 Who's Your Daddy?
44-year-old Couture Smashes Gonzaga to Defend UFC Heavyweight Title
Octagonside by Brady Crytzer
Photos by Chris Cozzone
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In a dominating performance, last night at the Mandalay Bay Events Center in Las Vegas, 44-year-old Randy “The Natural” Couture continued to defy father time, scoring a third round TKO over the much larger, much younger Gabriel “Napao” Gonzaga.
While the challenger from Brazil has been nothing but humble and gracious in his campaign for the belt, fans just can’t get enough of “Captain America.”
The fans showed their support when Couture made his way to the Octagon. At UFC 68, it was “Back in the Saddle” by Aerosmith that had fans singing along. On Saturday, the tune that accompanied the champion to the cage was AC/DC’s immortal classic, “Back in Black.”
The champion met the challenger in the center of the ring. Gonzaga blasted Couture with a hard one-two combination. In typical Couture fashion, the champion answered back with a left that staggered his bear of an opponent, allowing him to slam the Brazilian to the mat.
 After Gonzaga stood back up, Couture drove him to the fence. Seizing the moment, Napao botched a trip attempt, allowing Couture to take him to the mat again. Getting right back to his feet, Gonzaga hammered the champion with hard, thunderous punches, but in the scramble, Couture showed flashes of old when he scooped his mammoth opposition and slammed him on his head. With his nose now a bloody mess, Gonzaga was pressed into the cage by the smaller Couture. With the clock winding down, Gonzaga revealed a much worse injury, as he spat blood while attempting a guillotine choke. The round ended with Couture breaking free from the hold.
The second round exploded when the champion caught a headkick attempt and once more drove his bigger opponent into the cage. Showing surprising reflexes for his age, Couture traded punches with his younger challenger, once again pressing him to the cage.
 After Herb Dean called in a ringside physician to check the cut on Gonzaga’s nose, the fighters were restarted. Couture began to pummel Gonzaga with dirty boxing, sending the crowd into a frenzy. Couture ripped uppercuts into the monstrous jaw of Gonzaga but the Brazilian stayed strong, stuffing numerous trip attempts by the champion. With a minute remaining, it appeared as though Gonzaga had turned the tables when he reversed Couture into the cage, but those thoughts were quickly squashed by a counter reversal. The second stanza closed with a trip attempt by Gonzaga being stuffed by the champion.
With both men brandishing determined looks on their faces, the third began. Gonzaga began to come alive in the third, landing two flush head kicks that staggered Couture. Captain America showed it wasn’t enough, however, by grinding Gonzaga into the cage for his efforts and throwing him to the mat. Couture unleashed a hellish now-or-never barrage of punches from the top position leaving Gonzaga bewildered. Flush shot after flush shot landed until referee Herb Dean stopped the contest at 1:37.
 St. Pierre Still in the Hunt, Blows Past Koscheck
Serving notice to the top of the welterweight division, former champion Georges “Rush” St. Pierre scored a dominant three-round decision over former NCAA champion Josh Koscheck.
The opening seconds of the highly-anticipated welterweight showdown were tense, as Koscheck opened up with wild right hand haymakers—but he was slammed to the mat by the former welterweight champion. St. Pierre controlled his opponent from the side mount and showed that he could hang with a world class wrestler, the level of Koscheck. Landing hard elbows, St. Pierre befuddled Koscheck and muscled him into the cage. Koscheck fought his way free and had his own takedown attempt quickly stuffed. Though “Rush” stopped the first attempt, he wasn’t able to fight off a second, and was slammed hard to the mat despite grabbing the fence illegally. The round ended with Koscheck controlling from the top position and St. Pierre still active with elbows and short punches from the bottom.
St. Pierre came out in the second landing two hard snapping low kicks and scoring another lightening fast takedown. Working from the half guard of his opponent, GSP began working for a kimura shoulder lock. The hold excited fans but Koscheck quickly broke free. The former champion began working for the hold again, and after some struggle, nearly extended the arm. St. Pierre passed to side mount. After a scramble, Koscheck rolled slickly to regain some semblance of his long lost guard. Passing the wrestlers guard once again, St. Pierre screamed with frustration as he attempted to rip the arm out yet again. Time expired with the fan favorite St. Pierre seconds away from victory.
 With the first two rounds clearly in the book for St. Pierre, the third saw “Rush” loosen up on the feet landing hard kicks to the midsection. Leg kicks sizzled through the Vegas air as Koscheck had no answer, but threw wild haymakers that were largely off the mark. St. Pierre found success with a leaping jab, eventually forcing Koscheck to shoot for the single leg takedown, which was defended beautifully. With St. Pierre on top and the clock winding down, there was no doubt as to who would walk away with the decision.
St. Pierre showed that he is still at the top of his game scoring a three round decision. Scores read 30-27, 29-28, and 29-28.
“Losing my title was the best thing that could’ve happened to me,” St. Pierre said. “I am a new version, a better version of myself. I have a request to Dana White and the Fertittas . . . if I am to challenge for the title again we can do it in Montreal where my people will go crazy!”
 Overmatched Crane Gets Hammered by Huerta
In a meeting of two exciting lightweights, UFC fan favorite Roger “El Matador” Huerta wore out newcomer Alberto Crane, en route to stopping him at 1:50 of the third and final round.
Huerta started off early, throwing several hard kicks and looking to make a statement. Crane, a long time jiu jitsu and MMA veteran, took Huerta to the ground but quickly gave up his back. Following a brief scramble, Crane wasted no time returning the favor and took the back of “El Matador.” In a great exchange, Crane, once again, escaped the position and worked his way to side mount. With Huerta defending nicely, Crane again began to work for a rear naked choke. Though Crane appeared to have the more technical jiu jitsu, Huerta was more willing to throw punches and scored several points doing so. With a significant welt under the left eye of Crane, the methodical and technical first round came to a close with Huerta on top.
Huerta began with a kick yet again and following a Crane takedown attempt, pounded the Santa Fe native from the top position. Though Crane attempted a heel hook, it was defended in a flash by his opponent. Showing great jiu jitsu, but a lack of mixed martial arts ability, Crane continued to work, turning Huerta on his back. Looking very tired, Crane allowed a fresher Huerta to get to his feet where he smacked a kick into the ribs of the UFC newcomer, sending him to the canvas. Landing shots from the top, Huerta was caught in a near armbar but slowly worked his way free. With Crane exhausted, Huerta began dropping hard shots from the top position and backed off as the second round ended.
The third started off with a very bruised and tired Crane facing off with a still fresh Huerta. After a weak Crane takedown attempt, Huerta was tripped up and bizarrely watched himself on the big screens of the Mandalay Bay Events Center as he hammered back elbows into the face of his now broken down opponent. After rolling to the mount, referee Steve Mazzagatti halted the contest to prevent any further damage to the defeated Crane.
The official time of the stoppage was 1:50 of the final round. Huerta improves to 21-1-1 while Crane falls short in his UFC debut and suffers his first loss moving to 8-1.
 Stevenson Edges Pellegrino in Grappling Highlight
The Ultimate Fighter II winner Joe “Daddy” Stevenson continued his march to the UFC lightweight title by scoring a three-round unanimous decision over Kurt “Batman” Pellegrino.
With both fighters bolstering tremendous grappling pedigrees, the action naturally switched to a boxing match early, with Pellegrino using a long jab and Stevenson looking to work inside with quick short punches. The pugilistic action was quickly put by the wayside when Pellegrino wrestled Stevenson to the mat. After nearly securing a guillotine choke Stevenson suplexed his opponent over in spectacular fashion and attempted the hold for a second time. Showing great defense, Pellegrino took advantage of being in the top position and pressured Joe “Daddy” into the cage. After Pellegrino rose to his feet, Stevenson quickly found himself on his back as “Batman” pounced on him again. The round ended with Stevenson working hard from the bottom.
The second began with the fighters trading jabs. After committing to a hard right hand, Stevenson made Pellegrino pay with a hard knee. With Pellegrino now in the defensive turtle position Stevenson began teeing off. With quick reflexes, Pellegrino regained his footing and had success with a lead right uppercut of his own. Stevenson took Pellegrino to the mat and nearly secured a rear naked choke and was impressively swept to his back. While on top Pellegrino took full advantage of his position and dropped a bombing right hand into the face of his opponent. With the seconds ticking away, “Batman” secured the neck of Stevenson in a standing front headlock. The period ended as Stevenson wisely dropped to a knee to avoid any knees to the head.
Pellegrino continued to find a home for his right uppercut on his opponent’s chin as the third began, and after a brief clinch on the fence, took the winner of The Ultimate Fighter II to the ground with a thudding takedown. After a stand up ordered from referee Big John McCarthy Stevenson came out like a man on fire throwing haymaker rights and lefts at Pellegrino. In a heated moment, Stevenson unknowingly left himself open for a choke and was caught in a deep guillotine. The scramble that ensued after Stevenson broke free was one of the most exciting in recent memory as both men traded positions and hard punches until the final bell rang.
Judges scorecards read 30-27, 30-27, 29-28 all in favor of Stevenson making him a viable contender for the lightweight title.
 Cote Crushes Grove in Wild Middleweight Bout
In a middleweight bout featuring two young fighters, looking to take the next step, The Ultimate Fighter 3 winner Kendall Grove was handed his first UFC defeat at the hands of still improving veteran Patrick Cote.
In the opening moments of the fight, Cote came out swinging, throwing hard right hands and backing the Hawaiian into the fence. After some clinch fighting left fans dissatisfied, referee Herb Dean separated the fighters and an exchange of leg kicks ensued. Both men began to trade punches and Grove bullied Cote to the cage. “The Predator” excited his Canadian contingent in the audience by hoisting Grove into the air but failed to take his man down. After gaining separation, Grove began teeing off with punches and kicks until a hard Cote overhand right dropped him in his tracks. After some pounding and a rear naked choke attempt, that the dazed Hawaiian defended well, Cote’s barrage was too much and the fight was waved off giving the Quebecois his second and most significant Octagon victory.
The official time was 4:45. With this win Cote improves to 12-4 while Grove falls to 10-4.
“I am very excited for this win,” the overjoyed Cote said. “I knock people out…that is what I do.”
PRELIM BOUTS
Guida Wins Split Decision!
In his lightweight battle, the BJJ Black Belt Marcus Aurelio (14-5-0) was forced to fight most of his bout against freestyling Clay Guida (22-5-0) on his feet. Although Aurelio’s left jab was an effective weapon throughout the match, Guida’s workrate proved to be the deciding factor as Guida chalked up the split decision victory.
To begin round one, Aurelio connected with left jab to forehead of his foe. A second left jab to the face of his combatant connected for Aurelio. Guida landed a left kick to Aurelio’s midsection and followed up with a right cross upstairs. An overhand right landed by Guida before being tagged by another Aurelio stiff left jab. After a right leg kick, Guida rushed his opponent throwing a flurry of punches. It was a left hook by Guida that floored his adversary. Rather than battle it out on the ground, Guida invited his opponent to get off the mat and back to his feet where Aurelio landed another crushing left jab. Guida answered by landing a compact left jab causing Aurelio to fall to the ground as the round ended.
At the beginning of the second stanza, Guida connected with two leg kicks. A combination of punches forced Aurelio to the ground. Again, Guida decided not to engage his adversary on the ground. Back on his feet, Aurelio landed a left jab. Guida unleashed a left knee as Aurelio fell to his back onto the mat. Intent on keeping the fight vertical, Guida waited upon his combatant as he got back to his feet. Another leg kick landed for Guida before the fighters exchanged jabs. On the ground one more time, Aurelio is finally successful in engaging Guida on the mat with two minutes left in the round. Guida finds himself in Aurelio’s guard. Guida displayed his ground-and-pound game connecting on two damaging punches followed up by stinging forearms. The second round ended with Guida continuing to work the ground-and-pound.
In the third round, Guida landed a leg kick. Aurelio’s patented left jab continued to do damage as the fight moved into the final stanza. A big right cross landed for Aurelio. Guida answered with a strong leg kick. Sensing an opportunity, Guida went for the takedown, but Aurelio sprawled and successfully avoided takedown. Guida demonstrated his versatility by unleashing a left high kick that was partially blocked. Switching roles, Aurelio went for the takedown with Guida sprawling to avoid the wrestling move. It was a leg kick by Guida followed by a left jab that ended the fight.
Guida wanted to keep the fight vertical and with the exception of the last two minutes of the second stanza he was successful in forcing Aurelio to rely on his stand-up game. Guida’s defense proved effective in avoiding his opponent’s takedowns. When on the ground, Guida successfully launched his ground-and-pound game mitigating Aurelio’s submission expertise. In the end, Guida was declared the victor by split decision. Two of the judges scored the bout 30-27 for Guida. The dissenting judge saw the bout 29-28 for Aurelio.
Leites Submits Jensen via Armbar!
The stand-out grappler Thales Leites (11-1-0) won his middleweight bout against mixed martial artist Ryan Jensen (11-2-0) in spectacular fashion. Jensen was game and showed consistent determination. But, in the end Jensen was outgunned against his BJJ opponent.
Jensen emerged in round one unleashing two high kicks in a row that were blocked by his combatant. A leg kick landed for Leites. Again, Jensen throws two more high kicks which were blocked by Leites. And, again a leg kick landed for Leites. Jensen decided to rush Leites who seized the opportunity to score a takedown against his foe. Back to his feet, Jensen landed a right cross. Leites scored another takedown assuming top position. The scrambling Jensen worked his way out of his opponent’s grasp landing a back left elbow to the head of his opponent. Leites had the back of the resilient Jensen who found his way out of trouble and back onto his feet. A left high kick landed for Jensen. The two fighters trade leg kicks. With Leites on the mat on his back, Jensen landed a combination of punches. Leites quickly turns the tide and applies an arm bar. The submission hold by Leites swiftly forced Jensen to tap out. Leites was declared the winner by tapout at 3:47 of round one via arm bar.
Mir Forces Hardonk to Tapout in Round One!
Former UFC heavyweight champion Frank Mir (10-3-0) made quick work of challenger Antoni Hardonk (5-4-0).
Wasting no time, Mir scored a takedown to begin round one. Working from the guard, Hardonk locked up his opponent’s arm. Deftly, Mir turned the tables on his foe. Mir rolled Hardonk over and applied the kimura. Unable to defend against the submission hold, Hardonk tapped out.
Mir was announced the victor by tapout submission at 1:17 of round one thanks to the kimura. It was an explosive win for the former champion.
Sobral Wins by Tapout by Anaconda Choke!
After suffering back-to-back defeats to Chuck Liddell and Jason Lambert, light heavyweight contender Renato Sobral (28-7-0) rebounded in brilliant fashion submitting his opponent David Heath (9-2-0) inside of two rounds.
To begin round one, Sobral wasted no time in scoring a takedown against his foe. In the mount, Sobral worked his ground-and-pound game. Very effective on the mat, Sobral connected on a number of punches, forearms and elbows. Taking advantage of his adversary’s weak guard, Sobral continued to pound Heath with his strikes. After absorbing four mean punches in a row, Heath escaped the punishment by scrambling back to his feet. After a brief vertical stint, the combatants found themselves back on the mat where Sobral worked from his guard. Sobral attempted an omoplata, but Heath successfully rolled out of danger. Sobral landed a stinging left forearm to the face of his adversary. Heath answered by connecting with two forearms of his own at the end of the round.
Sobral landed a left cross to begin the second stanza followed up by a left knee. With the fight on the ground, Sobral mounted Heath and weakened his opponent by connecting on a number of strikes that bloodied his foe. With the cut on his forehead emptying with blood, Heath quickly began to look like a bloody mess as did the spot on the canvas where his head laid on the mat. Sobral reacted to his wounded opponent and the crimson scene by dropping forearms and elbows on his opponent. Sobral wailed away on his opponent. In serious trouble, Heath found it difficult to defend himself against Sobral’s onslaught. Heath successfully scrambled to his feet. But it was not long before the combatants found themselves on the mat again. Wasting absolutely no time, Sobral took advantage of his opponent’s wounded state to successfully apply an anaconda choke forcing Heath to tapout. In a bizarre display of defiance, Sobral held onto the chokehold for a few brief moments despite the referee’s attempts to convince Sobral to let go of his submitted foe. Sobral held the chokehold long enough to put Heath to sleep before finally acquiescing to the referee’s demands to release his fallen opponent.
Sobral’s antics earned the disdain of the crowd. Nonetheless, Sobral was declared the victor by submission tapout via anaconda chokehold Sobral at 3:30 of the second round.
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