UFC on FX 5 Results: Dodson vs. Formiga, What Went Wrong for Formiga

Jussier Formiga was the underdog going into his fight against John Dodson, and after that fight, it'll be harder to judge his chances against UFC talent.

During two rounds of action, Formiga never really got in control of the fight, getting left behind in the stand-up and coming up with nothing on takedowns.

So, what exactly went wrong for the one-time flyweight kingpin?

Speed

Dodson just might be faster than Demetrious Johnson, and that's a frightening thought.

Formiga made his biggest mistake in trying to keep up with Dodson step by step. Picking a single-leg takedown doesn't work if the target is already leaping backward the minute you reach downward, and that was the case tonight.

Athleticism

Sure, it's one of the most boring buzzwords to use in MMA analysis, but any power advantage Formiga had in the stand-up was negated by the fact that Dodson just ran on a higher gear the entire night.

From ducking out of exchanges to superior footwork, Dodson was in a physical zone that Formiga just couldn't match. That's an intangible value that made the difference.

Grappling

Formiga tried to speed box with Dodson and paid the price as soon as he got caught with a clean shot down the middle.

It didn't look like much, but the powerful left that floored Formiga seemed to break him, the second of two huge knockdowns. Although the Brazilian was able to recover initially, the second time proved to be the charm, as he curled to the mat and never got up.

[McKinley Noble is an MMA conspiracy theorist and FightFans Radio writer. His work has appeared in GamePro, Macworld and PC World. Talk with him on Twitter.]