UFC 141: The Party's Almost Over

Brock Lesnar (Photo: mmaweekly.com)

UFC 141: Lesnar vs. Overeem – Las Vegas, Nev. – MGM Grand Garden Arena – Dec. 30, 2011

Brock Lesnar left the Octagon for more than four years after losing to Alistair Overeem at UFC 141.

Overeem won the main event by TKO in 2 minutes, 26 seconds.

Lesnar, a former UFC heavyweight champion, only had one more Octagon fight, a no-contest against Mark Hunt at UFC 200.

Before and after that bout, Lesnar dominated the WWE, winning several World titles and headlining multiple WrestleManias.

Nate Diaz won the co-main event by unanimous decision over Donald “Cowboy” Cerrone.

Johny "Bigg Rigg" Hendricks knocked out Jon Fitch in 12 seconds to improve his record to 14-1 and move closer to a welterweight title fight with Georges St. Pierre.

Alexander Gustafsson defeated Vladimir “The Janitor” Matyushenko by TKO at the 2:13 mark.

Jimy “The Kid” Hettes improved to 10-0 with a unanimous decision over Nam Phan in the featherweight division.

On the final Spike TV pre-show, Ross Pearson beat Junior Assuncao by unanimous decision. Danny Castillo won a split decision over Anthony Njokuani.

All three Facebook preliminary fights resulted in unanimous decisions. Jacob Volkmann beat Efrain Escudero; Diego Nunes defeated Manny Gamburyan; and Dong Hyun Kim beat Sean Pierson.

UFC 140: Tap or Snap

Little Nog (Photo mmamania.com)

UFC 140: Jones vs. Machida – Toronto, Canada – Air Canada Centre - Dec. 10. 2011

Jon Jones added to his sterling resume as UFC light heavyweight champion with a win over Lyoto Machida at UFC 140.

Jones succeeded in his second title defense, beating “The Dragon” by technical submission to a guillotine choke in Round 2.

Frank Mir broke the arm of Antonio Rodrigo “Big Nog” Noguiera, who refused to tap out to a kimura. The referee stopped the fight at 3:38, as Big Nog was unable to avenge a previous loss to Mir.

The Ultimate Fighter Season 14 Finale: Count on Mayhem

Jason "Mayhem" Miller (Photo: bleacherreport.com)

TUF 14 Finale – Las Vegas, Nev. – Palms Casino Resort – Dec. 3, 2011

Michael Bisping outslugged Jason “Mayhem” Miller as UFC wrapped up the 14^th season of The Ultimate Fighter.

Bisping won the coaches’ fight by TKO in Round 3.

This show was the final UFC special on Spike TV, as the Fox networks would take over the UFC contract in 2012.

Diego Brandao won the TUF featherweight tournament, defeating Dennis Bermudez with an armbar in the closing seconds of Round 1.

John Dodson beat TJ Dillashaw by TKO at the 1:54 mark to win the TUF bantamweight tournament.

Tony Ferguson improved to 3-0 in the Octagon with a win over “The Master of Thug Jitsu” Yves Edwards by unanimous decision.

Johnny Bedford opened the telecast with a win over Louis Gaudinot by TKO in Round 3.

Several TUF 14 contestants picked up their first UFC victories on the Facebook pre-show. 

In the featherweight division, Marcus Brimage won a unanimous decision over Stephen Bass; and Steven Siler won in the same way over Josh Clopton.

Bryan “Kid Lightning” Caraway defeated Dustin Neace with a rear naked choke in the third round.

At bantamweight, John Albert beat Dustin Pague by TKO in 69 seconds. Roland Delorme defeated Josh Ferguson with a rear naked choke in Round 3.

UFC 139: Classic Clash

Dan Henderson (Photo: mmafighting.com)

UFC 139: Shogun vs. Henderson – San Jose, Calif. – HP Pavilion – Nov. 19, 2011

One of the greatest fights in UFC history saw Dan Henderson triumph over Mauricio “Shogun” Rua at UFC 139.

All three judges saw the fight 48-47 in Henderson’s favor, and nearly everyone who watched the fight called it a classic.

UFC President Dana White called it “one of the top three best fights ever in MMA.

The win moved the 41-year-old Henderson closer to a title shot at middleweight champion Anderson Silva or light heavyweight champion Jon “Bones Jones.

UFC on Fox 1: Gone in 64 Seconds

Junior dos Santos (Photo: mmafighting.com)

UFC on Fox 1: Velasquez vs. Dos Santos – Anaheim, Calif. – Honda Center - Nov. 12, 2011

Junior dos Santos knocked out Cain Velasquez in 64 seconds to win the UFC heavyweight title.

The company was celebrating its 18^th birthday with its first show on Fox.

Junior improved to 8-0 in the Octagon as he dethroned Velasquez, who was making his first defense of the title he won from Brock Lesnar one year earlier.

This was the only fight on the Fox TV show, so fans watching UFC for the first time only saw about a minute of action. The other nine fights aired on Facebook.