There were 10,687 fight fans in attendance for UFC 109: Relentless at the Mandalay Bay Events Center in Las Vegas, NV Saturday night, an event that delivered few surprises with the exception of Sonnel vs Marquardt which named a new potential heir to middleweight champion Anderson ‘The Spider’ Silva’s throne.

Otherwise, it was business as usual for a number of long-time UFC combatants as Matt Serra unleashed his fists of fury on the face of Frank Trigg, Randy Couture returned to his ‘Natural’ form, and Tito Ortiz seized the opportunity to run his mouth during Mark Coleman’s post-fight interview with Joe Rogan which sparked yet another controversy courtesy of the ‘Huntington Beach Bad Boy’.

In the sections below we recap all of the top action, providing analysis & opinion on what to expect next from each fighter. Check it out and be sure to leave a comment with your thoughts on UFC 109: Relentless.

All photos property of Dave Mendel/Sherdog.com

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Serra Trounces Trigg In The First

The main card opener turned out to be one of the most exciting bouts of the night as Matt Serra reminded fans that his fists are still packed with dynamite as he destroyed Frank Trigg early in the first round with an overhand right that put laid his opponent out cold. Trigg protested the stoppage, but had clearly lost all memory of the assault as Serra was able to land a number of ground strikes square on Trigg’s chin which went completely undefended. Looking at the replay there was no doubt the stoppage was legitimate, and with another ugly loss under his belt Trigg’s days as a UFC combatant are likely over.

Matt ‘The Terror’ Serra (10-6-0)
Serra notched his 10th win as a professional mixed martial artist which is a modest number for someone who has been in the game since 1999. Though Serra looked great in brief appearance with Trigg, at age 35 he’s going to have to increase his workload should he ever wish to get another shot at the title. UFC’s welterweight division has a seemingly endless pool of talent and Serra will never find a way to separate from the pack taking only one fight per year. We’d love to see him go toe-to-toe with one of the big strikers such as Paul Daley or Josh Koscheck, though both of those fighters may be looking past Serra onto bigger things – namely a title shot.

Frank ‘Twinkle Toes’ Trigg (19-8-0)
In his two appearances since returning to the UFC after a five-year hiatus Trigg has been knocked out in the first round of both contests in embarrassing fashion. Fans have seen nothing from Trigg in terms of talent or desire to win, and it would be an insult to the entire division should Trigg be featured on another main card of a major UFC event. From our perspective, Trigg’s days fighting under the UFC banner are over and if he does take another fight it will probably be at a regional event against a relative unknown.

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Maia Masters Miller In Unanimous Decision Victory

Demian Maia remained in full control the entire three rounds he spent inside the octagon with Dan Miller as he dominated his opponent in both the clinch and ground positions en route to a unanimous decision victory. Miller was frustrated the entire night, most notably following a vicious knee to the family jewels that stopped the action briefly to allow Miller some recovery. Immediately after the break Miller came out swinging to enact revenge on Maia, but the wily Brazilian utilized his Thai clinch which then setup a tripping take-down that sealed up a second-round win for Maia. Heading into the third there was no question that Miller needed to finish the fight to secure a win, but he simply could not put the pieces together to do so.

Demian Maia (11-1-0)
Maia’s win over Miller will definitely up his status in the middleweight rankings, but it seems highly unlikely that a title shot will be coming anytime in the near future. Maia was beaten handily by Nate Marquardt prior to his contest with Miller, and with Marquardt having lost to Sonnen (see below) there is a real mess in the middleweight division that needs to be sorted out. Look for Maia to sqaure off against an upper-level middleweight such as Patrick Cote or Nate Quarry in his next endeavor, though a matchup with a 185lb. elite may lie on the horizon.

Dan Miller (11-2-0)
Miller is curently mired in the biggest slump of his career having lost back-to-back unanimous decisions against top ranked opponents in Maia & Sonnen. After tearing through the lower ranks of the middleweight division Miller has been stymied by the cream of the crop at 185lbs. which will probably prevent him from appearing on another main card in the near future. From our perspective Kendall Grove would be an excellent match-up for Miller as both fighters have proven to be competent inside the cage but have failed to take their game to the highest level.

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Thiago Submits Swick Quick With D’arce Choke

Paulo Thiago made veteran Mike Swick look like an amateur Saturday night by outstriking his opponent nearly 3:1 in the stand-up game, and overwhelming Swick on the ground with advanced Jiu-Jitsu techniques that a stunned Swick simply could not handle. Early in the second round Thiago rocked the tall Texan with a huge right hand counter that laid Swick out on his back, a position that Thiago quickly capitalized on. From the live camera angle it was difficult to tell whether or not Thiago had a choke cinched in, but when the referee checked Swick’s arm it folded like wet spaghetti, officially ending the contest at 1:54 of the 2nd round.

Mike ‘Quick’ Swick (14-3-0)
Swick is stumbling as of late having lost back-to-back contests for the first time in his extensive MMA career that dates back to 1998. For a fighter of his caliber it is disappointing to see such lackluster performances of late, especially since he has been training with some of the best in the world at American Kickboxing Academy in San Jose, CA. Having lost to two of the best welterweights UFC has to offer it may be time for Swick to dial back a bit and take on a second-tier opponent, perhaps Dustin Hazelett who is a dangerous Jiu-Jitsu player looking to re-establish himself having suffered a knockout from Paul Daley in his last appearance.

Paulo Thiago (12-1-0)
Brazilian special police officer Paulo Thiago continues to make his case as the next top contender at 170lbs. as his submission skills prove superior once again by finishing Swick with the rare D’arce choke which is an inverted variation of the triangle choke. As Thiago speaks little English and carries himself in a humble manner he is often forgotten when discussing top UFC welterweights, but after Saturday nights performance he has become impossible to ignore. Koscheck, Daley, Hardy, and St. Pierre represent the class of the division, and Thiago has definitely earned himself a shot at one of those four which will likely shake out after St. Pierre vs Hardy takes place next month at UFC 111.

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Sonnen Shocks Marquardt With A Dominating Grappling Performance

In the eyes of most fans Chael Sonnen became somewhat of a joke this week having come out of left field talking smack about the legitimacy of Anderson Silva’s champion status. However Sonnen silenced his critics by delivering a masterful performance against Nate Marquardt where he controlled every aspect of the contest with phenomenanal wrestling that led to a unanimous decision victory scored 30-27 by all three judges. There was a point early on in the fight where Marquardt was able to open up Sonnen’s forehead with an elbow strike that doused both fighters with a disgusting amount of blood, though it was not enough to force a stoppage in the action. After Sonnen’s corner patched him up at intermission it was back to business as usual where he scored multiple takedowns to continue smothering Marquardt en route to a huge upset win.

Nate ‘The Great’ Marquardt (32-8-2)
After stringing together three consecutive knockout wins inside the octagon Marquardt is back to square one in his quest for a title shot after falling victim to Sonnen’s ground game. Frustration would best describe ‘The Great’ as this loss was an unexpected setback that puts his anticipated rematch with Anderson Silva in question. With all expectations being that Sonnen will receive the next title shot at 185lbs. Marquardt will likely need to take and win at least two more fights before being considered for title contention again, with his next opponent likely to be either Nate Quarry or Patrick Cote who are both sitting just outside the inner circle of top talent at middleweight.

Chael Sonnen (25-10-1)
Chael Sonnen talked a big game heading into Saturday night’s contest with Marquardt but he backed up every single word in a performance that was nothing short of total domination of the top middleweight contender. Sonnen undoubtedly earned a title shot for his efforts, and it is just a matter of time before he stands in against current champion Anderson Silva. Silva is already set to fight Vitor Belfort in a light heavyweight contest at UFC 112 in April, so expect to see Sonnen vs Silva in a battle for the middleweight strap sometime in late summer/early fall.

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Couture Chokes Out Coleman Closing His Career

Randy Couture sure looked like a ‘Natural’ Saturday night as he ditched his standard Greco-Roman wrestling approach in favor of a stand-up battle throughout the first round where he landed a number of crisp combinations on the younger Mark Coleman that put him ahead on points to close the round. Couture’s stand-up approach must have been part of his gameplan as he immediately reverted back to his roots to start the second by shooting for a that put Coleman on his back where the original UFC heavyweight champion is at his weakest. It was only a matter of seconds before Couture flossed his improved submission skills by cinching in a rear naked choke that Coleman refused to tap for, causing his to pass out and officially end the contest at 1:09 in the second round.

Randy ‘The Natural’ Couture (17-10-0)
All signs point to Randy’s resurgence at light heavyweight as an indication that he will vie for a title shot in the near future, but from our perspective wins over the likes of Brandon Vera and Mark Coleman should not move the mercury on Couture whatsoever. At age 46 it is impressive that Couture can still contend with quality fighters, but he seems to be riding the hype of yesteryear as it is ridiculous to think that Couture could actually survive a single round against the likes of Lyoto Machida, Mauricio Rua, Vitor Belfort, Rampage Jackson, or any others at the top of the 205lb division. Couture still has three fights left on his current UFC deal, but there isn’t a single top opponent that we feel would be a suitable match for the former champion.

Mark ‘The Hammer’ Coleman (16-9-0)
If Coleman’s career isn’t over after Satruday night’s performance, it should be. ‘The Hammer’ looked more like a push pin standing in against Randy Couture, literally just standing there for what seemed like the entire match. Though CompuStrike stats reveal that Coleman did in fact launch and land a number of strikes it is difficult to remember him doing anything memorable outside of turning pink in the clutches of a dominant Couture. There will be no future opponent for Mark Coleman as his legendary MMA career has come to a close – at least we hope so.

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