UFC 148 Results: Questions Answered and Lessons Learned

I'm still in Las Vegas. I'm pretty sure I'm the only one from the traveling media left. It's been a long and exhausting week that was highlighted by an absolutely stellar crowd at the MGM Grand Garden Arena. 

The night had everything I want in MMA. I saw one of my favorite fighters ever walk away for the final time in an extremely close fight. I saw Brazilian fans cheer as if the main event had taken place in a soccer stadium in Brazil

And I saw Anderson Silva cement his place in MMA lore as the greatest fighter of all time. 

With the fights over I would like to tell you what I learned from the experience. 

Not All Bantamweights Are Exciting

It's pretty accepted that the lighter weight classes are the most exciting in the sport. The fighters usually fight at such a wild pace that it's difficult to keep up with the action. Usually is the key term in that sentence. 

The UFC 148 bout between Mike Easton and Ivan Menjivar was one of the worst fights I've ever seen. Not one of the worst bantamweight fights. I'm saying one of the worst fights. Ever. Totally boring. 

A member of the live audience yelled out "GREAT SHADOW BOXING MATCH" and you know what? He was totally right. 

That win does absolutely nothing for Easton and the loss will likely see Menjivar plummet to the Facebook prelims. 

Awful. Let us never speak of it again. 

Just Because You Train with the Diaz Brothers Doesn't Make You a Diaz Brother

Seriously Cody McKenzie, what were you thinking when you tried to mean mug Chad Mendes at the weigh-ins? Did you think that would get in his head and psyche him out? Who gave you that absolutely awful advice?

Well, I guess we learned that just because you train with Nick and Nate Diaz doesn't mean that you will ever fight like or be Nick and Nate Diaz. You're Cody McKenzie and at Saturday night's post-fight press conference, everyone had a good laugh at your expense. 

Forrest Griffin Is a Crazy Person

Alright, so where do I start? Should I discuss how he left the cage immediately after the fight and started walking towards the locker room? Should I discuss how it took UFC President Dana White yelling at him for Griffin to return to the cage?

Nope, after some thinking, all I have to say is that Griffin stealing Tito Ortiz's last moment in the UFC cage was total nonsense. 

I'm actually mad that's the last memory I'll have of Ortiz in the Octagon.

If You're Not First, You're Last

Ricky Bobby's dad was right about this one. In fighting, if you aren't the winner, you might as well not even bother. 

Chael Sonnen has now come up short twice against Anderson Silva in his attempts at capturing UFC gold. Unfortunately for Sonnen, it's been a common theme in most of his sporting life. As talented as he is, he's always the proverbial bridesmaid and never the bride. 

He came in second at the World Greco-Roman University championships and never came close to winning the NCAA's.

That's his legacy. Always second-best. 

Anderson Silva Is the Best Fighter of All Time

I'm not talking about MMA when I say that Anderson Silva is the best fighter of all time. I'm saying in the entire history of fighting, from the cavemen to present times, Anderson Silva is the absolute best. He has no equal in the sport of MMA and has made very talented men look like complete amateurs. 

He's like a fine wine. He's actually getting better with age and still continues to blow my mind with how good he actually is. That anchor punch and knee to the body were spectacular. 

It will be a sad sad day when Anderson finally decides to walk away from MMA. I just hope that I have the pleasure of being there live. 

Seven Days in Vegas Is Way Too Long

This is a personal lesson learned. I flew into Las Vegas a day early to get settled in for this week. I thought that I could relax a bit before the grind of fight week became a reality. 

What a terrible idea. 

I'm running on fumes at this point and honestly this entire week has been an emotional roller coaster. I really have nothing left after how great UFC 148 was.

Las Vegas is a ton of fun. But only for two or three days. Then you start to notice the same guy sitting at the same slot machine for hours on end. It gets depressing. 

Thank you UFC for everything, this is one for the books.