I love Mir's effort. Broke his bloody arm!

UFC 140 "Of the Night" Bonuses

Submission of the Night: $75,000 - Frank Mir
Knockout of the Night: $75,000 - Chan Sung Jung
Fight of the Night: $75,000 - Jon Jones & Lyoto Machida

Big Nog's Arm

Frank Mir would have us believe that he was never really out of it after getting rocked by Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira in the first round of their heavyweight tilt at UFC 140. Instead, he was merely "wobbled," he said. He'd also have us believe that was bound to get out of danger whether Nogueira had stopped hitting him and gone for a choke or not, even if UFC president Dana White was among those who simply wasn't buying either claim.

It almost makes you wonder how seriously to take Mir's other major statement on the night, this one regarding rumors that Alistair Overeem might have to withdraw from his UFC 141 fight with Brock Lesnar on December 30.

"If the rumors that you're hearing are true, I wouldn't mind having to step in for Overeem and taking on Brock," said Mir. "I'm pretty healthy and three weeks isn't bad turnaround."

And why not? He may have come within one or two punches of being knocked completely out by Nogueira in a back-and-forth one-rounder, but Mir talked like a man who had hardly suffered any damage at all before getting the submission win in a wild affair.

As he explained: "I only fought a three-minute fight, so I'm feeling pretty good. My wife might not be happy about Christmas but, eh, she can deal with it."

As for Nogueira, his holiday season is looking especially grim. White, who denied the Overeem withdrawal rumors, revealed after the press conference that he was planning to fly Nogueira back to Las Vegas with him on Sunday morning so he could have surgery on his injured right arm as soon as possible. He also said that he knew Nogueira was headed for trouble when Mir locked up the kimura, and nothing about the Brazilian's history or posture suggested that he was ready to tap.

"Nogueira's a jiu-jitsu black belt, probably the best submissions heavyweight of all time, you know when you get caught in that thing to tap," White said. "You know to tap out to that. It's what happens if you don't."

Mir said he knew what the likely outcome would be when he secured the kimura, and the only thing left to do was to go ahead and finish it.

"I had a strong inclination that he was not going to tap, so I took a deep breath and you guys saw what happened," he said.

The injury drew pained groans from the crowd at the Air Canada Centre when it was replayed several times on the big screen. It's the latest in a serious of injuries that have piled up on Nogueira of late, and though he hasn't taken the knockouts that some of his contemporaries have, he might still have to sit down for a serious talk with the boss, White said.

"You've got to look at a guy's entire career, not just how it's ending. Big Nog's been in wars, man. I was at the Pride fight when he fought Mirko 'Cro Cop' [Filipovic], and 'Cro Cop' was just blasting him with kicks to the body and shots to the head, and then he ends up pulling off that submission win in the second round. He's had a career where he's been through wars.

"Big Nog is a nice guy and a guy who I respect, and I know they get pissed off at me when I say this stuff, but again, it doesn't matter. Unfortunately -- or fortunately -- I'm the one that makes these decisions. I'm going to have to sit down and talk to him. I don't want to see him get hurt, or anyone else."

Jon Jones Told to Check on Lyoto Machida Post-Fight to 'Get Some Fans'
Source: http://www.bloodyelbow.com/2011/12/11/2628124/ufc-140-results-jon-jones-lyoto-machida-get-some-fans

The Brazilian Lyoto Machida talked to TATAME directly from Canada on the following day of UFC 140, event on which he was defeated by Jon Jones, who kept the light heavyweight title. Forth fighter to lose to “Bones” in 2011, the Karate fighter, who did a great first round was involved by his game plan. “I felt him a little loss on the first round, but I was focused on not making it a big deal, because each round was a different one and I had to will them all. I did my game and he was falling for it”.

Despite seeming better on the initial round, when Jones couldn’t find his opponent in any moment, two out of the three judges gave the advantage for the American guy. “We never know how they evaluate it, if they have enough time to do it, so we gotta see their side too, but it’s an athlete’s life and career that is on line there”. During the interview, Lyoto also talks about the deep cut he suffered on his forehead, comments on Rogerio and Rodrigo Nogueira, who also fought on the same card and the expectations about returning to the octagon.

What are your thoughts about the fight against Jon Jones?

Well, I guess it was a hard fight. The preparation was tougher in all aspects. We went there and tried to do our job. We set a game plan that, from where I’m standing, until a certain moment was working, but he landed that elbow and I got dizzy, I couldn’t see things straight anymore and it disturbed me because I couldn’t see. And on that moment I thought: “I gotta do my best here and now”. And that’s what happened.

Could you feel you were frustrating Jon Jones on the first round, because he tried to hit you and be couldn’t find you?

I felt him a little loss on the first round, but I was focused on not making it a big deal, because each round was a different one and I had to will them all. I did my game and he was falling for it.

Despite you were better on the first round, two out of three judges scored 10-9 in his behalf. How do you see it? Do you believe that’s possible?

There was a guy from the event who came to talk to me because he argued with the judges because they had scored the win for him, and he asked them how could they do it, and they said that only on the replay they really saw it, so it was confusing. But we never know how they evaluate it, if they have enough time to do it, so we gotta see their side too, but it’s an athlete’s life and career that is on line there.

How did you train for this most important aspect of Jon Jones’s game: taking down and throwing the elbows?

I guess I didn’t have enough time. He took me down launching an elbow on me, and that surprised me a little, because I thought he would take me down but I would have a little time to think it straight. It was very fast and I had my head close to the fence, he hit me with an elbow, I couldn’t see and I tried to stand up and he hit me even more…

He hit you with an elbow and you stood up…

I stood up and the judge interrupted, but we started fighting again and I didn’t have enough time to recover from that.

Did you meet after the fight?

No. we talked a little, I congratulated him for remaining as the champion but it was too brief.

What are your thoughts about UFC 140? Rogerio won, but Rodrigo lost. How was it to watch it on the backstage?

I was really happy about Rogerio’s win, we were really cheering for him. Rodrigo had the win on his hands, but unfortunately it happens. Sometimes we wanna do something more, fit a good position and all to finish the fight differently… But I guess it’s always learning in our life. How am I to talk about Rodrigo, Rogerio? I can only say good things about them. They have much more experience than I.

How do you see your situation in UFC now? What are your thoughts about the future?

Actually I’m waiting. It’s just happened, it’s too soon. We gotta keep training and waiting for them to call me up for my next fight.

Just as Jon Jones was caught up in the moment following his submission win over Lyoto Machida, so too was trainer Greg Jackson when he told his fighter to "go check on Lyoto – get some fans."

"I shouldn't have spoken in that way, but that wasn't my intention," Jackson today told MMAjunkie.com (www.mmajunkie.com). "It sounded bad, but moronic [expletive] comes out of my mouth sometimes."

The intention, he said, wasn't to be political but to remind Jones to conduct himself honorably inside the cage.

"What I was saying was, 'Go check on Lyoto,' what I meant was to remember that you're a public figure," Jackson said. "There's always attention on you and what you're doing all the time, and there's cage etiquette. There's things you're supposed to do, and going and checking on somebody is what you're supposed to do.

"And now because I'm in military mode and in shorthand mode, I say, 'Jon, go check on Lyoto and go get some fans,' and what I should have said was, 'You're a public figure. There's a way to conduct yourself.' But instead, I shorthanded it."

Light-heavyweight champ Jones (15-1 MMA, 9-1 UFC) submitted Machida (17-3 MMA, 9-3 UFC) with a modified guillotine choke in the second round in the headliner of this past Saturday's UFC 140 event, which took place at Air Canada Centre in Toronto and aired live on pay-per-view.

There are several unwritten rules between fighters and camps when it comes to the time before, during and after fights inside the octagon. One of the most well-recognized is the act of shaking hands with the opposing fighter and his coaches. But frequently when an injury takes place during a fight, or there is a particularly devastating stoppage, a fighter is seen attending to his downed opponent as medical officials tend to him.

In most cases, fighters are seen embracing as the official decision is announced inside the cage.

While Jackson's words implied a certain lack of care from Jones toward Machida, he said that isn't the case.

"That's the point I want to drive home," Jackson said. "Jon is a really good guy. Everybody is just attacking his character because that's what you have to attack when you can't attack somebody's fighting.

"It's not that he was a bad guy. You just literally go crazy. None of these guys outside of the cage could understand that after the fight, you're in the zone, man. It's such an intense camp, especially for Jon, month after month, fight after fight.

"Let's take B.J. Penn for an example. He's actually a really nice guy; he walks around licking blood off his gloves all the time. Chuck Liddell is one of the sweetest, nicest guys you'll ever meet, but when he knocks you unconscious, he runs around screaming and pumping his arms. That's not normal behavior. So my job with Jon is to remind him. When the referee said break, he broke, and then he was still there in that zone. I was like, 'Now, it's time to relax and calm down and check on the guy.' I should have said, 'Remember your public figure.' But like I say, 'Go get some Donald Cerrone,' I said, 'Go get some fans.'"

But as Jackson has become accustomed to during his time as a trainer to world-class fighters, he said his words and actions are frequently misinterpreted.

"So it's just a matter of time before everyone gets mad at me again," Jackson joked.

The silver lining, of course, is the performance of his fighter, who defended his belt for the second time in his fourth performance of this year. While Jones' struggled with Machida and appeared flustered in the first round, he took complete control in the second after taking the former champ to the ground and opening a cut with an elbow. After rocking Machida with a punch late in the frame, he seized upon a choke and put the Brazilian out cold.

"Machida came in with a great plan; he was trying to interrupt Jon's strikes in between what I call a 'heaviola' style of fighting," Jackson said "You put a note in between the notes, where every time they go to do something, you interrupt them. That was a brilliant, brilliant tactic. It worked very well for him.

'[Jones] got hit a few times really hard. He showed that he had a great jaw. He got kind of flustered and confused for a little bit and was able to bring it back and reconnect with everything. He got tested and he passed the test. I was so proud of him for that."

Big Nog talked with Brazilina media giant OGlobo about his ultimately losing fight vs. Frank Mir on Saturday night.

"It was stupid. The fight was won, but I made up my mind to go for a submission. Two more shots and I knocked out Mir for sure. But I wanted to finish the fight beautifully. I wanted to finish with a submission.

"For a long time I had not finished a fight with a submission, so for a moment I wanted to submit him (laughs). But it was stupid, I was should have gotten the knock out. The fight was mine and I missed the opportunity.

"I felt very well. I was fast with good movement and very confident. I tried to submit when I was in a position where he could counter attack and he ended up taking my arm. I made a mistake, it was stupid ..."

The full list of UFC 140 medical suspensions includes:
Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira: Suspended 60 days due to submission loss; needs clearance from orthopedic surgeon
Tito Ortiz: Suspended 60 days due to TKO loss; needs chest X-ray and abdominal ultrasound
Mark Hominick: Suspended 60 days due to TKO loss; needs MRI or CT scan
Krzysztof Soszynski: Suspended 60 days due to knockout loss; needs MRI or CT scan
Jared Hamman: Suspended 60 days due to knockout loss; needs MRI or CT scan
Rich Attonito: Suspended 60 days due to TKO loss; needs MRI or CT scan
Mitch Clarke: Suspended 60 days due to TKO loss; needs MRI or CT scan
Lyoto Machida: Suspended 30 days for cut over right eye
Jon Jones: Suspended 14 days for precautionary reasons
Frank Mir: Suspended 14 days for precautionary reasons
Antonio Rogerio Nogueira: Suspended 14 days for precautionary reasons
Brian Ebersole: Suspended 14 days for precautionary reasons
Claude Patrick: Suspended 14 days for precautionary reasons
Chan Sung Jung: Suspended 14 days for precautionary reasons
Igor Pokrajac: Suspended 14 days for precautionary reasons
Constantinos Philippou: Suspended 14 days for precautionary reasons
Dennis Hallman: Suspended 14 days for precautionary reasons
John Makdessi: Suspended 14 days for precautionary reasons
Walel Watson: Suspended 14 days for precautionary reasons
Yves Jabouin: Suspended 14 days for precautionary reasons
Mark Bocek: Suspended 14 days for precautionary reasons
Nik Lentz: Suspended 14 days for precautionary reasons
Jake Hecht: Suspended 14 days for precautionary reasons
John Cholish: Suspended 14 days for precautionary reasons

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5G8_r8Zq8TQ[/youtube]