I'd like to see that match even though I think Jones is on another level. That said, it's funny how slapping a man is disrespectful, but breaking his face isn't.  Yeah yeah, I know. 

SBN coverage of UFC 125: Resolution

Main Card

Lightweight bout: Clay Guida vs. Takanori Gomi

Guida defeated Gomi via submission (Guillotine choke) at 4:27 of round 2.

Welterweight bout: Nate Diaz vs. Dong Hyun Kim

Kim defeated Diaz via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28).

Light Heavyweight bout: Brandon Vera vs. Thiago Silva

Silva defeated Vera via unanimouse decision (30-26, 30-27, 30-27)

Middleweight bout: Chris Leben vs. Brian Stann

Stann defeated Leben via TKO (strikes) 3:37 of round 1.

Lightweight Championship bout: Frankie Edgar (c) vs. Gray Maynard

Fight called a draw (48-46 Maynard, 48-46 Edgar, 47-47 draw)

Preliminary Card

Lightweight bout: Jacob Volkmann vs. Antonio McKee

Volkmann defeated McKee via split decision (29-28, 29-28, 28-29).

Welterweight bout: Daniel Roberts vs. Greg Soto

Roberts defeated Soto via submission (kimura) at 3:45 of round 1.

Featherweight bout: Mike Brown vs. Diego Nunes

Nunes defeated Brown via split decision (29-28, 29-28, 28-29).

Preliminary Card (Ion Television)

Middleweight bout: Phil Baroni vs. Brad Tavares

Tavares defeated Baroni via KO (punches) at 4:20 of round 1.

Featherweight bout: Josh Grispi vs. Dustin Poirier

Poirier defeated Grispi via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27).

Lightweight bout: Marcus Davis vs. Jeremy Stephens

Stephens defeated Davis via KO (punch) at 2:33 of round 3.

Welcome to a new feature I'm trying out called Loser Leaves Town where we look at fighters who's jobs are basically on the line at UFC 125. With Dana White and Zuffa being chop-happy and the mandate that entertainment precedes all, this should provide for some interesting things. 

Brandon Vera - Brandon Vera has lost two in a row, one to Randy Couture and a demolition by Jon Jones. On the strength of losing three in a row, he could be cut. He will also have lost 4 out of his last 6 fights. This fight is booked as if the intent was to provide Thiago Silva with a "gimme" but someone who still has name value. Brandon Vera, who was once a bright prospect in two division, has primarily turned out to be a product of mainly hype (with a couple key wins). Uncle Dana never forgets and Brandon Vera and the UFC had a bad contract dispute back when. Ultimately, the UFC isn't afraid of losing Vera as his name isn't a draw and he wouldn't be much value to Strikeforce as a name (he would have value in filling out the weak LHW division). Vera is also 33 and is, at best, a mid-level LHW in the most stacked division the UFC has.

Jeremy Stephens - Maybe this is wishful thinking, I don't know. I do know this would be two in a row and 4 out of his last 6. He committed a cardinal sin against Melvin Guillard, he talked a bunch of shit and lost. Not only did he lose, but it was a "boring fight". Dana White HATES that. Lil' Heathen fights that style Dana White loves which is STANDANDBANGRRRR, but the UFC 155 division just doubled with the acquisition of the WEC. A lot of 155ers are fighting for their jobs. If he gets finished or goes down in boring decision, he could get the ax. He's young, go out there and pick up some wins and he'll be right back in the mix. 

Marcus Davis - That makes this fight a S.C. Michaelson Official "Loser Leaves Town" match. Marcus Davis with a loss with be 4 out of his last 5. He just left the WW division and is now in the most overcrowded division in the UFC. He can't go down to 145. His value as a name for expanding into Europe is all but gone as the UFC has developed a stronghold in the UK and feels comfortable in giving them consistently shitty cards. The lone fight he won was against Jonathan Goulet who is out of the UFC. I definitely see the loser of this fight getting cut. 

Phil Baroni - I like Philbert Baloney. I loved he and Mark Coleman and Coleman's dad taking on all of Juiced Boxe when they got jumped in the ring by Wand and the rest of the goons. That showed heart. Hell, Baroni's shown heart a lot in his career. I think that might be his biggest talent is his heart. Unfortunately, he's a career .500 fighter with cardio problems. I just don't think the UFC is going to have room for him if he loses this fight. 

Of course, any fighter who puts on a "boring" fight is subject to getting at the whims of the upper management of the UFC. Hopefully, everyone keeps their job, but in today's world, that don't seem possible. 

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SBN coverage of UFC 125: Resolution

First PPV of the year, what a doozie. If my general apathy isn't apparent, let me state I'm not too interested in this card.    Don't be mistaken, I love MMA and watching it and would probably watch high school level MMA if it came on TV. This card, there's nothing that would compel me to buy it as the only fight I'm dying to see is the first fight of the night and won't be shown on TV. I'm not even betting on this card (a first in like a couple years) which means I can actually post fight predictions. I tend not to post predictions as almost sort of a good luck thing. I decided to round up the WKR staff to give their thoughts as well. 

Frankie Edgar vs Gray Maynard

S.C. Michaelson: Zzzzzzzz. Someone is getting lay and prayed or jabbed to death. Maynard beat Edgar up a couple years ago, I expect more of the same from Lay Praynard. I don't mean to be harsh. I actually like Gray, I thought he was great on the Countdown. Poor Frankie, I mean the guy beats BJ Penn twice and he's still the underdog. If the guy had some personality, he could parlay that into a compelling character that draws fans. C'est la vie. His title run won't extend past tonight. Gray Maynard

Staff. *ahem* STAFF!. Hello? Need some picks. Zak? St. Martin? Sub0, I mean Subotecki? Wait, is it "Subo" or Subzero"? I JUST realized it probably is Subzero. Interesting. I will soldier on.

Chris Leben vs Brian Stann

Me:  I think this fight will hinge on if Duane "Dog the Bounty Hunter" Chapman is in Chris Leben's corner according to the rumor I heard. If he is, I think that will motivate Leben to win and save his money so that he doesn't end up like Dog. Brian Stann is a Marine. He served his country. He also was the WEC LHW champion, but no one talks about that. The last fighter who's military background was heavily pushed was Tim Kennedy.........Kennedy and we saw how that worked out. This is Stann's first fight at 185 and frankly, I don't think it will be a great debut. it's hard to root for a two-time drunk driver, but then I realize I'm not rooting for him, I'm just predicting him. I'm actually rooting for Stann because a) i don't like drunk drivers and b) If Leben wins, he'll be rewarded with a big fight against Wand, Sonnen, or Bisping. Isn't it funny how the MW division is so interesting now when it was boring as fuck just a year ago? Chris Leben. 

Thiago Silva vs Brandon Vera 

Me- This comes down to did Brandon Vera "face his Mirs" and overcome his loss to Jon Jones. That, I don't know. His interview after the fight and even up to the press conference seem to suggest no. It was the main topic of conversation and his reasoning seemed to center around that he underestimated Jones rather than Jones just being really good. He's externalizing rather than internalizing. Despite that, Thiago Silva is not a pushover. Silva has only lost to Machida and Rashad. This is a tough tough fight for Vera. A fight I see him losing. Thiago Silva

Takanori Gomi vs Clay Guida

Me: OMG GOMI IS BACK! Well, that's what people said after he KO'd Tyson Griffin. Is Gomi "back"? We'll see. Clay Guida is a machine. He also looks like Dave Meltzer's son. Guida has the Japanese fighter's kryptonite - good wrestling. That will be the factor in this fight. Gomi isn't your typical Japanese fighter in that aspect. He has serviceable TDD. However, I'm going against the grain and I'm picking Clay Guida. 

Nate Diaz vs. Dong Hyun Kim

Me: I love the Diaz brothers. I love the Korean Zombie even though I thought he was in the 145 lb weight class. I guess he's bulking up. I don't see him being able to beat Nate Diaz. Especially since Nate has recently competed at Middleweight. If it goes to the ground, I see Nate threatening with submissions or sweeps and getting out of danger. Nate Diaz. 

DING DING That chime means our time is running short. I'll give the wheel a final spin. I'll ask you to give me a prediction, you'll have 5 seconds to explain it. Vowels are worth nothing.

Phil Baroni vs Brad Tavares

Me: I'm going to break my rule right here.  I'm sorry, I must TAKE A STAND. As you know, a month or so ago, it was rumored that the UFC was going to run Brock Lesnar vs Frank Mir 3. I was upset with that. I was on twitter and saw someone tweet about it. An idea hit me. Why not start a grassroots movement and get people to tweet Dana White and tell him "Halt, don't booketh that fight" and I'll be gotdamned it WORKED. So since then, people have decided to APE my idea and message Dana about EVERYTHING they disagree with. Why mention this? Because I'm a braggart. No, seriously because PHILBERT Baroni, when seeing the success of my campaign, begged people on Twitter to tweet Dana to get his fight shown on the prelims. And it WORKED. So now we're forced to watch Phil Baroni gas out after a round. Brad Tavares is my prediction, I can't even remember a Brad Tavares fight, but I predict Baroni gasses. 

Marcus Davis vs Jeremy Stephens

Me: Marcus Davis, who's as Irish as I am, will win. Not a fan of Jeremy "N*gga" Stephens. 

Dustin Poirier vs Josh Grispi

Me: Breaking my rule AGAIN. Remember how I wrote about how the 135 and 145 guys will have a hard time becoming stars and taken as seriously as the bigger fighters. HERE'S EVIDENCE #1. You have the #1 contender to the UFC 145 Title, his opponent gets injured and he goes from co-main all the way back to the prelims. Great show of faith there. I'm picking Josh Grispi. This seems to be a showcase fight for him. 

Mike Brown vs Diego Nunes

Me: EVIDENCE #2. You have the former WEC 145 champ and he's on the unaired prelims. Yet Phil Baroni can make it on TV. I mean I'm not picking on Baroni, I'm just saying. And you think the smaller guys will be taken seriously/pushed. This ain't no different than...Oh I'm not gonna say that. Mike Brown wins. 

Daniel Roberts vs Greg Soto

Me: Roberts is Black, I'm picking him. Daniel Roberts. Nah, I'm kidding. I mean i am picking Roberts, but mostly because of the 2 degrees of separation we have and the fact that he was giving Doomsday hell before the KO and he's performed great in his past two fights winning SOTN with a motherfucking Anaconda Choke in under a minute. 

Antonio McKee vs Jacob Volkmann

Me: Finally. Finally. Finally. A fight I care about. Finally Antonio McKee makes his Octagon debut. Whatever reason you believe he was not part of the UFC earlier, the fact of the matter is he is there now and even at the age of 40, he looks to make an impact. He's fighting Christmas who is a good grappler in his own right. McKee's credentials speak for themselves and many fighters in the industry vouch for his skills, but can he apply them on the big stage? In the entertain-first world of the UFC can he win and be exciting? He's provided plenty of smack-talk, but we'll see if he can back it up in the cage. I'm going with El Negro. Antonio McKee. 

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SBN coverage of UFC 125: Resolution

Man, this is funny. Yesterday I wrote a satire piece about John Cena going to the UFC to mock all the"journalists" that ran with the Brock Lesnar to WWE story. People took it seriously. 

Picture comes by way of the UG. He clearly has the increased body fat, gyneomastia, and lack of muscle mass that is shown in men with low testosterone. Todd Duffee was one of two fighters approved for testosterone replacement therapy in Vegas. 

A few years ago, Duane "Dog he Bounty Hunter" Chapman was a popular TV figure on his A&E show chasing down bail-jumpers with his fat, big-breasted wife and dysfunctional family in Hawaii. That was until suspicions were confirmed and an audio recording of Chapman using racial slurs and hate language against his son's girlfriend surfaced showing some disturbing bigotry. His show was cancelled, but a year later it was picked up again and he's still in the bonding business. 

Chris Leben was recently arrested on suspicion of DUI in Hawaii. This was Leben's 2nd arrest for that charge. He needed someone to help post bond; he turned to Chapman. Chapman's company put up the bond money to spring Leben from jail. The rumor is that Dog will be in Chris Leben's entourage, if not in his corner, similar to Steven Seagal's appearance in Anderson Silva's corner. It seems as though Chapman and Leben made a connection talking about things like overcoming addiction, etc. Chapman is a fan of MMA and his son is/was involved in local MMA promotions. 

Will Chapman be a good influence on Leben? Time will tell.

SBN coverage of UFC 125: Resolution

According to Dave Meltzer of Yahoo Sports, former WWE heavyweight champion John Cena is looking for an "exit strategy" to get out of his WWE contract.. Cena "badly" wants to work the UFC's PPV in Toronto next year. 

The MMA world has been buzzing about this story since Dave Meltzer broke the news on Tuesday night. Meltzer said on his radio show that the beatdown by Nexus has changed Cena's attitude on wrestling and he is at the stage in his life where he doesn't want to get injured. He's very well off financially and the business man in him apparently knows that it may be time to move on.

Its widely known that Cena is miserable with WWE's brutal travel schedule and doesn't want to be on the road with WWE 200 days a year again. With the mainstream success he's had in movies and the insane drawing power he's displayed during in the WWE, he could make a truckload of money working a couple of PPVs and a few other limited appearances.

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