I understand why everyone wasn't too excited before this card...but I don't really understand why everyone is still complaining AFTER UFC 55. This was a highly entertaining card! I don't know what more you could ask for in terms of action.
Riggs vs Lytle: Good bout, good skills shown by both guys. Riggs reminded us why he is so dangerous from the top. His explosiveness from the top is right up there with Loiseau. His elbow from the bottom was set up perfectly. Beautiful strike.
Babalu vs Sonnen: great fight! I don't think anyone could be disappointed with this one. Back and forth battle where both guys had their moments. Chael showed a ton of heart gutting it out through that heelhook. Babalu showed why he's one of the most underrated 205ers, and that he definitely belongs in the top 10. Even in a losing effort, Sonnen had a good enough showing that I think everyone would like to see him back.
Forrest vs Elvis: this fight wasn't pretty, but man was it ever entertaining! Both guys showed heart, and some decent striking skills. Forrest is perhaps the most entertaining fighter in the sport to watch. I felt Elvis had a pretty good showing too. Everyone's crying early stoppage, but for Christ's sake Forrest dropped him CLEAN and he hit his head hard on the cage. I'm sure Elvis would have liked to continue, but we can't complain about EVERY stoppage. There was nothing wrong with this stoppage.
Hinkle vs Gannon: Yes, Gannon was a disappointment. But Hinkle came to finish. He was highly aggressive from the top and did tons of damage. If you like to see blood, you got your wish. Not a great fight, but a whole lot better than a slow, boring lay and pray decision. Can't really complain. And Hinkle gives us at least a new HW to watch for in a division that is really in need of some fresh blood.
Arlovski vs Buentello: Quick, clean KO! And people STILL boo? I don't know, maybe everyone missed it, but that was a beautiful, CLEAN punch RIGHT on the button, and Buentello was still out on his feet for a good minute or so stumbling around the cage. Yes, it happened fast, but they gave us about a million slo-mo replays. UFC champ delivers a beautiful KO, what's there to boo about?
As for the prelims, they are always just a bonus anyway.
Sakara looked sharp and exciting, Bearclaw showed heart and toughness if not skill. It's really too bad the way it ended, because Sakara deserved the win for sure. Maybe UFC needs to adopt an 'accidental foul rule', where as long as 1 full round is complete, they go to the cards. Because a technical draw really stinks in a fight that was so one sided, especially when the losing fighter delivers the foul that causes the fight to be stopped. Even with the disappointing finish, Sakara should give people something to look forward to.
Rivera vs Hallman: This is the only fight of the night that I think people can really complain about, because neither fighter showed up. However, it was still an entertaining an action packed fight, at least for the first half. There was plenty of damage done. Hallman was terrible, I don't know how a guy with such an impressive resume can come in and look so bad. But Rivera was almost just as bad. Hallman was BEGGING to be finished for 2 whole rounds, and Rivera just sat there and threw one shot at a time. I would say I'm more disappointed in Rivera for showing lack of killer instinct. Even still, this fight had plenty of drama.
Pe de Pano vs Kunihara: Only got to see clips so there's not a ton to say about this one, but again, a new HW to watch for= good news.
Overall, we saw KO's, subs, action, blood, wild slugfests, drama...seriously, especially given the lackluster card, how can you complain about this? This was a highly entertaining UFC!