UFC 117 Results: One of the most anticipated events in UFC history did not disappoint, delivering a number of great fights, including an epic headlining match between middleweight champion Anderson Silva and top challenger Chael Sonnen. Silva retained his title and improved his UFC record to 12-0 with a fifth round submission of Sonnen while heavyweight Junior Dos Santos earned himself a championship shot after taking out TUF 10 winner Roy Nelson. Silva was a -525 moneyline favorite at online bookmaker Bodog.com going into Saturday's fight.
Anderson Silva's long reign as the UFC's middleweight champion had never been in so much jeopardy as it was Saturday 
night at the Oracle Arena in Oakland, California. For four and a half rounds former Oregon wrestler Chael Sonnen delivered on his pre-fight smack talk by dominating the belt holder like no other fighter ever has. Not only did Sonnen take Silva down repeatedly, he scored some surprisingly effective shots in the stand up game, one which staggered the champ in the first round.
Sonnen easily outpointed Silva through the first four rounds, despite eating several elbows from the top position, as he controlled the pace of the fight with his superior wrestling skills. The 33 year old battered Silva on the ground with hammerfists, rabbit punches, and rib shots in what looked to be an inevitable victory. However, Sonnen got lazy in his technique with less than two minutes left in the fifth round, leaving his head down near Silva's belly while in the champion's open guard. Silva capitalized on the mistake and jerked the challenger into a tight triangle choke, which illicited a single tap from Sonnen to the thigh of the Brazilian.
Sonnen had turned off many fans with his incessant talking prior to the fight but he earned some respect from both the crowd and Silva after his gutty performance. The beleaguered Silva, who had put off fans and UFC management alike with some of his most recent Octagon performances, earned some respect as well for enduring a four round beating and still having enough awareness/skill to submit Sonnen.
Silva improved his UFC record to 12-0 with the win while Sonnen fell to 4-4 inside the Octagon. This fight should have rematch written all over it as no other fighter has ever challenged Silva like Sonnen; however, the challenger needs to fix a major hole in his game as all four of his UFC losses have come via submission.
In other action, Junior Dos Santos scored a unanimous decision victory over Roy "Big Country" Nelson. The hard hitting Dos Santos will now face the winner of the Brock Lesnar/Cain Velasquez title fight, which is scheduled for UFC 121 in October. Welterweight challenger Jon Fitch also secured, most likely, another title shot with a decisive win over Thiago Alves. Prior to Saturday's fights, UFC President Dana White indicated that the winner of the Fitch/Alves scrap would face the victor in Josh Koscheck/Geroges St. Pierre's December championship match.
Anderson Silva (-525) vs Chael Sonnen (+350)
Junior Dos Santos (-325) vs Roy Nelson (+250)
Thiago Alves (-105) vs Jon Fitch (-125)
Ricardo Almeida (-165) vs Matt Hughes (+135)
Clay Guida (-125) vs Rafael Dos Anjos (-105)
Dustin Hazelett (-115) vs Rick Story (-115)
Stefan Struve (-185) vs Christian Morecraft (+155)
Phil Davis (-800) vs Rodney Wallace (+500)
Ben Saunders (-265) vs Dennis Hallman (+205)
Johny Hendricks (-525) vs Charlie Brenneman (+325)
Tim Boetsch (N/A) vs Todd Brown (N/A)
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