Ties are for Troy Dungan or calf ropin' or Oscar night or Mila Kunis' brother (cuz kissin' his sister would be bueno).
But UFC?
Watched UFC 127 with some buddies Saturday night and was entertained, but confused. Always figured in this manliest sports featuring bloody knockouts and tap-out surrenders they'd fight to the death -- or at least until someone won.
In the main event B.J. Penn rocked Jon Fitch with a couple of early takedowns, but with the way Fitch so dominated the third round I thought he clearly won the fight. So did Penn, who afterward in the ring basically called himself lucky to get a draw. For the final five minutes Fitch basically pinned and pummeled Penn with non-stop piston punches from close range.
It was like death by a thousand paper cuts. Except that -- in the three judges' opinion -- Penn didn't die.
I hate draws in soccer and boxing and, well, everything. Imagine a Miss America pageant with co-winners. A Super Bowl without overtime, ending in a tie. American Idol(s). It just feels so incomplete and unfulfilling.
It didn't, however, take away from an entertaining night in which we also learned that...
*England's Michael Bispring is a good fighter but a giant asshole. After beating Jorge Rivera, Bispring flipped off the crowd, spat at Rivera's corner and told his opponent to "go home, loser." Felt a little too much like scripted professional wrestling.
*German Dennis Siver should be an NFL running back. For three rounds George Sotiropoulos tried to tackle Siver and take their fight to the ground, but he couldn't do it. Amazing balance, low center of gravity and a stubborn sticking to a game plan. Impressive.
*Goofiest dude of the night was Brian Ebersole, who beat Chris Lytle. Ebersole entered the ring with his chest hair shaved into an arrow pointing up toward his head, but then caught Lytle with a knee that almost knocked the veteran out.
*I can't wait for UFC 128.