UFC 88 was more exciting that it looked on the paper. Rich Franklin showed that he is capable of competing at 205. Dan Henderson survived a very tough match against a submission expert, and he is back. But more surprisingly, Chuck Liddell was knocked out cold by Rashad Evans, and he wasn’t able to put an effective punch on Rashad.

I really don’t know where Chuck goes from here. I know he is a UFC favorite, but now he has lost 3 of his last four fights, and he could have lost to Wanderlei Silva too. He is definitely not getting a title shot, so a match against Silva could be next for him if he loses to Jackson. Griffin may not have to fight Machida with Liddell out of the picture, and the Brazilian will be the heavy favorite there.

Rashad Evans is a good fighter and he proved it tonight. But I just don’t know if he is a big draw. He may have to win a couple of other fights before going after the title. He outsmarted Chuck tonight. But there are more dangerous fighters out there in Jackson, Silva, and Machida.

Rich Franklin is in a no man’s land in 205, and I don’t think he can challenge the top guys, but he can have money matches with Liddell or Silva. Heck. He might even fight Evans. But I think a match with Dan Henderson should be in the cards for him. Speaking of Dan Henderson, he is back. He wasn’t overly impressive, but his opponent was extremely dangerous. He wants a rematch with Silva but I think it’s a bad idea. He should either go to 205 or risk getting demolished by Anderson Silva again.

I don’t know about you but I am just bummed that Liddell lost that badly tonight. He was just bad tonight and Rashad deserved victory. I think he should retire soon after another big money fight. His legacy is secured, so he doesn’t need to put himself through these tough losses.

The fighters are in the Octagon and ready for the fight. Chucks looks very scary tonight. Let’s see if the old Chuck is back.

Round 1: Rashad is getting a lot of boos. Chuck is the favorite as you didn’t know. They touch gloves. Sizing each other up so far. Chuck is alert for take-downs. Rashad is showboating. Chuck is trying to knock this guy out. But not much happening. Some nice kicks from Rashad. So far Rashad has avoided any major hits. Rashad eats a punch, but backs up and avoids Chuck’s punch. Chuck is bleeding for some reason.

Round 2: Chuck is going after Rashad more aggressively but surprisingly Rashad lands the more effective shots. Chuck is knocked out by Rashad! He is out cold! Wow!

Chuck is out and he is hurt badly. What a shot. Wow! I am stunned. The dream Griffin Liddell fight is now not going to happen. Chuck is still out after like 5 minutes. Rampage is in the crowd, and he is making funny faces. Forrest Griffin is in the crowd too and he looks disappointed. Chuck is finally up but he is wobbly. Rashad says that he hopes that Chuck is OK. Rashad was awesome tonight but the crowd is still booing him

Rich Fraklin is in a very curious place in the UFC. He has lost twice to Anderson Silva in his own weight class, and is not a real light heavyweight, so I don’t think he’s got a shot at the title in 205 considering guys such as Machina, Jackson, and Liddell are too much for him. So what does his fight with Matt Hamill mean? Nothing really, except to show him whether he can put good fights in 205 division. Rich Franklin may not be a true contender at 205, but he can put money fights up against some of the other guys if given the chance (I do like to see him fight Dan Henderson before moving up though).

The fighter are now in the Octagon and ready to go. Matt Hamill looks very calm and Franklin is pumped. Here we go:

Round 1: Both fighters are sizing each other up. Good kick by Franklin. Right now these guys are not going to the ground. Rich has a small cut. It’s a bit funny that Hamill has to actually take time to look at the signals by his corner. That’s dangerous man! Keep your eye on your opponent. Hamill takes Franklin down. Franklin throws an armbar which Hamill escapes from. Hamill is cut. I would give the first round to Franklin.

Round 2: Rich is very active now. He is putting some great combinations up. The ref stops the fight as Franklin is bleeding from his right eyebrows. Hamill goes for the leg but Franklin gets out of it. Low blow by Franklin. Ref stops the fight again. The crowd is booing. Leg kicks are really hurting Hamill now. The crowd is not very happy. They want more excitement. Rich is now defending the take-down effectively. Another round for Franklin.

Round 3: They start. A body blow by Franklin. Hamill is down. There you go. Matt taps as he wants none of it. Now this was domination.

Aftermath: Rich said he hoped Matt was one of the “strong 205 pounders” or he will have a long way to go. It did look like that Rich was happy to stay in this weight class as he said the weight cut was “awesome.”

This Palhares guy is very dangerous. He keeps going for submissions in every possible position. I don’t know if he can actually execute any of this against Anderson Silva, but he is going to be very dangerous to most 185 lbs guys. This was a very close fight. But Henderson did enough to win. Not a particularly exciting fight but If I were Dan, I’d be happy I ended the losing streak.