UFC 140 Results: Brian Ebersole Proves Little in Controversial Decision Win

Mixed martial arts veteran Brian Ebersole entered UFC 140 with a big test on his hands, as he was set to face Claude Patrick in his hometown of Toronto, Ontario, Canada. While Ebersole came away with a split-decision victory, it didn't do much to improve his current standing.

The judges scored the fight 29-28, 29-28, 28-29 in favor of Ebersole after three rounds that featured mostly clutching and grabbing from both combatants. In my opinion, Patrick was more aggressive in trying to make things happen, so I thought he was the true winner of the fight.

Patrick came close to locking in guillotine and anaconda chokes on two occasions during the third round, but Ebersole was just able to escape his clutches. For the rest of the fight, Ebersole applied waist locks and attempted to keep Patrick stationary.

While he was mostly effective in doing so, it isn't as if he got any offense going in his own right. Some might say that a win is a win, but I think Patrick was robbed by the judges and Ebersole didn't put forth a winning effort in the least.

His tactics might work on lower and mid-tier fighters, but Ebersole is never going to have true success in UFC with that fighting style. While he is undefeated in UFC and has 10 straight MMA wins overall, the higher he climbs up the ladder, the more difficult it will be to win in such a manner.

Ebersole shook his head in disgust after the match as he couldn't have been overly pleased with the way the fight went. He lucked out in terms of the decision this time, but he won't always get the benefit of the doubt. Patrick narrowly missed on a few submission attempts, but a legitimate submission specialist likely would have put Ebersole to sleep.

Granted, Ebersole is a savvy veteran fighter, but I don't think he possesses the tools to be a major player in the UFC. If he runs into a fighter with superior brawling or submission skills, then his act simply won't fly. Ebersole put another notch in the win column, but he certainly didn't impress anyone in doing so.