A surprised Quinton “Rampage” Jackson, listed as a 3-1 underdog on some lines, topped fellow former UFC Light Heavyweight Champion Lyoto Machida with a split decision victory at UFC 123.
Rampage’s victory brought the 10-point-must system back into the limelight of discussion. While many observers, including Rampage himself, felt Machida won the overall fight with a dominant third round performance, Jackson’s slight edge in the first two rounds gave him the 29-28 victory on two of the cards.
In reality, the decision should not have been debated at all–Rampage was the clear victor in the first two rounds; he seemed more comfortable on his feet, pushed the pace, connected occasionally and even brought the action to the mat. But having seen Machida punish Rampage with an onslaught of third round strikes and then control his opponent on the ground, many felt the idea of raising Jackson’s hand, on a holistic basis, was wrong.
Elsewhere, BJ Penn made quick work of Matt Hughes in the veteran pair’s rubber match. From the get-go, Penn’s striking had Hughes visibly uncomfortable, and the Hawaiian produced a knockout victory just 21 seconds into the fight.
Full UFC 123 results:
Nik Lentz b. Tyson Griffin via split decision (29-28, 27-30, 29-28)
Paul Kelly b. T.J. O’Brien via TKO (strikes) at 3:16 of Round Two
Edson Barboza b. Mike Lullo via TKO (leg kicks) at :26 of Round Three
Dennis Hallman b. Karo Parisyan via TKO (strikes) at 1:47 of Round One
Mark Munoz b. Aaron Simpson via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28
Brian Foster b. Matt Brown via submission (guillotine choke) at 2:11 of Round Two
George Sotiropoulos b. Joe Lauzon via submission (kimura) at 2:43 of Round Two
Phil Davis b. Tim Boetsch via submission (kimura) at 2:55 of Round Two
Maiquel Falcao b. Gerald Harris via unanimous decision (29-27, 29-28, 29-28)
BJ Penn b. Matt Hughes via KO (punches) at :21 of Round One
Quinton “Rampage” Jackson b. Lyoto Machida via split decision (28-29, 29-28, 29-28)