ESPN Mixed Martial Arts

As he prepares to take on Alexander Gustafsson on Saturday at the UFC’s first-ever show in Sweden, Thiago Silva finds himself at an interesting time to return from a drug suspension.

Or -- in the interest of accuracy, I guess -- a drug-related suspension.

After all, Silva didn’t get handed a one year ban from competition for shooting an illicit substance into his spine prior to UFC 125 so much as what he did to try to cover it up. Instead of taking the rap for the injectable itself, Silva opted for what is probably the most hilarious way to fail a commission administered drug test: Submitting a sample that ultimately proved “inconsistent with human urine.”

If you know you’re going down, might as well go down in flames, right?

At the time, we all had a good laugh. Fast forward a little more than 12 months, however, and Silva is about to step back into an MMA landscape riddled with high-profile steroid scandals. After Quinton Jackson voluntarily confessed to hormone replacement therapy, Cristiane Santos got pinched for using an old school bodybuilding drug and Alistair Overeem submitted a urine sample consistent with a human who is totally jacked out of his mind on testosterone, fight fans could conceivably be in a fairly unforgiving mood these days.

There is no telling how this second tour of duty might go for Silva. With a record of 14-2 (now with one no contest), his only previous losses came against former 205-pound champions Rashad Evans and Lyoto Machida but he also hasn’t exactly defeated a “who’s who” of top talent during his UFC career.

Prior to his suspension, Silva had bounced around the outskirts of the light heavyweight top-10, but after spending a year forcibly removed from the action, his most notable Octagon wins over the likes of Keith Jardine, Houston Alexander and James Irvin suddenly don’t seem overly extraordinary anymore. Most recently, he’d also been slowed by the back injury he eventually blamed for his drug use.

Silva remains something of an interesting talent, but the lack of big wins, the injury trouble and the drug suspension all make it difficult to nail down what kind of future he might have.

Luckily for him, his employer appears ready to forgive past transgressions, accepting his time served and inserting him directly into a nationally televised main event bout against Gustafsson in his first fight back. Even if it is one where Silva enters as close to a 2-to-1 underdog against a hometown hero who some observers expect to mature into a future foe for champion Jon Jones, it’s probably a better assignment than Silva might’ve expected, or deserved.

Perhaps such surprising post-suspension treatment can be chalked up to good behavior. Fact is, Siva was actually refreshingly honest about his drug snafu, at least once it became clear that officials had him dead to rights.

“I used a urine adulterant when giving a sample following my fight with Brandon Vera,” Silva said last year via a prepared statement. “I did so in an attempt to alter the results of the test and knowingly broke the rules of the Nevada [State] Athletic Commission. This was a terrible decision on my part for which I will be punished. I am prepared to accept this punishment, learn from it and move on. I apologize to the commission, the UFC, Brandon Vera and the MMA fans.”

For an MMA drug test mea culpa, that’s about as good as it gets. In light of it, perhaps fans and promoters alike will be willing to give Silva a second chance.

Make that a last chance, as he prepares to reenter a culture that by now should be about one steroid scandal away from its breaking point.

Alistair Overeem hasn't spoken publicly since news broke Wednesday that he tested positive for an increased testosterone-to-epitestosterone ratio. He probably doesn't have to for Josh Barnett to understand what the 31-year-old Dutch heavyweight is feeling right now.

Barnett, of course, paid a heavy price when he failed a prefight drug test in California almost three years ago. Lost was a huge payday against Fedor Emelianenko, then ranked No. 1 in the division and widely considered among the best competitors in mixed martial arts. The loss of the fight was also the impetus for Affliction Entertainment going under, a situation that rattled the business, fostered the growth and subsequent decline of Strikeforce, and eventually led to Zuffa's move to consolidate the industry.

It's unclear what penalties Overeem will suffer, but similar to Barnett (32-5) he could easily surrender a huge payday as well as the most important fight of his career -- a UFC title tilt against Junior dos Santos. Hey, at least he doesn't have to worry about bringing down a promotion, though he might not be around to partake in UFC's continuing prosperity.

Still, with dark clouds currently hanging over his head, Overeem should take solace in the notion of Barnett's return the UFC for the first time in a decade -- the message being: No matter how badly someone messes up, Zuffa is prone to forgive under the right circumstances.

Barnett's new lease on a UFC life is incumbent on defeating Daniel Cormier on May 19 to cap off the Strikeforce heavyweight grand prix tournament. If that happens, UFC president Dana White has suggested that the 34-year-old American could enter the Octagon for the first time since stopping Randy Couture in 2002 to claim the promotional title.

How would he fare against the men ranked above him (which for the time being continues to include Overeem)?

Frank Mir

At stake would be the title of best submission grappler in the heavyweight division. Mir, 32, may have usurped that title by breaking off a piece of Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira, and you know Barnett would love the opportunity to make a point against the former UFC heavyweight champion.

On the floor it's essentially an even fight, though Barnett is much better when he fights from the top. Mir's strength comes in attacking arms. Barnett can do that too; he just prefers the leg techniques born out of catch-wrestling. I can't help but think a grappling-heavy fight between the two would be incredibly appealing.

Both have shown the ability to hurt opponents while standing, but Mir (16-5) owns a slight edge here based on recent results.

If they fought 10 times ... they'd split.

Cain Velasquez

Barnett would carry a significant experience advantage over Velasquez (9-1) and he wouldn't get pushed around by a mid-sized heavyweight.

Barnett utilizes his size and athleticism to squash other grapplers, and if Velasquez winds up on his back he may not stand up or get a reversal. You do not want to face a situation where Barnett establishes top control. He is much more dangerous from the top than Brock Lesnar ever was because he'll string together submissions, is very adept at guard-passing, and is happy to grind away at someone's facial features with his elbows.

Barnett cedes ground in this matchup when it comes to speed, striking technique, and pure wrestling. Velasquez, 29, would have to keep moving against Barnett, never let the bigger man tie him up in the clinch, especially along the fence, and stay off bottom. That's obviously the key.

If they fought 10 times ... Velasquez wins 6 of 10.

Alistair Overeem

Filling a column full of "ifs," Overeem's status remains the largest. So in this scenario, the reprieve Barnett could receive from Dana White extends to Overeem.

Now to the matchup. Overeem is a different class of striker, and while Barnett might be tempted to engage the Dutch fighter's strength it would be a mistake. Getting Overeem (36-11) to the floor isn't easy. Toying around in the clinch, which Barnett does not mind doing, might result in a rocket of a knee puncturing his midsection. Barnett does not react well to body shots, as proven by Mirko "Cro Cop" Filipovic, so that could be a major factor.

Barnett has to put the fight on the floor and push the pace against Overeem, whose stamina can be a question mark.

This is a violent matchup, one that surely wouldn't last the distance.

If they fought 10 times ... Barnett wins 6 of 10.

Junior dos Santos

The current UFC heavyweight champion is all about speed, movement and anvil-like punches. He's as tall as Barnett with about 25 less pounds to move around.

Barnett would lose if he stood with dos Santos, simple as that. The question is, can he take the 27-year-old Brazilian champion down without absorbing too much damage?

Barnett would be best served by roughing up dos Santos (14-1) against the fence, fighting for takedowns (just not from the outside so dos Santos can counter with knees or sprawl on the American's head), and establishing top control. Presuming he can do those things, he can win. Otherwise chances are good he'd be rendered unconscious.

If they fought 10 times ... dos Santos wins 7 of 10.

There is absolutely nothing exciting about Ben Askren’s fighting style. But it works.

Throughout his brief mixed martial arts career, Askren easily takes opponents to the ground and smothers them.

And that is exactly what the defending welterweight champion did Friday night against top contender Douglas Lima at Bellator 64 in Windsor, Ontario, Canada.

Askren methodically took Lima to the ground repeatedly during their five-round title bout en route to a unanimous decision at Caesars Windsor Hotel and Casino.

And when he got Lima on the ground, Askren controlled the action. Once in a while Askren would connect with right hands, but none of his strikes did much damage.

It didn’t matter. Askren retained his title by winning every round on the judges’ scorecard.

All of them scored the fight 50-45 for Askren. ESPN.com also had the champion winning 50-45.

Despite the lopsided scoring, fans inside the arena were disappointed with the lack of action. They booed loudly each time the fighters hit the canvas.

Askren, however, was undaunted and offered a harsh response to fans who did not appreciate his effort.

“I was told you Canadian fans like fighting and I haven't seen anybody look that good in a long time,” said Askren, who successfully defended his title for the second time. “If you don’t like the ground work, there is a sport they call boxing; that’s not as fun, though.”

Askren improved to 10-0. Lima slipped to 21-5 after having his win streak halted at nine.

Not everyone inside the arena was down on Askren's performance. Bellator CEO Bjorn Rebney sang the champion's praises after the fight.

"Utter dominance again," Rebney said. "He makes world-class fighters look like they are just beginning."

Sandro beats Bezerra by split decision

Marlon Sandro had won two fights in a row since his second-round knockout loss to Pat Curran in August 2011.

But a two-fight win streak did nothing to erase the pain he felt after that loss.

Sandro used the pain as extra motivation against Alexandre Bezerra in their Bellator Featherweight Tournament semifinal bout.

The extra motivation allowed Sandro to land hard right hands and avoid counterstrikes from Bezerra in the first two rounds. It also served to help Sandro survive hard punches from Bezerra in the third round for a split-decision win.

Two judges scored the fight 29-28 for Sandro (23-3); while the third had Bezerra winning 29-28. ESPN.com had Sandro winning 29-28.

But while Sandro jumped for joy after his name was announced as the victory, fans inside the arena were not impressed. They booed loudly after the fight became official.

Sandro was not happy with the crowd’s reaction.

“This is very hard,” Sandro said to the crowd. “He was a tough guy. I came here to put on a good fight for everybody.”

Underdog Marx earns spot in semifinals

Travis Marx was the last man chosen to participate in Season 6 of Bellator’s Bantamweight Tournament. And he wasn’t expected to survive veteran Masakatsu Ueda in their quarterfinal match.

But Marx was undaunted by the challenge and used his superior size and wrestling skills to control Ueda on the ground en route to a unanimous-decision victory and spot in the tournament semifinal round.

All three judges scored the fight 29-28, allowing Marx to improve to 19-3.

“I never perceived myself as the underdog,” Marx said. “I came out here wanting to win it and that is what I did.”

Nakamura hands Lima first pro loss

Fighting in North America for the first time and against a young, aggressive opponent was more than enough to give Hiroshi Nakamura butterflies early in his bantamweight tournament quarterfinal bout.

But after taking Rodrigo Lima to the canvas early in the opening round and avoiding numerous submission attempts throughout the fight, Nakamura overcame his initial uneasiness to earn a unanimous decision.

All three judges scored the fight 29-27.

“This is my first time in North America, so I was feeling a little uncomfortable at the beginning,” Nakamura said after improving to 15-5-4. “But now I’ve gotten over that and feel comfortable going into the second round.”

Lima had a point deducted by referee Yves Lavigne in Round 2 for a knee below the belt.

Lima entered the bout undefeated and determined to use his aggressive fighting style to offset Nakamura’s experience. His pushed hard during standup action, but was taken down repeatedly.

Lima falls to 10-1.

Another day, another hot urine test, another busted main event ... and, alas, another (potential) domino sequence. So continues life in the mixed martial arts.

This time it’s Alistair Overeem who raised the red flag, the very same Overeem who eluded such conflict ahead of UFC 141 by simply skipping a mandatory drug test. If nothing else, this is a man who knows how to poke at the chest of scrutiny. Overeem showed up March 27 for the UFC 146 hype conference in Las Vegas apparently unaware that this could be a perfect moment for the Nevada State Athletic Commission to spring a “random” test on him (part of the deal from the Brock Lesnar fight fallout). Out of six heavyweights tested, only Overeem’s came back positive. His testesterone/epitestosterone registered a 14:1 ratio, more than double the particularly generous threshold in Nevada of 6:1.

So much for the biggest fight of his career. And all that promotional material the UFC was creating, the big pay day, the belt he could have added to his collection? Moot.

As Dana White said upon hearing the news, he doesn’t have a plan B. Meaning, at least at the time of this writing, waiting out Overeem’s “B” sample becomes the plan B by default. Problem is, those results could take a couple of weeks to get back, and “B” samples rarely contradict “A” samples anyway. But the show must go on. White has said that dos Santos will defend his title at UFC 146 whether it’s against Overeem or somebody else.

In other words, it’s time to speculate into these somebody else’s, and -- just for theatrical value -- assess their chances in carefully considered odds.

Frank Mir

The NSAC’s Keith Kizer sent out the mass email at 4:40 p.m. ET with the results of the UFC 146 news conference tests. Twitter went wild. At 6:15 ET, Mir released a statement via email saying, “I would be excited if given the opportunity to compete for the UFC’s heavyweight title at UFC 146 if the reports released earlier today regarding Alistair Overeem failing his "A" sample drug test are true.” Mir went on to say it’s a dream of his to be the first three-time champion. He swooped in quicker on a dangling title shot than he did on Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira’s ill-placed limb.

His case: How many times have we heard Dana White say he admires it when guys step up? That’s what Mir’s doing. A no-hesitation lobby job, knowing that out of the full panoramic spectrum of heavies he has the best credentials to get the shot, having won three in a row. He also snapped dos Santos’ friend Big Nog’s arm, which makes him a sort of dark cloud gathering over the champion.

Chances of him getting it: 2-1

Cain Velasquez

Velasquez had the belt for 13 months, but lost it in the 64th second of his first title defense against dos Santos. How’s that for anticlimax? Though a rematch between Velasquez and dos Santos might appear sort of uninspired, the fact is, there were conditions.

His case: Velasquez was dealing with a bum knee that night in November, but couldn’t back out of a fight that was hyped as the biggest thing since Frazier/Ali across FOX platforms. It was a red carpet affair, the long-stemmed aperitif to the seven-year network deal, the bonus bout meant to tempt the semi-curious masses into peeping. Whether coaxed or not, he went through with it, and lost. Everybody knows we didn’t see the best Cain Velasquez that night, just as everybody knows we probably would this time through.

Chances of getting it: 3-1

Mark Hunt

It seems ridiculous to even type Mark Hunt in this space, but Hunt is a fan favorite and a surprisingly popular choice for the gig. Have people lost their marbles in wanting to see a resurrected 38-year old New Zealander step in there with the champion? Is this not a meritocracy? The answer is no: This is a pinch. And so long as Hunt is a nice guy, a long-shot Cinderella and a bad basher to boot, he’ll get the sentimentalist’s vote. We’re a nation of softies.

His case: Hunt was a liability to the UFC when he came over, a barnacle on the Pride purchase. Hunt lost to Sean stinking McCorkle in his Octagon debut, further exacerbating the situation. Then the unthinkable started happening. Hunt knocked out Chris Tuchscherer, decisioned Ben Rothwell, and then flattened Cheick Kongo. Talk about resuscitation! And here we thought we had lost him.

Chances of getting it: 15-1

Dan Henderson

Henderson as a candidate sort of slowly dawned on people. It went like this -- “Henderson? LOL!” to “isn’t he waiting for Jon Jones-Rashad Evans to play out?” to “you know something, that dude’s batty enough to do it” to “Hendo would plant JDS into the soft earth!” The truth is, Henderson has flirted with the idea of fighting at heavyweight -- which he’s done before, most recently against Fedor Emelianenko in Strikeforce -- and he doesn’t concern himself with the usual neuroses of modern day fighters (short notice, size discrepancies, JDS’s mangling hooks). Why? You tell Henderson he can’t do something, he gets defiant. It’s his most admirable trait. And he likes money, which is his more cliché one.

His case: Besides willingness? He wouldn’t have to cut weight. He could still feasibly keep his spot in line at light heavyweight regardless of outcome with the relative meshing of schedules and the dearth of viable contenders behind him. Remember that he fought Quinton Jackson (205) and Anderson Silva (185) in back-to-back title challenges in 2007-2008.

Chances of getting it: 12-1

Fedor Emelianenko

This is more of a fan’s choice than a UFC one. Dana White reluctantly gave into the idea of signing Emelianenko a couple of years ago, offered him wheelbarrows of cash that would turn other comparable fighters faces purple with rage, and was rebuffed. White’s assessment then -- that Fedor's people were crazy and crooked -- is probably his assessment now. Negotiations between M-1 and the UFC ride along the Cold War divide. But given that White’s running refrain has always been to give the people the fights they want to see, you can’t just accept it as impossible. Fedor still has his legions. He still sells.

His case: What, beating Jeff Monson over the course of three rounds doesn’t say it all? Flattening Satoshi Ishii doesn’t carry the right momentum? The “Last Emperor” and a million loyalists care what you think. And besides, the idea of Fedor against Junior dos Santos has something beyond novelty appeal. In the spirit of a fight, it has actual curiosity.

Chances of getting it: About the same as the Ukraine opening up Chernobyl as a tourist attraction next week.

As of Thursday morning, fans, regulatory officials and MMA media were still waiting to hear from Alistair Overeem.

A lot of people seem eager to know what the hulking Dutch striker has to say for himself after a recent round of surprise drug tests reportedly caught him with a T/E ratio befitting an in-his-prime Ultimate Warrior.

Not me, though. To tell you the truth, I’m over this nonsense.

Somewhere between Cris Santos asking us to believe that an anonymous teammate secretly slipped her steroids and Quinton Jackson shouting to the world about how good he feels now that he’s on testosterone replacement therapy, I realized I just don’t care to hear the excuses anymore.

I suppose we have to allow for the slim possibility that “The Reem” has some heretofore unused and thoroughly compelling reason for why his urine is essentially pure testosterone, but I wouldn’t bet on it. Unless the Nevada State Athletic Commission suddenly completely retracts the report of his positive test, I’m afraid the giant, freakishly muscular cat is out of the bag for Overeem, and it’s probably never going back in.

For the man whose latest alias -- “Ubereem” -- now seems fairly unseemly, a positive steroid test is perhaps more damaging than for any other fighter in MMA. When you make the transition from so-so, waif-thin light heavyweight fewer than 10 years ago to enormous heavyweight juggernaut with the body of Greek god and an 11 fight win streak, that’s just the price you pay.

Over the years, we’ve seen certain guys rehabilitate their images after drug testing irregularities: Chris Leben did it; Nate Marquardt is in the process of doing it; maybe Thiago Silva has a chance. Unfortunately, that option might not exist for Overeem.

Certainly, unless something substantial changes about this story soon, the UFC can’t put him back in the cage. Not ever. Not after this turn of events appears to confirm years of suspicion.

At this point, the fight company might be best served to just release Overeem outright, replace him with Frank Mir in his upcoming title fight against Junior dos Santos and let us all go on with our lives.

This is the right move because the implications of Overeem’s positive test go far beyond this one incident. This single violation actually casts significant doubt on the entire last half decade of his career. It also raises important questions about fighter safety when a guy that big, that strong and that dangerous is found to be enhanced.

Can you imagine the field day the mainstream media would have if an MMA fighter was injured or (God forbid) killed in a high-profile bout and his opponent was determined to be on steroids? That’s a chance the UFC absolutely cannot take and that’s just one reason why it can’t let Overeem fight again.

In addition, this positive test sheds unflattering light on the two and a half years he spent padding his record overseas after beating Paul Buentello for the Strikeforce heavyweight title in 2007. It makes the “misunderstanding” regarding drug testing for his UFC debut in December look awfully shady. It even raises questions about the legitimacy of his win over Brock Lesnar at UFC 141, when he fought in Nevada under a “conditional license” pending further testing.

After years of rumor and innuendo, after a bunch of tough talk about how “they can test me all they want ... I will prove everyone wrong,” failing a drug test is pretty much Overeem’s Waterloo.

It’s pretty much DefCon One.

It’s the thing that can’t be undone.

How can Overeem possibly explain all of it away? What could he say that we haven’t already heard? What can he do now to legitimize his massive weight gain, to undermine the countless cracks about horse meat we’ll no doubt read in the coming days and to undo public perception that he cheated his way to the No. 2 heavyweight ranking in the world?

My guess: Nothing, and perhaps he should save himself the indignity of even trying.

On March 27, following a news conference in Las Vegas hyping UFC 146, half a dozen fighters were subjected to unannounced tests for drugs of abuse and, more to the point, the performance-enhancing variety.

Five of the six -- UFC champion Junior dos Santos, former titleholders Cain Velasquez and Frank Mir, as well as Antonio Silva and Roy Nelson -- came back as they should: clean.

Alistair Overeem, long the subject of speculation in regards to performance-enhancing drug use, did not.

According to the Nevada State Athletic Commission, Overeem rendered a smoking gun of a testosterone-to-epitestosterone ratio.

(The NSAC allows for a 6:1 ratio, 50 percent higher than the World Anti-Doping Agency standard. Overeem’s elevated T/E ratio was 14:1, according to the commission.)

Ironically, the last person who should have been caught off guard by the randomness of the commission's request is Overeem. The Dutch heavyweight was well aware that prior to June he owed the NSAC two urine tests at times and places of their choosing.

You remember why?

Overeem, 31, took a month to provide a suitable urine sample following a request by the NSAC leading up to his fight versus Brock Lesnar on Dec. 30. The muscular heavyweight had 48 hours from the date of the request, Nov. 17, to get himself to an accredited facility. He did not do so until Dec. 14.

A murky story led the NSAC to issue Overeem a conditional one-year license. Commissioners, right to be wary, decreed that Overeem submit himself to further testing. He was clean the rest of the way leading up to his destruction of Lesnar, earning a title shot against dos Santos that brought him back to Las Vegas just over a week ago.

Overeem, who hasn't addressed the NSAC's allegations of an elevated T/E ratio, had to consider the possibility that he would get tested.

Right?

Overeem claimed on multiple occasions that he never used performance-enhancing drugs. His massive build, the “Ubereem” effect, was a product of eating well and lifting weights.

Yet, after all that posturing, he’s seemingly dirty.

So what happened? Why the positive result? One of the worst bets in Vegas history? Was Overeem too arrogant to consider the possibility of a positive test? A false positive? What?

Overeem deserves an opportunity to respond. But will a commission that already felt toyed with remain open to whatever he has to tell them? I tend to think not. Presuming Overeem doesn’t have an unbelievably convincing argument, he’ll lose that conditional license, and perhaps even his place in the UFC. Oh yes, he’ll have to answer to his promoter too, which just unveiled its marketing campaign for UFC 146 as tickets went on sale Friday.

UFC president Dana White learned of the news while speaking on a conference call with Canadian media and was understandably apoplectic.

How could this happen? Fighters have to be so stupid to use, he said.

After being around Overeem over the years, I'm comfortable saying he doesn't come across as a stupid man. Flying into Nevada, owing the commission two tests the way he did, odds were good they’d come calling.

Overeem's test had to be the least surprising pop quiz in history.

Yet he failed.

The thing is, one could argue that UFC’s mixed-messaging on PEDs is partly to blame. At a minimum it’s become a source of growing and legitimate criticism leveled at the organization.

Take Brazilian Thiago Silva, for example. Not only did he use steroids, he attempted to deliver fake urine to Nevada officials to cover it up. And yet next week, in his first bout back, he's headlining UFC's debut event in Sweden.

If Overeem is indeed guilty of what's been accused, the UFC should do to him what they needed to do to Silva and others of this ilk. Use is rampant and the only thing that will shake fighters out of feeling like a.) it's OK to do or b.) they have to in order to compete, is alter the perception that taking this stuff is how business is done.

You do that by shaking the earth, rattling the status quo.

And isn't that exactly how White and Lorenzo Fertitta have operated the UFC for the last decade? Yet White said recently it's "impossible" to keep tabs on the drug-enhancing proclivities of some 375 fighters he has under contract. The man who wants to make MMA the biggest sport in the world claimed something was "impossible," which I didn't think was possible.

Let's give White the benefit of the doubt. Maybe it is logistically impossible and fiscally impractical to monitor everyone all the time. Maybe White is also correct when he says the matter of testing fighters belongs in the hands of the regulatory bodies, not promoters. But isn't there something Zuffa, in its role as the sport's dominant institution, could do?

Common sense -- i.e. use, get caught, bye bye -- would be a much better option and deterrent than anything currently in place -- i.e. use, get caught, come back following suspension and receive a rich fight. Repeating the latter accomplishes nothing except fulfilling some people's definition of insanity. It could be argued all this actually serves as a deterrent to preventing this sort of stuff.

Absent that, expect this garbage to persist until, eventually, something not so trivial as losing a chance to crown the UFC heavyweight titleholder as MMA's linear heavyweight king for the first time in years (a pending reality when Overeem was set to meet dos Santos) is lost. Nothing is guaranteed, of course, but it sure seems headed that way.

UFC light heavyweight champion Jon Jones and top contender Rashad Evans have a routine they follow while preparing for each fight.

That pattern hasn’t changed as the two get ready for their highly anticipated title bout April 21 in Atlanta.

Both fighters are approaching this showdown like any other. Each is training diligently, studying the other’s recent fights carefully and fine-tuning certain techniques in his arsenal.

But Jones and Evans aren’t kidding themselves. This fight is different.

The history these two have with one another as friends and sparring partners can’t be ignored. Each fighter has made adjustments to his game since their days training together at Greg Jackson’s camp in Albuquerque, N.M. But most of the prefight tendencies that led them to this showdown remain.

Jones and Evans are very familiar with one another in a way that few opponents can imagine. They spent a lot of time together at Jackson’s helping one another prepare for fights.

Evans would take on the role of Jones’ opponent during training camp and vice versa. If Evans had a concern about an opponent’s style, Jones would work diligently to alleviate that concern -- and vice versa.

Each knows how the other prepares mentally before a fight, how much time the other devotes to hard training before a fight, how the other feels on the mat.

No previous opponent knew the physical strength Jones possessed, Evans does. None of Evans’ previous opponents could know how quickly he transitions from the standup to his takedown, Jones knows.

But most important, for all the harsh words Jones and Evans have directed at each other leading into their title tilt, deep down they remain brothers.

No matter how angry brothers get with one another, they will always maintain a soft spot. It’s what makes this fight different than any Jones and Evans have ever experienced.

The ability to execute one’s fight plan will be a key element in determining the winner. But unlike in most fights, emotions could have the greatest impact during the UFC 145 main event. Jones and Evans will be tested mentally and emotionally inside the Octagon like never before.

“I think every fight is my biggest test, and this one is no different,” Jones told ESPN.com. “My opponent brings lots of things to the table that past opponents didn’t.

“There’s also an obvious mental aspect to this fight for both of us. I won’t lie; it will be a little weird looking at him at first across the Octagon. But once the fight starts, all of that will go away.”

Evans, a former UFC 205-pound champion, echoed Jones’ sentiment regarding the impact personal feelings will have on this bout. But he believes the impact won’t be as great as some suspect.

“It will feel a little weird, but so much time has passed between us having a friendship and being training partners that it won’t matter,” Evans told ESPN.com.

Once Jones and Evans begin laying hands on one another their personal feelings will gradually diminish. The fighter who is able to put his feelings aside fastest will have a huge advantage.

Jones expects he will be that fighter. Retaining the title isn’t what motivates him most.

“If I want to create a legacy in the UFC and this sport, these are the fights I have to win,” Jones said.

Crowds at WWE live events have been growing more and more unpredictable in recent years.

As part of an evolution rooted in the company’s popular “attitude era” of the 1990s, professional wrestling fans have taken to intermittently ignoring the best intentions of behind-the-scenes puppetmasters and -- gasp! -- occasionally exhibiting minds of their own.

Today, nearly two decades after crowds first started chanting “die Rocky die!” because they resented the way a 24-year-old golden boy named Dwayne Johnson was being foisted down their throats by promoters, it’s fairly commonplace (bordering on clichéd) for wrestling fans to cheer certain “bad” guys while booing certain “good” characters.

According to the WWE company line, this is part of what makes said audience so great, though it’s easy to imagine wrestling’s army of showrunners and writers secretly find it irritating.

In any case, that unpredictable nature might have raised serious questions about how the so-called “WWE universe” would react to Brock Lesnar on Monday night, as he returned to the fold and stepped through the literal/metaphorical curtain for the first time since 2004.

After all, wrestling fans viciously taunted Lesnar on his way out the door eight years ago, chanting “you sold out!” and “this match sucks!” during his tiff with Bill Goldberg at Wrestlemania 20 because they already knew both guys were departing WWE immediately after: Goldberg to become an occasional color commentator at small-time MMA shows; Lesnar to make a failed try at playing in the NFL.

In the intervening years, Brock didn’t have many tremendously nice things to say about pro-wrestling, speaking out against what he called the "WWE lifestyle" and telling Maxim Magazine in 2009, "You get so brainwashed ... the guys who get out are the smart ones, really and truly.”

If his four-year UFC career did anything for him, it established his credibility as a legitimate tough guy only while simultaneously undermining it. Lesnar garnered quick and arguably unparalleled success in the Octagon, but eventually proved unable to hang with MMA’s elite heavyweights, suffering embarrassing losses to Cain Velasquez and Alistair Overeem and twice seeing his path interrupted by reportedly life-threatening bouts with diverticulitis.

Lesnar additionally used his time in the UFC to reveal himself as a personality who is not easy to cheer. For the duration of his MMA career he was surly and boorish; mocking his opponents, needling fans and acting by turns aloof and hostile toward the media. Though his crossover fame instantly made him the UFC’s biggest pay-per-view draw, many MMA fans never quite warmed up to him.

Contrary to the mainstream stereotype, pro wrestling fans are smart enough to know all this. They understand both that Lesnar acted like a jerk throughout his UFC tenure and that he ultimately couldn't cut it at the sport's highest level. Frankly, there was no telling how the wrestling faithful would react to that knowledge as a noticeably smaller, slightly doughier and far, far less tanned version of Lesnar showed his face during the final segment of “Monday Night Raw” this week.

Answer: They love the guy, maybe now more than ever.

Lesnar was given a hero’s welcome back to the world of professional wrestling. WWE fans -- given time to lick their wounds after Lesnar spurned them years ago -- appear to be more forgiving than their MMA counterparts.

In truth, the company stacked the deck in Lesnar’s favor during his return by having him hit the ring and deliver his old school finishing move to John Cena, who is currently the good guy fans love to hate for his squeaky-clean image and status as a true company man.

Even amid a shifting landscape where WWE appears at times to be scrambling to keep up with the increasingly discriminating palate of its fan base and at times unapologetically obdurate in the face of it, one equation still worked like a charm: Pretty much anybody can get cheers by doing something bad to Cena.

Still, watching Lesnar slam Cena with his signature “F-5” facebuster, then prop himself up on the second rope to soak in the cheers, it was instantly clear that the big fella is back where he belongs now.

His flights of fancy with football and mixed martial arts are mercifully finished. They were always somewhat awkward fits, anyway. With his unique blend of size and natural athleticism, Lesnar could have been great at nearly any physical endeavor, but what he chose first upon graduation from the University of Minnesota in 2000 was professional wrestling.

It’s the one thing he’s been consistently great at for more than a few fleeting years. Now he’s back to it and, while it’s impossible to predict how wrestling fans will react to him over the long term, it’s good to see "The Next Big Thing" once again in his natural habitat.

For what it’s worth, Gilbert Melendez/Josh Thomson III isn’t a bad fight. It’s just not the fight people wanted. It just feels obvious and limited and, you know, uninspired.

There was a time not that long ago when Dana White assured everybody that Melendez -- a top three lightweight who happens to be in his prime -- would not be left pining for challenges in Strikeforce. This was before his Dec. 17 Strikeforce bout with Jorge Masvidal. This was after reconciliation between White and Showtime. This was right around the time when everybody fell into reverie as to whom, and began envisioning expensive imports (maybe Benson Henderson? Clay Guida? Gray Maynard?).

Even Melendez’s camp couldn’t help but imagine the possibilities.

Things have obviously changed.

Melendez has been made into a window shopper. All those elite UFC lightweights that sit on the showroom floor? He’s left to browse and wonder with his nose smudged on the glass. Despite those early fits of optimism, Zuffa isn’t going out of its way to find Melendez challenges -- it is recycling whatever it can find in the cupboards. Somewhere along the way, things soured (again) between Showtime and White. Melendez is the biggest casualty.

Yesterday Strikeforce announced that Melendez would defend his title against ex-champ Thomson on May 19 in San Jose, Calif.; a rubber match that has an ounce of good drama. Problem is, the fight is a buzzkill for those who are interested in Melendez’s upward trajectory. Yes, they’ve split the previous two matches, but Melendez avenged the first loss easily and has won six in a row all told. Thomson has won exactly one in a row, a unanimous decision over K.J. Noons that he said afterward “was s---.” Before that, he lost to Tatsuya Kawajiri. These aren’t the kinds of credentials that earn title fights, even if there are scores to settle.

That’s one of the reasons this trilogy fight will require rose-colored glasses to appreciate. Even if the situation is deeper, it feels like "who cares" matchmaking at its laziest. That is, if you’re Gilbert Melendez. If you’re Josh Thomson, it’s an overly generous chance to reclaim the lightweight belt. And if he does, this will turn the sports world aloof. What could we look forward to then -- Thomson/Healy II? That is true tundra. Keith Wisniewski versus Chris Clements has greater import. Or we could play back Thomson/Melendez IV, and put the thing on a perpetual loop. Strikeforce might have to, because the promotion's lightweight pool is ankle-deep.

If Melendez does lose to Thomson, you’d be left wondering if something like ennui played as big a role as the “Punk” himself. That’s why it’s hard to swallow. Why should all the favors go to Thomson, the sorta-deserving challenger? Why shouldn’t Melendez, the flagship champion of Strikeforce, be better attended? Fans of MMA don’t have interest in behind the scenes politics as much as they do in watching two heads of momentum collide.

But chances are Melendez will win, live up to expectations, and then disappear into waiting for the next thing to materialize. That’s not the kind of immediate future that lights fires in competitors. Yet that’s where Melendez is in 2012 at as Strikeforce lightweight strap holder. A sort of hostage to his throne.

And if he wants to remain the most persecuted champion in MMA, at least for the rest of this year, he’ll need to stay hungry for it. Maybe that’s what White meant about finding Melendez challenges. Maybe Melendez’s biggest challenge in 2012 will be fighting through the set of circumstances, rather than whoever they stick in front of him in the cage.

If you’re a mixed martial arts fan, things are about to get crazy.

The UFC, Strikeforce and Bellator have announced 17 shows scheduled to take place within the next 17 weeks. That’s nearly 200 confirmed fights, not including the ones airing on (either version of) “The Ultimate Fighter."

How are you going to catch all that?

Let’s be real: You probably aren’t. As it is with all sports, it’s tough to watch absolutely everything.

Going out on a limb, I’m guessing the highly anticipated Anderson Silva-Chael Sonnen rematch in June won’t get lost in the summer shuffle. Ditto for the heavyweight title fight between Junior dos Santos and Alistair Overeem in May.

Certain other fights, however, might; and that’s a shame. Hanging out in the shadows of these monster headliners are more than a handful of potentially memorable scraps.

Here’s a quick list of some of the best under-the-radar fights confirmed for the next 17 weeks. In addition to excluding UFC main and co-main events, bouts expected to generate significant interest weren't considered.

No. 10 -- Matt Brown (13-11) versus Stephen Thompson (6-0), UFC 145: April 21

Why you should care: All anyone could say after Stephen Thompson’s UFC debut in February was, “Uhhhh, how soon can we see that again?” The highly touted kickboxer won "Knockout of the night" at UFC 143 for the stunning head kick he landed on Dan Stittgen in the first round. Honestly, I’m not ready to proclaim him the next big thing at welterweight based on that performance alone, but it proved beyond a doubt that this guy can finish a fight at any time. Brown, though, isn’t one to back down from a standup war and I bet you didn’t know he’s never been knocked out in his entire career. Not bad ingredients for a free prelim fight.

No. 9 -- Jim Hettes (10-0) versus Steve Siler (20-9), UFC on FX 4: June 22

Why you should care: Everyone went crazy for Jim Hettes after watching him own Nam Phan at UFC 141. But step back, calm down and you’ll see this is anything but an easy fight for him. We all underestimated Siler in his last matchup against Cole Miller, probably because the memory of his 30-second knockout loss on TUF was still fresh. Siler has a strong grappling base and while he’s not that flashy on his feet, he’s technical and he can actually take a punch. The masses will be on Hettes going into this fight, so if Siler has his moments early it will feel like an upset -- and everyone loves an upset. These two will make each other work and I think when all is said and done, we’ll have a gutsy, close fight on our hands.

No. 8 -- John Dodson (12-5) versus Darren Uyenoyama (7-3), UFC on Fox 3: May 5

Why you should care: The UFC’s decision to add the flyweight division to its roster this year has already generated a lot of buzz, but for how long? Everybody is high on Joseph Benavidez, Ian McCall and Demetrious Johnson but six months from now we’re inevitably going to be asking, “So ... who’s got next?” Most would say that answer is Dodson. Like others in this division, he’s finally fighting consistently at his comfortable weight. He’s on a terrific hot streak, knocking out three of four opponents during TUF -- all of whom were bigger than him. Watch this so you can still be excited about the flyweight belt after the tournament dust settles.

No. 7 -- Diego Brandao (14-7) versus Darren Elkins (13-2), UFC 146: May 26

Why you should care: Brandao is wickedly violent. If you opted to skip the 14th season of TUF, you missed out on Brandao. This kid fights with emotion, for better or worse. He can be a ton to deal with, which is what makes him so fun to watch, but that aggressiveness might get him into trouble against the elite competition he’s about to face in the UFC. Elkins would be well advised to not stand at all here. Get this to the ground, control the position and then set up his submission. If he’s successful, this fight won’t be "Fight of the night", but even so, it should still be a fun battle to watch on the ground if that’s where it ends up.

No. 6 -- Zach Makovsky (14-2) versus Eduardo Dantas (13-2), Bellator 65: April 13

Why you should care: Everybody likes a prospect and at the age of 23, Dantas (13-2) is one of the best in all of MMA. The Brazilian will record more than his share of highlight-reel finishes (see the flying knee finish over Wilson Reis) -- but more importantly, the sky really is the limit considering how polished he is at such a young age. He’ll face one heck of a test in Makovsky (14-2), who is eager to defend the 135-pound belt for the first time since winning it in October 2010. Both guys are well-conditioned and difficult to finish. This will be a good one.

No. 5 -- Michael McDonald (14-1) versus Miguel Torres (40-4), UFC 145: April 21
Why you should care: What is Torres at this point in his career? Is he still a legitimate bantamweight contender or has he, on the verge of entering his 45th (documented) professional fight, lost a step? It’s unclear. One thing we do know is he’ll be crazy motivated for this one. No one doubts the former champ at the age of 31, but things have never quite been the same for him since that Brian Bowles right hand. If he wishes to return to the glory days, Torres needs this one. Add in the fact he and McDonald are naturally aggressive, and this could be a headliner-quality fight.

No. 4 -- Leonard Garcia (15-8) versus Matt Grice (14-4), UFC on FX 3: June 8

Why you should care: It’s Leonard Garcia. Even if you hate on the way he fights, you can’t hate on the action that comes because of it. Why do kids crowd around a fight in the schoolyard? Because it’s going to look like a Leonard Garcia fight. No feinting the jab to set up the double leg to set up the ground-and-pound to set up the decision victory. This is “let’s go, my will versus yours, hit me so I can smile and hit you back.” Would you want a full card of this? Probably not. But if you’re a UFC fighter, do you want to compete on the same card as Garcia? No. Because that’s one less bonus available at the end of the night. And even if Grice isn’t willing to fight a Garcia-type fight, there’s always the good chance he’ll get sucked into it. Garcia's opponents usually do.

No. 3 -- Alexandre Bezerra (13-1) versus Marlon Sandro (21-3), Bellator 64: April 6
Why you should care: This is just an awesome fight. These two Brazilians are fun to watch and either one would be a good future opponent to featherweight champ Pat Curran. Sandro is dialed in after that loss to Curran last August and is bent on a rematch, which everyone must earn the hard way in Bellator’s tournament format. Standing in his way is a very confident Bezerra, who is looking for easily the biggest win of his career. These guys move well around the cage and are offensive minded, which can, at times, lead to defensive lapses. A finish is likely, but not before what should be some terrific back-and-forth action.

No. 2 -- Edson Barboza (10-0) versus Evan Dunham (13-2), UFC 146: May 26

Why you should care: You’re about to watch five straight heavyweight fights on pay-per-view and that’s either really awesome or really scary. Get a lightweight appetizer before hitting the heavyweight buffet. Terrific matchmaking by the UFC here. Barboza is a bright prospect, but he’s not invincible. He’s managed to squeak out decisions when he’s had to, but he hasn’t had to do it against anyone as crafty or well rounded as Dunham. On the other side, Dunham has pretty much lost just one fight -- to Melvin Guillard -- where he was overwhelmed by speed, which Barboza has. They are perfect tests for each other.

No. 1 -- Ross Pearson (13-5) versus Cub Swanson (16-5), UFC on FX 4: June 22

Why you should care: This is not just my favorite “under the radar” fight, this is one of my favorite fights of the entire summer. Period. Swanson has his swagger back, completely, for the first time since the eight-second loss to Jose Aldo in 2009. Not to say he had become shy in the cage, but in his last few fights you can see him visibly enjoying himself out there and he’s stringing together some insanely fluid offense because of it. He figures to be the quicker man, but Pearson, a former lightweight, is a bull. He’ll walk Swanson down, go to the body and set a furious pace -- all to slowly break down his opponent’s speed advantage. I don’t see this being anything but a standup fight. Swanson will dazzle with flash here and there, but Pearson will wear it and respond with his own combinations. This has the makings of a special fight and I think it will be largely ignored during that week.

The fate of Chinese mixed martial arts apparently rests on a handful of guys who've never been in the fight business before.

So stamped the Chinese governmental division that controls martial arts within mainland China, the Wushu Administrative Center, which recently issued one permit to stage mixed martial arts events as a legal sport throughout the country.

While there were several suitors, including Zuffa LLC, Joel Resnick believes his startup group, the Ranik Ultimate Fighting Federation, was awarded the government sanction because it offered the right "mix between Chinese culture and Western mentality. I think that's really what did it."

"We decided right at the very beginning that if we're doing to do this, we're going to do it right. So it's going to be done as a sports event. It's going to have the backing of the government. Most importantly we have to be able to award a country's national MMA championship, which at the end of the day is what we're doing," said the 51-year-old Canadian, a longtime resident of Shanghai and principal in the Ranik Group -- a buying agent that calls Nike a major client.

RUFF is three cards into what its backers hope is the start of something massive. With the foundation of a burgeoning Chinese middle class learning what to do with its disposal income, the government handed RUFF the opportunity to develop Chinese MMA as a sport while selling it as a new entertainment option across the country.

On March 24 in Chongqing, a major city in Southwest China, 4,000 Chinese watched a nine-fight card in a sold-out arena. The event was RUFF's first since the company announced its ambitious intentions through the next Chinese new year. Capped by awe-inspiring prize money per Chinese standards, seven National MMA Champions will be crowned. Fighters aren't required to be Chinese nationals, but they must live and have a work permit in China, Hong Kong, Macau or Taiwan. Each winner will receive RMB 1,000,000, the equivalent of about $160,000. The average Chinese household brings in a bit more than $10,000 a year, so the idea is for the siren song of big money to prompt a generation of quality Chinese fighters to quickly emerge.

"We needed to make a statement out to the general public that said, 'Hey look, this is a new sport, but you guys can do this.' We needed to make it attractive," Resnick said. "We needed to draw attention. Something small wasn't going to do that."

The figure got the Chinese media talking, which is what Resnick and his partners -- Saul Rajsky along with American brothers Neil and Michael Mandt -- hoped for.

"We feel that the events we'll have in the next year will gain attention," said Michael Mandt, 40, who, with his brother, operates the Los Angeles-based production company that will deliver RUFF to tens of millions of Chinese televisions. "It will be natural for Chinese athletes to want to be involved. I think there will be a grass roots development because of the chance to win 1,000,000 RMB. It's not easy to be Yao Ming. To be a RUFF MMA champion, you don't have to be seven feet tall."

“

It will be natural for Chinese athletes to want to be involved. I think there will be a grass roots development because of the chance to win 1,000,000 RMB. It's not easy to be Yao Ming. To be a RUFF MMA champion, you don't have to be seven feet tall.

” -- RUFF producer Michael Mandt, on the low entry qualifications to be an MMA fighter in China

Considering the martial arts heritage of the region, China appears to be a natural fit for MMA, which is among the reasons UFC has maintained an office in Beijing since August 2010. Former NBA executive Mark Fischer operates out of the office and heads the promotion's Asians Operations division.

Just this week UFC president Dana White promised that the UFC will hold an event "in China" this year. Yet claiming that Macau, where the card is expected to take place, is in China "is similar to having a fight in Puerto Rico and claiming to be in the United States," said Resnick, who worked four years inside the bureaucracy of the People’s Republic of China before receiving the license to work with the government. "Chinese citizens require a visa to go from China to Macau. Macau is a separate territory with its own government, currency and passports."

Resnick welcomed the UFC to hold an event in Macau "as it will only bring more attention to the great sport of MMA in Asia."

For the UFC to host something on the mainland, it would need to be considered a one-off cultural event, which means no ticket sales, no revenue streams.

The idea for RUFF came about five years ago when Resnick's son, Brandon, a teenager at the time, talked about his love of MMA. Brandon Resnick, now almost 20 and a Brazilian jiu-jitsu black belt, serves as RUFF's matchmaker and talent scout. RUFF fighters compete under the Unified Rules, and referees are certified under John McCarthy's C.O.M.M.A.N.D system. The Chinese government too will be a sort of talent scout via its support for MMA, especially in schools. Resnick expects the government to help with the cost of finding and grooming fighters, as well as regulating them through soon-to-be formed associations.

The government is “really excited about this because this is a growth sport here," Resnick said. "This is something the Chinese public can wrap their hands around, they can get it.

"We're finding that this can be a mainstream sport out here and people are willing to spend the money to come out and see it. As long as they get their value back."

The cheapest ticket to an event costs $15, though live attendance is insignificant compared to the potential access into China's 700,000,000 homes. Through the government, TV relationships are already opening up for the Mandt brothers in Chongqing and other major municipalities. RUFF is the first MMA organization in China permitted to advertise its events in mass media. Neil Mandt, 42, is moving to China, where he'll handle broadcast production of events every other month.

Sponsors have taken notice. Chinese arms of multinational companies -- Nike, Ford, Ducati Motorcylces and Sofitel Hotels -- have already aligned with RUFF.

"The exposure RUFF has on TV and magazines is something we're interested in," Mike Bordiga, CEO of Ducati Asia Pacific, is quoted as saying in the organization's promotional packet. "The audience has a low average age; It's exactly what we're aiming for."

There's talk of a North American-esque reality show aimed at the core 18-28 demographic. But this is first and foremost a sporting venture in a country that does not have much in the way of pro sports.

"We're starting a sports company in China," Resnick said. "That's amazing. The most amazing thing is we're bringing martial arts back to China. This is where it all started. That's the coolest thing."

UFC president Dana White confirmed on Friday that Dan Henderson will fight the winner of Jon Jones v Rashad Evans, and Henderson is warning people not to write off the challenger ahead of UFC 145. More »

Several weeks ago, the Oklahoma State Athletic Commission sent out a letter notifying licensees that the state was in peril of shutting the regulator's doors after March 31.

That budding crisis appears to be averted and the regulatory body will be open for business starting today, according to the commission’s administrator, Joe Miller.

The issue stems from a threatened lawsuit by the UFC over a 4 percent tax Oklahoma collects on all pay-per-views purchased by residences of the state. Events can emanate from Tokyo, but if someone in Tulsa is buying, then the promoter must pay a tax to the state. This applies to all promoters, boxing and MMA, and Miller said fees collected from this tax currently account for two-thirds of the athletic commission’s budget. Without it, he said, keeping operations going would be very difficult.

Zuffa, the largest provider of pay-per-view content in the world, is essentially the only MMA promoter that pays into the Oklahoma tax.

Marc Ratner, UFC’s head of regulatory affairs, said it boiled down to a legal matter. Ratner compared the matter in Oklahoma to a similar one Florida faced. A 5 percent pay-per-view tax was eventually wiped from the Sunshine State's books.

The Oklahoma Attorney General’s office is currently determining the constitutionality of the pay-per-view law, Miller said.

“Once he has completed his research, we will finalize our request for a change in the current language of our statute,” Miller said.

In essence, Oklahoma must secure a revenue stream that doesn’t rely on “double taxation,” Ratner said, which the pending legislation apparently provides for.

“We will be open for business on April [2],” Miller said. “A legislative solution to the problem is under way, and should be solidified by the end of April.”

Miller is accepting permit applications again.

UNCASVILLE, Conn. -- Heading into Bellator’s welterweight quarterfinals on Saturday, Karl Amoussou’s match-up with Chris Lozano looked like the toughest draw of the field. That was one of the reasons it was the main event as the Season 6 tournament got underway.

It also didn’t hurt that Amoussou was telling whoever would listen beforehand that he would knock out Lozano.

Things didn’t work out that way in the end, but the Frenchman Amoussou (14-4-2) still dusted his hands off early with a rear-naked choke of the “Cleveland Assassin.” And ultimately it was a big kick that lowered the boom on Lozano to set up the sequence.

“Of course I’m happy with the submission,” Amoussou told ESPN.com afterward. “The important thing for me first is to win the fight, even if it’s a decision. It’s important to win. Of course, when I finish a fight, it’s better. But I made a big knockdown with my high kick and my submission came very easily after that, so, you know, I’ll take it. And I’m glad of it.”

Amoussou, who up until five months ago was working as an undercover police officer in his native France, was originally slated to face War Machine (formerly Jon Koppenhaver) at Bellator 63. But with Machine having been sentenced to another prison sentence stemming back from an assault charge in 2009, this time in the state of Nevada, Amoussou drew Lozano instead. Lozano has been training at Greg Jackson’s in Albuquerque after having been knocked out by Douglas Lima in October in the Season 5 welterweight semifinals.

Whether it was Lozano or War Machine, the “Psycho” was going to talk. Before he and Lozano squared off, the two exchanged words during a heated staredown.

What were they saying?

“Just ‘hi, how are you,’” laughed Amoussou. “But seriously, I don’t really remember.”

And once the fight got started, it didn’t take long for Amoussou to settle matters. In fact, similarly to when he fought Jesus Martinez in November in a 175-pound catchweight fight, Amoussou walked away in the same mint condition that he arrived.

“I felt great,” he said. “I didn’t get touched even once in this fight. It was the same in my last fight, so two fights without even getting hit with a punch. I’m showing good things now. People should get ready for the next Bellator champion, and it’s going to be me.”

That would be novel -- there’s never been a French MMA champion in Bellator. And if there is a dark horse in the welterweight tournament, it might be Amoussou. He lost a narrow split decision in his Bellator debut in May 2011 against Sam Avery, but at just 26 years old he’s showing a lot of new wrinkles in his game -- especially now that he has switched to fighting full time.

And it’s down to a four-man field, featuring UFC veteran Ben Saunders, Bryan Baker and David Rickels. Asked if he had a preference who would be next, Amoussou admitted he didn’t care. The reason? He’s confident he matches up with anybody they stick in front of him. When Baker strolled by Amoussou in the bowels of the Mohegan Sun sporting a nice suit, a happy Amoussou yelled out to him, “Bryan Baker, you’re so handsome.”

Baker smiled. Who knows? The former middleweight could be standing opposite Baker in the semis. But on Saturday night in Uncasville, after making quick work of Lozano with nary a scratch, the Frenchman traded in the barbs for some pleasantries. It probably won’t last. Whenever his next opponent is announced, Amoussou will be back in the business of forecasting knockouts.

“Tonight I showed my real level and at the same time I can tell you, I didn’t show half of my level,” Amoussou said. “I have so many things that I can bring. Just be ready for more action next time.”