UFC on Fuel TV 1 Results: Burning Questions Heading into UFC 144

The first UFC on Fuel TV card is in the books and the full results are below:

Jake Ellenberger defeats Diego Sanchez via unanimous decision (29-28 x 3)

Stefan Struve defeats Dave Herman by TKO at 3:52 of Round 2

Ronny Markes defeats Aaron Simpson via split decision (29-28, 28-29, 29-28)

Stipe Miocic defeats Phillip De Fries via knockout at 0:43 of Round 1

T.J. Dillashaw defeats Walel Watson via unanimous decision (30-25, 30-25, 30-26)

Ivan Menjivar defeats John Albert via submission at 3:45 of Round 1

Jonathan Brookins defeats Vagner Rocha via knockout at 1:32 of Round 1

Sean Loeffler vs. Buddy Roberts—cancelled due to Loeffler ankle injury

Justin Salas defeats Anton Kuivanen via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 29-27)

Tim Means defeats Bernardo Magalhaes via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-26, 30-26)

What follows are questions heading into UFC 144, which will take place on Saturday, February 26 from Saitama Super Arena in Saitama, Japan.

Will the Number of Japanese Fighters Hurt the Card?

Let's face it, the fighters that the UFC has brought in from Japan have not fared well with the promotion.

Yoshihiro Akiyama has gone 1-3.

Takanori Gomi has gone 1-3.

Kid Yamamoto has gone 0-2.

Takeya Mizugaki, between the UFC and WEC, has put together a record of 4-4.

Hatsu Hioki came into the UFC as the second-ranked featherweight in the world and struggled against George Roop, a fighter that most would rank outside the top 20 overall in the featherweight division.

Yushin Okami has been the most successful, going 10-3, but when he takes a step up to top-level competition he looses, dropping fights to Rich Franklin, Chael Sonnen and Anderson Silva. 

It's understandable that the UFC is going to pack the card with as much homegrown talent that it can in order to pack the arena, but when that talent does not generate a high level of interest outside of Japan, the possibility exists that fans may chose to stay away from the preliminary card broadcast as well as the pay-per-view. 

How Many Jobs Will Be on the Line?

Photo by Josh Hedges/Zuffa LLC

If you take a look at some of the records of the fighters competing on this card, there could be some roster trimming taking place after this event.

Jake Shields and Yoshihiro Akiyama are a combined 2-5 in the UFC. Shields' last victory, a controversial one at that, came in his UFC debut against Martin Kampmann in October 2010.  Akiyama's sole UFC win also came in his debut, defeating Alan Belcher via split decision in July 2009. It's doubtful that the loser of that bout will face the UFC axe, but it's not out of the question.

If you travel a little further down the card, there may be fighters such as Takanori Gomi, Kid Yamamoto and Steve Cantwell that with a loss may be a bit reluctant to answer a phone call form Joe Silva following UFC 144.

Will Anthony Pettis and Joe Lauzon Steal the Show?

While most eyes will be on this card for the main event—a lightweight scrap that will see UFC champion Frankie Edgar put his gold on the line against Benson Henderson—fans would be wise to make sure they're in front of the television for another lightweight bout that will be broadcast earlier on the pay-per-view card.

Joe Lauzon enters this fight on a two fight winning streak, with his last victory derailing the title shot aspirations of Melvin Guillard. Lauzon dispatched Guillard in 47 seconds in that fight, earning Submission of the Night honors.

In fact, Lauzon has been collecting bonuses with some frequency, racking up six in a row. Overall, in 11 UFC fights he has received a bonus in eight of those contests.

It wasn't long ago that former WEC champion Anthony Pettis was being talked about as a candidate to fight the winner of the first Frankie Edgar vs. Gray Maynard bout.  Unfortunately for Pettis, that fight ended in a draw and instead of waiting for the rematch to be contested, he decided to take a fight with Clay Guida, a fight that Pettis lost and with that defeat, his hopes at an immediate title shot dissolved.

Meanwhile, the man he took the WEC title from, Benson Henderson, ran through the UFC ranks, earning himself a shot at Edgar's title, a fact that must eat away inside the gut of Pettis. 

A win here could put Lauzon or Pettis in the conversation for a possible title shot. With that in mind, look for the veteran Lauzon and the former champion Pettis to put on a performance that will force the UFC to book that title shot for the winner sooner rather than later.

Can Yushin Okami Make a Comeback or Will He Be a Middleweight Gatekeeper?

Photo via Sherdog

Yushin Okami has done pretty well for himself since joining the UFC in 2006, going 10-3 during his tenure with the organization.  The issue is that the middleweight has struggled when he has faced elite competition, with his three losses coming to Rich Franklin, Chael Sonnen and Anderson Silva.

Okami has done well against second-tier fighters, defeating Nate Marquardt and Mark Munoz, among others, but he just can't seem to get himself in the mix of the truly elite.

At UFC 144 he will fight for the first time since losing to Anderson Silva at UFC 134. Okami will face Tim Boetsch in Japan, a fighter who dropped from the light heavyweight division two fights ago. Boetsch has looked like a new fighter in his two middleweight contests, earning unanimous decisions in both.

By no means is Boetsch an easy fight for Okami and the result of this fight may determine where Okami's future stands in the UFC. Will he be a fighter that remains in the mix for a future title shot or will he become one of the gatekeepers in the UFC's middleweight division?

What's at Stake for Yoshihiro Akiyama and Jake Shields?

Photo by Josh Hedges/Zuffa LLC

As I stated earlier, Akiyama and Shields have not had an easy go of it during their tenure in the UFC and while it is doubtful that either will be cut with a loss in this fight, as they are both fairly strong draws, it's not out of the question.

Since coming over from Strikeforce, Shields has not looked like his formerly dominant self.  He was clearly exhausted by the time his three-round fight with Martin Kampmann came to its conclusion.  He failed to implement his gameplan in his title bout against Georges St-Pierre and in his last bout he was stopped in under a minute by Jake Ellenberger. 

To be fair, the Kampmann fight was his first welterweight contest in more than two years after dropping from middleweight and the Ellenberger bout came shortly after the death of his father, so there were some outside circumstances involved in those contests.

For Akiyama, his will be his first UFC fight at welterweight.  With the encouragement of UFC brass, he has dropped from middleweight after losing three straight in that division. 

Granted, he didn't exactly have an easy schedule in those three fights, facing Chris Leben, Michael Bisping and Vitor Belfort.  He also earned Fight of the Night honors in two of those three losses, but it's still three straight losses and if he makes it four in a row, he may be inching ever so closer to being shown the door.

Both fighters, win or lose, will need to prove their worth to the UFC when they step inside the Octagon on February 26.

Who Takes the Next Step: Mark Hunt or Cheick Kongo?

Photo by Jed Jacobsohn/Zuffa LLC

If one had to choose which UFC weight division has the least depth, most would choose the heavyweight division. A fact that UFC president Dana White would probably not argue with since he himself said when dissolving the Strikeforce heavyweight division, "You guys have heard me say this for years: Heavyweight divisions aren’t deep enough to create this huge division, so we’re going to focus on the weight divisions that are strong."

That lack of depth may be an opportunity for either Mark Hunt or Cheick Kongo to kick the door wide open and waltz in as a contender for the heavyweight title with a win at UFC 144.

Both fighters are on two-fight winning streaks, so a win may put them among the upper-tier of competitors in the heavyweight division.

Could This Be the End of the Road for Quinton "Rampage" Jackson?

Photo by Jed Jacobsohn/Zuffa LLC

Rampage Jackson has been fighting professionally since 1999, so it's sometimes hard to wrap one's head around the fact that he is still relatively young at 33 years of age. With that being said, at some point the battles, the training and the travel will all add up and he'll think about retirement.

Jackson has said that he does not plan to fight past the age of 35 and so it's not out line to think that he would end his career in Japan following UFC 144.

Jackson was a huge fan favorite when he fought in PRIDE and recently said during the UFC 144 media call, "I really miss the fans, I'm not going to lie. I really miss fighting there. It's something personal for me."

Jackson then added: 

My kids are from Japan. My kids grandparents are from there, and they never really watched me fight back in the day...My two younger kids can come and watch me fight, and the in-laws can be in the crowd and watch me fight. I've never had that before, so it's just something I want to do."

If he does decide to retire in the Octagon following his bout against Ryan Bader, very few will find fault with that decision.

Can Ryan Bader Make His Way into Title Contention?

Photo by Josh Hedges/Zuffa LLC

Less than two years ago Ryan Bader was an unbeaten up-and-comer in the UFC's light heavyweight division, that was until he faced the freight train that is Jon Jones.

Jones ran through Bader, submitting him in the second round of their UFC 126 battle and earning himself a shot at the UFC crown, which he tore from the head of Mauricio Rua.  After claiming the title, Jones dispatched Quinton Jackson and Lyoto Machida. Jones' next fight will come against another former champion, Rashad Evans, who he will meet at UFC 145.

Following the loss to Jones, Bader suffered a second submission defeat, falling victim to a Tito Ortiz guillotine choke at UFC 132. 

Bader bounced back in his next bout, taking a step down in competition and facing Jason Brilz, a fighter he dispatched via first-round knockout at UFC 139.

Bader has the chance to get his name back in the mix for the light heavyweight crown as he faces Rampage Jackson at UFC 144. The task won't be an easy one, but if he wants to be more than a gatekeeper, he will need to step up and deliver.

Can Benson Henderson Continue His Impressive Run?

Photo by Josh Hedges/Zuffa LLC

Benson Henderson's last loss came in the final fight in the history of the WEC. In that loss, to Anthony Pettis, he also relinquished the WEC lightweight title. 

Since that loss, Henderson has put together a three-fight winning streak, looking more dangerous with each passing victory.

First he dispatched Mark Bocek at UFC 129, with that victory earning him a bout with Jim Miller. Miller was unbeaten in seven consecutive fights heading into his August, 2011 scrap against Henderson and was hearing whispers of a possible title shot with a victory over Henderson.

Henderson dominated the fight and took home the unanimous decision victory, setting himself up with a shot at Clay Guida.

The Guida bout was on the undercard of the first UFC on FOX broadcast and had fans practically begging for it to be broadcast via FOX. Alas, that was not to be and the millions that watched the FOX broadcast missed out.

The fast-paced battle earned the two competitors a standing ovation between each and every round and no one that saw the exciting contest would have been disappointed if it would have lasted another two rounds (at least).

In the end, the victory went to Henderson, earning him a shot at Edgar.  The question now is, can Henderson use the momentum he has accumulated in his last three wins to wrest the title from the hands of Frankie Edgar?

Will Frankie Edgar Cement His Name as One of the All-Time LW Greats?

Photo by Nick Laham/Zuffa LLC

Frankie Edgar has put together a record of 14-1-1 in his professional MMA career, with his loss and draw coming at the hands of the same fighter, Gray Maynard.

Edgar put those two blemishes on his record behind him in his last bout, knocking Maynard out in the fourth round of their UFC 136 battle, retaining his lightweight crown and pocketing a little something extra for Knockout of the Night.

Edgar has held the lightweight title since defeating BJ Penn via unanimous decision at UFC 112 and has heard his name mentioned as one of the top pound for pound fighters in MMA. What makes Edgar's dominance all the more remarkable is that, unlike almost all other fighters, he competes very close to the weight at which he walks around.

A victory over Henderson will put Edgar within striking distance of BJ Penn's record lightweight championship reign of 812 days. A fact that should have Edgar remembered as one of the all-time greats of the lightweight division.