Rogan's Comments, Bisping Performance Mar Average UFC 89; Fighter Payouts

I finally got to watch UFC 89 today as the Red Sox/Rays series took up most of my weekend. After unfortunately seeing the results via ESPN's scroller (at least they're running results now), I knew what to expect for results. However, I thought the card was good, but not as great as I heard some others make it out to be.

>Michael Bisping def. Chris Leben by unan decision: Leben kept coming...and coming...and coming, but it wasn't enough as Bisping earned another unan decision victory that came off as lackluster. I understand he's a major draw for the fed in England, but jeez....fight like it! Bisping bloodied Leben in the first round, busting up his nose and causing a nasty welt below his right eye. That didn't stop Leben from controlling the action and pursuing Bisping, who avoided the majority of Leben's blows and doing just enough to win. Bleh. I don't want to see layups in a main event which was the equivalent of the effort I saw out of Bisping Saturday night. Leben cut a great post-fight promo and is fast becoming one of my favorite personalities.

>Keith Jardine def. Brandon Vera by split decision: I thought this fight was very boring between Jardine's plodding attack and Vera's...well, whatever he does. Mike Goldberg must be in love in Vera as he went on and on about how 'comfortable' he looked at his 205 weight and hurt his cred a bit with saying 'what a battle' the fight was following its conclusion. Not in my opinion, Mike. I didn't see much here to justify either guy getting another co-main event soon.

On a side note, I found Joe Rogan's post-fight comments about the Birmingham fans and their decision to boo the fight to be disappointing and close-minded. In case you missed it, Jardine said it made him upset that the fans booed the fight to which Rogan jumped in and said he didn't understand it either and essentially dismissed their behavior as being caused by alcohol. Seriously, if you pay that much for a ticket, you expect a certain level of excitement. For the most part when it comes to these events, the UFC delivers a great value regarding the whole experience. If the fans don't like what they see, they have the right to cheer or boo without getting verbally slapped by Rogan. This was the first time I can remember being this disappointed with Goldberg and Rogan...bad night for those guys.

>Chris Lytle def. Paul Taylor by unan decision: I read this got Fight of the Night and based on the televised matches, I'd have to agree because of the exchanges of punches. I loved they ran some straight audio on Lytle's 3rd rounding pounding of Taylor where you could hear the shots landing. Ouch. This one could have gone either way in my opinion, but I'd love to see a Lytle/Marcus Davis fight in Ireland in January.

Each fighter got a $40k bonus for Fight of the Night.

>Marcus Davis def. Paul Kelly via guillotine choke at 2:15 of the 2nd round: Hey...some RRC karma! Davis looked great in defeating Kelly and continues to be one of the more underrated fighters in the UFC today. Keep reppin' the 2-0-7, Marcus!

>Luis Cane def Sokoudjou via ref stoppage (TKO) at 4:15 of the 2nd round: Cane weathered some early first round aggression by Sokoudjou and was relentless in earning this win. Sokoudjou didn't looked like he wanted this at all and was visibly tired and sluggish. To me, Cane was hell-bent on earning this win and he got it. He's a guy to watch in 2009 as someone that is going to surprise some people in making his way at 205. I still don't know what to make out of Sokoudjou.

Cane got a $40k bonus for Knockout of the Night.

Other:

-Jim Miller got a $40k submission bonus for his rear naked choke win over Davis Baron in a non-televised match. It was Miller's debut in the UFC.

-Eurosport estimated the attendance at 9,515 and the gate to be roughly $1.25-$1.5 million.

(Thanks to MMAWeekly.com for the great pics and MMAPayout.com for the financials.)

Josh Nason has written and maintained Ropes, Ring and Cage since 2007. He can be reached at [e-mail].