UFC 127 Results: B.J. Penn and Jon Fitch Fight to Draw

Jon Fitch must feel hellafied frustrated. B.J. Penn just feels lucky. All in all, UFC 127 was one of those cards that makes you think it is time for Dana White to start examining some free TV. 50 bucks was a stretch for this one.

The wrap-up from Sherdog:

    “I thought [I deserved the win],” Fitch said. “I gave some positioning in the first two rounds, but I came back and did enough to at least win a split decision.”

    Penn surprised the American Kickboxing Academy standout with his game planning. The gifted Hawaiian scored with takedowns in each of the first two rounds and secured back control on Fitch, threatening him with chokes from behind. Fitch defended successfully and turned into Penn’s guard on both occasions.

    “My cardio was through the roof. It just threw me off. I didn’t train for B.J. shooting takedowns,” Fitch said. “I wasn’t expecting that at all. It took me until the second round to really find my groove.”

    Fitch came out firing in the third, as he unleashed a crisp overhand right and transitioned immediately to a takedown inside the first 10 seconds. Penn fought back to his feet, only to be taken down again with 3:44 left in the fight. He never again returned to an upright position. From there, Fitch tore into Penn with elbows, punches and hammerfists from the top. It was the most decisive part of the 15-minute encounter between the two.

    “I think I got some dominant positions in the first and second, but he kicked my butt in the third,” Penn said. “If I lost this fight, I wasn’t sure what I was going to do with my career, but since the gods were nice to me and gave me a draw, if he wants to do it again, I’ll do it again.”

UFC 127 Results: B.J. Penn Vs. Jon Fitch Round 1

The main event for tonight's UFC 127: Penn vs. Fitch is, naturally, B.J. Penn vs. Jon Fitch. UFC President Dana White said the winner of this bout was in line for a title shot. Would that be against Jake Shields? Or would it be against someone new? We won't know until UFC 129, but tonight would answer who one-half of the equation would be.

The referee in charge of the action is Herb Dean.

ROUND 1 - before the round even starts, Fitch looks much larger than Penn. Penn closes the distance immediately and goes for a takedown against the fence. The fighters trade knees inside. Fitch reverses position and goes for a takedown, switching back and forth between a double and single. Now Penn reverses Fitch and takes Fitch to the ground. Then he takes his back...locks up the body triangle. Penn and Fitch hand fight and the Hawaiian nearly lands a rear naked choke before Fitch reverses position in Penn's guard. Fitch now pressing Penn into the cage attempting the takedown. Nothing doing.

UFC 127 results

The co-main event of UFC 127: "Penn vs. Fitch" from Sydney, Australia featured a heavily hyped match-up pitting Michael Bisping vs. Jorge Rivera.

And it certainly came through with the necessary fireworks, as Michael Bisping exacted the revenge he wanted so badly with a second round technical knockout win over Jorge Rivera.

Directly after, he walked up to a rocked "El Conquistador" and told him he needed to apologize for all the shit he talked in the lead-up to the fight. He even spit at Rivera's corner.

"The Count" admitted to his sensitivity in the post-fight interview with Joe Rogan though and said he was sorry for overreacting when the fight was called.

All that said, it was an impressive performance for the British striker, who kept the pressure on the whole way.

Star-divide

It didn't come without a bit of controversy however, not including the post-fight shenanigans. In the opening frame, Bisping landed a clearly illegal knee on a downed Rivera that cost him a point.

The fight was nearly called when Rivera was essentially unresponsive for a short period of time.

As it turned out, the 37 year-old was able to continue and came out with a renewed vigor after the bout was restarted. The overhand right he was looking to land, a la Dan Henderson at UFC 100, just never found a home.

The constant pressure "The Count" was able to apply was too much for the old man to handle, as he gassed and it almost looked as if he let himself get punched out to bring the fight to a close.

An impressive performance from Bisping, who showcased his striking along with his wrestling en route to the technical knockout win. So what's next for the surging middleweight contender?