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...because without costumes and choreographed dance routines, it's just two guys beating the hell out of each other. Booooooring!

(Future UFC champion/part-time Michael Jackson impersonator Anderson Silva won't stop 'til he gets enough at PRIDE 22.)

("Keaton always said, 'I don't believe in God, but I'm afraid of him.' Well I believe in God, and the only thing that scares me is Diego Sanchez.")

Now that we're done weeping over Mirko "Cro Cop" Filipovic's career funeral pyre, we might as well turn toward the promise of the future by taking a harder look at the man who beat him at UFC 103 -- Junior "Cigano" Dos Santos.  What you see in the above video is the lone loss on Dos Santos' professional record.  It happened in November of 2007 when he faced off against submissions specialist Joachim Ferreira.  This fight was actually a rematch after Dos Santos beat Ferreira via submission due to exhaustion about seven months earlier.  As you can see, the armbar comes when Dos Santos gets a little careless working out of Ferreira's guard, and the next thing he knows a mild annoyance becomes a fight-ender.  So what does this mean?  In itself, probably nothing.  But it reminds us of something else, and that's that we have yet to see how Dos Santos does against the kind of ground specialists who populate the American/UFC heavyweight scene.  That's right, I'm talking 'bout wrestlers, son.

(Photo courtesy of UFC.com)

Between Fight Night 19 and UFC 103, complete with the glitchy undercard broadcasted poorly on Spike TV, if you didn’t get enough MMA last week then odds are you have a problem.  Sorry, but it’s true.  And no matter how much you might want them to, takedowns and superman punches will never fill that void inside of you.  For the rest of you, join us to look at who’s up and who’s down after UFC 103 via the completely arbitrary and not all that helpful numerical ranking system of the Potato Index.  It's what we do.

Vitor Belfort +178
A more patient “Phenom” proves he still has it, and against the best fighter he’s faced in years.  The UFC’s middleweight division needs new blood, but can he really threaten Anderson Silva?

Rich Franklin -112
Lucky for him Belfort is dropping to middleweight, so he’s still the king of the 195 lbs. division.  Was it really necessary for Joe Rogan to make him watch the replay and attempt to make sense of it?  Kind of like asking someone who just came out of surgery to shake off the anesthesia and tell us about that kidney removal.  They aren’t likely to have much insight to offer just then.

(If his kick can get through this guy's impregnable defenses, is anyone safe?)

After I got cleaned out at UFC Fight Night 19, it’s time to make some money back the only way I know how: selling fake Coach purses on the street.  Then I’m going to go blow all that money on UFC 103 bets.  Pretty solid little weekend I got planned, really.  Betting lines come to us courtesy of BestFightOdds.com:

Rich Franklin (-125) vs. Vitor Belfort (+117)
Mirko Filipovic (+120) vs. Junior Dos Santos (-130)
Martin Kampmann (-350) vs. Paul Daley (+325)
Josh Koscheck (-360) vs. Frank Trigg (+355)
Tyson Griffin (-280) vs. Hermes Franca (+285)
Efrain Escudero (-150) vs. Cole Miller (+140)
Drew McFedries (even) vs. Tomasz Drwal (even)
Jim Miller (-435) vs. Steve Lopez (+400)
Rafaello Oliveira (-275) vs. Nik Lentz (+260)
Rick Story (-125) vs. Brian Foster (+110)
Eliot Marshall (+125) vs. Jason Brilz (-135)
Vladimir Matyushenko (-270) vs. Igor Pokrajac (+255)
Rob Emerson (+113) vs. Rafael Dos Anjos (-110)

The breakdown… 

(Props: Esther Lin)

With a full 13 bouts scheduled for UFC 103, fight fans are going to get their money's worth tomorrow night in Dallas. Six fighters will be stepping into the Octagon for the first time, most of them trying to make the transition from hometown hero to big-time player. Read on to get acquainted with all the new faces, from Semtex to Tractor to Carny...

PAUL DALEY (WW)
Experience: 21-8-2 record, with 16 wins by KO/TKO. Was the former welterweight champion of Cage Rage. Holds stoppage victories over Duane Ludwig, John Alessio, Jess Liaudin, and Xavier Foupa-Pokam.
Will be facing: Martin Kampmann (15-2, 6-1 UFC)
Lowdown: You should already know about this guy. He knocks dudes out, and has never been knocked out himself. Still, if Kampmann can get this one to the ground, it's a wrap. UFC.com tries to put a positive spin on the reality of the situation: "Chances are, when Paul ‘Semtex’ Daley is around, you’ll either witness a Knockout of the Night or Submission of the Night."

STEVE LOPEZ (LW)
Experience: 12-1 record, primarily in Midwestern regional leagues. Holds a submission-via-strikes victory over The Gooch. Last competed in October 2008, when he scored a decision win over Alejandro Villalobos.
Will be facing: Jim Miller (13-2, 3-1 UFC)

Lowdown: A South Bend native and member of the Bulldog Fight Team, Lopez comes to this fight as a replacement for Thiago Tavares. The UFC first noticed Lopez when he tried out for TUF 9 — and injured his shoulder in the process. The former wrestler was inspired to try MMA when he saw The Smashing Machine, and made his pro debut in February 2007 at a four-man tournament, which he won via two consecutive knockouts. He just wants to get in there and scrap: “Win or lose, I hope the fans say ‘man, this kid’s tough – he’s got heart and he don’t back down.’ And this fight is the type of fight I’m looking for – Jim Miller, Roger Huerta, Tyson Griffin – I’m looking for grinders. Those just have Fight of The Night written all over them. I’m not afraid to stand and bang, and I can take a whuppin’. We throw down hard in practice, I’ve never been knocked down, and these are the fights that interest me.”