The first two rounds between the pair were close, as Ortiz wrestled Griffin to the ground several times and unloaded ground and pound while Forrest connected with punches and kicks on the feet, but Griffin dominated the third, battering Ortiz with strikes to earn the split decision with scores of 28-29, 30-27, and 29-28.

Griffin snaps a two-fight losord his ing streak and improves to 17-6 with the win, while the returning Ortiz, fighting for the first time in 18-months, falls to 15-7-1 after failing to record his first victory since 2006.

Excuses were aplenty after the bout, as Griffin said a broken foot hampered his performance in the fight, while Ortiz said his training was limited due to bulging discs in his surgically-repaired back as well as a facial fracture that resulted in a noticeable black eye.

The narrow decision and satisfying action means a rubber match between the former light heavyweight champions is likely, and both fighters indicated after the matchup that they were open to meeting again.

In the UFC 106 co-headliner, welterweight contender Josh Koscheck resorted to his wrestling to take out knockout artist Anthony Johnson, recovering from an illegal knee and powerful combination suffered in the first to force Johnson to tap to a rear naked choke late in the second round.

After the win, Koscheck, improving to 14-4 with his second-straight win, called out upcoming welterweight challenger Dan Hardy and plead for a rematch with title-holder Georges St-Pierre. Johnson falls to 8-3 and has his three-fight win streak snapped in the loss.

Also on the UFC 106 main card, Paulo Thiago grinded out a unanimous decision over newcomer Jacob Volkmann, Antonio Rogerio Nogueira made his UFC debut with a first-round knockout of Luiz Cane, and Amir Sadollah battered a return Phil Baroni en route to a unanimous decision victory.

In preliminary card action, Ben Saunders picked up a first-round knockout of Marcus Davis, Kendall Grove forced Jake Rosholt to tap to an opening-round triangle choke, Brian Foster recovered from two illegal strikes to take out Brock Larson via second-round TKO, Fabricio Camoes and Caol Uno fought to a majority draw after Camoes lost a point, and George Sotiropoulos submitted Jason Dent with an armbar in the night’s first fight.

The official results for UFC 106 were:

• Forrest Griffin def. Tito Ortiz via split decision (28-29, 30-27, 29-28)
• Josh Koscheck def. Anthony Johnson via submission (rear naked choke) — Round 2, 4:47
• Paulo Thiago def. Jacob Volkmann via unanimous decision (29-28, 30-27, 30-27)
• Antonio Rogerio Nogueira def. Luiz Cane via TKO (strikes) – Round 1, 1:56
• Amir Sadollah def. Phil Baroni via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 29-28)
• Ben Saunders def. Marcus Davis via KO (knee) – Round 1, 3:24
• Kendall Grove def. Jake Rosholt via submission (triangle choke) – Round 1, 3:59
• Brian Foster def. Brock Larson via TKO (strikes) — Round 2, 3:25
• Fabricio Camoes vs. Caol Uno – majority draw (29-27 28-28 28-28)
• George Sotiropoulos def. Jason Dent via submission (armbar) – Round 2, 4:36

The returning Ortiz, who is fighting for the first time in 18-months, tipped the scale at 204-pounds, while fellow former light heavyweight champ Griffin weighed in at 205-pounds for their anticipated rematch.

Welterweight Anthony Johnson, who failed to make weight for his most-recent bout in October, successfully weighed-in at 170-pounds, while co-main event opponent Josh Koscheck came in at 171-pounds.

The card’s official weigh-in results were:

MAIN CARD (PPV)

• 205: Tito Ortiz (204) vs. Forrest Griffin (205)
• 170: Josh Koscheck (171) vs. Anthony Johnson (170)
• 170: Paulo Thiago (169) vs. Jacob Volkmann (170)
• 205: Luiz Cane (205) vs. Antonio Rogerio Nogueira (205)
• 170: Amir Sadollah (170) vs. Phil Baroni (170)

PRELIMINARY CARD (Spike TV)

• 170: Marcus Davis (170) vs. Ben Saunders (170)
• 185: Kendall Grove (186) vs. Jake Rosholt (185.5)

PRELIMINARY CARD (non-televised)

• 170: Brock Larson (171) vs. Brian Foster (171)
• 155: Caol Uno (155.5) vs. Fabricio Camoes (155.5)
• 155: George Sotiropoulos (155) vs. Jason Dent (155)

Stop back to MMAFrenzy.com tomorrow for live UFC 106 coverage beginning at 8pm ET.

Pictured: Forrest Griffin

The UFC and Spike TV debuted the one-hour, commercial-free undercard broadcasts in September for UFC 103 when Tomasz Drwal vs. Drew McFedries and Efrain Escudero vs. Cole Miller were shown live, and continued the series last month with Pat Barry vs. Antoni Hardonk and Ryan Bader vs. Eric Schafer from UFC 104.

UFC 106 is headlined by Tito Ortiz vs. Forrest Griffin and also includes Josh Koscheck vs. Anthony Johnson, Luiz Cane vs. Antonio Rogerio Nogueira, Dustin Hazelett vs. Karo Parisyan, and Phil Baroni vs. Amir Sadollah.

For the latest UFC news and UFC rumors stay tuned to MMAFrenzy.com.

The card has undergone many changes due to injuries and illness, including the removal of the original headlining heavyweight title bout between Brock Lesnar and Shane Carwin, which was replaced by the scheduled co-main event of Tito Ortiz vs. Forrest Griffin. That bout too underwent some changes, as Ortiz had originally been slated to face Mark Coleman who had to withdraw because of an injury, only to be replaced by Griffin, prior to the bout being elevated to main event status.

The current co-main event for UFC 106, Koscheck vs. Johnson, was only added to the card just recently, following the other changes to the top of the bill.

The now confirmed fight card for the event is:

MAIN CARD

• Tito Ortiz vs. Forrest Griffin
• Josh Koscheck vs. Anthony Johnson
• Amir Sadollah vs. Phil Baroni
• Luiz Cane vs. Antonio Rogerio Nogueira
• Karo Parisyan vs. Dustin Hazelett

PRELIMINARY CARD

• Ben Saunders vs. Marcus Davis
• Paulo Thiago vs. Jacob Volkmann
• Kendall Grove vs. Jake Rosholt
• Brock Larson vs. Brian Foster
• Caol Uno vs. Fabricio Camoes
• George Sotiropoulos vs. Jason Dent

Grove (10-6), the winner of The Ultimate Fighter 3, had won two-straight over Evan Tanner and Jason Day before suffering a unanimous decision loss to Ricardo Almeida at UFC 101 in August.

Rosholt (6-1) had his undefeated record snapped in his Octagon debut against Dan Miller in February, but rebounded at UFC 102 in August with a third-round submission of Chris Leben.

The UFC also confirmed on Saturday two previously-reported fights, Jon Fitch vs. Ricardo Almeida and Karo Parisyan vs. Dustin Hazelett, which will be featured on the UFC 106 pay-per-view main card headlined by Brock Lesnar vs. Shane Carwin and Tito Ortiz vs. Forrest Griffin.

For the latest UFC news and UFC rumors stay tuned to MMAFrenzy.com.

Pictured: Kendall Grove

The longest suspension was dolled out to Portland-native Ed Herman, who is sidelined indefinitely from a fight-ending knee injury suffered early in the second round of his middleweight preliminary matchup with Aaron Simpson.

Headliners Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira and Randy Couture were both issued 30 day precautionary suspensions following their three-round war in the UFC 102 main event that saw Nogueira capture a unanimous decision win.

Only two other fighters were issued medical suspensions lasting more than 30 days, as a laceration will put Chris Tuchscherer out of action for 45 days, while Tim Hague must sit out 60 days following his 7-second knockout loss to Todd Duffee.

In addition to the suspensions listed below, all UFC 102 competitors were issued 7-day mandatory minimum suspensions.

The complete list of UFC 102 medical suspensions includes:

• Randy Couture – Suspended for 30 days
• Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira – Suspended for 30 days
• Keith Jardine – Suspended for 30 days
• Chris Leben – Suspended for 30 days and must undergo CT scan for possible facial fractures
• Demian Maia – Suspended for 21 days
• Krzysztof Soszynski – Suspended for 30 days due to laceration
• Ed Herman – Suspended indefinitely for injury to left knee and must be cleared by doctor to return
• Chris Tuchscherer – Suspended for 45 days due laceration
• Justin McCully – Suspended for 30 days for possible left eye injury
• Tim Hague – Suspended for 60 days
• Mark Munoz – Suspended for 30 days for right elbow sprain
• Marcus Aurelio – Suspended for 14 days

Note: Where no injury is specified, medical suspensions are for precautionary reasons.

Pictured: Ed Herman

Nougiera, who defeated Couture by unanimous decision in the evening’s main event, earned $400,000 for the victory, while Couture received $250,000 in the loss.

The disclosed payroll for the pay-per-view event was $1,285,000.

The disclosed fighter salaries for UFC 102 were:

• Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira ($400,000 – includes $150,000 bonus) def. Randy Couture ($250,000)
• Thiago Silva ($58,000 – $29,000 win bonus) def. Keith Jardine ($55,000)
• Jake Rosholt ($26,000 – $13,000 win bonus) def. Chris Leben ($30,000)
• Nate Marquardt ($80,000 – $40,000 win bonus) def. Demian Maia ($28,000)
• Brandon Vera ($70,0000 – $35,000 win bonus) def. Krzysztof Soszynski ($8,000)
• Aaron Simpson ($18,000 – $9,000 win bonus) def. Ed Herman ($24,000)
• Gabriel Gonzaga ($120,000 – $60,000 win bonus) def. Chris Tuchscherer ($10,000)
• Mike Russow ($20,000 – $10,000 win bonus) def. Justin McCully ($15,000)
• Todd Duffee ($10,000 – $5,000 win bonus) def. Tim Hague ($7,000)
• Mark Munoz ($24,000 – $12,000 win bonus) def. Nick Catone ($5,000)
• Evan Dunham ($14,000 – $7,000 win bonus) def. Marcus Aurelio ($13,000)

Remember, the salaries listed above are simply the figures the UFC is required to report to the OSAC, which exclude deductions for items such as taxes, licenses, and insurance, as well as additional payments, such as sponsorships, bonuses, and pay-per-view revenue.

For example, Nogueira and Couture, along with main card winners Nate Marquardt and Jake Rosholt, each took home an extra $60,000 “fight night” bonus for their performances on the card.

For more UFC 102: Couture vs. Nogueira coverage check out the MMAFrenzy.com UFC 102 section.

Pictured: Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira

UFC 102 headliners and heavyweight legends, Nogueira and Couture were awarded “Fight of the Night” honors for their three-round war that capped off the pay-per-view event.

Marquardt beat out Thiago Silva’s 95-second KO of Keith Jardine and Todd Duffee’s record-setting 7-second knockout of Tim Hague to win “Knockout of the Night” for UFC 102, as he scored a one-punch KO of fellow middleweight contender Demian Maia in just 21-seconds.

“Submission of the Night” went to Jake Rosholt, who earned his first UFC win with a third-round arm-triangle submission of Chris Leben that put Leben out cold.

UFC 102 fell short of a sellout, but still drew an impressive 16,088 attendees for a $1.92 million live gate.

Click here for more UFC 102: Couture vs. Nogueira coverage.

Pictured: Nate Marquardt

The pair went to war for the duration of the three-round bout, mixing it up on the feet with crisp striking that saw both legendary heavyweights connect with numerous combinations, while also showing off world class grappling when the fight hit the ground.

Nogueira proved to be too much for Couture on this night, as he was dropped to the canvas in the first and third rounds, and nearly submitted in both the first and second. “The Natural” fought through the chokes and survived the knockdowns to go the distance, but was unable to secure the finish he desperately needed to win the fight.

The judges awarded Nogueira a unanimous decision victory with scores of 30-27, 30-27, and 29-28 in what is certain to be the event’s “Fight of the Night”.

With the win, Nogueira improves to 32-5-1 and remains in the heavyweight title-hunt, while Couture falls to 16-10 in defeat and has now lost two-straight.

In the UFC 102 co-headliner, Thiago Silva bounced back from the first loss of his career earlier this year to Lyoto Machida with a first-round knockout of Keith Jardine. Silva, now 14-1 following the win, remains on the long list on contenders at 205-pounds, while Jardine drops to 14-6-1 and looks for answers after losing his second-straight and fourth in his last six fights.

Nate Marquardt needed just 21-seconds to knockout jiu-jitsu ace Demian Maia in a battle of middleweight contenders on the UFC 102 main card, then promptly called out 185-pound champ Anderson Silva, though he’ll likely need to go through fellow-contender Dan Henderson to earn the rematch.

In other main card action, Jake Rosholt submitted a returning Chris Leben in the third-round to earn the first win of his UFC career, while Brandon Vera again looked lackluster at 205-pounds in picking up a unanimous decision over Krzysztof Soszynski to kick off the pay-per-view.

The UFC 102 prelims were highlighted by Todd Duffee’s record-setting 7-second knockout of Tim Hague in his UFC debut, snapping the promotion’s previous mark of 8-seconds held by James Irvin over Houston Alexander in 2008.

Aaron Simpson logged an impressive opening round against Ed Herman on the preliminary card, before improving to 6-0 on his young-career after Herman was unable to continue early in the second after suffering a knee injury.

Gabriel Gonzaga’s impressive first-round TKO of newcomer Chris Tuchscherer was marred by a brutal kick to the groin that nearly stopped the contest. Tuchscherer managed to continue after the accidental foul but wasn’t the same fighter, as he was quickly downed a head kick from Gonzaga and finished on the ground midway through the first.

Mike Russow, Mark Munoz, and Evan Dunham all picked up decision victories in the remaining preliminary fights.

The official results for UFC 102 were:

• Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira def. Randy Couture via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 29-28)
• Thiago Silva def. Keith Jardine via KO (punches) — Round 1, 1:35
• Jake Rosholt def. Chris Leben via submission (arm-triangle) — Round 3, 1:30
• Nate Marquardt def. Demian Maia via KO (punch) — Round 1, 0:21
• Brandon Vera def. Krzysztof Soszynski via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
• Aaron Simpson def. Ed Herman via TKO (injury) — Round 2, 0:17
• Gabriel Gonzaga def. Chris Tuchscherer via TKO (strikes) — Round 1, 2:27
• Mike Russow def. Justin McCully via unanimous decision (29-28, 30-26, 30-27)
• Todd Duffee def. Tim Hague via KO (punch) — Round 1, 0:07
• Mark Munoz def. Nick Catone via split decision (28-29, 30-27, 29-28)
• Evan Dunham def. Marcus Aurelio via split decision (28-29, 29-28, 30-27)

Click here for more UFC 102 coverage, and stop by MMAFrenzy.com tomorrow for extensive post-UFC 102 coverage.

Pictured: Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira

Couture, the 46-year-old UFC hall of famer and former light heavyweight and heavyweight champion, weighed in at 220-pounds, while the former UFC and PRIDE title-holder Nogueira tipped the scale at 231-pounds.

Light heavyweights Keith Jardine (205) and Thiago Silva (205), who square off in the UFC 102 co-main event, and featured middleweight contenders Nate Marquardt (185) and Demian Maia (185) were all on weight for their main card matchups.

Don’t forget to stop by MMAFrenzy.com tomorrow for live UFC 102 results and coverage, as well our fight night recap and post-event news.

The complete weigh-in results for UFC 102 were:

MAIN CARD

• 265: Randy Couture (220) vs. Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira (231)
• 205: Keith Jardine (205) vs. Thiago Silva (205)
• 185: Nate Marquardt (185) vs. Demian Maia (185)
• 205: Brandon Vera (205) vs. Krzysztof Soszynski (205)
• 185: Chris Leben (185) vs. Jake Rosholt (185)

PRELIMINARY CARD

• 185: Ed Herman (185.5) vs. Aaron Simpson (185)
• 265: Gabriel Gonzaga (259) vs. Chris Tuchscherer (258)
• 265: Justin McCully (238) vs. Mike Russow (260)
• 265: Tim Hague(263.5) vs.Todd Duffee (251)
• 185: Nick Catone (185.5) vs. Mark Munoz (185.5)
• 155: Marcus Aurelio (156) vs. Evan Dunham (155)

Click here for more UFC 102: Couture vs. Nogueira coverage.