The wait is almost over. Only hours remain until Brock Lesnar faces Shane Carwin in the biggest all-American heavyweight world title fight since Tyson-Holyfield II. UFC 116 begins with the live broadcast of pre-lims on Spike TV at 9pm ET and then at 10pm ET the main card begins.
Our live coverage of the biggest UFC event of the year so far begins at 8pm ET with Will Cooling discussing his picks for the night’s fights, then at 9pm ET we will be providing round-by-round coverage of all the televised action.
Main Bouts (On Pay-Per-View):
Brock Lesnar vs. Shane Carwin
Yoshihiro Akiyama vs. Chris Leben
Chris Lytle vs. Matt Brown
Stephan Bonnar vs. Krzysztof Soszynski
Kurt Pellegrino vs. George Sotiropoulos
Preliminary Bouts (On Spike TV):
Brendan Schaub vs. Chris Tuchscherer
Ricardo Romero vs. Seth Petruzelli
Evening (or my case morning) folks, welcome to the Inside Fights liveblog of UFC 116: Lesnar vs Carwin. With the two goliath’s of the heavyweight division preparing to do battle we’ll be bring all all the action from what will be one of the biggest events in UFC history. For the next fifty minutes we’ll be previewing the main card and discussing any last minute rumors.
For those who are interested, its been confirmed by the likes of Jeremy Botter and Oliver Copp that Brock Lesnar will be coming out to Enter the Sandman.
Pick 1 Kurt Pellegrino vs. George Sotiropoulos
A battle of two grapplers, both of whom are in the middle of winning streaks. I like the look of George Sotiropoulous; he was impressive against Joe Stevenson and has previously demonstrated the tools needed to defeat Kurt Pellegrino. Obviously the key will be what happens when the fight gets taken to the ground, Sotiropoulos’ should have the guard to frustrate Pellegrino and stop him being able to seriously work his ground and pound. And should Pellegrino be put on his back, not only has Sotiropoulos has showed a superior ability to pass guard and be dominant from the top but Pellegrino often looks deeply uncomfortable off his back. Sotiropoulous should take this in the second half of the fight as Pellegrino starts taking risks to escape his stifling guard.
Bryan Alvarez is reporting that the arena is 35% full at the moment, which is standard for a big Las Vegas show.
Pick 2 Stephan Bonnar vs. Krzysztof Soszynski
A fight that we demanded – something that makes me want to find one of those big anti-war ‘Not in my name’ banners and wave it at the UFC. The first fight was enjoyable enough but just demonstrated how limited Bonnar has become – it was just fairly stodgy brawling with Bonnar usual lack of sophistication in his footwork, head movement or shot selection. Yes he was the victim of a bad referee call when the fight was stopped due to an illegal blow but he was undoubtedly losing the fight legitmately anyway. I don’t see this fight being any different, with Soszynski having enough in tank to captialise on the holes in the ‘American Psycho’s’ technique.
Dana White is going crazy on twitter; asking amongst others John Cena, Barrak Obama and Pink who they’re picking in the main event. Interestingly he will be sitting with Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid.
Pick 3 Chris Lytle vs Matt Brown
Chris Lytle is both the better fighter standing and on the ground; with heavy hands, a solid chin and good submission skills. Whether he’ll probably apply himself to defeating Matt Brown is another question entirely. For awhile Lytle has adopted the mentality of always focusing on getting the Fight of the Night bonus, even if it means he has to eschewed strategies that would serve as the surest road to victory. Sometimes it works and sometimes it doesn’t but usually he ends up giving the fans a hell of a show either way. This will be no different, with Brown looking to avenge a 2007 loss. I just don’t see what tools he has to defeat Brown – he lacks the punching power to inflict damage standing and if he takes it to the ground he stands a good chance of once again being submitted by Lytle. Lytle looks a pretty safe bet here.
Plenty of rumors about pro-wrestlers attending tonight’s event to see their former colleague Brock Lesnar; with Jim Ross, Steve Austin, Bill Goldberg and Paul Heyman already sighted. Strong rumors that both The Undertaker and The Rock will also be in attendance. Is it really eight years since Lesnar debut in the then WWF?
Pick 4 Yoshihiro Akiyama vs. Chris Leben
It seems a lot of people are backing Chris Leben based on Akiyama’s long lay off and his slightly underwhelming debut against Alan Belchor at UFC 100. There’s also something of the MMA community starting sell Japanese fighters a tad short after spending so many years talking them up to absurd levels. The facts are that Akiyama is not just a sexy model and pop star, but a Judo gold medalist with powerful takedowns, a good submission game and a slick technique standing. Chris Leben on the other hand has heavy hands. And that’s it. His defensive boxing isn’t too clever (as shown in his fight against Bisping) and his wrestling is lacking, as shown early on by Aaron Simpson. Then there is the conditioning factor with Leben having only fought two weeks ago, something that will surely play havoc with his cardio. Leben’s only hope is that he has the size to bully his undersized opponent, however I’m fairly confident that Akiyama’s technical edge both standing and grappling will be too much for Leben to overcome.
Shane Carwin will be coming out to ‘The Bodies’.
Pick 5 Brock Lesnar vs Shane Carwin for the Undisputed World Heavyweight Title
This is the big one and its for all the marbles. A fight that deliberately tries to recreate the buzz that use to surround the biggest heavyweight title fights in boxing, something that will probably result in a very large and a very different audience for this event on PPV. There are way too many ‘known unknowns’ for a reasoned prediction to be made but my gut says Brock Lesnar. Lesnar is the superior wrestler, the naturally larger and stronger man and has freakish speed for a man of his size. Carwin will be hoping to impose himself standing but the talk of Lesnar fighting southpaw shows that Lesnar has used his year off to add technical sophistication to his undoubted power standing. Other factors in Lesnar’s favour are that he has more experience in these high-pressured situations, has fought a higher standard of competition and knows what its like to go beyond the first round. But it must be remembered that Carwin only needs one big punch.
The first Spike prelim is abouit to air.
Ricardo Romero vs. Seth Petruzelli
Round One
Petruzelli pushing the action standing, Romero tries to grab a kick and shoot for a takedown but Petruzelli is able to stuff it. That seems to give Petruzelli the confidence to really commit standing, really hurting Romero with some nice combinations that climax with a jumping high kick. Petruzelli blocks a judo takedown but is starting to tire after committing so much to the stand up. Tries to throw a spinning back kick but Romero is too close and Petruzelli ends up on his back. Petruzelli is able to get back to his feet and tries to work some ground and pound standing. Romero is able to drag Petruzelli back down to the ground, and starts to luck for first an arm triangle and then an armbar. Pertuzelli gets back to his fist and knocks Romero down with a big uppercut, and then unloads some nasty hammerfists on the prone Romero. However Petruzelli is absolutely gassed and ends up back on his back as the round ends. Great first round. Just incredibly action packed as Petruzelli just threw everything into trying to finish the fight while Romero looked to catch him with a submission. 10-9 Petruzelli.
Round Two
Romero goes for a takedown but eats a big knee that really hurts him, Petruzelli follows up with a big high kick but is clearly tiring. Romero’s knee seems to be giving him problems, with Petruzelli taking him to the ground and trying to secure an armbar. Romero is able to escape and get top position, with Petruzelli doing some good work from the bottom with some nice 6-12 elbows and an triangle attempt. Both fighters are bleeding, with Romero controlling Petruzelli in a crucifix position. Petruzelli tries to move to a better position and free his left arm but actually gives Romero the space he need to fully apply pressure to his right arm. Petruzelli taps immediately, literally screaming and bucking. Looks like his arm is broken. That gives Romero the victory at 3:05 of the second round. Really good fight.
Shane Carwin is talking to Joe Rogan. Directly references that we (presumably America) have been missing this type of heavyweight fight for around the past ten years (i.e. since Tyson-Holyfield II) and Rogan explictly brings up Brock Lesnar being the ‘enemy’ who plays at being a ‘WWE heel’. Rogan and Goldberg now hyping up Carwin as the perfect fighter to defeat Lesnar, hinting that he seems more relaxed than the linear champion. Bloody hell, the UFC is as subtle as sledgehammer when it comes to marketing a fight.
Brock Lesnar is talking to Joe Rogan. Rogan wasn’t kidding, Lesnar is shooting a death stare. Nothing really of note but Lesnar has the demeanor of being all business.
Second Spike pre-lim is up next.
Brendan Schaub vs. Chris Tuchscherer
Round One
Battle of the training partners – Chris Tuchscherer trains with Lesnar while Brendan Schaub trains with Carwin. Schaub begins by landing some nice combinations standing and after some feeling out Schaub lands a heliacious right hand that drops Tuchscherer. Schaub swarms all over Tuchscherer, quick ground and pound and its all over at 1:07. Good finish and is that an omen for what Carwin has in store for Lesnar?
When I last looked, Carwin was +105 while Lesnar was -135. Do you want to bet that after that finish the money’s going to flow towards Carwin?
Earlier on in the evening, Gerald Harris knocked out Dave Branch at 2:35 of the third round with a devastating slam that can only be described as a real life powerbomb!
Joe Rogan is now talking to Dana White, who is doing more of the hard sell to old-school heavyweight boxing fans. Promises fans that it will be the type of big heavyweight fight that ‘we’ have been denied for too long. Pushes Carwin hard, obviously aware that the more people buy him as a threat the more likely they are to purchase the event.
Kurt Pellegrino vs. George Sotiropoulos
Round 1
Sotiropoulos starts off with a very low boxing stance, with very high hands. Pushing the action with his boxing, working the jab and drops Kurt Pellegrino with a big right hand-straight left combination. Sotiropoulous swarms trying to finish the fight, eventually trying to take Pellegrino’s back. They get to their feet and Sotiropoulous is dominanting standing, with Pellegrino just not able to pick out the left hook. Pellegrino tries to shake off the damage by shooting for a takedown but can’t establish top control due to Sotiropoulos’ excellent guard. Standing again, Sotiropoulos lands a nice knee to the head standing, with Pellegrino once again going for a takedown. Sotiropolous dominants from the bottom, controlling Pellegrino in his guard and throwing some viscious 6-12 elbows. At one point Sotiropoulos seemed to be going for a triangle but Pellegrino escaped. Dominant round for Sotiropolous, who leads on my scorecards 10-9.
Round 2
Pellegrino throws a kick but Sotriopoulos catches it and gets the takedown. Sotriopoulos controlling on the top but Pellegrino is putting up a very good fight, keeping the Australian in half-guard and throwing some hard 6-12 elbows. Sotriopoulos really punishing Pellegrino with some superior ground and pound although Pellegrino is eventually able to get bakc to his feet. Pellegrino caught in the clinch against the cage and the fight grounds to a halt as Sotriopoulos struggles for the takedown. They eventually seperate and Pellegrino connects with a very nice knee but its still Sotiropolous’ round 10-9. Pellegrino’s corner agrees, telling their fighter that he needs the finish.
Round 3
Sotiropolous is pushing the action standing, working Pellegrino over with his jab. Pellegrino is obviously hurt and seems to be unable to get any power or speed in his punches. Pellegrino is staggered by a big left hook and he responded by taking Sotiropolous down. Sotriopolous throws some nasty 6-12 elbows, and is actively controlling Pellegrino with his full guard. Sotriopolous eventually traps Pellegrino in his rubber guard, which Pellegrino eventually escapes by getting to his feet and slamming Sotripolous down. They get back to their feet and a heavy breathing Sotripolous tries to wind down the clock by pushing Pellegrino into the cage. Pellegrino almost steals the fight at the end with a big knee that drops Sotriopolous but the buzzer sounds before he can finish. That’s probably enough to give Pellegrino the round but not the fight, I have it 29-28 for the Australian. The three judges have it 30-27, 30-27 and 29-28 for George Sotriopolous.
George Sotriopolous wins by unanimous decision
Stephan Bonnar vs. Krzysztof Soszynski
Round 1
They start with wild exchanges. Soszynski throws some leg kicks but Bonnar knocks him down with a big left hand. Bonnar dives onto Soszynski, but gets trapped in full guard. They struggle in the clinch against the cage, with both having strong attempts to take the other down. Although his takedown attempt does fail Bonnar gets the better of the exchanges, punishing Soszynski with some nice Muay Thai combinations against the cage. Bonnar is looking very good standing, trying to vary his striking throwing some throwing some nice looking high kicks and a solid left jab. Soszynski rallies and starts pressing Bonnar and seems to hurt him with a late boxing flurry. Very close round and very difficult to score, but I’d probably just give it to Bonnar 10-9.
Round 2
Soszynski seems to hurt Bonnar at the beginning of the round with several right hand-left hand combinations. Bonnar rallies and throws some wild punches of his own as they just slug it out. Soszynski clips Bonnar and tries to get the takedown against the cage, Bonnar stuffs it and connects with several hard shots. Bonnar gets the takedown but Soszyznski is able to frustrate Bonnar and quickly get back to his feet. Bonnar hurts Soszynski with a big Muay Thai knee to the head, and Bonnar swarms on ‘The Polish Experiment’ with repeated shots to the head, eventually getting the TKO victory at 3.08. Bonnar looked really good here.
Stephen Bonnar wins by TKO at 3.08 in the second round.
Wrestling Observer reporting that former heavyweight champion Evander Holyfield is in attendance at UFC 116.
Chris Lytle vs. Matt Brown
Round 1
Chris Lytle tries to push the actions tanding but Brown clinches up to frustrate him. They’re pushed up against the cage, with Brown getting Lytle down with a nice trip although Lytle is straight back up. Crowd getting frustrated as the fight gets stuck against the cage. They break and Brown catches Lytle with a big head kick, goes back to controlling Lytle with the clinch. Lytle struggles for the takedown against the cage, but Brown takes it to the ground with a trip. Brown gets a tight d’arce choke but even though its on for a long time Lytle doesn’t tap and is able to get back to his feet. Lytle is struggling to find the space to work his striking thanks to the holding of Brown. At the very end Brown knocks Lytle down with a glancing blow but almost gets caught in an armbar when he follows. Good round, 10-9 to Brown.
Round 2
Brown doesn’t continue the holding tactics that had so successfully frustrated Lytle in the first round, instead the two of them start the round with open boxing exchanges. Lytle hurts Brown with a big uppercut, and quickly applies a tight guillotinechoke. Brown escapes but Lytle is still controlling the action from the top. Lytle moves to side control to secure the armbar for the submission at 2:02.
Chris Lytle wins by submission at 2:02
Yoshihiro Akiyama vs. Chris Leben
Round 1
Akiyama catches a kick and takes Leben down, although Leben is quickly back on his feet. Leben throwing big punches and kicks but not connected with much. Akiyama is noticeably smaller and seems tentative. Leben connects with a big punch but soon takes a lowblow. Fight stopped to allow Leben to recover. Leben lands a couple of kicks, although Akiyama gets in a straight jabs. Akiyama gets the judo takedown but Leben keeps him in full guard. Leben twice goes for the armbar but Akiyama is able to escape, the second time Akiyama spins out into his own armbar attempt. Leben escapes and puts Akiyama back into half-guard. Akiyama working to get out of half-guard, possibly to secure an arm triangle. Leben back to his feet but Akiyama pushes him up against the cage. They break and Leben tries to push the action standing towards the end, but Akiyama again secures the judo trip. Really good round for Akiyama who despite giving up a lot in size is clearly the more skilled fighter, Leben has no answer for his trips. 10-9 Aikyama.
Round 2
Both fighters seem tired in the early standing exchanges, some quality in there with Akiyama connecting with a nice spinning backfist and Leben with a superman punch. Then the intensity goes up a notch, with about a minute of non-stop slugging between the two fighters as they both connect with punch after punch. Akyiama trips Leben but the American is eventually able to get back to his feet. They grapple against the cage, with Leben trying to secure the standing choke. Akiywama escapes but Leben connects with several hard combinations with Akiyama visibly tired but refusing to go down. The final exchanges were probably enough to secure the round for Leben. 19-19 going into the third round.
Round 3
Akiyama seems to be very tired, breathing heavy and moving nowhere near as fast as he was in the first round. Leben connects with several punches and kicks but Akiyama knocks him down and dives into guard. Leben goes for an armbar which causes Akiyama to stand in an attempt to slam him down and so force a break in the submission attempt. What actually happens is that Leben’s head gets caught behind his body, with his neck almost fully cranked. Leben was very close to tapping but Akiyama gave up the position. Akiyama working in half-guard, but arguably Leben is doing the most damage with 6-12 elbows and punches off the back. Leben goes for the triangle choke, Akiyama stands in an attempt to escape but eventually falls back down and taps at 4:30. Great fight, really impressive performances from both fighters.
Chris Leben wins by submission at 4:30 in the third round.
UFC copy Showtime’s gimmick of using a videogame to illustrate fighter analysis, although it has to be said they do it in a far classier way.
Cain Velasquez is in the house, no doubt to do the staredown with the new champion.
Undispusted World Heavyweight Championship Fight
Brock Lesnar vs. Shane Carwin
Round 1
Here we go. Softly spoken engineer against brash former pro-wrestler. The deadliest puncher in the division against its most dominant wrestler. Interim Champion against Linear Champion. This is for all the marbles, the biggest all-american heavyweight fight in thirteen years. Is Brock Lesnar fully recovered from his health problems? Does Shane Carwin have the cardio to go beyond the first round? Has Lesnar sufficiently improved his boxing? Does Carwin have the wrestling to frustrate Lesnar? So many questions but there can only be one answer, one champion.
Lesnar is noticeably the bigger of the two. Lesnar throw the jab, but Carwin clips him with a big punch. Lesnar shoots for the takedown, Carwin momentarily down but gets back to his feet quickly. Carwin unloads on Lesnar, connect with several hard punches that has Lesnar losing his compsure standing. Lesnar tries to go for the takedown but Carwin stuffs him. Carwin knocks Lesnar down and Carwin is looking to finish the fight. Lesnar is bleeding heavily and is in survival mode. Dominant ground and pound from Carwin, and this could be over anytime now. Lesnar back into half-guard and trying to work from the bottom. Lesnar is back on his feet and is content to run the clock down by holding Carwin up against the cage. 10-8 to Carwin.
Round 2
Carwin looks tired compared to the first round, breathing heavy. Brock Lesnar gets the takedown, moves from half-guard to mount and then moves to side control to…to…apply an arm triangle! Tightens the arm triangle and Carwin taps out at 2:19. That is an incredible performance from the champion who overcame a terrible first round to secure a gutsy victory.
Brock Lesnar wins via submission due to arm triangle choke at 2:19 in the second round to become the undispusted world heavyweight champion
Brock Lesnar speaks emotionally about his recovery from his recent health problems, thanking everyone who supported him and saying that he was a humble champion. Says that he knew that Carwin was tiring with the punches losing their power throughout the first round. He then celebrates in the crowd with his ‘pro-wrestling buddies’ Steve Austin, Bill Goldbery and Jim Ross.
Well that was an incredible night of fights, with every fight providing plenty of action. After a terrible first round, Lesnar survives long enough to take Carwin to deep water and pull off the shock submission. This concludes our live blog of UFC 116 but make sure to stay tuned to Inside Fights for all the latest news and analysis from UFC 116.
