Review by Adam Stephen Kelly
UK Certification E | UK RRP £17.99 | DVD Region 2 | Runtime 338 minutes
The UFC covered new ground in Boston, Massachusetts back on August 28 of last year, making its long awaited debut on New England turf. The organisation's last few events have been a step in the right direction following the somewhat sour spate that included the likes of UFC 112: Invincible, and UFC 118 was the unfortunate but inevitable comedown. It was far from a disaster, but it was underwhelming when you compare it to, for example, the stellar UFC 117 headlined by Chael Sonnen vs. Anderson Silva. But perhaps that was to be expected with a card that included a boxer vs. mixed martial artist co-main event pairing? Read on for the full run-down of the show. 
Being the hometown boy, many had naturally hoped that Marcus Davis would either obtain a victory alongside his fellow New Englanders, or be defeated gracefully after a valiant effort. Now why you can't dispute the Irish Hand Grenade's heart in this fight, he was all but slaughtered by the young stallion, Nate Diaz. Taking the first two rounds with ease after landing vicious blows on his opponent, the cocky Ultimate Fighter winner was rolling. Opening him up above his right eye – and in a big, big way – he managed to reduce Davis' offense to half-speed, and pinpoint his strikes with greater accuracy. Relaxed and light on his feet for the full 15 minutes of action, Davis just couldn't keep up with the pace as he was taken down to the mat and locked in a fatal chokehold, and subsequently left an unconscious and bloody heap in the Octagon.
Lightweight Bout: Kenny Florian vs. Gray Maynard
This was certainly a fight with a hard-to-predict outcome, but in the end it couldn't have turned out more decisive. With the first round spent feeling each other out, the proficient boxer Florian and grappler Maynard went toe-to-toe but failed to make much of an impact, even though Joe Rogan noted that the first five minutes were all Maynard. Nevertheless, the second round was where he undisputedly racked up the points, landing shots to Florian and busting him wide open above the eye. This was the beginning of the end for him as he was quite simply out-struck by Maynard, which came as a surprise to many given their skill sets. It was a disappointing match-up all round for Florian and a relatively easy defeat via unanimous decision. By no means a great fight, it was still a noteworthy and emphatic victory for the Bully, putting him in the running for his first title shot and keeping his UFC record loss-free.
Middleweight Bout: Demian Maia vs. Mario Miranda
The Brazilian jiujitsu black belts collided in a pretty one-sided affair that saw Maia take home the unanimous decision victory after the fight went the distance. Maia took Miranda down to the ground on multiple occasions with his superior grappling, but his offense took so much out of him after the opening round, that his numerous attempts at submission holds could not be followed through, making Miranda's escape rather elementary as the gassed-out Maia could only look on in disappointment. It was a much needed win, too, no doubt rebounding Maia's morale going into his next battle after that hideous display of disrespect when he lost to Anderson Silva in the main event UFC 112. And speaking of that bout, in a bizarre turn of events, Silva was in Maia's corner at UFC 118.
Heavyweight Bout: Randy Couture vs. James Toney
In the 'one-for-the-publicity' marquee fight of the night, two legends of separate sports went head-to-head in the Octagon. Boxing's most decorated competitor Toney (who was $500,000 richer thanks to this fight) took on the MMA staple and now Hollywood star Couture in a mixed martial artist vs. boxer match. But even though the boxer was taken down 20 seconds into the fight, pummeled repeatedly and was forced to tap out of an arm triangle choke in just the first round, who was the real winner here? I just about made out Toney saying that he was planning on coming back during his post-fight mumbling (he's obviously taken way too many shots to the head over his boxing career), but obviously we know now that he was let go from his UFC contract. He was the highest paid fighter on the entire card, gained copious amounts of press and became the very first boxer to issue such a challenge to combatants in the world of MMA.
Lightweight Championship Bout: Frank Edgar (c) vs. BJ Penn
UFC 118's main event was a rematch from UFC 112's co-main event in Abu Dhabi when Edgar returned to the States with the Lightweight Championship belt around his waist, after defeating then champion Penn by unanimous decision in a solid outing. Many considered it an upset – and let's face it, it was – but there was an immediate backlash from some disappointed fight fans who thought that the bout should not have been awarded to the challenger. But hey, whatever their thoughts, a rematch was on the cards and here it was, and it certainly silenced those particular critics. Penn looked shaken from the very beginning of the fight and it seemed as though the roles had reversed four months after their original encounter. Edgar was light on his feet and bursting with confidence, yet the new challenger was far more reserved and was continuously broken down by the champ's aggressive offense throughout the entire fight. Penn managed to press the attack in the closing minutes of the five-round title battle, but he just couldn't makes his moves count and yet again lost out at the discretion of the judges, although the contrast between how decisive Edgar's two victories were is quite incredible.
EXTRAS ???? The second disc of this two-DVD set includes the complete six-fight preliminary card and the usual array of extras: the countdown show; the weigh-ins; fighter interviews; and a behind the scenes feature, all totalling nearly three-and-a-half hours.
Welterweight Bout: Mike Pierce vs. Amilcar Alves
Welterweight Bout: Nick Osipczak vs. Greg Soto
Middleweight Bout: Dan Miller vs. John Salter
Lightweight Bout: Andre Winner vs. Nik Lentz
Lightweight Bout: Joe Lauzon vs. Gabe Ruediger