UFC 140 Results: Yves Jabouin Picks Up Crucial Win vs. Walel Watson

Yves Jabouin backed up his August win over Ian Loveland with a decisive victory against Walel Watson at UFC 140. The back-to-back wins prove “Tiger” made the right choice to switch divisions before his bout in August and the move could rejuvenate his career.

The veteran Canadian fighter was stymied at first by his opponent's long reach, but eventually found a comfort zone to pick up a split decision from the judges.

It was an entertaining bout, which saw Jabouin hold strong for the final 15 seconds of the second round as Watson locked in a submission maneuver. With every passing second a tap out seemed more and more likely. Instead, he was able to fight off the pain long enough to hear the bell ring.

After surviving that threat, he came back strong in the third round. Several impressive combinations during that final round were probably the difference. Watson, who was looking to jump start his career with an marquee undercard win, proved to be a formidable foe.

So now Jabouin's career, which was on the brink of collapse after consecutive losses to Rafael Assuncao and Mark Hominick, is back on track.

It's especially important because the level of competition within UFC continues to increase as the sport gains momentum within the United States. If Jabouin wants to keep landing fights on cards as strong as Saturday night's, he'll need maintain his current momentum.

He's still in remarkable shape and proved he can still compete at a high level. Perhaps the biggest key is his heart, which was on full display vs. Watson. As long as that drive to succeed remains, he'll be a tough competitor to overcome.

The most crucial thing for him now will be to keep building off his recent success. Nobody is going to take him lightly anymore, no matter how old he is, so he'll need to bring his "A" game to each and every bout.

Judging by his complete performance vs. Watson, that shouldn't be a problem.