UFC 131 Results: Report Cards for All the Main Card Fighters

Another Saturday night, another UFC event in the history books.

Across the board, expectations for UFC 131 weren't all that high. But to the surprise of many, the card ended up being very entertaining. 

We saw two UFC heavyweight newcomers put on a dazzling display, a former middleweight make a successful featherweight debut, two ground artists put on a stand-up clinic, and the emergence of the next heavyweight title contender.

It is once again that time for Professor Schielke to check out the performance turned in by the main card fighters, and dish out some report cards.

So who makes the honor roll, and who may be held back a grade? Check it out for yourself.

Vagner Rocha: D-

From the beginning of the fight, and all the way to the final horn, Vagner Rocha was never in the fight.

He was unable to do any effective work on the ground, he had his front leg destroyed by Donald Cerrone's kicks, and just looked bad.

But to his credit, many fighters would have fallen due to all the punishment his lead leg absorbed. Rocha has heart, but he didn't bring much fight with him into the Octagon.

Donald Cerrone: B

While Cerrone looked good against Vagner Rocha, he didn't look too terribly impressive.

Cerrone was able to have his way with Rocha for the entire 15 minutes the fight lasted. Cerrone blasted him with leg kicks, was able to stuff nearly all of Rocha's takedown attempts, and made Rocha look silly towards the end of the fight.

But Cerrone never turned it up when he had his foe ripe for the picking. Had Cerrone kicked it up a notch and gotten Rocha out of there, it would have not only raised his grade, but made him even more appealing to the fans as he continues in his UFC career.

After the fight, Cerrone admitted that he was flat. If he performs like he did at UFC 131 against a higher-caliber opponent, it could very well knock Cerrone down a few notches.

Jon-Olav Einemo: C-

Einemo did not look bad at all, considering this was his first fight in a long time.

He went out there and hit Dave Herman with some huge shots. Before he was stopped in the second round, Einemo landed three right hands and a knee that seemed to hurt Herman.

Even though he didn't leave the Octagon with another win on his record, he won over many fans, and earned Fight of the Night honors for his efforts.

Dave Herman: B+

In the previous slide, I stated that Jon-Olav Einemo won over some of the fans with his gutsy performance against Herman.

Herman not only won over the fans as well, but also made a statement that he is a force to be dealt with in the heavyweight division.

During his part of UFC 131's Fight of the Night, Herman displayed great striking prowess, and showed that he has some massive power in his hands and knees.

But the one flaw he displayed is that he is there to be hit. Should he face some of the better strikers in the heavyweight division, this could be a problem for "Pee Wee" down the road.

Demian Maia: C

Seriously, who expected to see Maia stand and trade with Mark Munoz?

And out of those who expected it, who expected Maia to get the better of Munoz, and hurt him in the first round?

Maia stated in an interview with Bleacher Report before this fight, he stated that he had been working on his stand-up, and it showed Saturday night.

But when the fight was on the ground, he was unable to mount any effective offense, and took a beating to the body from Munoz.

After this fight, Maia could possibly take the role of the "gatekeeper" in the middleweight division.

Mark Munoz: B

While Munoz was able to leave UFC 131 with a decision victory over Demian Maia on his record, it wasn't an easy night for the "Filipino Wrecking Machine."

Munoz was caught completely off guard in the first round when Maia clearly won the stand-up battle. But when the fight hit the mat, Munoz was able to handle his business against the Brazilian jiu-jitsu black belt.

The one thing that can not be overlooked is the fact that Demian Maia got the better of Munoz on the feet.

As Munoz moves up the middleweight ladder, he will have to recognize when he needs to utilize his incredible wrestling to get the fight into his world.

Diego Nunes: C+

Despite losing, Nunes put up a great fight against Kenny Florian.

Towards the end of the fight, it was clear the Nunes was running on fumes, but he never gave up and kept trying to win the fight.

Also, he was able to floor Florian twice at the end of the first and third rounds. But the timing hurt Nunes, as he had no time to capitalize when he did hurt Florian.

The spirited effort displayed by Nunes shouldn't hurt him too badly as he moves forward, but you never know.

Kenny Florian: B+

Kenny Florian made a successful debut in the fourth different weight class he has fought in the UFC.

Florian was able to use his size and reach to his advantage both striking, and on the ground, against the much smaller Diego Nunes.

But after this fight, one has to wonder about Florian's chin. It seemed like it was able to hold up well in the heavier weight classes, but he was dropped twice by Nunes in his featherweight debut.

With a title shot against Jose Aldo looming in the distance, you have to wonder how much of a chance Florian realistically has against the Bleacher Report No. 3 pound-for-pound fighter.

Shane Carwin: D

In his fight to get another crack at the heavyweight title, we saw a completely different Carwin than we had ever seen inside the Octagon before.

During his time away due to injury, Carwin trimmed down, and greatly improved his cardio. But unfortunately for Carwin, those improvements weren't nearly enough for him to be competitive against Junior dos Santos.

We already knew Carwin had a great chin, but many people believed that dos Santos' punching power would be too much for him to handle. Carwin proved everyone wrong, as he survived a beating in the first round that not many men on this planet could survive.

When it came to his offense, Carwin couldn't put anything together. Never during the fight was he anywhere close to putting dos Santos in to any sort of trouble.

At the age of 36, it may be time for Carwin to evaluate his future in the sport.

Junior Dos Santos: A-

Junior dos Santos came in to his fight against Shane Carwin as a slight betting favorite. But when all was said and done, he showed that he should have been a huge favorite.

Dos Santos had his way with Carwin for all three rounds of their one-sided beatdown. And just for good measure, he showed everyone that he does in fact have a strong grappling base, as he took down the superior wrestler twice.

This victory earned dos Santos a shot against champion Cain Velasquez later this year or early 2012. This could be one of the greatest heavyweight title fights not only in UFC, but in MMA history.