Kharitonov vs Rizzo
I'd say this was Kharitonov's most impressive showing. Didn't show any fear boxing with Rizzo and in the end really dominated him on the feet. Shot after shot was landing and you could see Rizzo fading as it wore on before it ended in TKO. Kharitonov's standup is deadly.
Shogun vs Minotoro
This fight lived up to the hype and was fight of the night. That was a great shot by Minotoro where he dropped Shogun, but Shogun's takedowns and balance were impressive. Even when Minotoro tried to initiate the takedowns Shogun would reverse it so that he'd be in top position by the time he hit the ground. Good submission defense and ground and pound to get the decision. For me this was Shogun's most impressive fight.
Alistair vs Vovcahchin
All I have to say about Alistair is holy sh*t! That dude must been studying Pequeno's guillotine DVD religously. I can't believe he caught Vovchanchin that fast. He's come so far as a fighter in the past year or so. If he goes up against Shogun in the next round I'll pick Alistair to guillotine him too. And I wouldn't say that its out of the question that he could catch Silva or Arona in it too. Damn impressive.
Cro Cop vs Magomedov
This fight went as expected with Cro Cop finishing him off with a kick to the ribs. Magomedov has balls trying to stand with Cro Cop but he should've used his head and at least try to take it to the ground a few times.
Tamura vs Takimoto
Worst fight of the night. Boring pitter patter from Tamura kicking Takimoto the whole time.
Minotauro vs Nastula
Nastula was impressive for this being his debut fight. He's built like a bull and showed good ground skills but once Minotauro got mount he did the smart thing and pound out the win instead of risking losing position for the armbar, which Nastula seemed to be giving him to try to setup a spin out escape.
Arona vs Sakuraba
It seems that BTT is taking a page of out Chute Boxe's book and opting to kneeing the hell of their opponents when defending the shot, instead of spinning around to take their backs. Sperry did it against Yokoi and Arona did it with brutal effectiveness against Sakuraba. This was a beatdown clinic and Sakuraba looked like a new born baby with a swollen face and blood everywhere. Good stoppage, that look extremely painful.
Silva vs Nakamura
Nakamura showed he's a scrappy fighter and willing to trade on the feet but it panned out the way everyone thought it would. Silva eventually connects w/ the big punch, obtains mount and finishes him off with strikes.
If the next round pits Shogun vs Alistair and Arona vs Silva, I think we'll see Alistair vs Silva in the finals with Silva winning it. Although Alistair's guillotine is still new I'm not sure if everyone is ready for it so he still might be able to pull it off against someone like Silva. I can't wait.
What did you guys think?