Review by Adam Stephen Kelly
UK Certification E | UK RRP £17.99 | DVD Region 2 | Runtime 311 minutes
The disappointing UFC 126 has landed on DVD in a two-disc set featuring 11 fights from the Ultimate Fighting Championship's second pay-per-view event of 2011, hosted on February 5 at the Mandalay Bay Events Center in Las Vegas, Nevada, and headlined by a Middleweight Championship defence by one of the sport's top combatants, Anderson "The Spider" Silva.
Bantamweight Bout: Miguel Angel Torres vs. Antonio Banuelos
Former WEC Bantamweight Champion Torres made his successful UFC debut by defeating the 10-year pro Bannuelos in a largely unexciting and uneventful opener – the first main card Bantamweight fight in UFC history – that was contrarian to all the hype of the weight class that had been built since the acquisition of WEC. This fight hardly showed those who were unfamiliar with the company just what the division was all about. At times it looked as if Torres and Banuelos were merely sparring in all their slow kick-boxing hesitation. Nevertheless, Torres took home the victory by unanimous decision with a score of 30-27 from the judges after utilising his huge reach advantage. Let's hope the next Bantamweight bout on pay-per-view has a great deal more action.
Welterweight Bout: Jake Ellenberger vs. Carlos Eduardo Rocha
Wrestling vet Ellenberger edged out his Brazilian opponent in controversial fashion as a result of a split-decision from the judges after three rounds of fighting. Rocha surprised everyone in the first round, somehow looking like he was taking the American to ground-game school with a smooth flow of transitions from the takedown and a Kimura attempt to close the opening five minutes. Ironically, Rocha was just a moment away from grappling Ellenberger to the mat when Joe Rogan commented on his inferior technique on the ground. He really showed off some amazing work, but alas couldn't keep up the offence in the second and third rounds, falling victim to strikes and groundwork that didn't go in his favour. An unexpected and impressive showing from Rocha to kick the bout off, but ultimately a defeat nonetheless. Good fight, though.
Light Heavyweight Bout: Jon Jones vs. Ryan Bader
Earning himself an opportunity at the World Light Heavyweight Championship, Jon “Bones” Jones soundly defeated Ultimate Fighter Ryan “Darth” Bader in the second round with a Guillotine choke, his second attempt in the fight at the manoeuvre. Bader managed to escape the hold early on in the contest despite the feeling that he may have had to tap out if the pressure was continued to be applied even just a little longer, yet he succumbed once again on the ground to a North-South choke, however, still managed to writhe himself free. While Bader looked good, he was absolutely swarmed by Jones' technique and ended up with the very first loss of his MMA career.
After the fight, Jones was elated to hear Joe Rogan announce that the UFC were offering him a title shot against Shogun Rua. The champion even stepped inside the cage and shared his congratulations with the victor. Jones would go on to defeat Rua quite convincingly at UFC 128 to become the youngest champ in company history.
Light Heavyweight Bout: Forrest Griffin vs. Rich Franklin
Another unanimous decision drove a fight to a close on the night as The Ultimate Fighter season one winner Forrest Griffin returned to the Octagon after a year away and was triumphant. A victory is a victory, even if the fight isn't the greatest, and this was no earth-shatterer in terms of the excitement it generated. Griffin was visibly rusty in his comeback fight, but still managed to pull out the close win after controlling much of the third and final round.
Middleweight Championship Bout: Anderson Silva (c) vs. Vitor Belfort
I've never seen anyone knocked out before by a front kick to the face in the UFC, and Joe Rogan exemplified that by commenting that he's never seen it in any contact sport whatsoever. Belfort's now certainly seen it – and felt it – up close and personal, though, as his championship dreams were shattered just a couple of minutes into the first of the five rounds in the main event of the evening. Silva evaded a combination of fists from the gracious-in-defeat challenger in pretty amazing fashion and followed up with the kick after faking a shot to the body. Who will finally be able to put a stop to the Spider's dominance in the cage? At this stage in the game, I truly have no idea.
Complementing the main card in the set are the six pre-pay-per-view fights:
Welterweight Bout: Mike Pearce vs. Kenny Robertson
Light Heavyweight Bout: Kyle Kingsbury vs. Richardo Romero
Lightweight Bout: Paul Taylor vs. Gabe Ruediger
Bantamweight Bout: Norifumi Yamamoto vs. Demetrious Johnson
Featherweight Bout: Chad Mendes vs. Michihiro Omigawa
Lightweight Bout: Donald Cerrone vs. Paul Kelly
EXTRAS ??? The first disc contains the countdown show, while the second includes the weigh-ins, fighter interviews and a behind the scenes feature.