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There is no doubt in the mind of most MMA fans that UFC On Fox IV was easily the best event the UFC has aired on Fox thus far. There is a new top contender to the UFC Light Heavyweight Title as Lyoto Machida outperformed Mauricio Rua, Ryan Bader and Brandon Vera to earn the opportunity. Also, Joe Lauzon broke the all-time UFC bonus record and Mike Swick returned after a very long absence.
Round One: The Dragon Gets The Shot
While both light heavyweight feature fights at UFC On Fox IV were very good battles, but it was Lyoto Machida who looked the best in victory on Saturday Night. Lyoto Machida knocked out Ryan Bader with a counter right that put the UFC Ultimate Fighter Champion to sleep. Lyoto Machida will still have to wait and see who he will be fighting for the title as champion Jon Jones and challenger Dan Henderson will fight at UFC 151. The real thing that UFC fans will be interested in finding out is whether or not Lyoto Machida learned anything from his first loss to Jon Jones.
Next Round For Lyoto Machida: Jon Jones/Dan Henderson winner
Next Round For Ryan Bader: Brandon Vera
Round Two: The Runner Up
Mauricio Rua may have been the winner in the other light heavyweight contenders fight, but it may have been Brandon Vera who was the biggest winner of the fight. Most people, myself included, thought that Brandon Vera would be destroyed by Mauricio Rua within the opening round. That did not happen because Brandon Vera put up one heck of a fight and at certain points in the fight, looked like he would defeat Mauricio Rua. No matter what though, it was Mauricio Rua who came out victorious on Saturday Night and is now closer to a title shot.
Next Round For Mauricio Rua: Rashad Evans, Forrest Griffin or Alexander Gustafsson
Next Round For Brandon Vera: Ryan Bader
Round Three: The Bonus King
Joe Lauzon may always be considered a perennial contender to the UFC Lightweight Title, but now he has a different name…The Bonus King. After a victory over Jamie Varner at UFC On Fox IV, Joe Lauzon netted a “Fight Of The Night†and “Submission Of The Night†bonus, which gave him eleven total bonuses throughout his UFC career, the most in UFC history. Bonuses aside, Joe Lauzon and Jamie Varner put on a great fight that could be considered one of the best this year. Credit must also be given to Jamie Varner, who replaced an injured Terry Etim on short notice, his second short notice fight since returning to the UFC.
Next Round For Joe Lauzon: Danny Castillo, Clay Guida or Jim Miller
Next Round For Jamie Varner: Jeremy Stephens, Jacob Volkmann or Mark Bocek
Round Four: Welcome Back, Mike Swick
It has been nearly two and a half years since Mike Swick last competed in the UFC as he had battled various illnesses and injuries. After that two year wait, it took Mike Swick less than ten minutes to defeat DaMarques Johnson in his return fight. Early in the fights second round, Mike Swick took DaMarques Johnson down and landed a punch on the way down to put him out. With that victory, Mike Swick now builds himself back up to possibly challenging for the UFC Welterweight Title in the future.
Next Round For Mike Swick: Thiago Alves, Siyar Bahadurzada or John Hathaway
Next Round For DaMarques Johnson: Paulo Thiago, TJ Waldburger or Pascal Krauss
Round Five: A Career Saving Victory
At one point in his career, Manny Gamburyan was picking up a lot of victories and quickly becoming a top level featherweight. Following a loss to then WEC Featherweight Champion, Manny Gamburyan saw that once promising career come to a halt with several major losses. Then came a fight with Michihiro Omigawa at the UFC On Fox IV Preliminary Card, a fight that both fighters needed to win to save their careers. When it was all said and done, Manny Gamburyan defeated Michihoro Omigawa by unanimous decision to save himself from the always hated pink slip.
Next Round For Manny Gamburyan: Maximo Blanco, Marcus Brimage or Daniel Pineda
Next Round For Michihoro Omigawa: A UFC release
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