UFC 134 Results: What's Next for the Losers

In winning 10 of the 11 fights they participated in at UFC 134 in Rio de Janeiro, Brazilians showed that their nation is not only the birthplace but quite possibly the epicenter of modern mixed martial arts.

Many of the fights ended in quick and definitive fashion; five knockouts or technical knockouts dotted the Brazilian contingent's resume. Fight fans in Rio and around the world are probably still celebrating a fight card for the memory banks.

But on every carnival, a little rain must fall. As always, for every dramatic win, there was an equally dramatic loss.

Here are the possible next moves for those who came up short Saturday night.

12. Ian Loveland

Loveland dropped a split decision to Yves Jabouin in the evening's only fight that didn't feature a Brazilian.

In a hard-fought bantamweight contest that had to be a Fight of the Night finalist, Loveland has little to be ashamed of. Still, he is now 1-2 in the UFC (14-9 overall). A fight with someone like Charlie Valencia could help sort out who really has the goods to make a mark in the Octagon.

In the meantime, it looks like Loveland's showdown with Voldemort will have to wait. But he'll get you, Voldemort. Don't think he won't get you.

11. Felipe Arantes

In the UFC debut for both men, the heavily favored Yuri Alcantara out-grappled Arantes on the way to a split-decision win.

Arantes, who took the fight on short notice, fought pretty gamely and may have earned himself another chance in the UFC.

10. Luis Ramos

Seeing as how Erick Silva knocked him out in only 40 seconds, Ramos didn't have much chance to show the skills that made him a Shooto welterweight beltholder.

On the bright side for Ramos, he reportedly signed a multi-fight deal with the UFC before the event, so we'll see him again in some form or fashion, though a Facebook-style, undercard-to-the-undercard-type engagement is probably the most realistic option given the UFC's dense-like-a-neutron-star welterweight division.

9. Johnny Eduardo

Eduardo didn't embarrass himself in his UFC debut, but he didn't make that huge of an impression, either.

Eduardo is well-rounded and a legitimate striker, but it may be one-and-done for him in the UFC—at least for the moment.

8. David Mitchell

No two ways about it: Paulo Thiago absolutely wrecked David Mitchell at UFC 134.

The big welterweight is now 0-2 in the UFC. Given that he is 11-0 outside the Octagon, maybe that's where his future lies.

7. Dan Miller

Miller showed admirable toughness and courage against Brazilian tree stump Rousimar Palhares.

But the fact is, if Palhares hadn't shown the awareness of a tree stump when he stopped attacking Miller in order to prematurely celebrate a victory he hadn't yet earned, we'd probably be talking about a first-round stoppage.

Miller has now dropped two straight and is 5-5 in the UFC. But to be fair, those losses came at the hands of elite middleweights like Chael Sonnen, Demian Maia and Michael Bisping.

The wrestler still has plenty of game, though a step down in the caliber of opponent may be in order. The loser of September's matchup between Court McGee and Dong-Yi Yang could be interesting, as could the winner between Aaron Simpson and Nick Catone at UFC 136 in October.

6. Spencer Fisher

The bigger, stronger, younger Thiago Tavares had his way with Fisher on the ground before pounding him out in the second round. This loss follows a February loss to Ross Pearson that unfolded in a not-dissimilar fashion.

The 35-year-old Fisher has some great wins and some great wars on his UFC resume, but after losing four of his last five, it's clear a lot of the younger guys have passed him by. As such, he probably needs to take a closer look under the hood. Takedown defense would be a good place to start.

I don't think we've seen the last of Fisher in the Octagon, but his margin for error is now perilously thin. Personally, I'd love to see him do battle with Cody McKenzie if the McKenzietine can get past Vagner Rocha in September.

5. Luiz Cane

Despite the surprise loss to Bulgarian and UFC first-timer Stanislav Nedkov—not to mention his status as the only Brazilian to lose to a non-Brazilian at UFC 134—Cane is too exciting a fighter for one contest to drastically alter his career trajectory.

It's clear Cane is not (at this point, anyway) a world beater, but he's a solid light heavyweight for sure. He'd present an interesting test for young Ronny Markes, a fellow Brazilian and promising UFC newcomer.

4. Brendan Schaub

Whenever an athlete starts a sentence with, "I'm not looking past this, but..." you pretty much know where his head is at.

I blame myself for this letdown. I should have seen this coming with Schaub. When he was openly suggesting a UFC 134 win should line him up for a heavyweight title shot, well, that's pretty presumptuous.

It's a lot easier to predict the charging Minotauro freight train after it's already run you over. But with a legend like that fighting in front of his countrymen—and just a couple miles from his house and home gym—maybe some people (Schaub included) counted Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira out just a little too early.

Schaub has been the subject of a lot of hype lately. Whether he can live up to it remains an open question. But his UFC career is now book-ended with one-sided knockouts at the hands of two of the promotion's better heavyweights (Roy Nelson and now Big Nog). As such, a serious conversation about Schaub The Contender has to go on hold for now.

Up next for Schaub, then? How about a nice slice of humble pie and the winner between Dave Herman and Mike Russow, who fight in October at UFC 136.

3. Ross Pearson

In a card this packed with action, you had to do something pretty doggone special to earn Fight of the Night. British fire hydrant Pearson and his dancing partner, Edson Barboza, did just that.

Pearson was more than up to the task of hanging with the much-vaunted young Muay Thai striker. Barboza inflicted more damage as the fight wore on, and thus earned a split decision.

But you could tell after the fight that Pearson was, rightfully, happy with his performance—win or lose.

If it's possible for one's status to rise even in defeat, Pearson did it at UFC 134. The inner core of the lightweight division is a tough nut to crack these days, but the loser between Matt Wiman and Mac Danzig, who fight Oct. 1, could be Pearson's best chance to take another step in that direction.

2. Forrest Griffin

Of all the losers from UFC 134, Griffin's case may be the most intriguing.

The ever-popular Forrest probably has an open ticket to fight in the UFC for as long as he likes. But his entirely one-sided knockout loss to Shogun Rua continues Griffin's struggles against top-flight opponents. He's now dropped three of his last five, with losses coming to Rua, Rashad Evans and Anderson Silva.

More troubling than that, however, are the questions Griffin himself seems to be raising about his commitment to the fight game. He wrote before UFC 134 that he no longer feels he's improving in the sport, and that MMA is no longer fun for him. He also didn't seem to be relishing the Rio experience, or really any aspect of the run-up to his rematch with Rua.

Anyone familiar with Griffin's personality probably realizes that fun is something that is important to the light-hearted light heavyweight.

Griffin has two best-selling books under his belt, a budding family, a legion of loyal fans and a little bit of that all-important mainstream cachet.

Maybe a new opponent or a new camp will put the spring back in his step. But given that he could probably make a nice living without ever being punched in the face again, retirement might make sense if Griffin can't recapture his enthusiasm for combat.

It would be sad, but at this point, it would not be a shock.

1. Yushin Okami

Fighting Anderson Silva these days has an almost transactional feel to it.

You step in the cage, you bow, you proceed forward, you hand him your manhood, you fall to the ground, you collect your paycheck and you go home.

Okami is not the first one Silva has dismantled, and he will not be the last. As such, the thoroughness of Silva's dominance imbues the outcome with an outlier quality for his opponent.

As such, Okami probably won't suffer a great deal as a result of the loss, brutal though it was. The winner between Demian Maia and Jorge Santiago this October could be a good option, as could the loser between Chris Leben and Mark Munoz. 

In short, Okami will now return to his regularly scheduled fight career. He may not get another title shot anytime soon, but all just means he's now at the rear of a long and illustrious line of unsatisfied Anderson Silva customers.

Hey, at least he got out of the first round.