I still feel like shit, but here it goes anyway.
First, I like the new "Evolution" intro, it's a little goofy but it's a hell of a lot better than the gladiator one they used for years. Now that crappy "Face The Pain" (or whatever it's called) metal song needs to go and they'll be all set.
Condit/Diaz - I think this proves what I've been saying for years, Diaz is a decent fighter, but he's not top 10/top 5/pound for pound. He survived for years feasting on cans and people past their prime, it's easy to look good when you're a big fish in a very small pond. Nick has used the same gameplan for ages, and when he finally ran up against actual top 10 talent, he couldn't make any adjustments to compensate, all he did was get more and more pissed off that Carlos refused to play his game. It was obvious when Nick wouldn't let go of Condit's ankle after the bell that he was desperate for anything that might shake him mentally, and he failed. I honestly would have docked Diaz a point for that shit, when the ref says break it up, you break it up. I really think his inability to adjust when his gameplan obviously wasn't working showcases his limitations as a fighter.
Condit did exactly what he should have to win, he knew exactly what Diaz was going to try and didn't fall for any of it. Anyone saying all he did was run away the entire fight are out of their minds, he didn't stay pinned up against the cage and let Diaz pepper him with shots over and over, he got out of there while returning fire. Carlos actually won in the striking department as well, Diaz threw more shots but hit mostly air while Carlos landed more while throwing less. People can say Diaz controlled the fight by backing Carlos into the cage, but you could also say Carlos controlled the fight by making Diaz come to him, so I think that point is null and void.
Diaz throwing a bitch fit and saying things like "he just ran away and threw baby kicks, I guess that's how they win here, and I don't get paid enough" and his other bullshit just reinforces my belief that he's not a top tier fighter. A real champion would have just admitted defeat even if they didn't agree with the judges before saying "I'll learn from this and I'll be back". But no, he fought someone who wouldn't play his game so he's going to take his ball and go home. I don't buy his retirement though, Dana says he has at least one fight left on his contract, but I have a strong feeling that if he fights again he'll be bitching that "I'm only doing this because they wouldn't let me out of the contract I signed". And if for some reason Dana did let him try boxing, I've no doubt that he'd come running back to MMA after getting his ass kicked once or twice.
Condit wasn't just the better fighter last night, he IS a better fighter than Nick Diaz.
Nelson/Werdum - Roy looked good out there with his trimming figure, but Werdum looked far better. At this point, I seriously believe Roy's head is made of reinforced concrete, he can take a punch. I know he's now 1-3 in his last 4, but after showing that he's willing to improve and giving a FOTN performance, I think his job is safe. I'd rank him as a fringe top 10, he'll never be an elite HW due to his somewhat small size and age, but he's a far better fighter than gatekeepers like Kongo and Gonzaga. I think his future will be as the gatekeeper to the top 10 while maybe breaking into it himself on occasion with the years he has left. As for Werdum, I want to say put him in there with Frank Mir, but that doesn't seem fair to Mir since he's on a 3 fight winning streak.
Koshcheck/Pierce - Josh looked like total crap last night and said later at the press conference that he's split with AKA, he better find a good camp and soon because he should have dominated Pierce, not squeaked by.