10 Things We Learned from UFC 133

EBERSOLE CONTINUES TO IMPRESS

Lost in the discussion about Hallman’s attire is another solid performance from Brian Ebersole. The 30-year-old with more than 60 fights has now won two straight in the Ocatgon over a pair of solid veterans, cementing his place in the welterweight division for the foreseeable future.

While he garners more attention for the “hairrow” he sports in the cage, his efforts on Saturday night showed he has the talent to be a potential dark horse contender in the division. Ebersole worked through an early mistake that left him with Hallman draped on his back. Once he escaped, he turned up the intensity and put a beating on “Superman,” raining down elbows and hammerfists through the finish.

He’s got a good wrestling base and a world of experience to go with his quirky personality; he’s also won nine straight and 13 of his last 14 fights too. Don’t look now, but the weird dude who debuted in Australia and likes to throw cartwheel kicks might not be just a novelty act after all.

END OF THE LINE FOR RIVERA?

Having spoken with Jorge Rivera heading into his fight at UFC 133, I’m pretty sure his split decision loss to Costa Philippou will be the last time we see the middleweight from Milford, Mass. inside the Octagon. If I’m right, I offer a tip of my cap to “El Conquistador” and wish him the best of luck in his future endeavours.

Rivera is a candid guy with a realistic view of himself and the opportunities being a fighter has afforded him. He’s loved every minute of his journey, and if this is the end of the line, he’ll walk away without any regrets or second thoughts. That’s something not a lot of fighters could do, and something that makes me respect Rivera even more.

ANOTHER CANADIAN WELTERWEIGHT MONSTER

For those who weren’t convinced up until now, Saturday night showed that Rory MacDonald is for real. Even though he’s had a trio of impressive outings inside the cage to date, his crushing victory over Mike Pyle served as the coming out party for the young Canadian.

MacDonald deserves the comparisons to GSP and could indeed surpass the achievements of the current UFC welterweight champion. He’s manhandled his last two opponents, and just keeps getting better. Many may still consider him a prospect at this point, but I’m no longer one of those people. I now see him as a bona fide contender, and someone who is going to make all kinds of waves in the welterweight division in the next 12 months.

SOLID SHOWINGS ON SPIKE FOR PROSPECTS GUSTAFSSON AND MENDES

Alexander Gustafsson showed why some — myself included — view him as the best prospect in the light heavyweight division on Saturday night.

The young Swede did what Quinton Jackson couldn’t in the main event of UFC 130 — finish Matt Hamill. Showing solid takedown defense and a willingness to exchange, Gustafsson caught “The Hammer” with a couple big shots along the cage before sealing the victory with strikes on the ground midway through the second stanza.

One bout earlier, Chad Mendes maintained his unbeaten record with a good-but-not-great showing against Rani Yahya. In his defense, Mendes jacked up his hand early and had to be careful on the ground against the submission wizard, but this wasn’t the type of performance that he needed to cement himself as at the next title challengers in the featherweight division.

He might still be called on to face the winner of October’s Jose Aldo–Kenny Florian clash, but his decision win on Saturday night left the door open for Japanese sensation Hatsu Hioki to slide into a title shot with an impressive win in his UFC debut in September.

ALL THINGS CONSIDERED…

The main card of UFC 133 was better than I anticipated.

It wasn’t as great as it could have been had injuries not ravaged the card, but there really isn’t much to complain about. Maybe that makes me a little ray of perpetual sunshine, but four emphatic finishes and one moderately entertaining decision are pretty solid in my books.