UFC 141: Lesnar vs. Overeem Winners and Losers
And then it was over….. The great year in Mixed Martial Arts that was 2011 is now in the books, making way for 2012. The final UFC event of 2011 was a card packed with unexpected outcomes and fighters elevating their stock heading into the New Year. Of course with the good there also are the bad and those fighters whose stock fell following UFC 141.
Here are the Winners and Losers of UFC 141.
Winners:
Jimy Hettes (10-0) – Hettes completely dominated Nam Phan for the entire 15 minutes of action to improve his UFC record to 2-0. The only thing Hettes didn’t do was finish Phan, who showed a ton of heart and a rock solid chin in the defeat. The performance even grabbed the attention of Dana White who mentioned “The kid” in his post event press conference. Expect big things in 2012!
Johny Hendricks (12-1) – Needing only 12 seconds to earn the biggest win of his career, Hendricks now finds himself skyrocketing up the welterweight rankings. Fitch was considered a top five welterweight and he knocked him out before either could break a sweat.
Nate Diaz (15-7) – Since moving back down to lightweight after a failed attempt at welterweight, Diaz has looked better than ever. The thing that sticks out the most is the improvement Diaz has made with his Striking and the pinpoint accuracy with his jab. Diaz was able to pick apart Donald Cerrone with his punching that bloodied and bruised “The Cowboy” and earned him a unanimous decision win.
Alexander Gustafsson (13-1) – By defeating Vladimir Matyushenko via a first round TKO, Gustafsson won his fourth in a row and improved his record in the Octagon to 5-1. The Swede has never seen the third round (Does have a two round decision win) and the 24-year-old light heavyweight appears ready for a top 10 opponent.
Alistair Overeem (36-11, 1nc) – Overeem had done it all except fight in the UFC and following his first round TKO of the former heavyweight champion Brock Lesnar the naysayers can mark that off the list. Overeem used his K-1 striking to punish the midsection of Lesnar and will now face Junior Dos Santos for the UFC heavyweight title in 2012.
Losers:
Jon Fitch (23-4-1, 1nc) – Fitch had no clue what happened after Hendricks dropped him and now has to pick up the pieces and climb back up that ladder. The AKA fighter is an impressive 13-2 with 1 no contest in the UFC but has now gone winless in his last two bouts. He was coming off a long 11 month layoff but the quick knockout was a huge setback.
Donald Cerrone (17-4, 1nc) – A 4-1 year in the UFC is nothing to look down upon but when you had a chance at going 5-0, the unanimous decision loss to Nate Diaz should leave a bad taste in the mouth of Cerrone. A win would have positioned him for a possible title shot in 2012 but instead it’s back to the grind.
Brock Lesnar (5-3) – The former heavyweight champion didn’t look good in what ends up being his last MMA bout. Overeem hurt him early with a knee and he was never able to get anything going after that. Lesnar rose quickly in MMA but Diverticulitis brought things to a standstill and ultimately crashing down. Lesnar retired after the fight and was then treated to all the haters taking their shots at him across social media.
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My brain child is MMAValor, something I had wanted to do for a long time and finally it’s here. Been an MMA fan since TUF season one (play catch up all the time) and the obsession started to grow like a weed and as the sport grows so does the love for the sport. I’m a jack of all trades, a very organized person that rides an emotional roller coaster daily.Subscribe
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