Among those facing big layoffs are both main event fighters. In his dominating victory over Anderson Silva, Uriah Hall saw damage to almost every one of his limbs. Both hands will require x-rays in order to clear him as well as one for his right foot, if he wants to avoid having an 180 day wait. Anderson Silva, on the flip side, took the brunt of the damage to his face. With an apparent broken nose, if he does decide to un-retire as so many in the MMA game do, he’ll need to sit out 180 days and get that looked at.

Others who face 180 days off without the necessary clearance include winners Bryce Mitchell and Thiago Moises. Both men did damage to their hands in the process of punching and will need to have that looked at. This is, perhaps, unsurprising for Moises given that his opponent will also need clearance, only on his eye. The improved striking of Moises landed enough on Bobby Green’s left eye to warrant a trip to the ophthalmologist.

Full list of suspensions following UFC Vegas 12:

Uriah Hall – 180 days or until cleared by x-rays to right foot and both hands.
Anderson Silva – 180 days or until cleared for broken nose.
Bryce Mitchell – 180 days or until cleared by left hand x-ray
Maurice Greene – 45 days and must be cleared by ortho-spinal specialist.
Charlie Ontiveros – 30 days
Thiago Moises – 180 days or until cleared by right thumb x-ray.
Bobby Green – 180 days or until left eye clearance from ophthalmologist.
Alexander Hernandez – 45 days or until cleared from cut on right index finger.
Chris Gruetzemacher – 60 days
Jack Marshman – 45 days
Cole Williams – 60 days
Justin Ledet – 45 days
Kevin Natividad – 60 days

Suspensions originally reported by Kirik Jenness.

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It was a middleweight bout against Jack Marshman that marked his return from a scary motorcycle accident. And as it turned out, the wait, for fans, paid off. And for Strickland (21-3), really. While losing that much time is never good for a fighter, Strickland put on a memorable performance in his return. Helped along by a Jack Marshman who just wouldn’t go away.

“That guy has a granite chin, Jesus,” Strickland exclaimed following the fight, speaking to media outlets including Cageside Press. “I know he got knocked out by one guy, but apparently the only punches you can knock him out with are the ones he doesn’t see. His head is made with frigging rock.”

Strickland vs. Marshman may go down as one of the most vocal fights in history, with Sean Strickland talking to his opponent for what felt like the entire fifteen minutes.

“Me and him were vibing,” said Strickland. “When you meet a kindred soul — I knew me and that guy, you like to scrap, I like to scrap, you like to box, I like to box, we’re gonna box. I like this! I don’t even feel like it was an MMA fight, I feel like it was a boxing match.”

Of course, a lot of onlookers were shocked when Strickland, clearly up on the scorecards, called on Marshman to stand and trade in the final 30 seconds. Offering his opponent a chance to win.

“As I said it, simultaneously I’m picturing me in the back room, sitting down knocked out in the corner, and my coach is looking at me like ‘Sean, you’re an idiot,'” admitted Strickland. “So as I’m telling him that, I’m thinking that, but I’m like whatever man, we’re doing it Jack.”

The motorcycle accident that kept him out of the octagon since 2018 could have ended his career. But Strickland would simply not allow that to happen. “Every doctor I spoke to was telling me that ‘you can fight for sure, but you probably shouldn’t fight,'” he told Cageside Press. “The hardest thing was telling these doctors to shut up, like ‘you don’t know what I can or can’t do.'”

After all the time away, Strickland now feels like he’s home. And it feels like he belongs, he added. “The accident kind of made me grow as an individual. A lot of my fights, I’ve been so afraid of losing that I wasn’t even enjoying it. And now as you’ve seen with Jack, going through that, I don’t even care about winning so much anymore. I just want to have good fights. I want the fans to enjoy watching me, I just want to have some wars for you guys.”

Watch the full UFC Vegas 12 post-fight press conference with Sean Strickland above.

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Andre Fili

Andre Fili lost a unanimous decision to Bryce Mitchell this past weekend. Fili is only 30 years old and should be looking to make a quick turnaround so that he can get back in the win column. Thomas Almeida would make for the perfect opponent for Fili. Almeida just returned after a two-year layoff with a decision loss to Jonathan Martinez at featherweight. Almeida should be in a similar situation as Fili, looking to bounce back and get back on track.

Fili’s next fight: Thomas Almeida

Maurice Greene

Maurice Green was knocked out by Greg Hardy in the second round at UFC Vegas 12. This loss makes Greene 4-3 in the UFC. Greene should be looking to fight someone with similar experience and good striking. Greene has amazing submissions but as of right now his only question mark is his striking defense. He has been known to be able to land some power shots, but it is no surprise that he has to work on his head movement and footwork. Greene should be looking to fight someone like Yorgan De Castro in his next fight. De Castro has the same experience level as Greene and has five of his six wins via knockout. De Castro is also on a two-fight losing streak so this fight will definitely determine who wants to make a name for themselves. They’ve both also dropped fights to Hardy.

Greene’s next fight: Yorgan De Castro 

Charlie Ontiveros

Charlie Ontiveros suffered a gruesome neck injury in his loss to Kevin Holland this past weekend. He was slammed to the ground and verbally submitted a short time after. He had to be removed on a stretcher after the fight. It would be unfair to discuss Ontiveros’ next fight without knowing the severity of his injury. In the meantime, we wish him well.

Bobby Green

Bobby Green has had one hell of a year this year. Going 3-0 leading into Saturday’s fights. At UFC Vegas 12 he fell short and lost a unanimous decision to Thiago Moises — in a fight that many thought he won. It’s safe to say that Green will bounce back pretty quickly and look to get back to his winning ways. A perfect opponent for Green would be Vinc Pichel. Pichel is riding a two-fight winning streak at the moment, with wins over Jim Miller and Roosevelt Roberts in his last two fights. Pichel has eight of his 13 wins via knockout. Making for a perfect stylistic matchup for Green.

Green’s next fight: Vinc Pichel 

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Uriah Hall

While I doubt Uriah Hall is upset about getting the opportunity to fight Anderson Silva in what may have been his retirement fight, especially given his explicit fandom of Silva, this was a huge step back for him in terms of booking. He had previously been booked with Jacare Souza in Jacksonville, then Jacare was pulled due to being positive for COVID. He then was booked with Yoel Romero, who got pulled due to an injury. If those are the types of fights the UFC thinks Hall was ready for before his performance this past weekend, I doubt much has changed. Having done everything he was supposed to against Silva, and maybe more, I say give him the Romero match-up he originally had. It was intriguing before, and it’s still intriguing now.

Uriah Hall’s Next Fight: Yoel Romero

Bryce Mitchell

Love him or hate him, you have to respect what Bryce Mitchell has been able to do on the ground. After absolutely dominating black belt Charles Rosa in impressive fashion, he put on a subsequent performance against Andre Fili that proved whatever doubters still existed wrong. With this level of confidence on the ground, and being in a division with some of the very best grapplers in the UFC, the matchmaking is all too easy. While Kron Gracie wouldn’t be a dull bout either, the correct answer here is Ryan Hall. Mitchell just seems crazy enough to engage him on the mat and I think that’s something we all need to see.

Bryce Mitchell’s Next Fight: Ryan Hall

Greg Hardy

Although a lot of people are clamoring that Hardy hasn’t fought anyone yet, Maurice Greene does represent a step up from his recent competition. Juan Adams, Ben Sosoli, Yorgan de Castro — none of them were really all that close to the top 15, whereas Greene was 4-2 in the UFC with only losses to top 15 competition. The UFC does seem bent on moving Hardy up slowly (with the exception of the late notice fill in spot against Volkov), but regardless of how slow they’re moving him, now is the time to put him against a top 15 guy. Sergey Pavlovich was just pulled him a fight due to injury, but assuming the timelines match up, he’d be a great test for Hardy. His boxing is a big step up and assuming he keeps it on the feet, Hardy would have to get him out of there quickly or risk tiring and getting picked apart.

Greg Hardy’s Next Fight: Sergey Pavlovich

Kevin Holland

After the verbal performance of Sean Strickland Saturday, some have said they want to see, or rather hear, him in a bout against Holland. However, Holland has now won seven of his last eight fights. Antics aside, he needs to start being treated like the division threat he is. I’d love to see him against a guy on the edge of the top 15, but the majority of them are already booked. Heinisch, Vettori, Akhmedov, and Tavares all already have dance partners for the near future. Holland doesn’t like to wait around and will likely just take the next booking available, but if I had my ways, I’d see him against Edmen Shahbazyan. Is it a huge step up? For sure, but I’d love to see how Shahbazyan deals with the enigma that is Holland.

Kevin Holland’s Next Fight: Edmen Shahbazyan

Thiago Moises

Moises kicked off his UFC career in less than impressive fashion, going 1-2 without much positive to write home about. Now he has an impressive heel hook finish over Michael Johnson and a unanimous decision win that stopped the crazy win streak of Bobby Green. Those names aren’t quite enough to break him into the top 15 of competition in the UFC’s most difficult division, but there are a lot of fun match-ups just outside of that. Alexander Hernandez also won this past weekend with a violent KO of Chris Gruetzemacher. You’d have to love the dynamic of Moises’ grappling against the speed and striking of Hernandez – and that’s not to even mention the improved striking we saw out of Moises.

Thiago Moises’s Next Fight: Alexander Hernandez

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The knockout victory had Hernandez in good spirits post-fight. Actually, he was in good spirits before the fight, enjoying himself during his walkout. “All of my losses come from my own mental demise I feel like,” he explained backstage at the UFC Apex following the bout. “So just to be able to find some levity in that moment, and be super present-minded, was really everything.”

While many fighters call their shots, or are willing to fight anyone the UFC lines up for them after a big win, Hernandez has other motivations. In the form of dollar bills. “I just want to keep making money, dude. I just got a nice contract change, now that I’m getting paid, I just want to keep getting paid, get some more contracts,” said Hernandez.

He referenced fellow lightweight Bobby Green, noting that “that son of a bitch has fought like five times, unranked guys, making half a mil this year. So I’m like man, I just want to get on that money train. That’s really all I’m focused on right now. Keep developing myself, keep making cheese, and whoever they want to put me against, I’ll be prepared for. But I’m not  really in a hurry for anything but cash.”

Watch the full UFC Vegas 12 post-fight press conference with Alexander Hernandez above.

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“I grew up watching him fight. He’s an idol for me, he’s a legend in Brazil. If MMA is as big as it is in Brazil right now, a big part is because of Anderson,” Moises (14-4) said during the event’s post-fight press conference, speaking to Cageside Press and other outlets. “So I’m very happy, that gave me a lot of motivation to come to this fight, and fight the same day as Anderson.”

That motivation paid off, as Moises earned a split decision win over a game Bobby Green.

Judging being what it is, you never really know what will happen when the scores are read. However, when it came time, “I was confident that I won,” said Moises. Mainly because his coaches had told him it was 1-1 heading into the third. “I went there, I gave it all that I had, and I was pretty confident I had won the third round.”

Green had been on an impressive win streak, having won three bouts since June. Moises even came close to a stoppage, noting that a second-round ankle lock “was very close. I saw on his face, he was in a lot of pain.” Good defense from Green was really what kept him in the fight, Moises admitted.

Watch the full UFC Vegas 12 post-fight press conference with Thiago Moises above.

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Miles Johns with a HUGE uppercut to end it in RD 3!! 🤯 #UFCVegas12 pic.twitter.com/NKGKqLBpXl

— UFC Canada (@UFC_CA) October 31, 2020

An uppercut in the third round resulted in a walk-off KO for Johns, who knows that the extra eyes on the finish won’t hurt.

“I do this game because I love it. I’m a fighter at heart,” Johns told media outlets including Cageside Press post-fight. “But also, I’ve got to get paid. I got a family to feed. So the more eyes on me, the better. Hard work is truly paying off at that point.”

It paid off and then some. Johns was later awarded a $50,000 Performance of the Night bonus.

During the bout, Johns’ corner could be heard reigning him in at times. For good reason. “My last fight, I was the one on the canvas, and the other guys was celebrating. So all those emotions, all that work just pours out, and to the people watching, it can come off as a little bit arrogant, or a little bit non-empathetic,” he explained. Which is why, he added, that he loves that his coach forces him to remember where he’s been, and relax. And to “show respect to my opponent. At that point [after the KO], I felt a ton of empathy for him and I just wanted to let him know ‘hey man, you’ll be back.’ This is the fighter’s life. You live by the sword, you die by the sword.”

“I’m not out to necessarily hurt people severely. I’m just out here to have fun, do what I love, and make some money,” Johns added. With that bonus, well, mission accomplished.

Watch the full UFC Vegas 12 post-fight press scrum with Miles Johns above.

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A couple of bouts inside the octagon in 2011 and 2012 didn’t go Jacoby’s way, putting a halt to a 6-0 streak to start his career. Suddenly, as quickly as he’d made it to the big leagues, he was gone.

It’s easy to jump to his triumphant return on Saturday, where Jacoby (13-5), now a light heavyweight, picked up an impressive knockout victory. That, however, would overlook what the 32-year old rightfully called “A decade’s worth of work.”

Speaking to media outlets including Cageside Press following the bout, Jacoby maintained that “I always knew I’d be back here.”

“I can finally say I’m a UFC fighter. Even though I won that Contender Series fight, it wasn’t a UFC fight,” he acknowledged. “I’ve been in the UFC, but I’ve never won. To get a win like that, it couldn’t have played out any better.”

Jacoby actually dropped opponent Justin Ledet with a leg kick, which set up the finish. “He started getting back up, I think when he was on the ground I kicked again. But when he started getting back up, I hit him with the shot that put him back down, hit him with a clean elbow, and I knew it was super close.”

The actual finishing blow was as picture perfect uppercut. “I honestly do not remember the uppercut,” admitted Jacoby. “My knuckle does, but I do not.”

Following the fight, Jacoby told former middleweight champ and current UFC analyst Michael Bisping that he was an inspiration. The reason for that, Jacoby explained post-fight, is “the long road” the Bisping traveled to get to the top. “The long journey. The ups and downs. And never giving up. The perseverance. The grit to continue on.”

With some guys, said Jacoby, “it comes early. They just hit it off right off the bat. Look at McGregor, rose to the top and was the man right away.” On the other hand, you have “a guy like Bisping that just went through the fire, the trials and tribulations for so many years, and then finally got that gold around his waist.”

It’s something Dustin Jacoby got to see first hand. “My last UFC fight prior to this one was UFC on FOX 2, and Michael Bisping lost to Chael Sonnen. And I lost to Chris Camozzi that night, it was January 28, 2012. To fight on the same card as him, and obviously he stayed in the UFC and had a great career, but to see him just climb to the top and finally get what he was chasing that whole time is a huge inspiration for me.”

Jacoby later told Cageside Press that he never gave up hope of returning. “I never once thought that. I was very fortunate enough, when I got cut, to get a promotion like GLORY. I was able to keep my career going, I was able to financially keep going.”

A lot of hard fights followed, with some of the best strikers in the world. “The entire time I knew, I was just gaining that experience. I knew I was going to come back to MMA, and the UFC is where I wanted to be.”

Watch the full UFC Vegas 12 post-fight press conference with Dustin Jacoby above.

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Speaking at the post-fight press conference following the event, Holland (20-5) initially declined to elaborate on the confrontation. Then changed his mind, recalling an encounter in a stairwell back in 2018.

“Nothing really happened, I’m just one of those guys that you don’t really want to play with too much. I come from a different spot than most of these other guys,” began Holland. While in L.A., Holland was getting ready to fight Thiago Santos, and Adesanya was doing a media interview ahead of his fight with Derek Brunson. “For some reason when we were walking in the stairway, I was going down the stairs, and he was going up the stairs. While he was going up the stairs, he made some kind of comment. So I made a comment back. Then he wanted to get big and bad, it seemed like. My coach went to pushing him the opposite way, and James Vick went to pushing me the opposite way. Ever since then, I knew, when the time comes and we see each other again, I was going to have something to say.”

At least initially, that didn’t happen. “As I was walking up to him yesterday in the parking lot, he stuck his hand out and said ‘Mr. Holland’ and wanted to shake my hand,” continued Holland. “I’m cool with that, I’m going to be respectful, because he is the champ, you know what I mean? And he is older than me, and I’m not really much of a disrespectful guy unless you make me.”

Later, coming out of a COVID-19 testing booth, Holland noted that Adesanya’s energy was different. It had been friendly during the parking lot exchange, with the “Mr. Holland” and everything. “As I was walking away [from the testing booth], he says I’m the guy he was talking about. What the f*ck are you talking about me for? You’re the champ, and I’m just some f*cking guy coming up the ranks. The target’s on your back, not my back. Why are you talking about me? But then when I come out the tent, and the security guard asks me when am I going to fight Stylebender, all of a sudden you’re big and bad when the security’s around. But when it was just you and it was just me and it was just regular people, you were kind of cool. But now all of a sudden, your voice and your tone changes.”

There was that, and Holland noted that Adesanya danced to opponent Charlie Ontiveros’ walkout music, and not his own. Which gives Holland the idea that “for some reason, this motherf*cker don’t like me.”

On the ESPN+ broadcast, Holland had to watch his words. “The only thing I wanted to say was, ‘what the f*ck you want to do now?” But he don’t want to do nothing. He just wants to play the game, and play the game, and play the game. I’m not the one to play the game with.”

For those curious about the finish to Holland’s fight against Ontiveros, meanwhile, which ended in injury, Holland believes he knows what happened. Ontiveros immediately indicated he’d hurt his neck, and was removed from the octagon by stretcher.

“My shoulder. My shoulder was in the neck,” Holland confirmed. Later he added “He said his neck. I realized it was his neck. Like I said, the neck’s nothing to play with. There’s no reason to do anythign after that. We’ll see if it’s really serious or not. He was serious. It sucks.”

Watch the full UFC Vegas 12 post-fight press scrum with Kevin Holland above.

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In a bloody battle with Cole Williams — the blood primarily sourced from a nasty cut on Williams himself — welterweight Witt (18-6) dominated with emphatic takedowns and vicious ground n’ pound. It was Witt’s first win inside the octagon, improving his record there to 1-1.

Despite the gore (rather fitting for Halloween), Witt didn’t mind the blood. “I cut him, and I hoped he just kept bleeding until he stopped fighting,” he said during the post-fight press conference afterwards.

In fact, while blood tends to complicate grappling battles by adding some slipperiness, this time out, it actually helped. “We were pretty close against the cage. And usually it’s a little bit harder to slide my arm in,” explained Witt. “But with that blood, it just slipped right in, and I just squeezed.”

Williams missed weight by a sizeable amount for the fight. Not that Witt seemed to mind. “I could care less. Give me that free money.,” he said “I should up and made weight, and you’re giving me an extra 4800 dollars? Let’s go.”

Witt also revealed that he “got 40% of [Williams’] purse.” That’s a figure that is curiously higher than usual. “He missed weight twice in a row,” observed Witt. “So I think that’s why they upped it a little bit. I was hoping it was the Israel Adesanya, the 90%. But it didn’t work out that way.”

Middleweight champion Adesanya has suggested fighters who miss weight should cough up the bulk of their purse. Apparently, Witt is a fan.

“I’m perfectly okay with free money. I told my wife, I’m buying you a new purse for Christmas. She said ‘you get that much? I’m getting a nicer purse,'” he joked.

Watch the full UFC Vegas 12 post-fight press conference with Jason Witt above.

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