The Good, Bad and Strange from UFC on Fox 13

There are few spectacles more appealing in the realm of combat sports than when heavyweight fighters get to mixing up the leather. Three of the four bouts that comprised the main card at UFC on Fox 13 took place in the ranks of the UFC's heaviest division, where six fighters ranked in the Top 15 stepped into the Octagon to handle their business.

While there were some recognizable names in that list of heavyweights, no tilt held at the event held higher stakes than the main-event bout between Junior dos Santos and Stipe Miocic.

The heavy-handed former champion was coming off a lopsided loss to current title holder and rival Cain Velasquez in his most recent showing and desperately needed a victory over Miocic to not only keep his title hopes alive but to also hold his place as a perennial contender intact.

On the flip side of the equation, Miocic faced a tremendous potential upside in squaring off with the former heavyweight king.The Ohio native has been one of the division's most highly touted prospects since joining the UFC back in 2011. The former two-sport standout from Cleveland State University had won six of his seven showings inside the Octagon coming into UFC on Fox 13, and a potential victory over a heralded fighter the likes of Dos Santos would transform that prospect tag into legitimate title contender.

With both fighters having the ability to throw bombs in their respective arsenals, there was a high likelihood the bout wouldn't last long, and what transpired was one of the best heavyweight battles in recent memory. Both took turns exchanging heavy shots, and the tides shifted often throughout the 25-minute affair. When the final bell sounded, it was dos Santos who took the unanimous victory in the hard-fought affair.

The co-main event brought its fair share of drama as surging contender Rafael dos Anjos looked to keep his championship hopes alive when he faced former title challenger Nate Diaz in what was figured to be a lively scrap in the 155-pound ranks. RDA had won seven of his last eight coming into his bout with the Stockton native, and a victory over the Stockton native would make a pretty strong case for title contention.

As for Diaz, his fight-week antics and missing weight did him zero favors in the bigger picture, and he needed the victory over the resurgent Brazilian to keep his place in the divisional upper tier. Yet, with the younger Diaz brother publicly beefing with the UFC in the lead-up to Saturday night, no one knew what to expect when the cage door closed on the lightweight tilt.

When the action got underway, it was all Dos Anjos. The Brazilian pursued the action relentlessly as he put a beating all over Diaz. He used leg kicks to chop Diaz's base and then opened up his eye with a sharp left hand on a counter exchange en route to picking up the unanimous-decision victory.

Outside of the action at the top of the card, there was plenty of face-punching and freaky self-imposed knockouts to be had on Saturday night. Let's take a look at the good, bad and strange from UFC on Fox 13.After being at the end of two extended beatings at the hands of current champion Cain Velasquez, many wondered just how much Cigano would have to give inside the Octagon. On the flip side, Miocic has been one of the divisions hottest prospect for the past two years, and the Cleveland native had the opportunity to take a huge step up in the divisional picture by toppling the former champion.

While JDS would ultimately win the bout on the judges' scorecards, both men deserve props for hanging tough in a gritty, five-round battle. The Brazilian knockout artist chucked his signature bombs until the very end, and the former Cleveland State wrestling standout was right there with him until the very end.

That said, what this fight ultimately proved is that Dos Santos is still in the mix for the heavyweight title, and Miocic isn't far off the divisional upper tier by taking the most feared knockout artist in his weight class to the wire. The UFC's lightweight division is as stacked as they come, and Rafael dos Anjos is making a strong case for title contention. While Khabib Nurmagomedov is still sitting in front of him in that particular race, the Kings MMA representative continues to add big names to his already-impressive resume.He came into UFC on Fox 13 having scored victories over perennial contender Donald Cerrone and former champion Benson Henderson in his most recent showing and then upped the ante by dominating former title challenger Nate Diaz for three rounds on Saturday night.

While RDA has proven to be as versatile as they come inside the Octagon, he directed his offensive attack at the Stockton native's lead leg, and that decision paid off big for the game Brazilian in the co-main event.

If he was battering Diaz with kicks, he was hammering him on the canvas from top control as he cruised to his third consecutive victory in the talent-stacked lightweight ranks.

While Dos Anjos pleaded with Dana White for a title opportunity, having a loss to Nurmagomedov on his record and with the Russian sitting in front of him in the rankings, could very well stall out those hopes. Nevertheless, Dos Anjos is proving himself to be a legitimate threat in the 155-pound fold. Cub Watson voiced his support of a Dos Anjos vs. Pettis matchup:


Source http://bleacherreport.com/articles/2299013-the-good-bad-and-strange-from-ufc-on-fox-13