UFC 81 Live Results - Mir vs. Lesnar / Sylvia vs. Nogueira

Starting at 10:00pm EST I will be providing live results and thoughts on the UFC 81 pay-per-view.  Please feel free to comment on the fights in the comment thread.

One rule, no undercard results allowed!  Until the PPV ends we will not spoil any undercard fights as I don't know which fights will be broadcast in case of extra time left on the PPV broadcast.

So keep clicking refresh for results as they happen.  And don't forget to check out Any Given Saturday starting at 1:00am EST.

While we wait for the show to start here are a few questions for you to answer in the comments section:

1. Could Brock Lesnar potentially gain more respect and credibility from losing a tough fight than plowing through Mir in a round?
   
2. How badly does Tyson Griffin need to finish a fight?  Even with as exciting as his fights have been does he need to get some stoppage wins?
   
3. If Tim Sylvia beats Noguiera where does it put him in the heavyweight rankings?

Really odd moment as they were talking about the Almeida/Yundt fight and Joe Rogan just trailed off and said "oh I'm sorry."

Gleison Tibau Vs. Tyson Griffin
Round 1 - Tibau is a huge guy for 155. Better reaction from the crowd for Griffin than I expected. The fight starts with Tibau taking the center of the ring as Tyson tries to throw some leg kicks. The right hand lands for Griffin a few times and he looks a little quicker getting off in the first minute. Right lands for Tyson again and he is throwing the straight with a lot of speed and keeping his hands high when he isn't throwing. Two minutes in and they're still standing, but Tibau grabs a body lock against the cage before dropping down for a double but can't keep Tyson down. Back to standing in the center of the octagon and they exchange a nice flurry of punches and now it's Tyson landing some big shots but Tibau grabs a double and lands in Griffin's half guard. Tibau grabs a crucifix but Tyson works back to his feet and is attempting a single leg which Tibau is able to shrug off. Nice reversal by Tibau takes Griffin down but he uses the cage to stand up immediately. 10-9 round for Griffin on the BloodyElbow scorecard based on scoring damaging strikes.
Round 2 - Griffin looks confident on his feet and is working to the body enough to make Tibau think. When the two fighters are clinched against the cage Tibau looks to be the stronger guy physically. Griffin actually looks a little bit tired about a minute and a half into the round. Tibau is the one landing the better punches in the exchanges this round. Tibau with a takedown and lands in side control. Tyson gives up his back and works his way back to standing. Nice right hook lands for Tyson and he throws a huge haymaker that misses seconds later. Rights just miss for both fighters. Sharp body kick by Griffin. Either guy could take the round in the last minute. Joe and Mike are being really careful to not mention Couture by name when talking about his corner or who Griffin trains with. Tibau takes him down again but Tyson bounces right back up. 10-9 Tibau based on landing sharp punches in the early part of the round, and a few takedowns even though he wasn't able to do much with them. Barry Bonds is shown, making him the only man at a UFC event to be booed more than Tim Sylvia. 19-19 fight on my card.
Round 3 - Overhand left lands for Tibau. Rogan has a different view than I do of the standup, thinking that Griffin is dominating but I really thought Tibau looked fine last round aside from 2 punches. A deep double leg by Tibau and he is in Tyson's butterfly guard. Left hand lands hard and Tibau is in a better position to prevent Tyson from bouncing back up. Tyson works back to his feet but eats some punches in doing so. Tyson is throwing too many haymakers for my taste here, when sharp boxing worked so well for him early. A few good body shots and a right hook catches Tibau clean (that's the boxing I wanted to see). Another good left to the ribs of Tibau. A good ten or so footstomps (my wife's favorite move in all of MMA) from Griffin. The round ends with both fighters standing. 10-9 Griffin on my card making the final scorecard 29-28 for Tyson Griffin but I certainly could see 30-27 as the second round could have gone to Tyson as well. Official Scorecards: 30-27 across the board. Tyson Griffin wins by unanimous decision. Again Tyson goes to a decision and the crowd is booing A LOT. Way more than makes sense honestly.

Ricardo Almeida vs. Rob Yundt
Round 1 - No crowd reaction for either guy in the introductions. Yundt lands a nice uppercut to start the round and looks like he is going to be patient. Almeida gets a takedown 45 seconds into the round. Yundt tries to stand up out of a guillotine he slams Almeida to the ground with his neck still caught, the fighters end up doing a flip but Almeida doesn't release the choke and now on the bottom Yundt has no choice but to tap out. Ricardo Almeida wins via submission (guillotine choke) Rd. 1. I was wrong on thinking Almeida wouldn't have his head right after 4 years. I don't mind being wrong because Almeida could actually be a factor in a weak division.

Nate Marquardt vs. Jeremy Horn
Round 1 - Marquardt looks great physically while Horn looks like...well...like Gumby. Body shot right off the bat from Marquardt and that isn't a bad plan against Horn who has never had the tightest gut. They go to the ground and Horn has Nate in his guard. Marquardt is throwing some serious shots from inside the guard, bouncing them off Jeremy's face. An elbow lands, followed by another two. Marquardt steps back and lets Horn stand up, and then lets Jeremy eat his right hand. Horn with a takedown attempt but he ends up on his back with Marquardt in his half guard. Back to their feet and Horn's trip attempt is avoided, and then Marquardt throws a damn solid knee and follows it with an elbow. Horn looked like he was out for a second and now Nate is looking for a darce choke but Horn avoids. Gogoplata attempt out of nowhere by Horn, switched to an omoplata with 20 seconds left in the round. Marquardt avoids and Horn uses it to sweep and end the round in top position. That last 30 seconds by Horn saved him from losing the round by 2 points on my card. 10-9 round for Nate, very close to 10-8.
Round 2 - Horn is breathing hard between rounds. Marquardt slips after throwing a low kick. Horn looking to control Nate's body but Marquardt is able to throw some good elbows from the bottom. It looks like Nate has a cut over the right eye but it looks to be far enough outside that it won't run into the eye. Out of nowhere Marquardt grabs a standing guillotine and Horn has no choice but to tap out. Nate Marquardt wins by Submission (Guillotine Choke) Rd. 2. Just a purely impressive performance by Marquardt as he beat horn up on the feet and then subbed him with the choke.

David Heath vs. Tim Boetsch
Round 1 - We get some prelim action here. Boetsch with a low kick and half hearted spinning backfist to start the round. Fourty-five seconds go by before they really engage but no meaningful strikes are landed. Straight kick by Boetsch lands. First takedown attempt by Tim is avoided. Body shot lands by Boetsch and he doesn't seem phased by the moment. Front kick lands again for Tim. Right hand now by Boetsch. Body kick lands and Boetsch has way better kicks than I thought he did. Heath seems a little out of his game now. Boetsch with a good knee and then clinches and lands another, Heath fires back but Boetsch throws another front kick to slow things down. A good three or four knees land for Boetsch. A bunch more knees land and Boetsch just throws Heath to the mat where he lands awkwardly and Boetsch is able to pour on the strikes forcing the stoppage from Herb Dean. Tim Boetsch wins by TKO (ref stoppage - strikes) Rd. 1. Boetsch proved to be a lot better than I gave him credit for. Heath isn't anyone special in the division but Tim just manhandled him.

Brock Lesnar vs. Frank Mir - Well...it's time. Mir looks confident coming out, bouncing to his entrance music. I'm glad to see him looking like his head is on straight. I believe Kurt Angle is ringside near the cage entrance, but I couldn't get a real good look. Lights go out for Brock and the crowd erupts into boos. Brock comes out to "Shout at the Devil" so style points there. But seriously, almost nothing audible but booing from the crowd...honestly though, hatred for a fighter can sell as much as love as long as his fighting style is exciting. Kurt Angle is shown...so I was right. The Undertaker is also in attendance. So I think Luke "I hate wrestling" Thomas may actually be vomiting. Steve Austin is shown...so Luke is now probably slipping into a coma. Big cheers from the crowd for Mir's introduction, and big boos for Brock who just kind of smirks.

Round 1 - Brock is noticeably taller than Mir even though Mir is listed as being taller. Low kick from Mir is caught and Lesnar lands in half guard. Mir looking for a sweep but Lesnar mashes Mir. Lesnar loses a point for hitting to the back of the head...no warning. That is odd, one punch to the back of the head is a point deduction? Right hand by Lesnar puts Mir down. Side control and Lesnar hammer fists. Mir almost catches an armbar but Lesnar powers out. Mir again goes for the arm. Leg lock grabbed by Mir and Lesnar taps out! Good lord...Brock stood with his leg just begging for a leg lock. Frank Mir wins by submission (leg lock) Rd. 1. 1 minute 30 seconds of just kind of crazy sloppy action. Brock had the fight but he just got way too sloppy. God, my picks are just awful again. I need to be a little safer in who I call to win. Brock admits that Mir is the better fighter and says that he isn't done. The attitude seems to actually have won over quite a bit of the crowd as the booing turns to cheers. We'll see if this motivates him to improve or if he loses some of his desire. Honestly, if the point isn't taken from Brock and the fight started back on the feet Brock could have possibly pulled it off. But the sport isn't about if and maybe...it's about wins.

Tim Sylvia vs. Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira - Interim UFC Heavyweight Championship
Round 1 - You know...Bruce Buffer shouldn't have to say "Watch Tapout in their crazy second season" before announcing a main event. It takes away from the intensity of the moment a bit. The fight starts and they're feeling each other out, Nogueira with a leg kick but Sylvia with a good right hand. Nogueira pulls guard and Tim stands back up. Sylvia pulls his head back straight up in the air when he punches which is dangerous. The jabs and right hands are landing for Tim. Jab lands for Nogueira. Uppercut lands for Tim. Left hook/right hand combo puts Nogueira on his back. He is hurt and Tim is trying to finish the fight. Nog is bleeding above his eye. Tim stands back up and Nogueira is still wobbly. He pulls guard but Sylvia is in half guard. Elbows land fof Sylvia and that cut doesn't look to be in a good spot. Tim stands back up. Nogueira is still a little shaky on his feet. Takedown attempt is stuffed by Big Tim but Nogueira looks to be getting back together. Nice combo of punches lands for Nog. Sylvia's jab is landing with regularity. Single leg is scored by Nogueira as the round ends. 10-8 round for Tim on my card as he had Nog rocked for a good 2 minutes.
Round 2 - The cut is just under Nog's left eyebrow. Both fighters jab to start the round, Tim follows his with a right hand. Takedown stuffed by Tim again. Right hand left hook combo lands for Tim. If Sylvia throws it I think he could get a head kick KO, Nogs hands are low when they have a little distance. Sylvia is landing almost at will, Nog is landing a few jabs but he is paying when he tries to get anything beyond a jab. Uppercut lands for Tim, as does a solid jab. Another takedown attempt is stopped. Leg kick by Nog lands. Body shots by Tim now. Uppercut lands again for Timmy. Nogueira sets up a shot behind a punch which was smart but Sylvia blocks it and manages to fight it off. Nog is working almost exclusively off the jab. Nice right lands for Tim and Nog answers with a left hook. The round ends and I have it 10-9 Sylvia (20-17 overall).
Round 3 - Inside leg kick is answered by Tim with a big right hand snapping Nogueira's head back. Another takedown attempt stuffed by Tim. Nogueira pulls guard but he isn't ending up in good enough position for pulling guard to be fully effective. As I type that he sweeps and ends up in side control. Guillotine choke is sunk in by Nogueira and Sylvia taps. Wow. You know, Luke was right...eventually the fight would go to the ground and Nogueira would get the submission. Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira wins by Submission (Guillotine Choke) Rd. 3. I should have known better than to pick against my all-time favorite fighter. And my predictions go 2-3 on the main card. Good god am I having a bad year so far. Nogueira asks for Randy to come back to fight him.

Seriously folks, check out the Any Given Saturday radio show hosted by Luke Thomas following the PPV broadcast at 1:00am EST.

Chris Lytle vs. Kyle Bradley
Round 1 - More prelim action here. Knee lands quickly by Lytle as do two right hands. Lytle flurries and just keeps laying in right hands. The ref steps in to save Bradley and he is so out of it that he pulls guard on the ref and has to be talked down. Chris Lytle wins via KO (punches) Rd. 1. Damn, that was just some ownage by Lytle.

Keita Nakamura Vs. Rob Emerson
Round 1 - Another prelim fight. Decent striking from both men until the action is stopped to replace Nakamura's mouthpiece. Right hand lands for Emerson as does a left hook. Emerson is mixing up his shots well, he looks really good standing and Nakamura needs to change his gameplan from "bang with him" to...well..."don't bang with him." Nakamura's strikes land occasionally but he throws them so much slower than Emerson. A few knees start to land for Keita. Big knee puts Emerson on his back. That came from out of nowhere. Emerson gets back to his feet though. Nakamura reverses a takedown attempt and ends up on top. 10-9 round for Emerson, Nakamura didn't do much besides land the one knee.
Round 2 - Nakamura looks a little sharper than he did throughout the majority of the first round. One-Two combo lands for Nakamura. Emerson going to the leg kicks now. Emerson lands a few more leg kicks and some punches here and there, but he is outscoring Nakamura. No real significant shots are being landed by either guy except maybe the leg kicks by Rob. Nakamura finally drops and gets a takedown but Emerson gets up quickly. Nakamura is starting to swell and bleed around the right eye. Another 10-9 round for Emerson and I've got it 20-18 total.
Round 3 - The third round seems to be the same pattern, Nakamura with single shots and Emerson with the combos. Takedown isn't able to be sustained by Nakamura and Emerson gets back to standing. Nakamura finally starts landing a few more shots and this might be his best round yet. Emerson is fading a little bit but at this point I don't see Nakamura stopping him in the next 1:30. Another takedown by Nakamura and he is able to do a little work in the last 15 seconds of the round. 10-9 round for Nakamura on my card. 29-28 is the final score on my card in favor of Rob Emerson. Official decision: 30-27 Emerson, 29-28 Nakamura, 30-27 Emerson. Rob Emerson wins by split decision.

Other Result:
- Marvin Eastman defeated Terry Martin by Unanimous decision.