Mike Chiappetta • E-mail

COLUMBUS, Ohio - After all the buildup, it's finally time to let the talk fade into history and let Dan Henderson and Anderson Silva decide which man is truly the greatest middleweight fighter in the world. Until then, we'll have all the results from Nationwide Arena, so refresh early and often.

Jorge Gurgel vs. John Halverson

Round one: Gurgel, an Ohio resident, opened the show likely with the ideal of getting the fans started early. Aside from one excellent exchange, the first half of the round went by very uneventfully. Halverson then caught Gurgel with a left and drove him backwards, where they clinched against the fence. Halverson locked in a guillotine, but Gurgel powered out, leaving him in top position. Gurgel tried a few elbows as the round ended but wasn't able to mount much damage.

Round two: Gurgel caught Halverson with an unintentional foot to the nether regions that led to a timeout. Gurgel looked for a takedown, but Halverson pulled him down and almost into a triangle. Gurgel escaped and found himself in top position. He peppered Halverson with punches and elbows from the top, but couldn't manage to finish. Halverson took some damage. Gurgel then passed into side control before they worked into a north-south position. Gurgel looked for a kimura for a while, then transitioned to an arm bar try, but Halverson slipped his grip, leaving him in top control and dishing out damage for the last 20 seconds. Frantic round.

Round three: The fighter came out looking a bit tired after the wild second, and clinched against the fence for a 30-second round. Great exchange shortly thereafter as Gurgel landed a head kick and Halverson countered with a straight right. Gurgel soon took the fight down again, delivering short punches and elbows. Halverson again weathered the storm. After an extended period on the ground, the ref stood them up. Halverson certainly decided he was going to go out swinging, throwing a flurry of left-right combos until Gurgel walked him into the fence, where they clinched for the final 10 seconds. Excellent opener.

Winner: Gurgel (unanimous decision)

David Bielkheden vs. Diego Sanchez

Round one: Sanchez came out like the "Nightmare" of old, going for and scoring a takedown within the opening 15 seconds. I guess he's not afraid of Bielkheden's jiu-jitsu pedigree. Sanchez eventually worked into side control. Sanchez was in complete control, going from a kimura try to full mount. Bielkheden defended well for a while, but Sanchez wore him down, connecting with one big shot, then finishing with a savage succession of ground-and-pound that caused Bielkheden to tap out.

Winner: Sanchez (submission - strikes)

In between fights, UFC inducted Mark Coleman into its Hall of Fame. Coleman was an All-American wrestler at Ohio State and a U.S. Olympian before turning to mixed martial arts. He was nicknamed "The Hammer" for his style that helped bring in the ground-and-pound era. Coleman wa also UFC's first-ever heavyweight champ and went on to a standout career in the Japan-based PRIDE promotion.

Dustin Hazelett vs. Josh Koscheck

Round one: A lot of experts were touting this as a possible upset to watch. Hazelett scored early with a flying knee and tried a standing guillotine, but Koscheck threw him off and the two let their fists fly in a wild exchange. Midway through, Koscheck pushed Hazelett against the fence, but the underdog tried another guillotine. Koscheck calmly held Hazelett in the air and never looked in too much trouble. Koscheck scored a takedown with 30 seconds to go, but landed in a triangle, which he held until the end of the round.

Round two: Koscheck is utilizing lots of body punching, which is not too common these days in MMA. Koscheck then landed a left leg kick so powerful he fell down at the finish, rocking Hazelett to the canvas. He jumped on his opponent and finished with strikes.

Winner: Koscheck (TKO)

Luigi Fioravanti vs. Luke Cummo

Round one: Cummo landed the first blows of note, and Fioravanti responded with a takedown. Fiorvanti showed his strength advantage when Cummo tried getting to his feet, and Fioravanti slammed him back down. The size advantage played out in the last two minutes as Cummo was manhandled.

Round two: Another early takedown for Fioravanti. Cummo finally stuffed a takedown on the next shot, however, but Fioravanti's persistence paid off on the next try. Cummo finally got top position with 50 seconds left in the round but was unable to capitalize.

Round three: Fioravanti continued his continuous takedowns and Cummo just couldn't stop him. He never had Cummo in trouble, but was in control throughout the duration of the round and fight.

Winner: Fioravanti (unanimous decision)

Andrei Arlovski vs. Jake O'Brien

Huge ovation for Arlovski at his introduction. The fans certainly haven't forgotten him during his 11-month layoff. He spoke with us yesterday about his desire to stay in the UFC. A win and a new contract could make him top contender in the heavyweight division. Just a hunch, but I think Arlovski isn't going anywhere. Both he and Dana White seemed very genuine about wanting to continue their relationship. White went so far as to say he's made mistakes with Arlvoski in the past, and Arlovski called the UFC his home.

Round one: As expected, O'Brien went for the takedown within the opening seconds, but Arlovski is a big mass of muscle that refused the request. O'Brien finally scored the takedown after four tries and three minutes of trying. O'Brien wasn't able to muster much in Arlovski's guard as the ex-champ threw elbows from the bottom and the fans grew restless.

Round two: O'Brien's constant takedown tries have made Arlovski look preoccupied by defending them. Midway through, O'Brien scored another takedown. Arlovski got up and tripped O'Brien into a takedown. Like many young wrestlers, O'Brien looked like he was in a foreign land while on his back, and Arlovski unleashed his inner Pitbull for the TKO finish.

Winner: Arlovski (TKO)

Big win for the Pitbull, who scaled the fence and straddled the cage while soaking in the fans' adulation. This is the last fight of the undercard.

Chris Wilson vs. Jon Fitch

A win likely gets Fitch a title shot against April's Georges St. Pierre-Matt Serra welterweight rematch. We'll see if he feels that pressure.

Round one: Wilson looks strong early, stopping a Fitch takedown, then landing a hard right that knocked the former Purdue wrestler backwards. Two minutes in, Fitch managed to bring the fight to the mat but Wilson defended well.

Round two: A Wilson trip during a scramble left Fitch in top position. Wilson stayed active from the bottom as Fitch looked to pass and finally did, gaining side control midway through the round. Fitch then briefly improved his position to full mount, but Wilson hung tough and was able to get to half-mount, frustrating Fitch and riding out the round without sustaining any real damage. Still, it was a round likely scored for Fitch.

Round three: Fitch briefly stunned Wilson with a flurry two minutes in. With two to go, he scored another takedown. Not much offense to speak of until Wilson got a triangle with about 15 seconds to go. He squeezed it for all he was worth, but the clock ran out and Fitch got up without looking dazed, so it wasn't too close.

Winner: Fitch (unanimous decision)

Not the showcase, highlight-reel finish that Fitch probably hoped for, but nevertheless, it's 15 straight wins for the former Purdue wrestler. "At the top. I'm ready for the strap," Fitch said when asked where he belonged in the 170-pound weight class.

Yushin Okami vs. Evan Tanner

Round one: Okami rocked Tanner with a left hook 1:30 in and jumped in to finish, but Tanner recovered quickly and didn't take any more damage. The two clinched near the cage, and Okami landed knees. Okami looked the sharper of the two on their feet, but Tanner has had a two-year layoff.

Round two: Tanner had trouble finding the range with his boxing while Okami picked away at him with his reach advantage. Tanner changed strategy by clinching him against the cage, but the stronger Okami utilized a Thai clinch and scored a one-shot knockout with a knee to the head.

Winner: Okami (KO)

Alessio Sakara vs. Chris Leben

Round one: These two will swing for the fences. Sakara is the more technical fighter, Leben is more a brawler, but he's been working on refining his striking. Early on, though, it's Sakara connecting with shorter punches while Leben looks for a quick finish. Leben has iron in his fists though. A muay thai knee followed by a pair of upper cuts to the temple, and Sakara went down. He was already in serious trouble and Leben wasted no time in putting him to sleep.

Winner: Leben (TKO)

Heath Herring vs. Cheick Kongo

Round one: Kongo looks relaxed, and almost literally let Herring walk in and fire the first shot, which Herring rocked him with. Kongo took him down and looked for the kimura. They got back up and heavy leather flew with both men connecting before Kongo took him down. Herring reversed and took the top. Kongo powered out and put Herring against the fence. Back and forth it went. Kongo ended up on top mount after a scramble and dropped shots. Herring gave up his back but Kongo inexplicably got up and let Herring recover. Excellent, action-packed round.

Round two: Kongo took Herring down early, then backed off but threw leg kicks and wouldn't let Herring up til the referee intervened. At the standup, Herring drove Kongo to the fence, then managed a double-leg takedown. Herring withstood any damage and reversed position, then worked to side mount. He wound up repeatedly and threw hard knees to the body. Two-hundred-fifty pounds of Texas thunder. It might have been enough to take the round.

Round three: Great opening to the round as they both threw left body kicks, landed them, then both hit the deck. Herring tried a guillotine but Kongo's body is drenched with sweat and he slipped out. Kongo took him down and tried a rear naked choke but Herring powered out. Great effort by both. Herring's new conditioning is paying off as he reversed another bad position into side control. Herring used knees to the body, short elbows, then mounted Kongo to finish the match.

Winner: Herring (split decision)

UFC Middleweight Championship
Dan Henderson vs. Anderson Silva

Huge ovation for the challenger. Crowd is definitely pro-Henderson.

Round one: Early tempo and style of the fight favors Silva, with fighting from the outside. Silva landed the first significant blow, a front kick to the mouth. Two minutes in, Henderson shot in for the takedown and quickly moved into side control. He used hammer fists from the top  With 1:10 to go, Henderson mashed him with a sharp elbow. Henderson postured up for a punch as the round ended. He likely won the round by controlling the action.

Round two: Silva looks like he got the wake-up call. He mixed it up nicely in his signature way early with combination kicks and punches before stopping a Henderson takedown try. Henderson rung Silva's bell but the champ responded with a thunderous left that wobbled Henderson. The challenger swung wildly as Silva's precision strikes rocked him. Henderson fell to the mat and tried to pull Silva down, but he pulled away and ended up on top. Silva took his back with a minute left, dropping shots from the top. Henderson turned and Silva peppered him from the back, then sunk in a rear naked choke. Henderson's body began to go limp but he managed to tap with about 10 seconds to go.

Winner: Silva (rear naked choke)

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