UFC 86 Review and Results - Forrest Griffin is the new UFC Light Heavyweight Champion

UFC 86 Review and Results - Forrest Griffin is the new UFC Light Heavyweight Champion
By Robert Rousseau

The Fourth of July is okay. But let's face it, fireworks are relatively boring compared to a great mixed martial arts fight, and that's what the UFC had potentially put together on July 5th from the Mandalay Bay Events Center when Forrest Griffin challenged Quinton Jackson for the UFC Light Heavyweight belt. Would the fight and the event as a whole live up to the billing?

Let's find out in Submit to MMA fashion.

Tyson Griffin vs. Marcus Aurelio : When a wrestler takes on a BJJ master: The introduction to this piece isn't really fair as both fighters, particularly Griffin, have a heckuva lot more in store for opponents than just one set of skills. Speaking of that, during this three round fight Griffin proved to be the better stand up fighter despite a terrible reach disadvantage (six inches) as he pelted his opponent with ferocious low kicks and otherwise connected with some solid hands.

Even when the fight went to the ground, always by his doing, Griffin was able to dominate the action via ground and pound. Though Aurelio tried valiantly for a submission, it was simply not to be.

Tyson Griffin takes this one home by way of a unanimous decision.

Gleison Tibau vs. Joe Stevenson : The best guillotine in the business: Tibau had Stevenson dead to rights in an omoplata for a significant portion of round one, though he was unable to follow through and either turn him over or end the fight with the move. In the second, Tibau also looked good early on, securing a couple of takedowns.

But then he went for another takedown and Joe Stevenson caught him in a guillotine for his efforts. That's where the fight ended.

Joe Stevenson takes home victory with a guillotine choke at 2:57 of round two.

Josh Koscheck vs. Chris Lytle : Talk about a bad cut: "A win right here puts me right up in contention with anybody," said Lytle before this bout. But winning against Josh Koscheck is no easy task.

This fight basically went like this. Near the midway point of the first stanza, Koscheck took Lytle down and moved to his half guard. At first the ground and pound was minimal. But as the fight wore on and Koscheck proved he could continually take Lytle down and control him, the ground and pound got rougher. In fact, elbow after elbow from Koscheck opened up a huge cut over his opponent's eye in the second. Still, Lytle somehow managed to persevere through the beating and even landed a couple of nice shots in the third.

In the end, though, there was no doubt who won.

Josh Koscheck gets himself a unanimous decision.

Ricardo Almeida vs. Patrick Cote in a striker versus grappler match up:"Patrick Cote is a man on a mission; he's a man reborn," said Joe Rogan before this fight. Would that rebirth continue?

Boxing Equipment and Protective Gear In a word, yes. But it was real close.

Almeida dominated the first round by gaining the top position and raining down ground and pound. However, Cote knocked his opponent down in the second with a right hand. The third was very close, with Cote hitting home with the better shots on the feet and Almeida gaining a takedown late. Still, Cote did enough to edge Almeida out on two of the judges' scorecards in the end.

And that's all you need, folks. Not a very exciting fight, but it was an interesting technical match up nonetheless.

Patrick Cote wins by way of majority decision.

Quinton Jackson vs. Forrest Griffin in the main event "I already know about myself that I'm not going to be broken," said Griffin before this fight. "I can do anything for twenty five minutes."

"When it comes down to it, I'll take more pain than anybody."

Damn, gives you goose bumps, right? But it only counts as bravado before the fight.

During the fight, Griffin proved those were more than words.

In one of the best fights of the year, Griffin was dropped by a Jackson right hand in the first. In the second, he hurt Rampage's left leg, one that he continually pelted throughout the fight with low kicks, and pounced to dominate him for a likely two point stanza. But somehow Jackson survived the second to come back and fight hard in the third and fourth rounds, both of which were hard to call.

In the fifth, though, Griffin once again began to stick and move effectively. In the end, that may have been the round that won him the fight.

Forrest Griffin is the new UFC Light Heavyweight Champion via unanimous decision.

UFC 86 Results

Justin Buchholz def. Corey Hill via submission (RNC) - R2 (3:57)

Melvin Guillard def. Dennis Siver via TKO (strikes) - R1 (0:36)

Cole Miller def. Jorge Gurgel via submission (triangle choke) - R3 (4:48)

Gabriel Gonzaga def. Justin McCully via submission (kimura) - R1 (1:57)

Tyson Griffin def. Marcus Aurelio via unanimous decision

Josh Koscheck def. Chris Lytle via unanimous decision

Joe Stevenson def. Gleison Tibau via submission (guillotine choke) - R2 (2:57)

Patrick Cote def. Ricardo Almeida via split decision

Forrest Griffin def. Quinton "Rampage" Jackson via unanimous decision