UFC Event

UFC 134 Results Recap: Luiz Cane vs. Stanislav Nedkov

By Tim Burke@TB_Money Aug 29, 2011, 1:00am EDT

Phot by Al Bello/Zuffa LLC/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images

Stanislav Nedkov might have some predictable standup, but that didn't stop him from stopping Luiz Cane with strikes late in the first round of their light heavyweight battle. Nedkov just kept loading up a big right hand that connected way more than it should have. Cane started out well, throwing leg kicks and bullying Nedkov a bit. He worked from the outside well for the first three minutes despite eating a couple of Nedkov's punches, and eventually bloodied Nedkov's nose with a shot that definitely rattled him.

With a minute left though, Nedkov landed a huge right hand that stunned Cane into retreat. Unfortunately for him, his idea of retreat was to run straight into the cage, and Nedkov continued to batter him until he went down. The fight was eventually called off by the referee after a few more shots. The fight was the first matchup on the pay-per-view broadcast of UFC 134.

What was the high spot of this fight?

Definitely Cane's retreat. After getting caught with the shot, he looked completely ridiculous trying to run away, and paid for it.

Where do these guys go from here?

Nedkov took out a pretty good (if inconsistent) light heavyweight and remained undefeated. He will likely be given a tougher test next time out, maybe Vladimir Matyushenko or Alexander Gustafsson. He didn't get the chance to show off any of his vaunted grappling, but his striking could still use some work.

Cane is in a precarious position. He's now 1-3 in his last four, and has shown major deficiencies in his fight IQ. I imagine he'll get another chance with the promotion, but he might need to be rebuilt with a fight against a lower-level light heavyweight. Maybe Karlos Vemola or the loser of the Fabio Maldonado vs. Aaron Rosa fight scheduled for UFC on Versus 6.

Watch it now, later, or never?

Now. It's less than a round long, and featured enough plunder to be worth your time. Plus, you get to watch the oddly inappropriate moment where Nedkov continually wipes his bloody nose with his Bulgarian flag. Not very patriotic, sir.