UFC 162 Results: Bouts that Overshadowed Disappointing Headline Fight

On a night everyone expected to be dominated by an exciting main event, the biggest storyline was just how absurd the biggest fight of the night proved to be.

Undefeated pound-for-pound kingpin Anderson Silva set out to defend his title against Chris Weidman, but the result was a display of arrogance that left the Spider on the canvas with referee Herb Dean standing over him.

Silva was attempting to get inside Weidman’s head, as he had done so many times in 16 previous UFC bouts. But regardless of his intentions, Silva’s antics backfired. Badly.

Fans hoping for a knock-down, drag-out main event left with nothing more a bad taste in their mouths.

Fortunately for those same fans, they didn’t leave entirely empty-handed. UFC 162 featured a couple tremendous fights that, in some small way, had to have made up for a disappointing finale.

Let’s take a look at two fights that outshined Silva vs. Weidman and break down what made them so entertaining.

Mark Munoz vs. Tim Boetsch

Mark Munoz’s return to the Octagon ended in triumphant fashion with a unanimous decision victory over Tim Boetsch on Saturday night, 30-26, 30-27, 29-28.

The Filipino Wrecking Machine’s journey back to the canvas was arduous after a crushing loss to Weidman a year ago, but he showed no signs of rust against Boetsch, spending most of the fight pounding “the Barbarian” on and off the mat.

But Boetsch kept things entertaining with a bevy of submission attempts, nearly catching his opponent multiple times in the third round. Either from a lack of execution or a strong counter from Munoz—or both—Boetsch simply couldn’t close it out.

Still, the fight featured everything you look for in an exciting main card clash. The judges’ results weren’t all that surprising, but the outcome perhaps was, especially after Munoz’s well-documented struggle to return to the Octagon.

 

Frankie Edgar vs. Charles Oliveira

Few probably expected the co-main event to feature more excitement than Silva vs. Weidman.

It did.

Frankie Edgar hadn’t fought a bout slated for just three rounds in over three years, and he came out with the intensity and energy everyone expected to see.

It wasn’t exactly a two-sided affair, but Edgar provided more than enough action to keep things entertaining. The 31-year-old had everything working against Oliveira, mixing in healthy doses of solid striking, takedowns and ground-and-pound abuse.

Edgar wasn’t able to finish off Oliveira prior to the final bell, but he did come away with a decisive 30-27, 29-28, 30-27 unanimous decision that was a lot more exciting than the final scores would indicate.