By Mark Gessner

UFC Fight Night 24
Live on Spike TV from the Key Arena in Seattle, WA

Mike Goldberg and Joe Rogan welcomed viewers to the show and ran down the card, and talked in-depth about the Davis vs. Nogueira main event. They discussed how Davis is looking to beat Little Nog in a torch passing moment, where as Nog is looking to put out the undefeated Davis' torch.

1. Leonard "Bad Boy" Garcia vs. "The Korean Zombie" Chan Sung Jung (Featherweight Division)

Round One: This is a rematch from their WEC 48 match which was awarded the 2010 Fight of the Year award and Joe Rogan deemed "The Fight of the Decade." Garcia won via split decision in their first matchup. 

Both fighters traded strikes in the opening minute of the round. Leonard connected with a straight left punch and followed up with a strong right leg kick at the 1:15 mark. Jung went for a left hand that Garcia ducked and countered with a big left hook that opened up a cut under Jung's right eye. 

With 1:45 left in the opening round, Jung blocked a punching combo and was able to take Garcia to the ground and immediately jumped to a north/south position. Jung had a deep arm bar secured but could not bring his left leg across Garcia's body and extend the arm. Garcia broke free and attempted to scramble back up to his feet but ate two knees to the head in the process that dropped him back down to the ground. Jung obtained mount position and landed numerous punches to close out the opening round. 

Gessner's Glance: 10-9 Jung. Garcia was in control for the opening minutes of the round but the fight was all Jung once he scored the takedown. Garcia appears to have changed up his stand up technique as he is now keeping his hands up protection his face and is on the balls of his feet, rather than being flat footed with his hands down as he has been prior in his career. This change was most likely due to the heavily disputed decision victory in his last fight over Nam Phan, who landed more unblocked strikes but some how lost the decision. Good change in technique by the Greg Jackson camp for Garcia. Good opening round for the night.

Round Two: After trading strikes, Garcia connected with a flying right knee 1:10 into the middle round. Jung connected with a flying knee of his own to close out the second minute of the round. Both fighters began to mix in leg kicks to open up their combinations, followed up by jabs and hooks. 

With 1:21 remaining, Jung connected with another flying right knee that landed square on Garcia's jaw. Garcia went for a head kick, but Jung kicked out his back leg and dropped Garcia. Jung ate an upkick in the process, but was able to jump into open guard. Garcia attempted to moved into rubber guard but was not able to. Jung began raining down big elbows to the head of Garcia. With :30 remaining, Jung was able to transition and take Garcia's back. Garcia rolled but Jung showed good back control moved into back half guard. Jung connected with a handful of elbows to the temple. With :10 seconds remaining, Jung locked in a twister submission that Garcia was unable to endure for the closing seconds of the round and tapped out. 

Official Decision: Chan Sung Jung defeated Leonard Garcia via submission due to a twister at 4:59 of the second round

Gessner's Glance: For those who have never heard of or seen a twister, it is a submission hold made famous by 10th Planet Jiu-Jitsu trainer Eddie Bravo in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu tournaments in the early 2000s. From back half guard, you twist your opponents body in one direction while cranking their head in the opposite direction, contorting their spine. Awesome submission victory for The Korean Zombie, the first ever UFC victory due to a twister.    

A promo video was shown for UFC 129: St. Pierre vs Shields on April 29, that concentrated heavily on the previous accomplishments of Jake Shields. Smart move since many people feel this is GSP's fight to lose and are not taking into account the fact that Shields is on a fifteen fight win streak, is a five time champion in numerous weight classes for numerous promotions, and has not lost a fight since 2005. 

Joe Rogan interviewed Shields via satellite. Shields said he has had a phenomenal training camp and is excited that he will be training this week with Chael Sonnen to prepare for GSP's wrestling game. Shields said he predicts that he will wear down GSP and submit him. Very confident and poised interview. 

2. Amir Sadollah vs. DaMarques "The Darkness" Johnson (Welterweight Division) 

Round One: Sadollah went for a head kick in the opening seconds of the round which Johnson was able to block and take him to the ground. Johnson moved immediately into side control. Sadollah was able to scramble back to his feet. Sadollah went for another head kick 1:30 into the ground and was again blocked and taken to the ground. From open guard, Johnson landed a few big elbows and a couple punches. After a minute of working to pass to half guard and being unable to, Johnson stood up and Sadollah got back to his feet.

With 1:30 remaining in the opening round, Johnson went for a  body kick but Sadollah connected with a solid left hook that dropped Johnson up against the cage. Johnson got back to his feet, and Sadollah clinched up with him, pressing Johnson up against the cage. Both fighters traded positions clinched up against the cage, trading knees to the midsection. With 1:01 left, Johnson scored a hip throw takedown and landed in side control. Sadollah scrambled and got up to his feet.

Sadollah again clinched Johnson up against the cage, but this time immediately scored a takedown on a lifting slam. Sadollah landed with a few right punches to close out the round.

Gessner's Glance: 10-9 Johnson. Evenly fought opening round with Johnson getting the slight edge due to scoring one more takedown than Sadollah. 

Round Two: Both fighters immediately engaged to open the round, trading striking combinations. :30 into the round, Sadollah landed two knees to the head from the muay thai clinch, with Johnson backed up against the cage. Sadollah than out boxed Johnson up against the cage, connecting with numerous shots while ducking Johnson's punches. With 3:40 remaining, Johnson slipped throwing a punch and Sadollah was able to obtain top sprawl position. Sadollah immediately connected with a big knee to the ribs of Johnson. Johnson was able to scramble out out bottom sprawl, and moved Sadollah into top half guard. Sadollah landed three big elbows before starting to unload with an onslaught of punches to the head. Johnson was able to survive and scrambled, allowing Sadollah to obtain back side control. Sadollah connected with more knees to the ribs before Johnson was able to work his way back to his feet with 2:11 remaining in the round.

Back on their feet, Sadollah scored a trip takedown and moved to top mount. Sadollah wrapped Johnson's right arm around his neck and began landing unprotected elbow after elbow. Johnson tapped out due to strikes.

Official Decision: Amir Sadollah defeated DaMarques Johnson via submission due to strikes at 3:27 of the second round 

Gessner's Glance: A dominant performance by Sadollah in the second round. After an evenly matched first round, the former Ultimate Fighter Winner Sadollah out classed fellow alum Johnson from the opening bell of the second round. Johnson took the fight on two weeks notice and it showed by him not having an answer for Sadollah while on the ground. While I've never been in a professional fight, and I understand fighters wanting to preserve their career, you never like to see a fighter tap due to strikes. 

Joe Rogan interviewed GSP via satellite. GSP said that he is getting back to his roots and concentrating heavily on his karate training . He said he embraces the challenge of facing an opponent who has beaten everyone at both 170 and 185 and hasn't lost a fight in six years. He said he knows what Shields is going to do, take the fight to the ground and look for a submission. GSP said he has the edge because Shields doesn't know what he is going to do and what his game-plan is.

4. Dan "The Outlaw" Hardy vs. Anthony "Rumble" Johnson (Welterweight Division)

Round One: After both fighters exchanged strikes to open the round, Johnson dropped Hardy with a right head kick a minute into the round. Johnson grounded and pounded before Hardy was able to scramble back to his feet. Johnson was able to scored a single leg takedown with 3:30 left and moved into full guard. After struggling for position, Johnson began throwing head punches with 2:30 remaining. With at the 3:00 mark, Hardy attempted a triangle choke that Johnson shrugged off, stood up, and landed a big punch to the head before moving back into full guard.

Johnson passed to half guard. Hardy attempted a kimura but Johnson did not allow him to lock it in and landed punches to the body of Hardy. Hardy was able to scramble and move Johnson back into full guard with :30 remaining. Johnson landed a couple hammerfists in the closing half minute of the opening round.

Gessner's Glance: 10-9 Johnson. Johnson was in control of the fight following the head kick that dropped Hardy a minute into the fight. Decent ground and pound game the remainder of the round and showed good submission defense by not allowing Hardy to get the triangle choke or kimura. Johnson cuts a lot of weight to make 170 so cardio could be a concern for the rest of the fight though.

Round Two: Johnson was able to slip a punch from Hardy around :30 into the middle round and scored a double leg takedown. From full guard, Johnson worked the body with punches. Johnson defended another kimura attempt from Hardy. Johnson was able to transition into half guard with 2:00 left. Johnson began landing punches to the head with 1:30 left. With :39 remaining, referee Josh Rosenthal stood both fighters up due to a lack of work on the ground. Johnson immediately shot in for a single leg takedown, and after struggling to obtain it, took Hardy to the ground with :10 left in the round and remained in top position to close out the round. 

Gessner's Glance: 10-9 Johnson. Another dominant round by Johnson. He scored takedowns almost at will and took advantage of Hardy's sub-par grappling skills on the ground. The knock against many British fighters is their lack of wrestling ability and Hardy has done nothing whatsoever to go against that stigma. 

Round Three: Hardy shot for an early takedown, but Johnson sprawled the attempt. Anthony scrambled to half guard. Hardy again unsuccessfully went for yet another kimura on bottom. Hardy was able to get back to his feet but took to left knees to his left thigh and a head kick from Johnson in the process. 

Johnson scored another double leg takedown with 3:00 left in the fight. Johnson was able to take Hardy's back and landed punches to the head. With 1:30 remaining, Johnson put Hardy in a body triangle and then applied a triangle choke. Hardy worked his way out. Johnson then attempted a neck crank that Hardy was again able to break free from. Johnson closed out the final ten seconds of the round with head punches as the horn sounded ending the fight.

Gessner's Glance: 10-9 Johnson. Lather-rinse-repeat. Takedowns at will, in top position for ninety-three percent of the fight, and Hardy had no answers for him except weak kimura attempts that are damn near impossible to lock in on a bigger opponent who is on top of you. 30-27 Johnson on my card.

Official Decision: Anthony Johnson defeats Dan Hardy via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)

4. Phil "Mr. Wonderful" Davis vs. Antonio Rogerio Nogueira (Light Heavyweight Division) 

Round One: Davis went for a head kicked early that Nog was able to block :40 into the fight. Davis shot for the takedown that Nog was able to stuff, backing up against the cage. Davis landed over half a dozen knees to the thigh on Nog to close out the second minute of the fight.

Davis shot for three more takedowns in the next minute, but Nog was able to stop all of them. Davis attempted a head kick but ate a counter hook from Nog. Davis again continued to work for a takedown in the closing minutes of the round, but each attempted was stuffed. 

Gessner's Glance: 10-9 Davis. Davis was the aggressor throughout the opening five minutes. Despite being unable to score a takedown, he did connect with numerous head kicks during the opening five minutes of the main event fight.

Round Two: Both fighters traded strikes in the opening three minutes with Nog having the slight edge. At the 3:00 mark, Davis was finally able to score the first takedown of the fight of a single leg. After Davis was unable to advance and after only being able to land one significant punch that did any damage to the head of Nog, Nog worked his way back to his feet momentarily before getting taken down again. Nog again scrambled back to his feet, but Davis took him down, taking Nog's back in the process. From back mount, Davis began landing punches to the head of Nog with :30 left in the second round. Davis closed out the round with three big knees to the body.

Gessner's Glance: 10-9 Davis. After finally scoring a takedown, Davis did his damnedest to not let Nog stand back up and was successful in doing so. Dominant closing two minutes of the round by Davis.

Round Three: After trading strikes, Davis was able to score a single leg takedown a minute into the final round. Davis worked to gain a more dominant position than half guard and landed punches to the head and body. Nog was able to scramble to his feet with 2:20 left in the third. 

Davis scored another takedown from a single leg with 1:47 remaining. Davis spent the remainder of the fight attempting to advance his position but was unsuccessful in doing so. He landed punches to the head to close out the fight.

Gessner's Glance: 10-9 Davis. Switching from double leg to single leg takedown attempts proved to be the difference for Davis. Nog stuffed every double leg attempt but had no answer for the single leg. While Nog is a top level black belt in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu and can lock in a submission out of no where along with being very comfortable on his back, Davis needs to work on his ground game and passing as opponents will only get tougher for him as he moves up the ladder. 30-27 Davis on my scorecard.

Official Decision: Phil Davis defeats Antonio Rogerio Nogueira via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)

Overall Show Thoughts: Decent show up-and-down the card. This card did not carry the same name value as the original card due to injuries affecting three of the four main card fights. Nam Phan was slated to take on Leonard Garcia in a rematch following their controversial decision last December. Nam had to pull out due to a broken foot. This proved to be probably the best fight on the main card due to the phenomenal submission victory by The Korean Zombie due to a twister. Amir Sadollah's original opponent Duane Ludwig and his replacement James Wilks were both forced off the card due to injuries leading to DaMarques Johnson stepping in on two weeks notice. The short notice seemed to play a factor in the fight as Johnson got dominated in the second round.

Dan Hardy vs. Anthony Johnson was the only fight on the main card that did not have a replacement. Going into the fight many were expecting a slugfest with a big knockout finish. Following Johnson scoring the first takedown and Hardy having no answer for Johnson on the ground. Seeing how little energy he had to exert to take Hardy to the ground and keep him there, Johnson changed up his game plan and stayed in dominant position for the entire fight.

The biggest injury and blow to the main card was in the main event, where originally Tito Ortiz was supposed to fight to save his career against Little Nog. Due to a severe cut to his forehead announced on February 19 by Dana White on his twitter, Tito had to pull out. Tito will now be fighting Ryan Bader at UFC 132 in July, with his career still on the line. 

Phil Davis stepped in for Tito tonight and had a solid showing against the toughest fighter he's faced this far in his career. Little Nog has fought to collegiately acclaimed wrestlers in his last two fights, losing to All-American Ryan Bader in August and now losing to 2008 National Champion Phil Davis tonight. He entered the Bader fight on a seven fight win streak but after back-to-back losses, it will be interesting to see who he fights next and how he responds. For Davis, a top seven-to-fifteen fighter is probably next on his schedule, maybe a Matt Hammill or Forrest Griffin. 

Thank you all very much for clicking the link that brought you to my coverage of UFC Fight Night 24. If you have any thoughts, questions, comments, or critiques, feel free to email me at kliq4life28@gmail.com or tweet me at Twitter.com/MarkGessner.  

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