UFC 89: “Bisping vs. Leben” from The National Indoor Arena (NIA) in Birmingham, England, on October 18 has come to a close.
The highly anticipated main event of the evening between Michael Bisping and Chris Leben had its fair share action, but it was not awarded the “Fight of the Night” by promotion officials when all was said and done.
That honor went to welterweights Chris Lytle and Paul Taylor for their rock-em, sock-em three-round brawl, which “Lights Out” took in the end via unanimous decision.
Another 170-pound match up that didn’t make the televised Spike TV broadcast between Dan Hardy and Akihiro Gono had to come in a close second.
Overall, it was a solid card that produced several exciting fights — the fighters honored below more than deserved a little extra cold hard cash for their outstanding performances.
Here are the special fight bonuses for UFC 89:
Knockout of the Night — Luis Cane
Submission of the Night – Jim Miller
Fight of the Night — Chris Lytle vs. Paul Taylor
Each fighter received $40,000 for their efforts in addition to their respective base salaries, which will more than likely not be made available because the event took place overseas.
For complete UFC 89 results and blow-by-blow coverage of the main card action click here.
64 Comments »
Cane got KO of the night. So, he had the ONLY KO of the night?
Shane Carwin also TKO’d his opponent.
First and foremost, I have a newfound respect and liking for chris leban. I watched a bit of the countdown, and liked seeing the maturation process.
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Now to UFC89. OK, I’m not going to lie, I would rather buy a ppv and not have to sit through 60+ commercials, but free mma is good for some. The voice overs at the begining and end of each round is taking it too far! For those of you who don’t know what that is, it was the promos and ads added after the fight. Goldie’s voice is lower and it’s obviously added.
To the fights:
I’ve always been a Bisping supporter, and have predicted for months he will get a title shot by the end of the year. (trackback). He proved tonight why I have that opinion! He wasn’t just Machida elusive, he dished out tons of punishment too. I though he looked crisp and quick, and is very humble and down to earth for a brit.
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Vera is done. he’s in there for a paycheck and it’s over for me! I’m not a fan of Jardine, but I can’t believe it was a split decision…please tell me what round (s) vera won. His performance was pathetic and he should be embarrassed!
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I was thoroughly impressed with Soku…for 90 seconds. I was hoping he’d get ko’d and my wife laughed when I got my wish.
. Lytle needs to pace himself! He looked good, but have some discipline!
overall I guess it was good (it was free), the next few ppv’s look great though in comparison. Is Cote and GSP dating?
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GO RED SOX!!!!!!!!!!!
PPV is just as full of commercials, they are just the self-promoting ones for UFC events and shows.
I actually didn’t mind this one and found it moved at a brisk pace compared to some PPV events.
I’m reading some of you guys actually think leben won that fight…are you joking? He moved forward so he wins? Bisping punished him repeatedly, you guys need to buy a clue, I hear walmart is having a 2 for one, with a ppv coming you guys can shop together…whats next, you gonna tell me lesner will beat randy?
is UFC turning into K1? someone explain why vera/jardine was stood up? BJJ and ground fighting is getting lost in the casual fans obsession with ko’s!
Nice job. I agree damn near 100% with what you’ve said. The only difference being I would rather see them for free obviously–but I agree the commercials are way too much. At least when their self promoting during the pay per views It is only between fights and not between rounds.
Leben has matured incredible, Although he appeared to backslide slightly when frustration and the reality of the third round hit him. Charging forward blindly in hopes of landing a KO does not mean he won the fight. I like Bisping as well–and love how every time he fights people posting say he’s gonna get his ass handed to him this time–and when he doesn’t still claim he is over-rated. Do I think he can beat Silva? No. But he does not warrant the criticism he gets.
If anyone is over-rated it is Vera. He needs to go back to fighting muy thai. I’m sick of hearing how incredible he is and his never-ending list of excuses when he loses or doesn’t finish a fight. Standing up fighters is ridiculous and the UFC should stop trying to placate the uninformed masses who get bored when fight is on the ground.
And go Red Sox.
Also, I’m happy to see that Lytle got a fight bonus. He always seems to bring it to the octagon. He still works as a fireman? Man, I hope that he spends more time training. He’s this good part time, that’s crazy.
im i the only one who thought leben won
Nope, but it was expected.
I was rooting for him, but Leben didn’t win. He was coming forward the whole fight but that just played into Bisping’s gameplan. Bisping landed cleaner shots. Leben should have stopped chasing him and make Bisping come forward.
Bisping learned a lot from that hammil fight and it went pretty much how I thought it would go… how could he miss that big ‘ol dome on leban?
For having a head so big, Leben’s plan certainly wasn’t very cerebral.
I think that Leben should’ve been given more points for clearly being the aggressor the entire fight. However Bisping took him apart with his counterpunching and elusiveness. I think that Chris would’ve had the advantage on the ground but just like Sherk vs Penn, Chris thought it was a better idea to stand and trade even while his face was being turned into hamburger meat.
Moving forward into your opponents fists does not mean that you are being the aggressor. It means that you are relying on your big head to absorb punishment and try to find the space and timing to land your biggest weapon.
Bisping was too much for Leben. I like Leben but he clearly did not win that fight.
I agree, i wanted Leben to win but he was c;ear;y outclassed tonight. Bisping was just too technical for him.
i couldve said it better freddy.. People think that running into punches should count as points. good idea. haha.
Haha good one Freddy, I totally agree
it’s called “effective agressivness” and leben wasn’t effective with his agressivness very much.
Leben lost very obviously. No controversy.
In my opinion a boring and lackluster ufc. A bunch of fights were people were fighting for the win and not to finish the fight. I know its the ufc and there is alot on the line but people dont want to see boring fights. Bisping going for the decision vera and jardine playing the cautios i cant afford another loss fight. Pathetic and i am glad this was a free ufc because it was lame.
I know i got mad as soon as it went to decsision, i had a feeling if Leben didnt get the Ko they would give it to bisping, sucks
next week
I thought Leben won. He was the aggressor the the entire fight and landed more (including takedowns). Bisping is a joke and he will be exposed shortly.
So, Silva retires and Bisping wins the belt in 2 years, will you still doubt him?
I’m not saying that’s what is going to happen, but what the hell does this guy have to do to get some respect?
I don’t like Leben or Bisping. But tonight in this fight I saw one fighter back pedaling the entire fight, landing an occasional cross. It was messed up, and regardless of how bad Leben’s face looked, he earned my respect. Bisping still looks like the entitlement based punk from a year ago.
Kibble, there wasn’t one single thing that Leben did better than Bisping except for beating up the air. That take down that you feel was so important lasted all of three seconds. You don’t win a round just for harmless takedown. The only reason why Leben even tried for it was because he was gassed and getting his face smashed in. Look, I was with you in rooting for Leben but you gotta give Bisping his just do. He demolished Leben. Be objective bro.
If he wants respect he needs to start fighting the elete of 185 Hendo, Franklin, Marquardt, Kampman, Quarry, Leites, Reljic, I think Sadollah is more worthy then fucking Leben. BIsping dosnt deserve respect
U thought Leban won?… Is that a biased opinion? or ru just and uninformed fan and think the guy with best corn rows and meanest looking tattoes is the better fighter?
no i just get mad that Bisping fights over there and gos to decision he wins same bs with Hamil
I told you Dan Hardy would win.
Good call, i had Gono on that one for sure but Dan’s a really tough guy and he proved it. Much respect Hardy!
Yeah Dan is a worrior, who will fight 100% till the end.
Mint! I won nice wedge on this one. john (u muppet) your boy gono got his! Notts manz doin it!
I don’t see how people may think leben won.. he clearly didn’t win- he did good, but not enough to beat bisping.. regardless it was a good fight, Still can’t wait till the SIlva fight- anyone else have a gut feeling that cote will pull the upset?? and alves will destroy koscheck
Personally I dont think Cote will pull an upset. Silva is the doctor of fighting. He know this trade inside out. He’s a fighter in a league of its own. Look at his fighting style. He also has longer reach, taller, quicker, can DODGE punches…this guy is PHENOMENAL. May God keep Blessing this type of talent. He’s unique, AN ANIMAL. GO SILVA!!!!
Vera has lost the killer instict he once possessed…sadly he has turned out to be a flash in the pan..I expected great things from him.
Vera never had killer instinct, you could tell by the way that he carried himself that he was scared. He really let ALL filipinos down. What a disgrace, all that talent and no heart…
Same here, that year off really hurt him, hasn’t done anything since…sad
Jardine didn’t look all that great either.
Leben looked a lot better. Better conditioning, hard jaw, very tough.. Just needs to come up with better game plans, rather than just always leaning forward and going for a homerun punch everytime. His kicks were a lot better than Bisping. Bisping, no power behind those punches. At least he was honest and said he’s not ready for a title shot.
No Leben didn’t win.
But Bisbing won in the most boring way. Seriously, if you can pick apart a fighter then WHY not knock him out? Why pick him apart and then run away.
Yeah it wins the fight, but its not pleasing to the fans.
Ask Lenix Lewis the boxing champion, The MOST boring champion of ALL time.
Yeah, you can win fight by picking and choosing but sometimes its boring.
cause thats all that leben brings. a strong chin and a good left hand.. Why would anyone play to his opponents strengths? i find it funny how much people hate on bisping for fighting smart and not brawling the brawler.
BJ had a similar style when he fought Sherk, the only difference is that sherk got rocked and bj finished him with a knee. Leben on the other hand took a lot of shots but wasnt even close to being rocked the whole time. Its not as easy to knock him out you know.
u just said the difference yourself, the difference is bj finishes people when they use a weak gameplan. I hope franklin drops back down to fight bisping. micheal bisping has sh!t for power, he is obviously gifted with speed but he really needs some power in his punches before taking on any of the top mw’s. that dance and flashy style might beat a leben-level fighter but it wont beat a top level mw.
ben, you may have found the fight to be boring but he came up with that game plan knowing that Leben would be stalking him wanting a brawl. It may not be exciting but he wouldn’t have won if he tried to throw down with Leben. If you’re fighting in the UFC would you rather win or play right into the strength of your opponent? Leben has beautiful technique, don’t fault the guy for his strength even if you think it’s boring. That’s like saying BJJ is boring so all BJJ practitioners need to just throw down to make the fight exciting. HUH?
are you saying HUH to yourself because u just said leben has beautiful technique. that has me saying HHHUUUHHH!!!
I’m saying HUUUH to you for picking the name CLETIS! lol. I should have said strategy, not technique.
cant wait for brandon vera’s latest excuse!!! lol…im sure he can come up with a good one…ohh my pinky finger got broken….its the ref haha
What fight were people watching?
A) If you thought Leben won, you’re either a delusional fanboy or a moron. And this is coming from someone who hates Bisping.
B) The fight wasn’t boring at all. Sorry not every fight is Wandy v Chuck.
This is like the same people who think Machida is a boring fighter.
I’m pretty sure by this time next week, everyone will have forgotten about this card anyways.
Unfortunetly, you’re right! The worst show i’ve ever been to by far.
However, i did blag good seats and meet Dan Henderson so still smilling about that.
anyone think that the vera/jardine fight was a huge waste of time??? i would have rather watched fuckin paint dry. the davis/kelly and taylor/lytle fights were the best fights of the night. leben was really classy after the fight and gained a lot of fans as well.
Bisping fought a great fight, formulated a game plan and executed it perfectly.
hmmmm if brandon vera tries to make excuses again, i swear everyone here is gonna boycott him.
IMO Bisping did a great job staying as close to danger as he could while delivering more accurate stiking. He just did not posses the strenghth to KO Leben at that range, and taking a harder, closer more committed shot whould have most certainly resulted in a Loss for Bisping. I do think he chose a safer approach that while not as exciting it most def. got the job done. He was the better prepared fighter this night. Leben looked like a different dude for sure, & I can’t wait to see him fight again.
I still could not shake the feeling that I was watching a Fight Night, not UFC 89.
Bisping is a muppet…
ha, random comment but amusing all the same. Bisping is a little overated (prob for marketing reasons here in the UK) but fair play to him, he was very humble after last nights win and admited himself that he needs a few more fights before he’s in title contention.
I hope hendo gets the other coaching job on tuf. he wont just market him he will take his ass to market.
For sure, i like Bisping but Hendo takes that fight hands down. Bisping won’t cope with Hendo’s wrestling. And if he though Leben had a chin and hits hard, Hendo’s chin and power is on another level.
I’m sorry, but as someone who reads just about everything on Mania I’ve got to say that anyone that thought Chris Leben, who I respect, won that fight is a stone cold moron!
Bisping said he wasn’t going to brawl a brawler and no professional fighter would unless that was his own forte. A pro’s job is to get in there and exploit his enemy’s weakness and that is exactly what Bisping did. So rather then get on your knees for Leben, why not just grow up and admit that Bisping got into the cage with one of the toughest MW in the world and won. Give them both their props. Period!
well put son!!!!!
Before the fight all the forum chat was that if Bisping wins this he’ll get some real respect, but expect him to get Ko’d etc etc.
Not only did he pick Leben apart, but he picked A VASTLY IMPROVED Leben apart. This guy is 10 X better than the guy Silva knocked out, and Bisping still handled him.
and silva knocked him out in no time. don’t ever compare bisping’s lack of power ass with anderson silva till he beats hendo, franklin, marquardt or a top level mw. leben is a one dimensional fighter with very little skill and a lot of power. he throws a lead block with his face for christ sakes. leben is very exciting but a very low skilled fighter in my opinion. he either knocks people out or loses. that my friend is a one trick pony. IF YOU DONT WANT PEOPLE ON THIS SITE TO THINK YOUR A MORON DON’T EVER COMPARE SOMEONE WHO HAS NEVER EVEN BEEN A TOP CONTENDER TO SOME ONE WHO IS A PROVEN CHAMPION. I was a bisping fan till he got beat down by hammill and then still talked smack when they gave him the decision.
where is my comment mania?
Dude, CLETIS, Leben got his @ss kicked, you don’t need to get so angry about it.
what was wrong with my comment to andy, and where is it?
Leben lost a 1-sided fight. Even tho his face was cut pretty bad, I wouldn’t say he got his @ss kicked.