWEIGHT CHAMPIONSHIP)
ROUND ONE: Jones was in a three point stance to start the fight and Rampage landed a jab. He used that to grab a leg and grab the clinch. Jones landed a couple of knees to the body in the clinch and pressed Rampage to the cage. Jackson turned Jones around. Jones grabbed for Jackson's neck and turned him around. Jones landed a nice forearm and stayed on Jackson on the cage. Jones landed a few more knees. Jackson finally got separation. Jones landed a good kick to the body. He threw one high and it was blocked. Jones almost tripped Jackson down. Rampage swung with a couple of big strikes and missed. Jones threw a high kick and it was blocked again. He landed a leg kick. Jones got in with a nice straight left. Jones threw another straight kick high and almost got in. Jones landed a couple more leg kicks on the inside, outside and from the front. He jumped in and they clinched, with Jones pressing Jackson to the cage. Jones threw a spinning elbow to separate and it was partially blocked. Jones threw the high kick again. He threw a wheel kick and missed. He went for a trip and missed it. Rampage swung with bad intentions but Jones' head movement was really good and he got out of the way as the round ended.
Penick's Scorecard: 10-9 Jones. Very good start for the Champ. He out-struck Jackson and employed his gameplan to start.
ROUND TWO: Jones threw the high kick early. Jackson came at him and they clinched. Jones landed a couple of hard knees. He missed the spinning elbow but grabbed a headlock briefly. Jackson landed an uppercut on the way out. Jones landed a couple of hard kicks to Jackson's lead leg. Jones threw a straight kick to the body. He landed a jab and Rampage nodded his head. Jones landed a couple more kicks. The pace slowed for a bit. Jones landed a nice lead leg kick. He grabbed a clinch after missing a strike. Jones landed a straight kick after they separated. Jones landed a couple of good kicks. Jackson tried to walk him down and he landed a left as he got tripped up by a leg kick. Jones threw a spinning kick to the body. He threw another high kick that was blocked. He landed a side kick to the body. Jackson landed a jab. Jones landed a jab and they got into the clinch again. Jones pulled guard with a triangle attempt as the round ended, and with more time would have locked it on.
Penick's Scorecard: 10-9 Jones. He's controlling every aspect of the fight right now.
ROUND THREE: Jones grabbed a headlock early and tried to take Rampage down but had to let it go. Jackson landed a couple of leg kicks. Jones returned the favor. Jones landed a jab and a few kicks. Jones shot in and took Jackson down into side control. He passed immediately to mount. He postured up and landed a couple of strikes and Rampage grabbed his wrists. Jackson escaped the mount and got to his feet. Jackson is cut open. They separated from the clinch and Jones landed a hard kick to the body. He landed the front kick to the face but not flush. Jackson tried to stalk and landed a couple of punches. Jones landed a hard two punch combo and a hard kick to the knee. He over shot a strike and Jackson swung wildly at him but missed. Jones landed another kick to the leg. Jackson landed a short left. Jones went for the flying knee but it was partially blocked. Jones threw a couple of kicks to the leg. Jones dropped his hands and then landed a jab. Jones looked to the side and landed a jab. He dropped his hands to his sides and shot in as the round ended. The horn went off and Jones picked him up and dropped him.
Penick's Scorecard: 10-9 Jones. This is all Jones right now. Jackson has not been able to figure anything out with what Jones is bringing at him thus far.
ROUND FOUR: Jones landed a lead left hook early that hurt Jackson but he slipped on the follow up. He missed a punch and they clinched. Jones landed a nice trip takedown and put Jackson to the ground. He landed a knee to the body and took Jackson's back. He got a hook in and went for the choke. He's got it in deep, and Jackson is forced to tap. That was just an incredible performance from Jon Jones.
WINNER: Jones via submission (rear naked choke) at 1:14 of the fourth round
POST FIGHT: Jones said the gameplan was to strike with Quinton Jackson. He said Rampage insulted his striking and he wanted to prove he could strike with him. Jackson said he was in the best shape of his career. He said Jones is great; he thought it was hype but it's not. Rampage said he wanted a rematch with Shogun in Japan.
Rashad Evans was then interviewed. He said he can't wait to get a chance to fight him. Jones said he's not going to say anything ahead of their fight and said Rashad has spoiled his special night twice now, and he's going to prove it in their fight.
STAR RATING: (***+) Jones hasn't even come near the peak of what he's capable of in this sport, and yet he just put on an absolutely impressive performance and solidified his spot as the #1 light heavyweight in the world. At 24, he's just so far ahead of the game it's not even fair right now.
-The preliminary card fight between Takeya Mizugaki and Cole Escovedo is shown next.
-Thanks for joining us for another UFC event. We've got lots more coming in the next couple of months, so stick with us this week as we talk the fallout from this event and look ahead to next week's UFC on Versus 6 card.
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Jamie Penick, editor-in-chief
(mmatorcheditor@gmail.com)
STAFF COLUMNISTS: Shawn Ennis - Jason Amadi
Frank Hyden - Rich Hansen
Chris Park - Matt Pelkey
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