Last night, at UFC 114, the main event was presented as a title eliminator to determine who would get the next shot at champion Mauricio “Shogun” Rua.

After relying mostly on his wrestling and conditioning, Rashad Evans was able to pull out a unanimous decision win.

Other than the main event, two other bouts were at 205 pounds, both of which might have impacted the light heavyweight rankings.

One was a meeting of Luiz Cane and Cyrille Diabate. If Cane were able to look very impressive, he might have sneaked into the No. 10 spot in the rankings.

As it was, he was knocked out in the first round and pushed further from contender status.

The second was supposed to be a showcase for Rogerio Nogueira, but in a match with Jason Brilz, he was barely able to edge out a split decision.

Here are the new official Bleacher Report rankings for light heavyweight.

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Courtesy of :Bleacher Report – UFC

At 15-1-1, Rashad Evans is considered an elite talent in the UFC. He’s held the Light Heavyweight Belt, albeit in the weird time frame where he and Forrest Griffin somehow reigned supreme in the division.

But when it comes to selling a main event, Evans is easily the worst. I’m not sure why the UFC keeps throwing this guy on us like the blanket he is, but it’s not doing them (or us) any favors.

UFC 114 was supposed to be a great night of fights. After a boatload of decisions and a restless crowd, the main event was supposed to come through with high-profile fighters like Evans and Rampage Jackson.

It was the worst main event since…hmmm…when was it? Oh, that’s right—Evans’ last fight, against Thiago Silva at UFC 108.

I’m not taking the win away from Evans by any stretch, he beat Rampage straight up and employed a proper game plan. But it isn’t main event material.

Evans has had only one exciting fight against good competition—his knockout against Chuck Liddell—but it’s generous to call Liddell good competition these days.

In the past he’s had finishes against B-level fighters, but as a main event fighter I don’t see how he can sell the card. The only reason people tune in to a Rashad Evans fight is to see his opponent. This time it was Rampage; next time it will be Shogun.

Other than landing one right hand to Rampage’s jaw in the first minute of action, Rashad did nothing else but hug Jackson and hold on for dear life until the final bell. He knew he was completely outmatched if the two were to exchange standing up, and that was evident when he was stunned by Page in the last round.

How Rampage didn’t finish the fight has fans’ minds boggled.

Regardless, if the UFC wants to market a card, it would be a good idea to leave “Evans versus ______” out of the title.

Aside from the title shot against Rua later this year, I can’t see people tuning in to see a repeat of Saturday’s fight.

As an undercard fighter or gatekeeper, Rashad is alright, but if the UFC wants people to fork over 60 bucks for a fight card, leave him out of the main event.

I’m all for the technical aspects of fighting and the ground game, no doubt. But stalling an opponent intentionally to try to squeeze out a decision win is not what I pay to see.

UFC 114 was probably the biggest letdown of the year so far, rivaled only by UFC 108.

Credit him for the win against Rampage, but don’t be surprised for another Rashad Evans snooze-fest in the future.

Read more UFC news on BleacherReport.com

Courtesy of :Bleacher Report – UFC

For this Memorial Day, I’ve prepared a special treat for my readers—a piece that will make the sun warmer, cheeseburgers tastier, and getting paid on a holiday that much better.

If some ungodly beast of a boss has required you to come in today, return the favor by using some company Internet to thoroughly “read” through this article (don’t worry, it’s SFW—safe for work): a personal homage to the sexiest ambassador mixed martial arts has to offer.

Are you prepared to take a leap of faith into this euphoric utopia that’s been created? Trust me, the Mad Hatter of MMA, and take the plunge down this rabbit hole. It won’t hurt a bit—a trust fall amongst men.

Hold that thought. Like, I have to twist your arm and sell the idea of looking at 10 gorgeous pictures of UFC ring girl sensation Arianny Celeste—click away! I won’t be offended if you run down your mouse by clicking the orange arrows repeatedly, absorbing only a few words of narrative.

This is the greatest Memorial Day cookout on the Internet, grilling up 10 of the finest pictures I could muster up during my extensive “research.” It’s hard being so dedicated sometimes….

Have a good holiday, and enjoy!

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Courtesy of :Bleacher Report – UFC