UFC on Fox 13, TUF 20 Results: Burning Questions Heading into Fight Night 58

UFC on Fox 13 and The Ultimate Fighter Season 20 Finale are in the books. The results are as follows:

The Ultimate Fighter 20 Finale Fight Card

• UFC Women's Strawweight Championship: Carla Esparza def. Rose Namajunas via submission (rear-naked choke) at 1:26 of the third round
• Charles Oliveira def. Jeremy Stephens by unanimous decision (30-27, 29-28, 29-28)
• KJ Noons and Daron Cruickshank go to a no-contest (accidental eye poke)
• Yancy Medeiros def. Joe Proctor via submission (guillotine) at 4:37 of the first round
• Jessica Penne def. Randa Markos by split decision (29-28, 30-27, 28-29)
• Felice Herrig def. Lisa Ellis via submission (armbar) at 3:05 of the second round
• Heather Jo Clark def. Bec Rawlings by unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
• Joanne Calderwood def. Seohee Ham by unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-26)
• Tecia Torres def. Angela Magana by unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-26)
• Aisling Daly def. Alex Chambers via submission (armbar) at 4:53 of the first round
• Angela Hill def. Emily Peters Kagan by unanimous decision (30-26, 30-26, 30-27)

UFC on Fox 13 Fight Card

• Junior dos Santos def. Stipe Miocic, unanimous decision (48-47, 49-46, 49-46)
• Rafael Dos Anjos def. Nate Diaz, unanimous decision (30-26, 30-26, 30-27)
• Alistair Overeem def. Stefan Struve, knockout (Round 1, 4:13)
• Matt Mitrione def. Gabriel Gonzaga, TKO (Round 1, 1:59)
• John Moraga def. Willie Gates, submission (Round 3, 4:06)
• Joanna Jedrzejczyk def. Claudia Gadelha, split decision (29-28, 28-29, 29-28)
• Ben Saunders def. Joe Riggs, submission (Round 1, 0:57)
• Drew Dober def. Jamie Varner, submission (Round 1, 1:52)
• Ed Herman vs. Derek Brunson—Cancelled
• Bryan Barberena def. Joe Ellenberger, TKO (Round 3, 3:24)
• David Michaud def. Garett Whiteley, unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 30-27)
• Henry Cejudo def. Dustin Kimura, unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
• Ian Entwistle def. Anthony Birchak, submission (Round 1, 1:04)

Next up? UFC Fight Night 58 on Dec. 20. 

In what is becoming a steady trend, the UFC delivers an underwhelming night of fights in Brazil. While there are several interesting names, such as Lyoto Machida, Renan Barao and Patrick Cummins, the majority of the night is mired by ugly, unrepentant squash matches designed to give the Brazilian crowd something to chant about.

So what bright spots are there on this card? Find out right here.

Is This Igor Pokrajac's Last Stand?

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The Fight: Igor Pokrajac vs. Marcos Rogerio de Lima
The Real Fight: Igor Pokrajac vs. a Pink Slip

The Stakes

Igor Pokrajac is still with the UFC...barely. Fans last saw him in November 2013, extending his losing streak to four after getting blown up by former Strikeforce light heavyweight champion Rafael Cavalcante. It is hard to justify Pokrajac's continued presence on the roster now, and it will be impossible to do so if he extends his losing streak to five.

The Question

Is this Igor Pokrajac's last stand?

Analysis

Technically, Pokrajac is 0-4 (1) over his last five. One of his losses, to Joey Beltran, was overturned due to a drug test failure. However, when a fighter isn't putting on a clinic against the perfectly average Mexecutioner, that speaks to where he really is, skill-wise.

To give you a sense of reference for how long it has been since Pokrajac has won a fight, his last victory came over Fabio Maldonado at UFC on Fuel TV 3. The card was headlined by Chan-Sung Jung and also featured Amir Sadollah, Tom Lawlor, TJ Grant and Cody McKenzie.

That feels like an eternity ago.

Will the UFC Continue Pretending Erick Silva Is Good at Fighting?

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The Fight: Erick Silva vs. Mike Rhodes
The Real Fight: Erick Silva vs. His Own Aggressive Mediocrity

The Stakes

Erick Silva is one of the biggest stars in Brazilian MMA...or so the UFC likes to pretend. In reality, he is an aggressively mediocre fighter who has alternated wins and losses his entire UFC career. He has been utterly outclassed by every high-level opponent he has come up against, and his relevance is maintained with blatant, unrepentant squash matches.

After Matt Brown dragged Silva into deep water and showed that he remains a weak swimmer, matchmaker Joe Silva is once again keeping him in the shallow end of the oceanic welterweight pool. He is set to face the 0-2 Mike Rhodes.

The Question

Will the UFC continue pretending Erick Silva is good at fighting?

Analysis

This isn't to hate on Silva. The man is doing his thing and has shown at least a vague ability to hang with Top 10-caliber welterweights. He has some finishing power, and if he adds a couple of wrinkles to his game, he could wind up as somebody to watch in the UFC's deepest division.

The problem is the UFC's insistence that, right now, he is something other than a middling, preliminary-level fighter. He is given prominent placement whenever he fights and put on the big screen at every event he attends.

This is a guy who has been booked above battle-tested veterans like Gabriel Gonzaga, Demian Maia and Gleison Tibau. And this is a guy who has been on main cards while actual Top 10 players like Eddie Wineland, Iuri Alcantara, Raphael Assuncao and Chris Cariaso have been buried on undercards.

No matter how you slice it, that isn't right.

Which TUF: Brazil 3 (Light) Heavyweights Will Pan Out?

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The Fights: Markos Rogerio de Lima vs. Igor Pokrajac, Antonio Carlos Junior vs. Patrick Cummins
The Real Fight: TUF: Brazil 3 vs. Talent(?)

The Stakes

For a brief time, TUF: Brazil 3 middleweight winner Warlley Alves seemed like the real deal. That talk was stopped in its tracks, however, when he needed a gift decision to beat out Alan Jouban. Now, the TUF: Brazil 3 heavyweight class gets its time to shine, with Markos Rogerio de Lima, Vitor Miranda and season winner Antonio Carlos Junior all set to compete. 

The Question

Which TUF: Brazil 3 (light) heavyweights will pan out?

Analysis

As we often see, the remaining heavyweight class of TUF: Brazil 3 has dropped out of the division. De Lima and Junior are now light heavyweights, while Miranda dropped down to middleweight. Because of the crowded nature of the middleweight division, Miranda's fight isn't really worth dedicating many words to. De Lima and Junior, though? They're in a strong position to break out here.

De Lima is set to face the still-recognizable (kind of) Pokrajac, but Junior could wind up in the rankings, should he beat Patrick Cummins. These are two fighters worth watching...at least for a little while.

How Good Is Patrick Cummins?

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The Fight: Antonio Carlos Junior vs. Patrick Cummins
The Real Fight: Patrick Cummins vs. Low Expectations

The Stakes

Patrick Cummins entered the UFC as a joke. He was pulled out of the closest Starbucks and dumped into a cage with a lion named Daniel Cormier. But while his UFC debut went as most folks expected, his impressive showings against Roger Narvaez and Kyle Kingsbury have demonstrated without question that he is a legitimate player at 205 pounds. If he can beat Antonio Carlos Junior, which would extend his UFC winning streak to three, he will be more than deserving of a spot on the rankings. 

The Question

How good is Patrick Cummins?

Analysis

This should be one of the year's best feel-good stories. If Cummins came into the UFC, lost to Cormier, lost to Narvaez and was promptly cut from the promotion, he would be the go-to example for UFC futility.

With two wins, however, he already finds himself miles away from the "worst fighter ever" discussion. With three wins, he might even find himself in the Top 10 mix.

Can Mitch Gagnon Make This Competitive?

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The Fight: Renan Barao vs. Mitch Gagnon
The Real Fight: Can vs. Can Opener

The Stakes

Riding a four-fight winning streak in the puddle-deep bantamweight division, everyone knew that Mitch Gagnon was due for a step up in competition. What nobody could have foreseen, however, was that he would get tapped to be Renan Barao's bounce-back fight after being demolished by TJ Dillashaw. Set to face the former champion in Brazil, Gagnon has the odds stacked against him several times over.

The Question

Can Mitch Gagnon make this competitive?

Analysis

Remember back in the day when UFC fans could laugh at boxing fans about how so many of their biggest fights were naked squash matches? Those were the days, right? 

Not so much anymore. Gagnon is tailor-made to lose to Barao, and this fight wouldn't have been made if that wasn't the case. Sad days, fans.

Is Renan Barao's Head Screwed on Right?

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The Fight: Renan Barao vs. Mitch Gagnon
The Real Fight: Renan Barao vs. TJ Dillashaw 3

The Stakes

Theoretically, this fight is a squash match. Theoretically.

Renan Barao is coming off a lopsided beatdown at the hands of TJ Dillashaw. Barao was battered early and was finished late. Then, his already-stupid immediate rematch with Dillashaw was nixed when he passed out while cutting weight...or something. Those are red flags for sure, but a strong performance over Gagnon would show that he is as good as ever.

The Question

Is Renan Barao's head screwed on right?

Analysis

We have seen many a good fighter cruise along the career path, only to have his wheels pop off and explode. Diego Brandao, Tyson Griffin, Diego Brandao and Jake Ellenberger are all great examples of how quickly things can go sideways for a fighter in MMA. 

Sometimes, they hit the wall all on their own. Sometimes, a good knockout loss can push them over the edge.

Barao needs to make the most out of this fight with Gagnon. If he can't win in emphatic fashion, it is possible his days as an elite-level bantamweight are coming to a close.

Can CB Dollaway Actually Do Anything Here?

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The Fight: Lyoto Machida vs. CB Dollaway
The Real Fight: CB Dollaway vs. Stylistic Mismatch

The Stakes

CB Dollaway is on an amazing career upswing. Like Matt Brown and Robbie Lawler before him, the former ASU wrestler has bucked years of mediocrity and become one of the top dogs in his division. Unfortunately, he now faces off with Lyoto Machida, who remains one of the trickiest outs in MMA.

The Question

Can CB Dollaway actually do anything here?

Analysis

It's hard not to root for Dollaway here. Seeing a fighter climb his way toward a title shot after years of steady work almost always brings a tear to this writer's eye.

But Machida is a unique fighter. You need immaculate wrestling or very high-level striking in order to beat him. If Dollaway can show that he has one or the other, he will trampoline into title contention right alongside Luke Rockhold and Ronaldo Souza. That, however, is a big if.