UFC 85 Matt Hughes vs. Thiago Alves

Event name: UFC 85: Irvin vs. Evans
Date: June 7, 2008
Location: London, England
Venue: O2 Arena

UFC 85 - Matt Hughes vs. Thiago Alves

Originally the main event was supposed to be Chuck Liddell Vs Mauricio Rua until Rua suffered a knee injury that forced Rashad Evans into a replacement role. Evans was in a great position to get a shot at the former champion and really step up to the elite level of competition in the Light Heavyweight division. until Chuck Liddell injured a hamstring that will keep him off the fight scene for a few months at least.

James Irving, fresh off his recent KO victory over Houston Alexander stepped up to take Liddell’s place, only to get hurt him self and then get replaced by Matt Hughes Vs. Thiago Alves.

James Irvin (14-4) will replace an injured Chuck Liddell and tangle with Rashad Evans (11-0-1) in a light heavyweight bout at UFC 85 at the O2 Arena in London, England, on June 7.

Irvin will fill in for the former UFC light heavyweight champion, Chuck Liddell, who was force off the card after suffering a torn hamstring.

Evans was actually a UFC 85 replacement for an injured Mauricio "Shogun" Rua. "The Ultimate Fighter 2" winner's only blemish on an otherwise perfect record is a draw to Tito Ortiz at UFC 73. However, Evans bounced back for a split-decision victory over co-headliner Michael Bisping at UFC 78 in November.

Evans — season two heavyweight winner of The Ultimate Fighter (TUF) — is still undefeated since his stint on the mixed martial arts reality series. Stephan Bonnar, Jason Lambert and Michael Bisping are just a few of his notable wins.

Irvin competed recently at the April 2 event in Broomfield, Colo., which makes for a quick return by UFC standards.

His bout with Houston Alexander lasted just eight seconds though, leaving Irvin tied with Don Frye for the quickest knockout in UFC history.

Mauricio “Shogun” Rua (16-3 MMA, 0-1 UFC) has re-injured his knee and has been scratched from a UFC 85 main event with Chuck Liddell (21-5 MMA, 16-4 UFC).

Rua ruptured the ACL in his left knee, which is the same injury that forced a surgery after a UFC 76 loss to Forrest Griffin.

Chuck Liddell, a former UFC light heavyweight champion who rebounded from back-to-back losses with a win over Wanderlei Silva in December.

Liddell, who won the 205-lb. title at UFC 52, made four successful title defenses before a loss to Quinton Jackson this past May. He then dropped a split decision to Jardine in September. However, in a fight that was one of the most-anticipated in the sport’s history, he defeated former PRIDE champion and recent UFC signee Silva via unanimous decision in the co-main event of UFC 79.

Since winning Season 2 of The Ultimate Fighter Evans, 28, has ripped his way to the top of the 205lbs rankings. In 2007, he announced his arrived as a top contender for the UFC title with a one-kick knockout of Sean Salmon, followed by a controversial draw with Tito Ortiz and then a career-best victory over the previously undefeated Michael Bisping.

UFC 85 also features that heavyweight showdown between Fabricio Werdum and Brandon Vera, as well as a dynamite welterweight match up between Mike Swick and Marcus Davis.

Mike “Quick” Swick (11-2) will take on Marcus “The Irish Handgrenade” Davis (14-3) at UFC 85 on June 7 from the O2 Arena in London, England.

Look for UFC 85 to be marketed heavily with a 10 p.m. ET PPV start time, which will be on tape delay, and the LIVE broadcast to be available earlier on Saturday afternoon.

That’s how the last few UFC shows abroad have worked, anyway.

UFC 85 “BEDLAM” OFFICIAL RESULTS

Alves beats Hughes in UFC 85

Thiago Alves proved that he's ready for a title shot by defeating nine-time UFC welterweight champion Matt Hughes in a catch weight bout at UFC 85.

After an evenly matched first round, Alves took over in the second, slamming a flying knee in Matt Hughes' grill, forcing referee Herb Dean to stop the fight 62 seconds into the second round.

• Thiago Alves def. Matt Hughes via TKO - Round 2, 1:02
• Michael Bisping def. Jason Day via TKO - Round 1, 3:42
• Mike Swick def. Marcus Davis via unanimous decision
• Thales Leites def. Nate Marquardt via split decision
• Fabricio Werdum def. Brandon Vera via TKO - Round 1, 4:40
• Martin Kampmann def. Jorge Rivera via submission - Round 1, 2:44
• Matt Wiman def. Thiago Tavares via KO - Round 2, 1:57
• Kevin Burns def. Roan Carneiro via submission - Round 2, 2:53
• Luiz Cane def. Jason Lambert via TKO - Round 1, 2:07
• Paul Taylor def. Jess Liaudin via split decision
• Antoni Hardonk def. Eddie Sanchez via TKO - Round 2, 4:15

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