Ultimate Fighting

Despite numerous pull-outs and substitutions, the remaining match-ups still intrigue and promise much in the way drama.

For better or worse, the heavyweights are making themselves heard again. Big, clumpy, unsightly footsteps left in the ground of combat sports, the type that stick and cast shadows over those with less power and size. And, it's true, heavyweights make the world go round.

With Jon Jones now secure as the UFC's premier 205 lb fighter, my attention turns to 22-year-old Rory MacDonald, a physical welterweight contender with the world at his feet.

On April 14, the UFC will have its first event in Europe since last November's show in Birmingham, England. To commemorate this return, I propose tilting the spotlight above the leading Europeans currently plying their trade in the UFC.

A runaway success since its inception in 2005, now seems as good a time as any to remember and highlight some of The Ultimate Fighter's very best success stories

The lighter weight classes have been running rings round the heavier boys of late and this new flyweight talent pool should act as an extension of this little men equals big thrills equation.

Think about it; despite a glut of Japanese fighters appearing on this UFC 144 card, including Yoshihiro Akiyama, Yushin Okami and Hatsu Hioki, I'd be surprised if anybody receives the kind of love and warmth of reception that Jackson can expect to embrace moments before he trades blows with Bader.

This lightweight duel is as close to a surefire thing as you can possibly get in the unpredictable world of mixed martial arts.

When it was time for the judges' decision, the words "by unanimous decision" were perfectly expected, but the name that followed them wasn't.

If NFL rules continue to reduce the number and ferocity of hits the equity of the football brand will decrease. This will open the door for other sports with bravado, warrior and hero identities to grow.

Getting new people into MMA and teaching them about the sport is easy if you do it right. How do you do it right? You show them the right fights....

Fedor remains one of the more fearsome and talented heavyweights in the world, and victory over the Russian, even in 2011, represents a high water mark in the career of Henderson.

Just 12 months ago Dan 'The Outlaw' Hardy was supposedly one punch away from becoming the UFC welterweight champion of the world. But things haven't turned out that way at all.

Whether in the sandpit, the park or positioned around a board game, we're told from an early age that friends are supposed to play together, not fight...

So-called pioneers and innovators are often only relevant for as long as it takes the rest of the world to catch up. In a sport as impatient as mixed martial arts, it doesn't take long for fresh-faced originators to become blurred images on a VHS tape.

If ever one needed an example of how quickly fortunes change in the tumultuous world of mixed martial arts, consider the recent career trajectory of U...

One month ago, UFC welterweight contender Jon Fitch said he starts each and every day by downing two sixteen-ounce glasses of water, prompting one commenter to note, "Well, at least Fitch finishes his water."

The Brits aren't being squashed, disgraced or smashed out of sight, but they are being beaten. The scorecards don't lie. We want to stand and bang, and the spoilsports won't let us.

James 'Lights Out' Toney was once known as a hard-nosed, rugged, relentless and merciless world champion boxer. That once-ferocious fighting force is now 41 years of age, and more than 41 pounds heavier.

I...