UFC 102: Couture vs. Nogueira

Location: Portland, OR.
Main Fight Card
M. Nogueira def. R. Couture (Un. Dec.)
T. Silva def. K. Jardine (KO)
N. Marquardt def. D. Maia (KO)
B. Vera def. K. Soszynski (Un. Dec.)
J. Rolsholt def. C. Leben (Tri. Choke)

Antonio “Minotauro” Nogueira looked last night like the Minotauro of old, when he was kicking ass and taking names in Pride. With a poor performance in his last outing (KO loss to F. Mir) Nogueria was the subject of much scrutiny. “Is he over the hill?”, “Has he just had too many fights while with Pride?”. It seems all these questions were answered when his fight with Couture turned, at times, into a showcase of Minotauro’s mastery of the artform known as BJJ (Brazilian Jiu Jitsu).

Nate “The Great” Marquardt a former “King of Pancrase”, opened and closed his fight against a supposed game opponent with one punch to the face. Damian Maia a BJJ specialist did not get a chance to test his grappling wits since the fight did not make it to the ground with a stoppage time of 21 seconds in the very first round. Now Nate looks on and waits. Will he fight Anderson Silva for the UFC Middleweight Title or will he have to fight Dan Henderson to see who gets the shot at the title? Only UFC President Dana White knows, we’ll find out soon I imagine.

What did you guys think about UFC 102 and what are your thoughts on future fights and/or potential matchups?