UFC on Fox 13 Results: Grades for All Main Card Fighters
UFC on Fox 13 hit Phoenix on Saturday night, offering up a thrilling heavyweight headliner between Stipe Miocic and Junior dos Santos. Dos Santos came out on top after five rounds of phenomenal action—the type of showing that secures his place as one the best heavyweights in the world not named Cain Velasquez.
Matt Mitrione, Alistair Overeem and Rafael dos Anjos were also successful on the evening, with each winning in their own exciting fashion.
It was a solid night for fans of mixed martial arts. Here are the grades for those who stepped into the cage.
Matt Mitrione
1 of 8
Mitrione looked like a man being paid by the second in Phoenix. He was very much interested in getting Gabriel Gonzaga out of the cage as quickly as possible. A slick left hook on the inside was all it took for him to accomplish that mission.
Meathead is in the unique position of having steady improvement deep into his 30s, which is likely due to his coming into the sport later in life and already having an impressive athletic pedigree when he did. This win could be an indicator that he’s ready for someone in the top 10 in his next bout.
Grade: A+
Gabriel Gonzaga
2 of 8
Gonzaga had a rough night at UFC on Fox 13. He looked slow and plodding before being starched badly by Mitrione. He chased a little on a punch and walked into a nasty piece of business from The Ultimate Fighter alum—and that was all she wrote.
His place on the fringe of the top 10 is basically a lock with this loss, and he’ll probably be a gatekeeper for the remainder of his time in the UFC—if you didn’t think he was already. He’s a useful guy to have on the roster regardless, though.
Grade: D-
Stefan Struve
3 of 8
It was not the best return to action for Stefan Struve, who struggled greatly with Overeem in his first in-cage showing since March 2013. After being taken down with ease, he ate a series of powerful strikes from Overeem before finally succumbing to a knockout in the closing seconds of the round.
All things considered, though, just competing again is a small victory. Many thought he wouldn’t have the chance after a medical scare and some additional troubles at UFC 175 in July.
From here on out, it’s about improving and getting another win instead of just getting to fight night.
Grade: D
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Alistair Overeem
4 of 8
Overeem looked to be in vintage form in Phoenix, smashing Struve in a lopsided round and scoring his second win in three fights. While it wasn’t the strike-heavy approach to success people have come to expect from The Reem, it showed the type of fight IQ he displayed in his win over Frank Mir.
With a win in a low-pressure situation now under his belt, there’s reason to expect that Overeem might be back in with the big fish the next time he straps on the gloves. He still has star power, and he has shown an ability to evolve as he needs to in order to avoid irrelevance.
In a thin division, that could easily be enough to be a fight or two away from a title fight after Saturday.
Grade: A+
Rafael Dos Anjos
5 of 8
On the biggest stage of his career, dos Anjos showed up in the biggest way imaginable. He lashed Nate Diaz with leg kicks and roughed him up on the ground for three rounds, staking a very strong claim to the next lightweight title shot after a dominant win.
With years punched in the UFC and a pretty clear upward trajectory, there’s nothing stopping him from getting a crack at Anthony Pettis his next time out. He’s an elite grappler who’s rounded out his striking game and turned it into something truly dangerous. He has also lost only once in the past three years.
He could be chasing gold come springtime.
Grade: A+
Nate Diaz
6 of 8
Diaz rounded out one of the strangest fight weeks in recent memory with a sound thumping at the hands of dos Anjos on Saturday night. He never posed any particular threat at any point, eating leg kicks and the ground-and-pound on his way to a convincing loss in his first appearance since late-2013.
It’s clear the younger Diaz has some serious thinking to do before hitting the cage again. After missing weight and doing little more than complaining about CM Punk since he returned to the limelight, he’ll need to have his affairs in order before he does serious harm to himself and to what’s been a stellar career to this point.
Grade: D-
Stipe Miocic
7 of 8
Miocic showed the world that he’s a truly elite heavyweight with his Fox performance, battling dos Santos tooth-and-nail right down the final horn. He didn’t score the decision, but he was in no way outclassed by the former champ.
Still in his early-30s, there’s room to grow and improve for Miocic, and he may still manage to find his way into a title fight one day. He’s a great boxer with good wrestling and a willingness to make things exciting, so he’s probably not going anywhere for the foreseeable future.
Grade: B+
Junior Dos Santos
8 of 8
Dos Santos reminded the world why he’s considered among the best mixed martial artists on Earth in his bout with Miocic, absorbing tremendous punishment while dishing out just a little bit more on his way to a unanimous decision win.
It was the first time he entered the cage in over a year—and the first time he fought since being badly beaten by Cain Velasquez in their last meeting. He continuously scored on the feet, showing the sharp hands that made him a champion and the unbreakable will that may very well see him get a crack again sometime down the line.
Get used to seeing him, folks. Dos Santos isn’t going anywhere.
Grade: A
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