It was a bitter sweet night for the UFC when it comes to UFC on Fox 2 results. On the bright side, they got the right winners for their future UFC money matches. On the downside, they probably won’t have many new viewers the next time out on Fox after tonight’s grinding broadcast.

The UFC took advantage of new viewers and publicity with their first FOX broadcast and delivered expected fireworks. Unfortunately for a show that needed to follow that momentum, they came up real small tonight in Chicago. Three decision fights with very little fire power may have stalled any momentum from the first broadcast right in its place.

Let me be clear as an MMA fan, I enjoyed most of the night. Yet even I couldn’t find much redemption in the opening fight. As much as I enjoyed the Bisping vs. Sonnen fight, I can’t imagine many casual viewers stuck around to watch the fight or the headliner. It was certainly not a great night in terms of the broadcast.

Quite frankly, the choice of matchups boggled my mind all along. Booking Demian Maia, Michael Bisping, and Rashad Evans on such a high profile show just sounded absurd to me. If there is one thing that most of these guys have in common, it is that they have boring fights. They are all grinders and they delivered exactly what any regular MMA follower would have expected. The UFC has nobody to blame but their own matchmakers for tonight’s debacle. I still have no idea what they were thinking.

The highlight of the night to me was Chael Sonnen defeating Michael Bisping via unanimous decision. I thought this fight was much better than most according to the early feedback I read. Bisping never seemed out of it like Phil Davis did, which had me excited about watching the Count pull off a possible comeback. Unfortunately those casual eyes unfamiliar with the fun back and forth between Bisping and Sonnen probably didn’t find it as interesting.

Sonnen will now go on to fight Anderson Silva for the UFC middleweight title. The fight is currently scheduled for June in Brazil, although Silva has been very non-committal about the date. I have mixed feelings on the fight. I think when a challenger is popped for PEDs after a title fight, that there needs to be a lengthy period before he could even think about a title shot. The ramifications would not have been good if Sonnen did beat Silva, ended his streak, won the title, and then got popped for the PEDs. Sonnen put the company in a lot of jeopardy which is why I don’t understand why he is being quickly rewarded.

But I get it and business is business. This has the potential to be the biggest fight in UFC history. Between the background, Chael’s wacky interviews, the Brazilian atmosphere, and the long anticipation, I predict that this fight will break UFC records. So I do get it. Lucky for Chael he won’t have to worry about any commissions fighting in Brazil. How convenient.

In the main-event, Rashad Evans dominated Phil Davis, winning a unanimous decision. Davis just looked slow and completely outclassed from the start of the fight. Evans didn’t finish him which is always a criticism of the former champion, but he didn’t look to be in real danger at any point in the fight. He went five rounds and didn’t appear to be gassed. It was a great showcase, but hardly the kind of fight you want to use as a selling point for UFC 145.

Evans vs. Jones will take place at UFC 145, or at least that is the plan. This fight has been canceled several times due to injuries to both fighters. I know Evans may not have looked as dangerous as he did against Tito Ortiz but I am still picking him over Jones. I think Evans is one of the smartest fighters in MMA. He studies his opponents and adjusts his style to break their will and dominate them. I think he will do the same against Jones and do enough to capitalize on Jones’ inexperience. You may find that hard to believe after watching his fight tonight, but the guy is a chameleon. I think he regains the title at UFC 145.

The next UFC on Fox broadcast is scheduled for March. If the ratings come in where I think they’ll come in, they will have enormous pressure on them with the UFC on Fox 3. Cain Velasquez vs. Frank Mir is rumored to headline the show which is a fight that could go either way. Regardless, the UFC really needs to do a better job of putting better matches together for the broadcast. They need to put on smaller, faster guys, big guys with knockout power, and styles that make better fights. If not, they will wind up finding themselves swimming upstream for the remainder of the FOX contract.

While this isn’t pro wrestling and nothing can ever go as expected, sadly for the UFC every fight went as expected tonight.

Full UFC on Fox 2 results…
Chris Camozzi defeated Dustin Jacoby, Submission, Round 3
Lavar Johnson defeated Joey Beltran, KO, Round 1
Michael Johnson defeated Shane Roller via unanimous decision
Charles Oliveira defeated Eric Wisely, Submission, Round 1
Cub Swanson defeated George Roop, KO, Round 2
Mike Russow defeated John-Olav Einemo, unanimous decision
Evan Dunham defeated Nik Lentz, TKO, ref stoppage due to cut, end of Round 2
Chris Weidman defeated Demian Maia via split decision
Chael Sonnen defeated Michael Bisping via unanimous decision
Rashad Evans defeated Phil Davis via unanimous decision

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