UFC Fight Night 162 Results: The Real Winners and Losers

The early-morning showdown featuring Demian Maia and Ben Askren didn't disappoint on Saturday in Singapore. 

Fans across the U.S. had to get up a lot earlier than they probably wanted to on a Saturday morning. But the UFC Fight Night 162 card in Singapore was well worth the minor inconvenience.

The card featured a riveting main event between two of the best MMA grapplers in the world and a bevy of other gifted athletes hoping to further their careers.

But with 22 fighters competing, who were the real winners and losers after the UFC traveled to Singapore for just the fourth time in the company's history?

Winner: Old-School Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu Fans

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When the UFC began around 25 years ago, there was no power greater than Brazilian jiu-jitsu. Early UFC pioneers such as Royce Gracie proved time and time again that the best fighters in the world weren't simply the guys who could knock their opponents out with one big strike.

In fact, the fighting world was shockingly sure at that point that unless the punching and kicking practitioners added at least some portion of Brazilian jiu-jitsu to their repertoire, they would be hopelessly left behind and unable to compete with any sort of consistency at the highest levels of the sport. 

But over recent years, wrestling has probably supplanted jiu-jitsu as the key base technique all MMA fighters need to have a firm understanding of in order to be successful. After all, wrestling allows for better control of the opponent and usually offers more aggressive and effective takedowns and defenses. 

The style is also more complementary asset to striking. It's that ground piece of the ground-and-pound methodology that MMA fans see in fights all over the world.

All this is probably why Demian Maia, despite entering his fight against Ben Askren with the second-most wins in UFC history at 22 and the same historical position in submissions at 11, was thought to be the underdog on Saturday in Singapore. 

Or maybe it was because Maia is 41 years old, six years older than Askren. 

But Maia wore Askren down over the course of the fight anyway and ultimately submitted the former national champion wrestler with a rear-naked choke in the third round to secure his status as probably the single best MMA grappler in the world. 

Moreover, it reminded many of what made Brazilian jiu-jitsu so darn effective in the first place: It doesn't really matter who the bigger, younger or even stronger fighter is. It's all about technique.

Loser: UFC's Huge Plans for Ben Askren

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Askren was undefeated in 18 professional fights when he was traded by Asia-based promotion ONE Championship to the UFC for Demetrius Johnson. Additionally, Askren had already claimed welterweight championships in Bellator and ONE, and many expected him to do the same in the UFC. 

But while Askren is one of the best grapplers on the planet, perhaps some of the shortcomings he had in other areas were hidden by the lack of depth in those other two promotions. 

Maia's advantage in striking became immediately apparent at the start of the bout. The southpaw landed clean punches while Askren mostly missed wildly.

Askren's stand-up got better as the bout wore on, but he was still getting tagged too often by the longer, leaner Maia, and that ultimately spelled his doom. 

By the time the two expert grapplers made their way to the ground for the first time in the fight, the two were pretty evenly matched, but Askren seemed the most gassed when the intensity ramped up.

There's no shame in going move-for-move with Maia on the ground, but there's no way Askren or the UFC envisioned he'd be 1-2 after his first three UFC fights, which includes suffering the fastest knockout loss in the company's history to Jorge Masvidal earlier this year and now having to tap out to Maia on Saturday.

Winner: The Spoiling Power of Sticktoitiveness

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It was supposed to be Michael Johnson's glorious return to the lightweight division, in which he had defeated the likes of Dustin Poirer, Edson Barboza and Tony Ferguson before stepping down briefly to compete in the featherweight division.

Instead, Stevie Ray applied constant pressure on the technically superb Johnson before uncoiling like a snake in the third round to take Johnson down to the mat and produce the onslaught that ultimately earned a stunning victory. 

"I knew the first round was close," Ray told ESPN's Dan Hardy in the Octogan during his post-fight interview. "It could have been scored either way. The second round was probably him. So I came out strong in the third round thinking maybe it was one each."

Ray held his own against Johnson over the first two rounds, but it was clear from the pace of the action that the 29-year-old would have preferred making the fight a straight brawl if he could have convinced Johnson to comply. 

But Ray was forced to make the hard choice of either sticking to his plan of constant pressure and waiting for the perfect opportunity or to just go for broke. 

The fighter made the right choice by sticking to his plan. 

Because when it finally came time for Ray to explode in Round 3, he used that moment to score an important win that should help him climb up the rankings. 

"Everybody doubted me," the Scotsman said. "I know a lot of people doubted me. I hope [in] that fight, I was able to show you what I'm really made of."

Loser: Frank Camacho's Plan to Stop Singing Singapore Blues

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Frank Camacho desperately wanted to erase the memory of this last outing at Singapore Indoor Stadium by defeating Beneil Dariush in a battle between lightweight veterans. Camacho lost his UFC debut at the same venue in 2017, and the fighter told Bloody Elbow before the fight that he had high hopes about righting that wrong.

After losing as a short-notice opponent of Li Jingliang two years ago, Camacho saw this chance to beat Dariush in Singapore as a way to stop singing the Singapore blues. 

"It would be a great way for me to put a stamp on my name in the division, and let everyone know I'm here," Camacho said. 

But Camacho's expectations were quickly dashed in a fight that really wasn't all that competitive. Known primarily for his ability to apply constant pressure in order to gain spaces for his expert-level submissions, Dariush started with heavy leg kicks that led him to securing the takedown, climbing to his opponent's back and nabbing the rear-naked choke to score the win. 

Camacho has now lost three of his last four fights and is dangerously close to running out of chances to make his way up the ladder. Those are some rugged rungs in the UFC lightweight division, and every missed step makes it a longer climb. 

Winner: The Future of the Heavyweight Division

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While the UFC seems to be infatuated with continuing its experiment of turning former NFL player Greg Hardy into a legit heavyweight prospect, France's latest sensation in the weight class already appears to have a higher ceiling. 

Produced by the same gym as Francis Ngannou, Ciryl Gane appears to be a similarly styled destroyer, standing 6'4" tall and weighing 242 pounds to go along with some highly regarded credentials as a kickboxer.  

But Gane surprised everybody—even himself—when he won his UFC debut a few months ago via submission against Raphael Pessoa. Perhaps even more shocking is that he did the same against rugged veteran Don'Tale Mayes on Saturday in Singapore. 

Before securing the win in the final moments of Round 3, UFC fans were treated to seeing just how good Gane can be. The 28-year-old dominated the action with treacherous leg kicks and fluid punching patterns. That he's also already so comfortable using techniques like the arm triangle he employed against Pessoa and the heel hook he locked in against Mayes this early in his career bodes well for the future of the heavyweight division. 

Perhaps the best part, though, is how Gane has already become so accustomed to the idea of being a hugely powerful heavyweight who can do way more than just bash opponents into oblivion. 

"It was a surprise for you and for the fans, but not for us," Gane told Hardy about the submission. "I feel good in the striking but I know I can finish my opponents with submissions because we work on that stuff, too."

UFC Fight Night 162 Full Card Results

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Main Card

Demian Maia def. Ben Askren by submission, 3:54, Rd. 3.

Stevie Ray def. Michael Johnson by majority decision (29-28, 29-28, 28-28).

Beneil Dariush def. Frank Camacho submission, 2:02, Rd. 1.

Ciryl Gane def. Don'Tale Mayes by submission, 4:46, Rd. 3.

Muslim Salikhov def. Laureano Staropoli by unanimous decision (30-26, 30-26, 29-28).

Preliminary Card

Randa Markos def. Ashley Yoder by split decision (29-28, 28-29, 29-28).

Rafael Fiziev def. Alex White by unanimous decision (29-28, 30-27, 30-27).

Movsar Evloev def. Enrique Barzola by unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 30-27).

Sergei Pavlovich def. Maurice Greene by TKO, 2:11, Rd. 1.

Loma Lookboonmee def. Alexandra Albu by split-decision (30-27, 28-29, 30-27).

Raphael Pessoa def. Jeff Hughes by unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27).