B/R Road Trip: UFC Fight Night 21 Live Cageside Coverage

BleacherReport.com is coming to you LIVE from the Bojangles Coliseum in Charlotte, N.C., for UFC Fight Night 21.

I'll be your host for the night, recapping the action as you watch the event live on Spike TV at 8 p.m. EST/5 p.m. PST. Prelims start here at 5 p.m. EST.

If you want to hear more from me, follow me @joshnason on Twitter. I'm about 15 feet from cageside in the second row of media coverage.

4:25 PM

It's a beautiful day in Charlotte—sunny, warm and blue skies. The weather hasn't prevented people from showing up though as lines are long and the people in Tapout shirts are plentiful here.

Doors have opened and people are filing in. First fight is Jason High vs. Charlie Brenneman.

4:45 PM

Arena is still very light. The blasting music has subsided for a few minutes and the UFC ads we saw at the weigh-ins are running—sadly, they are also very loud.

There has been a Bruce Buffer sighting.

5:05 PM

Top o' the hour.

Arena is still very sparse. Media rows have finally started filling up.

Fans inside will not miss any of the action, as there are four video screens, plus a low-def videoboard above the light structure for the cage.

Joe Rogan—clad in old-school leather jacket—just walked to cageside.

5:10 PM

It is finally go time!

No big, fancy intro. Lights are down and we are getting a preview video.

While the place isn't filled up, the crowd is definitely into it.

Charlie Brenneman def. Jason High by unanimous decision.

Interesting decision. Two judges had it 30-27, while one had it 29-28.

Overall, this was pretty bland and I think the ref (Dana something) was quite awful.

At multiple instances, there were chances to stand this up and he just watched...and watched...and watched.

CB had no issues taking this to the ground, but did nothing while there.

High got off some punches, but didn't have much tonight.

I had this 29-28 for High.

Safe to say you ain't watching this tonight on Spike.

The fans here are, well, interesting. They loved Brenneman and there were loud chants of "Spaniard" throughout the fight.

5:36 PM

Mario Miranda vs. Gerald Harris is up next.

This started roughly 10 minutes after the first fight. What is this...Strikeforce?

5:45 PM

Gerald Harris def. Mario Miranda by 1st round TKO (4:29)

Good fight that really brought the crowd to life.

Miranda was using his height/reach advantage early on to hold Harris at bay. He hurt Harris several times, and was effectively using his kicks.

Near the end of the round, Harris started swinging and caught MM with a right hand. He followed with a left, and then a right that sent Miranda down.

A few punches later, the ref called the fight.

Initially, it looked like an early stoppage, but the replay showed it was probably a good call.

Crowd popped huge for the TKO.

Harris was very emotional following the TKO blow. 

5:48 PM

Lucio Linhares vs. Yushin Okami is up next. We are rapid fire tonight, baby!

6:04 PM

Yushin Okami def. Lucio Linhares via 2nd round TKO (2:47) based on doctor's advice.

Good lord, Okami looked great here.

He used precise striking to decimate Linhares' face, bloodying up his eye and nose in the first round.

Crowd popped big for the Okami punch sequences that almost ended the fight in the first. Uppercuts, hammer fits...Okami unloaded it all. I had it 10-8 for Okami.

Fight ended in the 2nd following multiple barrages that turned LL's face into a crimson mask (Thanks, Gordon Solie).

The ref had the doctor look at a nasty cut on LL's left eyebrow and based on his advice, this was over, mercifully.

The ref may have saved Linhares from major damage. He did not look good here at all, but Okami was on point.

6:08 PM

Looks like we have a break for a few minutes. Gleison Tibau vs. Caol Uno is up next.

Crowd is about 75% full right now.

6:22 PM

Gleison Tibau def. Caol Uno via 1st round TKO (4:13)

Tibau looked jacked tonight. He is a big 155.

Uno never really got off in this one, as Tibau just let his fists go. Uno had no answer.

The end came when Tibau threw an opening right that dropped Uno and after a few more punches, he got Uno's back.

After about 10 unanswered shots to the sides of Uno's head (think the pendulum of a ringing bell), ref Bill Clancy stopped it.

No more Uno in the UFC, please.

6:26 PM

No sign of Dana White yet.

Rob Emerson and Nik Lentz up next. Based on their staredown at the weigh-ins yesterday, I am really looking forward to this.

Lentz coming out to some random hip-hop song...not anything I would expect a "Carnie" to like. Where's the creepy circus music and fire-breathers?

Emerson's walkout music wasn't anything special either. I think this is 30 Seconds To Mars ("Battle Of One")?

6:35 PM

All right...fight time.

6:55 PM

Nik Lentz def. Rob Emerson by unan decision

Judges had it 29-28, 30-27, 29-28.

This one had its moments, but was overall pretty one-sided. The two had a spirited first round, but Emerson looked to gas out after a hella-tight standing guillotine by Lentz.

I had the 2nd round 10-10. Neither guy stood out, and most of the round was Lentz controlling Emerson on the ground. But Emerson did sneak out, landing a hard right, and attempted a guillotine of his own.

Great last 40 seconds of the round.

The crowd was a bit quiet for this one, and I heard the first smattering of boos.

I think this is the lull before the storm...they have seen a ton of fights so far.

A note: this referee—Dana—refuses to stand guys up when the action is dead on the ground.

Lentz said post-fight he popped out his shoulder in the early part of the fight. I had this 30-28 for Lentz.

Joe Rogan did his first post-fight interview of the night.

This is the early candidate for Fight Of The Night based on the action.

Ronys Torres vs. Jacob Volkmann up next.

7:25 PM

Jacob Volkmann def. Ronys Torres via split decision

Judges had it 29-28 Torres, 30-27 Volkmann, 30-27 Volkmann. Hmmmm.

Good lord, this was a bland fight. Volkmann did the same thing he always does: takedown, wrestling, slight ground and pound and minimal submission attempts if any. It's ugly and somewhat effective...for flipping the channel.

Torres tried to avoid the takedowns early and wanted to bang, hurting Volkmann at the beginning of the 2nd. But Volkmann wanted none of it and eventually got the control he needed. The 3rd round was essentially the same.

Torres got a good pop comng out. He was wearing the same Indian headdress he donned at the weigh-ins. That is really the only highlight. Fans were polite early, but started to turn near the end of the 3rd.

I never need to see either of these guys fight in the UFC again.

Right before the last fight, I went to the men's room and saw ref Dan Miragliotta take some pics with fans...in the men's room. There are some drunk Southerners here...wow.

The final prelim - Andre Winner vs. Rafaello Oliveira - is up next. We are roughly 30 minutes out from the live event on Spike.

7:53 PM

Andre Winner def. Rafaello Oliveira by unanimous decision

Judges had it 30-27, 29-28, 30-27. I had it 30-27.

Good performance by Winner, but he looked frustrated throughout the fight with not being to do significant damage to Oliveira.

Winner was letting his hands go all night, but never got the kill shot he was looking for. Oliveira was game and was active throughout the night, but Winner was that much better.

He looked to tire in the 3rd and had his mouth open, but was still swinging for the fences, bloodying up Oliveira up as the fight wore on.

7:54 PM

Dana White has coming out and got a hero's welcome.

7:55 PM

Teenage Wasteland is playing...go time! Place is about 90% filled, so no sellout...two rows of media are packed with lots of late arrivals.

8:10 PM

Music has returned to record loud volumes. Skrape from Tapout has been spotted. We are ready for Ross Pearson vs. Dennis Siver!

8:34 PM

Ross Pearson def. Dennis Siver by unanimous decision

Judges had it 30-27 for Pearson. Crowd loved it. I thought that 3rd round could have went to Siver, but I can see Pearson getting it.

As of now, it's the clubhouse leader for Fight Of The Night.

Place went nuts for the intros and start of the fight. Once the cameras came on, they came back on. They really have been into Pearson all week long. Siver looks to have filed out a bit since weigh-ins.

This was simply a great fight. Both guys were content to just get out there and swing and swing and swing. Pearson was definitely quicker on the exchanges, but Siver (aka Lil' Brock) wasn't backing off.

Pace slowed near the end, but that was tough to keep up. Notice that ref Dan Miragliotta was non-existent? That's a good ref....no need to intervene if the action is hot.

Nate Quarry vs. Jorge Rivera is up next. We are at commercial break. Wireless feed is a little choppy, so thanks for your patience.

8:47 PM

Jorge Rivera def. Nate Quarry by 2nd round TKO (:29)

The crowd may have been split at the beginning, but at the end, Rivera had won over the crowd with a dominant performance. Ringsiders were standing up all throughout. Entertaining stuff.

Simply put, Rivera got the better of the striking at every pass, working over Quarry with punches and elbows. Quarry did enought to survive, but he looked defeated going into the 2nd.

Rivera finished in the 2nd by simply overwhelming Quarry, striking him enough to where Quarry rolled over and couldn't take it. Some of the crowd chanted "Hey Hey Goodbye" at the close.

Crowd is loving this. They have really stepped up the past two fights. Who can blame them? Action, blood, hard fights? Volkmann territory this is not.

It's 9:04 PM....Roy Nelson vs. Stefan Struve up next.

9:07 PM

Clay Guida just spotted with quite the lovely entourage and got a nice ovation from those that spotted him. This crowd is loving this whole night...it's like seeing rock stars live in person.

9:13 PM

I would love to get the beer sales numbers from tonight. There have been people drinking here for a long time - evidenced by their words slurring more and more with each passing fight.

Still at commercial at home? We are getting musical montages here.

9:15 PM

Stefan Struve coming out to some German industrial style music. I feel like I'm in Attitude Era WWE right now. Ludvig Borga anyone?

9:18 PM

Roy Nelson comes out to "I'm Fat" and the crowd pops huge. I cannot wait for this fight.

9:20 PM

Fight time...back in a few minutes...major power outage as Buffer was about to announce the guys.

9:29 PM

Struve is back out, Nelson follows a few seconds later and just like that, it's like it never happened.

9:32 PM

This has been one of the strangest 15 minutes I've ever seen at a sporting event. The place went completely dark and eventually the back-up emergency lights went on. That was just plain odd.

After the fighters and everyone stood around not sure what to do, the fighters then left the cage and headed to the back at 9:25 pm. It was controlled chaos in a lot of ways but the fans were having a good time.

9:35 PM

Roy Nelson def. Stefan Struve via KO (:39)

Wow, that was quick. Nelson was fine to swing and trade and good lord, did he connect with a right hand. Struve dropped and a few punches later, it was over.

To say this place erupted is an understatement. Amidst Lesnar, Carwin, dos Santos and Velasquez, Nelson might be the division's fatest rising star.

Poor Struve.

9:38 PM

Main event coming up next. We need a few minutes here to collect ourselves.

9:50 PM

Kenny Florian def. Takanori Gomi by 2nd round submission (2:52)

This place is making it feel like a big fight. This is awesome! Gomi was cheered coming out, but booed upon his intros. It didn't take long for the "Kenny" chants to start early...big fight feel...USA chants have begun.

1st: Florian's jabs are STIFF and are leading to some crunkching knees. Right hand by Gomi to Florian, but Gomi is getting tagged. Floran throwing kicks. Gomi is all defense in the 1st and has little to no offense. KFlo: 10-9

2nd: Florian's striking is more than up to task as Gomi looks helpless. This is a slow round...not like the 1st at all. Gomi looks so overmatched here. Crowd is a bit restless. Let's have a big finish here. 10-9 Florian.

3rd: Florian gets the takedown one minute n and people popped HUGE. This has been a great last few fights that it'd be a shame if this didn't end decisively.

Crowd wants Florian to finish and popped again when he got the mount. Once he took his back, you could feel the end was near and when Florian snagged the rear naked choke, it was already over. It took just a few seconds to finish it off.

Charlotte came to play for these last few fights. Fans are streaming out before the announcement as traffic is going to be horrendous leaving here.

10:11 PM

Gomi looks pretty upbeat leaving the cage as Florian gives his post-fight talk with Rogan. Off to the post-fight presser. See you in a bit!

This concludes this portion of BleacherReport.com's live coverage of UFC Fight Night 21. Thanks for joining us!