UFC 136 Winners and Losers

UFC rolled into the Lone Star state again this weekend with another successful fan expo and two championship titles on the line at UFC 136. While some were upset and others went as predicted, one man called out his arch nemesis WWE style yet it all managed to keep us entertained throughout the night. In a night that saw champions retain titles in two different fashions, the lightweight division is released from its lockdown and Jose Aldo continues to dominate the featherweight world.

This is the UFC 136: Winners & Losers

FRANKIE EDGAR: WINNER

Winning and retaining your belt from the most dominant champion (BJ Penn) could be enough for anyone to have on their resume but Frankie Edgar is not a regular anyone. He has bounced back from what some call boring performances and a draw earlier this year, to finish Gray Maynard (also handing him his first career loss) in the fourth round via TKO. Next for “The Truth” should be the unification bout with current Strikeforce lightweight champ, Gilbert Melendez.

JOSE ALDO: WINNER

Defending your belt is always a win but when you are unable to finish an opponent, especially one you are favored to beat, may bring up questions in your game plan. Even though his cardio looked decent, he could have capitalized and finished the fight. The dominance continues for the Black House fighter at featherweight and his next opponent will most likely lose in a chance to take his belt from him.

CHAEL SONNEN: WINNER

Being away from the cage for over a year, facing down a man he was vocally not excited about fighting, Sonnen looked perfect in his return and submitted Brian Stann in the second round. The best part of the fight though happened in the post action commentary when Sonnen said, “Anderson Silva, you suck! Super Bowl weekend 2012, you and me; I win – you leave division, you win, I leave UFC!” Who knew that the relationship between Dana White and the WWE would produce these moments? Next for Sonnen easily needs to be a rematch with Anderson Silva on Super Bowl weekend.

JOE LAUZON: WINNER

Never underestimate your opponent, especially when they are highly skilled in BJJ and you are not, Joe Lauzon derailed Melvin Guillard’s momentum by finishing him in less than a minute via RNC. Next for the Boston fighter should be Jim Miller

GRAY MAYNARD: LOSER

Coming out looking good like he did in their second meeting, he again looked slow in the second and never really found his stride again. Being hit with more shots in the fourth round, he went down and was pounced before being finished for the first time in his career. Back to the drawing board he goes and will be focused on coming back strong in his next bout. His next opponent: Anthony Pettis

KENNY FLORIAN: LOSER

As stated on this last week’s MMA Pulse radio show, Florian is a great fighter but an eternal runner-up. He looked good in the opening round but could not do much after that (like his other title fights) and was ultimately defeated again in his attempt for UFC gold. More than needing to think about a future opponent, KenFlo needs to look at his career overall before talking with Joe Silva.

BRIAN STANN: LOSER

Walking into a fight on a win streak and a better striker than Sonnen, the Marine Corps veteran didn’t do much against the wrestler. He was dominated against the fence and taken down, although his early submission defense was good, he could not escape the stronger Sonnen and succumbed to an arm triangle in the second round. A good rebound fight for the middleweight: Demain Maia

MELVIN GUILLARD: LOSER

Coming in hot on a five fight win streak, Guillard was completely choked out in 47 seconds as the heavy-handed Jackson’s MMA fighter was beaten by the ever dangerous Joe Lauzon. Guillard is not to be count out in his standings but needs to really improve on jiu jitsu defense if he looks to improve his rankings in the lightweight division. A smart fight for his next outing: Jorge Masvidal – bring him over from Strikeforce and let’s have some fun!