Blood on the mat

The Octagon was already pretty bloody before the first fight of the UFC 100 main card, leaving those of us watching on pay-per-view to wonder who’s feeling anemic and who performed the exsanguination. Here’s the story.

Forty-four-year-old Mark Coleman mauled Stephan Bonnar for three boring rounds to earn a decision, his first UFC win in 12 years. Coleman’s last win was by submission over fellow Hall-of-Famer Dan Severn at UFC 12 in 1997. And while Bonnar fired off some short chippy elbows into Coleman’s skull from the bottom, Coleman definitely got the better of the exchanges. This was definitely not the same Coleman who gassed and wheezed himself to a loss against Mauricio “Shogun” Rua. Now, two questions remain: who will Coleman face next, and will Bonnar stick around in the UFC after two straight unimpressive losses? I say he’s gone. He’s a one-hit wonder, that hit being his battle with Forrest Griffin in The Ultimate Fighter season one finale that was named by the UFC as its best fight of all time. His last win over an opponent of any note was in 2006 when he beat Keith Jardine.

The Ultimate Fighter season six winner Mac Danzig could be joining Bonnar on the unemployment line. Danzig dropped his third straight to fellow lightweight Jim Miller, who improves to 4-1. Miller opened a nasty gash in Danzig’s forehead with a series of elbows in the first round and the plasma flowed pretty much unabated for two more rounds.