UFC 204 Results: The Real Winners and Losers from Bisping vs. Henderson
While UFC 204 was short on top-tier talent, it was long on excitement. Nine of the event's 11 fights ended inside the distance, with a number of amazing submissions along the way.
While there were officially 11 winners and 11 losers in Manchester, England, not all wins and losses are equal.
The biggest winner of the night was main event victor, and still the middleweight champion, Michael Bisping. The hometown favorite rolled the dice in a big way at UFC 204. While his opponent, Dan Henderson, was on paper an easy fight, this was anything but low-risk for him.
A loss would have been disastrous for his career. His UFC 100 loss to Henderson still haunted him seven years later, and a second loss to the former Pride champ would have been irreparable.
Had Henderson won, Bisping's championship run would have gone down as a fluke. Bisping himself would have gone down as an enduring midcarder, not a longtime great. Bisping, though, managed to take the win in a suspenseful bout defined by Hendo's early brutality and the Count's late dominance, capped with a feel-good moment in front of his family and friends.
Henderson, meanwhile, goes down as the biggest loser. Already regarded as a legend by many, a UFC title (alongside his Strikeforce and Pride championships) would have given the heavy-hitter the hardware to stake a claim on GOAT status.
While this wasn't an embarrassing loss by any stretch, and he looked good even in defeat, having history slip through one's fingers can't feel great.
Real Loser: People Who Believe in Karma
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Mike Perry is everything that's wrong with MMA. There's no nice way to say it.
He confirms almost every negative conception about MMA with a criminal past alongside a history (warning: NSFW language) of racially insensitive and/or homophobic remarks. He's the exact kind of person the UFC should be avoiding, never mind actively promoting.
It's a safe bet a lot of people were rooting against Perry in his second UFC fight, especially since his first bout ended with his corner shouting a racially insensitive remark during the broadcast (warning: NSFW language). Alas, they went home wanting.
At four minutes, 40 seconds of Round 3, after 14 minutes of back-and-forth action, Perry clobbered his opponent, Danny Roberts, with a big knee followed by a big punch that sent him crashing to the ground. A few more punches later and Perry found himself 2-0 in the Octagon.
It was another exciting performance and impressive knockout from Perry. If he didn't have so much baggage, he would likely be a fan favorite.
Real Loser: Albert Tumenov
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Riding an impressive five-fight winning streak and coming off a win over Lorenz Larkin, Albert Tumenov was a fringe top-10 welterweight in January. How long ago does that feel?
Coming off an ugly submission loss to Gunnar Nelson at UFC Fight Night 87, Tumenov was in desperate need of a win at UFC 204. Suffice it to say, he didn't get one.
Facing Leon Edwards, an opponent nobody would describe as "elite," Tumenov struggled to maintain momentum. For the most part, he struggled to keep the fight standing. Edwards ate up minutes on the ground until, in the third round, he sunk in a rear-naked choke.
The Russian is now on the first losing streak of his career and has lost all the momentum he entered the year with. His career isn't over by any stretch; he's 24 years old and has serious skills.
But boy...what a terrible year for him.
Real Loser: Fans of Comeback Stories
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Davey Grant's UFC run has been tragic. After looking solid on The Ultimate Fighter Season 18, the Brit came up short against Chris Holdsworth in the finale. Then he disappeared.
Injury after injury robbed him of his athletic prime and threatened to end his career. He battled, though, and got back into the Octagon at UFC Fight Night 84, where he posted an emphatic win over Marlon Vera. That set him up for a feel-good moment at UFC 204 in his hometown of Manchester, where he could begin his comeback in earnest and start sniffing around the bantamweight rankings.
He was given a favorable matchup in Damian Stasiak, who didn't seem like a match for his cardio or athletic tools. Another big win for Grant, and he would be right in the thick of things at 135 pounds.
That did not come to pass.
The fight was neck-and-neck entering the third round. Stasiak did well on the ground, eating up minutes and advancing into dominant positions without much trouble. Grant was the superior athlete, getting the better of most scrambles and doing serious damage in the clinch.
It looked like things were set to go to a tossup judges' decision, until Stasiak threw up his legs for an armbar. Grant thrashed and reeled and did everything he could to escape, sacrificing his elbow in the process.
The effort was for naught, however. Stasiak had the arm as tightly as possible and pulled it back further and further. Grant eventually tapped out.
It's sad and, frankly, a bit tragic. So much talent and so few opportunities to showcase it.
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Real Winner: Grappling Enthusiasts
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Iuri Alcantara has always had the individual tools to do huge things in the Octagon. A long, lean frame. A devastating left hand. Excellent grappling.
The only thing he doesn't have is consistency. Sometimes he looks like a pedestrian, regional-level competitor. Sometimes he looks like a monster.
At UFC 204, he looked like the latter.
After a brief feeling-out period, Alcantara nailed his foe, Brad Pickett, with a spinning elbow that visibly staggered him. He kept the pressure on from there with punches, knocking Pickett down and unleashing heavy ground-and-pound.
What happened from there was one of the most gorgeous chains of submissions ever seen in MMA. Alcantara went for a mounted triangle choke. Pickett attempted to roll away, and Alcantara immediately transitioned to an armbar. Pickett then attempted to posture and escape, but Alcantara again slapped on a triangle choke and used Pickett's momentum to flip him back to the ground.
Look for this one in the year-end awards.
Real Winner: Stefan Struve's Title Chances
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Speaking of lanky, inconsistent fighters who know their way around the mat, Stefan Struve also fought at UFC 204, and he looked really good. Facing Daniel Omielanczuk, the Skyscraper posted one of the best performances of his career and managed to dominate in all areas of the fight.
Throughout the bout, he looked the part of the bigger fighter (which isn't as much of a no-brainer with the 7'0" Struve as it seems) and worked knees in the clinch and his long uppercut. Early in the second round, he cracked Omielanczuk in the clinch and got to work on the ground. That, of course, is Struve's greatest strength, and he looked to be in 2012 form as he quickly locked up a D'Arce choke that forced a tap.
While Struve has only ever been a fringe top-10 heavyweight, he finds himself in an interesting position these days, with a knockout win of the current champ in his pocket. He called out a top-five opponent in the post-fight in-ring interview. Hopefully he gets it.
Real Winner: Jimi Manuwa's Credibility
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Jimi Manuwa started his UFC career in a strange way: winning three fights in a row by TKO via injury. When he was thrown into the division's deep end, however, Anthony "Rumble" Johnson and Alexander Gustafsson knocked him out in devastating fashion.
Those losses, combined with two yearlong layoffs, saw him forgotten by most fans, but they were given a great reminder of what he's capable of at UFC 204. Facing ninth-ranked Ovince Saint Preux, Manuwa delivered one of the most impressive wins of his career.
OSP was in complete control in the first round, taking Manuwa down and generally dominating the grappling exchanges. That output, however, left OSP huffing and puffing early in the second, and Manuwa took full advantage with a devastating series of punches that left OSP in a Steve Nelmark post-Tank Abbott-like heap.
The win doesn't vault Manuwa into the title picture. His losses to Johnson and Gustafsson will likely keep him from competing for the title for the remainder of his career. Still, a win in England for Manuwa after another injury-related layoff must feel good.
Real Loser: Vitor Belfort's Legacy
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This was doomed to be an ugly one, but it couldn't have gone any worse.
Shortly before UFC 204, Brazilian media member Breno Massena (via Mookie Alexander of SB Nation's Bloody Elbow) reported Vitor Belfort was planning to retire following UFC 204. The former light heavyweight champ has been dealing with questions about his legacy for a long time, and that made this fight an important one.
If he won? He's legit, and he always was legit. Clean or dirty, when the cards were on the table, he was an elite fighter with elite skills.
If he lost? He was only as good as his doctors made him. A guy whose greatest successes went hand-in-hand with positive tests for elevated testosterone or anabolic steroids. Somebody who wasn't good enough to hack it without chemical help.
He lost.
For nearly the entire fight, Belfort was working with his back to the cage, getting walked down by Gegard Mousasi. He mustered up a bit of offense, sure, but this was a passive Belfort. A submissive one. A weak one.
Eventually, a Mousasi punch landed, and what followed was a flurry straight out of Hokuto No Ken. Belfort wilted, was taken down and was finished by punches shortly thereafter. Assuming he does retire following this fight, his career will be divided into two parts, and his achievements will have an asterisk next to them.
Real Winner: Michael Bisping's Legacy
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Michael Bisping needed a win at UFC 204. Desperately. Despite entering the event as middleweight champ, Bisping's legacy was not set in stone. While the Brit fell into a title shot at UFC 199 and made the most of the opportunity, it didn't erase the memories of his numerous losses over the years.
If he couldn't muster up a win over the 46-year-old Dan Henderson, his reign would have gone down as a fluke, and he would have been remembered as a modern Maurice Smith.
Thankfully for him, he avoided that fate. In a suspenseful bout, Bisping managed to battle back from two devastating knockdowns and out-marathon his aging rival, outpointing Henderson en route to a unanimous- decision win.
How long will he keep the title? Will he be remembered as an all-time great or an enduring veteran? These questions will be answered in time.
The question Bisping answered Saturday night, though, was "is he a worthy champion?"
The answer to that is an emphatic yes.
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