Rashad Evans is the third man to hold the UFC's Light Heavyweight Championship belt this year after defeating Forrest Griffin.  Evans and Griffin fought in the main event for the title at UFC 92: The Ultimate 2008 Saturday night.  The two were awarded FIght of the Night honors after their bout and each received $60,000 bonuses for their efforts.

Rashad Evans has come along way since his time on the Ultimate Fighter series and has proven his mettle against every fighter the UFC has put in the Octagan with him.  Evans will not fly under the radar anymore as he is now the Champion of the most stacked division in mixed martial arts.  His first title defense should most likely be against Rampage Jackson who also put on a stellar performance against Wanderlei Silva Saturday night at UFC 92.

Frank Mir put on an amazing performance Saturday night at UFC 92: The Ultimate 2008 in not only defeating one of the top UFC Heavyweights, but finishing a man that has never been stopped in 37 MMA fights.  Mir came in with an excellent gameplan and stopped Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira to claim the UFC Interim Heavyweight Championship Title.

Frank Mir knocked Big Nog down three times with clean striking in the first round but never took top position against him.  Unstead he forced Nogueira to stand and trade with him rather than taking the fight to the ground and allow Antonio to recover.  In the second round Mir hit him with two stiff left hands and dropped him.  Mir is the first man to stop Nogueira.

Frank Mir will now face Brock Lesnar in what is sure to be a huge UFC event sometime early next year to unify the UFC Heavyweight Championship belts.

Stay tuned for up to date fight results for each bout for UFC 92: The Ultimate 2008.

Preliminary Card Results for UFC 92: The Ultimate 2008

PATRICK BARRY VS. DAN EVENSEN
Patrick Barry beats Dan Evensen - TKO

BRAD BLACKBURN VS. RYO CHONAN
Brad Blackburn beats Ryo Chonan - unanimous decision

REESE ANDY VS. MATT HAMILL
Matt Hamill beats Reese Andy - TKO - Round 2, 2:19.

ANTONI HARDONK VS. MIKE WESSEL
Antoni Hardonk beats Mike Wessel - TKO - Round 2, 2:09

DEAN LISTER VS. YUSHIN OKAMI
Yushin Okami beats Dean Lister - unanimous decision

Main Card Fight Results for UFC 92: The Ultimate 2008

C.B. DOLLAWAY VS. MIKE MASSENZIO

C.B. Dollaway takes Massenzio's back and finishes him with ground and pound.  Dollaway wins via strikes in the first round.

MOSTAPHA AL-TURK VS. CHEICK KONGO

Kongo defeats Mostapha via strikes after the two fighters trade groin shots.  Kongo shows some vicious ground and pound as Mazagati stops the fight in the first round.

QUINTON JACKSON VS. WANDERLEI SILVA

Quinton knocks out Wanderlei!  Gruesome knockout by Rampage Jackson against Wanderlei Silva in round one.

CHAMP ANTONIO RODRIGO NOGUEIRA VS. FRANK MIR

Frank Mir is the first man to ever finish Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira.  Mir finishes Nogueira early in the second round.  Frank Mir will face Brock Lesnar to unify the Heavyweight title.

CHAMP FORREST GRIFFIN VS. RASHAD EVANS

Rashad Evans is the new LIght Heavyweight champion!  Rashad took Griffin down and pounded him out in the third round to claim the Light Heavyweight Championship Title.

UFC 92: The Ultimate 2008

I didn't do to well for my UFC 91 predictions last time around.  Let's see how UFC 92 goes.

For this event I will make predictions for the big three bouts that will be taking place.  I will start with what might be the biggest draw for MMA fans. 

Quinton Jackson vs. Wanderlei Silva

This fight makes me nervous, anxious, excited, all of the above.  Quinton "Rampage" Jackson and Wanderlei "The Axe Murderer" Silva have faced off two times before with the same results: Wanderlei Silva via big knockouts.  I have a hard time believing the same will happen again though. 

Rampage has improved much since his Pride Fighting days and is more dedicated to his training.  Rampage most recently lost his Light Heavyweight title to Forrest Griffin.  Wanderlei Silva seems not to have lost any of his speed since his days of glory in Pride Fighting Championships in Japan.  Wanderlei displayed excellent striking and strength in his recent win over Keith Jardine.

Both fighters are at the top of, not only the Light Heavyweight division, but pound for pound MMA fighters in the world.  I will take Wanderlei Silva in this fight, not because he's beaten Rampage twice before, but because of Quinton Jackson's rocky life since he lost his title to Forrest Griffin.  Wanderlei Silva by decision in UFC 92's fight of the night.

Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira vs. Frank Mir

This is an exciting fight because Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira and Frank Mir are the two best Heavyweight brazilian jujitsu MMA fighters on the planet.  Big Nog has not fought in almost a year.  He last beat Tim Sylvia to capture the interim Heavyweight Title.  Frank Mir last fought against Brock Lesnar defeating Lesnar with a knee bar after taking early punishment.

I can't say I'm overly impressed with Mir.  His last win came against Lesnar who had fought one MMA bout before that.  He has never shown stamina in his bouts, something that Nogueira is famous for.  Look for Big Nog to keep his interim Heavyweight Title and fight Brock Lesnar sometime in the spring to unify the belts.

Forrest Griffin vs. Rashad Evans

Forrest Griffin vs Rashad Evans is a matchup of Ultimate Fighter alums.  Forrest Griffin is the UFC Light Heavyweight Champion after beating Quinton Jackson at UFC 86.  Rashad Evans is coming a stunning knockout of Chuck Liddell at UFC 88.  This bout is for the UFC Light Heavyweight Championship Title.

I was shocked by Rashad Evans knockout of Chuck Liddel as I'm sure most of the MMA world was.  Rashad has shown us that he is a different fighter than the lay and pray wrestler we saw during his time with the Ultimate Fighter show.  Forrests' change has been just as dramatic seeming to always outwork his opponents and being as technical a striker as the UFC has to offer.

I am anxious to see what kind of gameplan Greg Jackson will put together for Rashad Evans.  Regardless, we should not be to surprised to see nipple twisting from Rashad before the bout begins.  I don't think he can outwork Forrest Griffin, so look for Rashad to try to knockout him out.

I predict that Forrest will be able to successfully defend his title for the first time.  I'm looking forward to his next title defense which, if the MMA gods are listening to me, will be against Wanderlei Silva.