UFC 126: Spider vs. Phenom

Miguel Torres (Photo: mmanews.com)

UFC 126: Silva vs. Belfort – Las Vegas, Nev. – Mandalay Bay Events Center – Feb. 5, 2011

Anderson Silva retained the UFC middleweight title for the eighth time, beating Vitor Belfort in the main event of UFC 126.

Silva floored “The Phenom” with a front kick, and finished him off with a punch combination at the 3:25 mark.

Former champions collided in the co-main event, as Forrest Griffin won a unanimous decision over Rich “Ace” Franklin.

Jon "Bones" Jones moved into position for a light heavyweight title shot, beating Ryan Bader with a guillotine choke in the second round.

UFC Fight Night 23: Fight for the Troops 2

Melvin Guillard (Photo: lowkickmma.com)

UFC Fight Night 23: Fight for the Troops 2 – Fort Hood, Texas – Jan. 22, 2011

 “The Young Assassin” Melvin Guillard defeated Evan Dunham in the main event of UFC’s second “Fight for the Troops” event.

Guillard rocked Dunham with a left knee strike and then kept battling until the referee stopped the fight just under the three-minute mark.

Mark Hominick earned shot at the new UFC featherweight championship with a TKO win over George Roop in 88 seconds. Jose Aldo was crowned the first UFC featherweight champion, as he entered the company with the WEC featherweight title.

In heavyweight action, Matt Mitrone improved to 4-0, beating Tim Hague by TKO at the 2:59 mark.

UFC 125: Nothing Changes on New Year's Day

Dong Hyun Kim (Photo: sherdog.com)

UFC 125: Resolution – Las Vegas, Nev. – MGM Grand Garden Arena – Jan. 1, 2011

Gray Maynard and Frankie Edgar battled for the UFC lightweight title at UFC 125, but the “Resolution” subtitle proved ironic as the fight ended in a draw.

One judge ruled the fight 48-46 in favor of the champion Edgar, while another saw it the same way. The third judge saw the fight as a 47-47. As a result, Edgar retained the title.

In the co-main event, Brian Stann beat Chris “The Crippler” Leben by TKO at the 3:37 mark.

Thiago Silva seemed to defeat Brandon Vera by unanimous decision. However, Silva’s win was changed to a no contest after he tested positive for banned substances.

Dong Hyun Kim of South Korea beat Nate Diaz by unanimous decision.

UFC 124: Hail to the Hometown Hero

Georges St.-Pierre (Photo: mmafighting.com)

UFC 124: St.-Pierre vs. Koscheck 2 – Montreal, Canada – Bell Centre – Dec. 11, 2010

Montreal embraced Georges St.-Pierre at UFC 124, as more than 23,000 fans watched him retain the UFC welterweight title against Josh Koscheck.

GSP won their first battle three years earlier by unanimous decision at UFC 74, and this fight ended with the same result.

All three judges gave the fight to the champ with identical 50-45 scorecards. 

UFC raked in $4.6 million at the Bell Centre box office.

Stefan “Skyscraper” Struve won the co-main event with a TKO win over Sean McCorkle at the 3:55 mark.

TUF 12 Finale: Jonathan Brookins Wins Lightweight Tournament

Jonathan Brookins (Photo: fightland.vice.com)

The Ultimate Fighter Season 12 finale – Las Vegas, Nev. – The Pearl at the Palms – Dec. 4, 2010

Jonathan Brookins won the lightweight tournament in the 12^th season of The Ultimate Fighter.

Brookins won a unanimous decision over Michael Johnson to earn a UFC contract. He lost three of his next UFC fights before moving to India in 2012 to study yoga. He later returned to fight for other promotions around the world.

Georges St. Pierre and Josh Koscheck were the coaches for the season, leading up to a welterweight title bout one week later. Both finalists were on Team GSP.

TUF 1 runner-up Stephan Bonnar won a unanimous decision over Igor Pokrajac in the co-main event.

UFC 123: Razor-Thin Victory

Rampage Jackson (Photo: prommanow.com)

UFC 123: Rampage vs. Machida – The Palace of Auburn Hills (Mich.) – Nov. 20, 2010

Rampage Jackson beat Lyoto Machida by the slimmest of margins in the main event of UFC 123.

Jackson beat fellow former UFC light heavyweight champion Machida by 29-28, 28-29, 29-28 on the judges’ scorecards. Jackson's late offensive flurry won the fight.

UFC was visiting Detroit for the first time since UFC 9 in 1996.

BJ Penn knocked out Matt Hughes in 21 seconds to win the three-fight rivalry between former UFC welterweight champions.

UFC 122: Thunder Struck

Yushin Okami (Photo: heraldsun.com.au)

UFC 122: Marquardt vs. Okami – Oberhausen, Germany – Konig Pilsener Arena - Nov. 13, 2010

Yushin “Thunder” Okami emerged as the next contender for Anderson Silva’s middleweight title at UFC 122.

Okami won a unanimous decision over Nate Marquardt, busting him open in the third round en route to victory. Okami would get his title shot nine months later at UFC 134.

In the co-main event, Germany’s own Dennis Siver defeated Andre Winner with a rear naked choke at the 3:37 mark.

UFC 121: Dethroning the King of the Jungle

Cain Velasquez (Photo: graciemag.com)

UFC 121: Lesnar v. Velasquez – Anaheim, Calif. – Honda Center – Oct. 23, 2010

Cain Velasquez knocked Brock Lesnar off the top of the mountain, winning the heavyweight title at UFC 121.

The undefeated Mexican-American fighter weathered a storm of Lesnar’s takedown attempts and unleashed a flurry of strikes to win by TKO at the 4:12 mark.

In the co-main event, Strikeforce veteran Jake Shields won his UFC debut with a split decision over Martin “The Hitman” Kampmann.

Tito Ortiz lost to his former student, Matt Hamill, by unanimous decision. Diego Sanchez also won by unanimous decision over Paulo Thiago.