· New Contenders Emerge At “UFC 110: Nogueira vs. Velasquez”
Three men at UFC 110 solidified themselves as top contenders in their respective divisions. George Sotiropoulos, Ryan Bader, and Cain Velasquez all put on impressive performances helping make the UFC's first trip to Australia a huge success. With his victory over Michael Bisping, Wanderlei Silva emphatically declared that the other UFC middleweights had better take notice, though he still needs two or three more victories at middleweight before he can be considered a legitimate contender.
George Sotiropoulos, an Australia native, came out to a crowd that was behind him with full force and proceeded to put on a show for his fans by defeating the always-tough Joe Stevenson in impressive fashion (unanimous decision 30-27, 30-27, 30-27). During the UFC 110 post-fight press conference, UFC President Dana White had high praise for Sotiropoulos.
"He was in his home town for the first time and he stepped up tonight, and I tell you, I'm proud of him. He was amazing. He didn't just beat Joe Stevenson, he dominated Joe Stevenson. All the judges had 30-27 [on their scorecards]. He just catapulted himself right into the mix. If he continues to improve like that, I wouldn't be surprised to see him fighting for a title in the next year. To go in there and beat Joe Stevenson, and to do what he did tonight is huge and very promising."
Sotiropoulos (12-2) and Stevenson (31-11) earned $50,000 “Fight of the Night” bonuses for their combined performance. Sotiropoulos improved to 5-0 inside the Octagon, a run which began after a stint on season six of “The Ultimate Fighter.” A talented jiu-jitsu black belt, he should be a tough test for anyone in the lightweight division.
Ryan Bader proved that he belongs among the light heavyweight elite with a knockout performance over Keith Jardine, a win that should vault him into the top ten rankings within the division. Bader (11-0) is now 4-0 inside the Octagon. He defeated Vinny Magalhares to become “The Ultimate Fighter: Season 8” winner in his official debut.
The pool of deserving contenders at light heavyweight is relatively thin and will get thinner after Rashad Evans and Quinton Jackson settle their grudge match at UFC 114 this May. Bader is more than likely one or two more solid performances away from a title shot.
The biggest winner last night was Cain Velasquez (8-0) who has likely earned the right to welcome back UFC Heavyweight Champion Brock Lesnar to the Octagon sometime this summer, if the winner of a March 27 fight between Shane Carwin and Frank Mir can not make a quick turnaround. Velasquez defeated arguably the second greatest heavyweight of all-time, Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira, by first round technical knockout. Velasquez has now finished seven of his eight fights by technical knockout showing he has vicious hands to go along with an outstanding wrestling pedigree.
Velasquez could face Lesnar this August, in the champion's first fight since overcoming a formidable case of diverticulitis.
