June 5, 2008, was a glorious night for the 29 year old fighter from Athens, GA. Not only did Forrest Griffin earn the status of champion, he also took home a cool $250,000 for his efforts.

Griffin, the highest paid fighter of the night, earned a $100,000 base salary and pocketed an extra $150,000 for defeating the werewolf.

Rampage came in at number two with a healthy $225,000 for his gutsy five round performance. Between the two, they accounted for 50.4 percent, over half of the events total payroll.

Gonzaga was in the third spot, earning $100,000 for his decisive victory over Justin McCully. Not bad considering he was on the undercard. Gonzaga steam rolled through McCully submitting him in under two minutes of the first round with a kimura.

Total payroll for UFC 86 “Jackson vs Griffin” came in at just under a million ($943,000).

Official UFC 86 Payout’s

• Forrest Griffin: $250,000 (includes $150,000 win bonus) def. Quinton Jackson: $225,000
• Patrick Cote: $32,000 ($16,000 win bonus) def. Ricardo Almeida: $23,000
• Joe Stevenson: $60,000 ($30,000 win bonus) def. Gleison Tibau: $11,000
• Josh Koscheck: $70,000 ($35,000 win bonus) def. Chris Lytle: $14,000
• Tyson Griffin: $40,000 ($20,000 win bonus) def. Marcus Aurelio: $40,000
• Gabriel Gonzaga: $100,000 ($50,000 win bonus) def. Justin McCully: $5,000
• Cole Miller: $20,000 ($10,000 win bonus) def. Jorge Gurgel: $ 10,000
• Melvin Guillard: $20,000 ($10,000 win bonus) def. Dennis Siver: $7,000
• Justin Buchholz: $8,000 ($4000 win bonus) def. Corey Hill: $8,000

UFC 86 Bonuses

• Forrest Griffin ($60,000) - Fight of the Night
• Quinton Jackson ($60,000) - Fight of the Night
• Melvin Guillard ($60,000) - Knockout of the Night
• Cole Miller ($60,000) - Submission of the Night

As usual, the payout’s listed above are base salaries and do not include deductions for insurance licenses, taxes etc. Nor do they include money paid by sponsors which can make up for a large part of the fighters income.

Payout’s are as reported by the Nevada State Athletic Commission per MMAJunkie.com.

Stand by for more hardcore MMA news!

Forrest Griffin once again defied the odds in last nights UFC 89 main event pulling out a stunning victory over Quinton "Rampage" Jackson to secure the light heavyweight belt.

While Griffin might night be the most technical fighter in MMA, his never say die attitude and scrappy instincts have him walking away with the W more times than not.

This was another one of those cases. Griffin came in a 3-1 underdog and walked away the champ.

It took Griffin 5 rounds and a little help from the judges to dethrone the former light heavyweight champ by way of a unanimous decision in last nights headliner. The judges scored it 49-46, 48-46, and 48-46 all in favor of Forrest.

Griffin used his movement and kicks to stay on the outside of Jackson’s power which worked excluding a few hairy moments. One of them came in the first round when Griffin was dropped with a solid uppercut. He shook it off and was able to take the fight deep into the late rounds. Griffin’s defense improved as time went on and he ended up thwarting Jackson’s plans for a quick finish or knockout.

However when Rampage did connect, he did more damage which is obvious by looking at Griffin’s post fight mug shot. Besides his leg, Jackson didn’t incur much damage at all during the fight. I definitely disagree with the fact that the judges scored it unanimously for Griffin. While I scored the bout 47-47, I believe Jackson took the fight by a slight edge and should have won via Split Decision. I think that fact that they were expecting more from Quinton might have worked in Griffin’s favor. Especially after witnessing what Rampage did to Chuck.

The reality is, Jackson shouldn’t have let it go to the judges in the first place. In the end it was a great fight that could have easily went either way. Griffin walked away a quarter of a million dollars richer including his $100,000 win bonus. Rampage collected $225,000 for his troubles and will now go back to the drawing board.

One thing is for sure. Jackson and Griffin are two of the funniest and most respectful competitors in the sport of MMA.

What are your thoughts on last nights fight and how did you score it?

UFC 86 "Griffin vs Jackson" is set to go off this Saturday, July 6th, at the Mandalay Bay Events Center in Las Vegas, NV.

After months of build up, the two coaches from this year’s controversial TUF7 will finally get the chance to settle their differences inside the cage for the light heavyweight championship of the world. This action packed card also features a co-main event between Canadian Patrick Cote and submission master Ricardo Almeida.

RedSweat.com will be bringing you all of the action beginning with quick results for prelims at 8pm ET followed by up to the minute play by play commentary for the main card at 10pm ET sharp.

Please bookmark this post for easy access to UFC 86 results and subscribe to my feed for live results of all major upcoming mixed martial arts events in the future.

Also feel free to stick around after the fights for a discussion. Leave as many comments as you like and tell us what you thought about the fights.

Hit F5 or (Cmnd + R) on your keyboard to refresh often.

Important news, announcements and interesting moments during UFC 86

• I just want to apologize for the last part of Cote vs Almeida and the main event. My site wouldn’t load and I couldn’t upload anything for the rest of the event.

UFC 86 Quick Results

• Corey Hill vs Justin Buchholz (Buchholz wins via Rear Naked Choke at 3:57 in the 2nd)
• Melvin Guillard vs Dennis Siver (Guillard wins via TKO (Punches) at 0:36 in the 1st round)
• Jorge Gurgel vs Cole Miller (Miller wins via Triangle Choke at 4:48 in the 3rd round)
• Gabriel Gonzaga vs Justin McCully (Gonzaga wins via Kimura at 1:57 in the 1st round)
• Tyson Griffin vs Marcus Aurelio (Griffin wins via Unanimous Decision after 3 rounds)
• Josh Koscheck vs Chris Lytle (Josh Koscheck wins via Unanimous Decision after 3 rounds)
• Joe Stevenson vs Gleison Tibau (Joe Stevenson wins via Guillotine at 2:57 in the 2nd round)
• Patrick Cote vs Ricardo Almeida (Patrick Cote wins via Split Decision after 3 rounds)
• Quinton Jackson vs Forrest Griffin (Griffin wins via Unanimous Decision after 3 rounds)

UFC 86 Main Card Play by Play Commentary

Tyson Griffin vs Marcus Aurelio (Lightweight Bout)

• Round 1: The fighters come out very cautious with their punches and the crowd boos in response. Aurelio basically falls to the mat and Griffin starts to pound away with some punches on the ground. Aurelio keeps throwing his legs up but to no avail. Marcus gets close with an arm bar / omaplata but Griffin gets out and comes down with more shots. Back to their feet they start to loosen up a little with strikes. Aurelio lands a nice combo and Griffin comes right back. Marcus shoots in but Tyson denies and they tie up to end the round.

  RedSweat scores the round 10-9 for Tyson Griffin.

• Round 2: They come out firing this round and Griffin lands a nice leg kick. Griffin is looking for the body. Aurelio comes in with a combo and a shot but can’t get it. Tyson lands a few small knees in the clinch. Griffin picks up Aurelio and drops him on the mat. Aurelio reverses, gets to his feet and starts to work for Griffin’s back. He gives up the position and Tyson ends up back on top. Aurelio sinks in a triangle but Tyson escapes. He still has Griffin trapped for a moment but he gets out.

  RedSweat scores the round 10-9 for Tyson Griffin.

• Round 3: Griffin lands a nice leg kick and a right. Aurelio misses with a takedown. They continue to trade with Griffin getting the better of the stand up. Aurelio is starting to wear down at this point. Marcus shoots in but can’t get a hold of him. Griffin lands a good combination followed by another and Marcus could be in trouble. He hands in there but Griffin continues to swing away. Griffin is out striking and out hustling Aurelio. Tyson shoots in and gets the takedown. Aurelio looks to secure an arm but can’t. Aurelio keeps threatening with the armbar but Griffin keeps posturing out. Marcus keeps throwing his legs up but the round ends and Griffin has it.

  RedSweat scores the round 10-9 for Tyson Griffin and the fight 30-27 for Griffin.

• Final Result: Tyson Griffin wins via Unanimous Decision after 3 rounds. (All three judges score it 30-27)

Josh Koscheck vs Chris Lytle (Welterweight Bout)

• Round 1: Lytle comes out aggressive and misses with some big swings. Chris looks light on his feet while Koscheck bides his time. Josh misses with a head kick and pops right back up to his feet. Chris comes in with punches and Koscheck drops levels for the takedown. He gets caught in a guillotine but is out of danger quickly. Josh works to pass from half guard. He works some grinding elbows on top. Lytle brings it back to full guard but eats a nice elbow. Koscheck almost mounts but Lytle avoids nicely. Lytle showing impressive jiu-jitsu skills. Koscheck finishes with a few big hammer fists.

  RedSweat scores the round 10-9 for Josh Koscheck.

• Round 2: Josh lands a nice leg kick. He follows with a shoot but can’t execute. Josh goes for a knee and lands a nice elbow. Lytle catches Josh in a guillotine but Josh escapes and ends up in half guard. He lands a couple of nice short elbows. Stacked up, he reigns down with some nice blows. He lands more good elbows and Lytle is now cut. He continues the ground and pound assault landing more cutting elbows and shots. He reigns down with some more big blows and Lytle is in some trouble now. Chris is just hanging on trying to avoid more punishment. He lands more cutting elbows and almost gets side control. Lytle’s face is starting to look like hamburger helper. Koscheck lands some nice tight shots from the top.

  RedSweat scores the round 10-9 for Josh Koscheck.

• Round 3: Lytle has a gaping wound above his left eye. They comment that it looks like Lytle is missing his mouthpiece. Lytle is desperate looking for punches. Koscheck works to get it back to the ground. Lytle has a kimura but Koscheck gets out. He transitions into a guillotine but Josh escapes that as well. Josh starts to grind away with the elbows again and Lytle’s cut is already wide open and pouring blood. Even Joe Rogan is calling for a stoppage because of the blood. It now looks like a scene out of a horror movie. Rogan comments that it is worse than Joe Stevenson vs BJ Penn. The ref stands the fighters up and Rogan is shocked that it wasn’t stopped from all the blood. Lytle swings away with tons of heart. The crowd starts to chant for Lytle. Chris connects with some nice shots but runs out of time. The crowd boos Koscheck even in victory.

  RedSweat scores the round 10-9 for Josh Koscheck and the fight 30-27 for Koscheck.

• Final Result: Josh Koscheck wins via Unanimous Decision after 3 rounds. (The judges score it 30-26, 29-27, and 30-28 all for Josh Koscheck)

Joe Stevenson vs Gleison Tibau (Lightweight Bout)

• Round 1: They continue to comment on how enormous of a lightweight Tibau is. Stevenson lands a right hand and sinks in a guillotine. Tibau does a sweet roll almost ending up on Joe’s back. Back to their feet Joe lands a nice elbow in the clinch. Tibau drops down to the mat bringing Joe with him. Back to their feet Joe shoots in and drops Tibau on his back. Gleison throws up his legs looking for a submission. He locks in an omaplata and Joe is in trouble. He has it in tight but Joe is ok, just uncomfortable. Tibau keeps the omaplata locked in for the remainder of the round but runs out of time.

  RedSweat scores the round 10-9 for Gleison Tibau.

• Round 2: Tibau lands some nice punches backing up and they clinch against the fence. Gleison drags Joe to the mat for a moment. Joe, back on his feet gets taken right back down. Gleison passes into side control and mounts. He tries to step over for a triangle from the top but Joe escapes. Stevenson sinks in a guillotine with an arm in and Gleison is forced to tap.
• Round 3:
• Final Result: Joe Stevenson wins via Guillotine at 2:57 in the 2nd round.

Patrick Cote vs Ricardo Almeida (Middleweight Bout)

• Round 1: Cote stuffs an early takedown. Almeida jumps guard and pulls Cote down into his world. He works his rubber guard but Cote backs out. Ricardo ducks a punch and grabs Cote. He works for a single but Patrick denies. Ricardo drops levels again looking for the takedown. He gets the double leg and takes Cote down into half guard. Almeida comes down with a couple of shots. He goes to the body and works for position. Cote scrambles but Almeida continues to control dropping punches in the process. He continues the ground and pound assault until time runs out.

  RedSweat scores the round 10-9 for Ricardo Almeida.

• Round 2: They have a problem with one of Almeida’s gloves in between rounds. Ricardo goes in for a shot but instead drags Cote down to the mat. He has him locked up momentarily but Cote escapes. Patrick measures him up with punches but they tie up. Cote breaks away with a good elbow. Almeida is doing a good job of avoiding Cote’s stand up assault. Cote lands a leg kick. Ricardo tries to drag Cote to the mat but fails. He drops down for a single and misses. He grabs a guillotine but Cote slips out. Ricardo gets clipped with a right and the round ends.

  RedSweat scores the round 10-9 for Patrick Cote.

• Round 3: Cote comes out looking to land more strikes but Almeida ties him up. The crowd starts to chant for Cote who lands a nice leg kick. The pace is starting to slow. Almeida lands a few shots but Cote fires back. Ricardo is starting to look tired. He scores a takedown with half a minute left on the clock. In side control, he passes to the north south position. He misses with a submission and the round ends.

  RedSweat scores the round 10-9 for Patrick Cote and the fight 29-28 for Cote.

• Final Result: Patrick Cote wins via Split Decision after 3 rounds. (29-28, 28-29, 29-28)

Quinton Jackson vs Forrest Griffin (Light Heavyweight Title Bout)

• Round 1: They come out swinging and Forrest gets off a couple of good leg kicks. The crowd starts to chant for Forrest. Jackson comes in and Griffin lands a nice hook. Rampage catches him with a hook and a few more good shots. Rampage comes in with a good combo and rocks Forrest with a hook. Griffin comes right back at Jackson with some good strikes. Forrest gets dropped with an uppercut and Griffin pounces on him. Rampage lands some hard punches while Forrest scrambles to his feet. He catches Griffin again and the round comes to an end.

  RedSweat scores the round 10-9 for Quinton Jackson.

• Round 2: Griffin tags Jackson with a leg kick that hurts him. Jackson stumbles and Griffin catches Jackson in a guillotine. Quinton could be in trouble. He escapes the choke but Forrest is on top in half guard. Griffin passes into side control and looks for an americana. He loses it but works for it again. Griffin starts to drop some nice right hands. He moves in to full mount and starts to soften him up with punches. He continues to come down with short elbows in mount. He wants the americana but can’t get it. He finishes the round in dominating fashion.

  RedSweat scores the round 10-8 for Forrest Griffin.

• Round 3: Jackson can hardly put pressure on his leg. The crowd starts to chant for Forrest. Griffin misses with a head kick. Griffin lands a nice combo as they continue to circle each other. Jackson catches him with a left. Griffin comes in with a group of leg kicks. They trade and Forrest lands a good left hook. Jackson lands a good shot to the body. Forrest comes in with a good combo. He pushes forward with another good combo and Rampage answers.

  RedSweat scores the round 10-9 for Quinton Jackson.

• Round 4: Griffin comes out with a head kick that misses. Rampage comes in with a nice combo. He lands another crisp combo and seems to have his second wind. Rampage ends up on top in full guard and Griffin is cut above his right eye. Now the crowd chants for Rampage. Griffin sinks in a triangle deep but Rampage picks him up escaping and almost slamming Forrest to the mat. Jackson works a little ground and pound. Forrest almost sinks in an omaplata. Jackson catches Griffin on the way up. They trade some good punches with a minute left. Jackson catches Forrest with a few good punches to finish the round strong.

  RedSweat scores the round 10-9 for Quinton Jackson.

• Round 5: Forrest comes in with a good body kick. The crowd starts to chant for Griffin. They continue to trade shots. Griffin lands a big leg kick. Jackson fires a right hand and Forrest comes right back. They continue to bang it out but the pace has slowed dramatically. Forrest fires with a combo. He catches Rampage with a stiff jab. This round will decide it all. Forrest lands another nice leg kick but Rampage comes back with a body shot. Forrest lands a good right hand. With a minute left it’s anybody’s fight. The crowd goes nuts. Griffin lands another leg kick. Jackson lands a good body shot followed by an uppercut. Rampage starts to unload with 10 seconds left. Griffin fires back with some desperate knees and the fight is over.

  RedSweat scores the round 10-9 for Forrest Griffin and the fight a draw 47-47.

• Final Result: Forrest Griffin wins via Unanimous Decision after 3 rounds. (48-46, 48-47,48-46)

UFC 86 weighs in kicked off tonight at 7pm ET from the Mandalay Bay Events Center in Las Vegas, NV, the same venue that will host tomorrow night’s PPV event.

Eighteen fighters hit the scales to weigh in for the event which features a main event match up between season 7 coaches of "The Ultimate Fighter", Quinton "Rampage" Jackson and Forrest Griffin.

The co-main event of the night features a showdown between UFC vet Patrick Cote and submission master Ricardo Almeida.

All of the fighters made weight without any problems including Rampage who told Rogan that he was wearing scratch-n-sniff underwear as he undressed to weigh in.

Official UFC 86 Weigh In Results

• Justin Buchholz (155) vs Corey Hill (155)
• Melvin Guillard (155) vs Dennis Siver (155)
• Cole Miller (155) vs Jorge Gurgel (155)
• Justin McCully (236) vs Gabriel Gonzaga (249)
• Gleison Tibau (156) vs Joe Stevenson (155)
• Tyson Griffin (155) vs Marcus Aurelio (155)
• Josh Koscheck (170) vs Chris Lytle (170)
• Patrick Cote (185) vs Ricardo Almeida (185)
• Quinton Jackson (205) vs Forrest Griffin (205)

Click here to watch the weigh ins video at UFC.com.

RedSweat.com will be bringing you all of the action including up to the minute play by play results for the main PPV card. Make sure you swing by at around 8pm ET for quick results of the prelims.

The UFC has upped the ante with their UFC 86 event today, adding two big match ups to the main fight card and one bout to the preliminary card.

In a match up that has co-main event written all over it, Patrick "The Predator" Cote will square off against dangerous Jiu-Jitsu master, Ricardo Almeida in a middleweight bout. This highly competitive fight could easily be "fight of the night". Cote is on a recent come back tear knocking out his last two opponents, Kendall Grove and Drew McFedries, in the first round via punches.

Patrick, who’s ground skills are somewhat overlooked due to his striking capabilities, will definitely be tested versus the "Big Dog" who’s ground game is impeccable. Almeida made waves with his recent return to the octagon after a four year hiatus, destroying Rob Yundt with a guillotine that took just a little over a minute. With his precision jiu-jitsu and top notch cardio, the rest of the division has surely taken notice.

Almeida knows that a win over the revitalized Cote will bring him one step closer to a shot at the title and one step closer to championship gold. He talked about his upcoming match with the Canadian in today’s UFC.com article.

“Because he lost to (Travis) Lutter so quickly people don’t give him enough credit on the ground,” said Almeida. “I believe his ground skills are little underrated. He is coming off two very impressive knockout wins and is on a fast track to the top of the middleweight division. If I can beat him it should bring me much closer to fighting for the title then where I am now.”

Another intriguing match up pits one of the UFC’s top wrestlers against one of the divisions toughest brawlers. Josh Koscheck returns to face Chris "Lights Out" Lytle in what should be a highly explosive welterweight match up. Koscheck looked very impressive in his last fight with Dustin Hazelett at UFC 82. He defeated the rangy Hazelett with kicks and punches early in the second round.

The extremely experienced Chris "Lights Out" Lytle who has 45 pro bouts under his belt, recently tore through Kyle Bradley at UFC 81. It took a mere 33 seconds for Chris to disburse of Bradley via strikes in the first round. Koscheck vs Lytle has a lot of potential and could prove to be one of the best fights of the night.

Last but not least, highly respected jiu-jitsu artist, Jorge Gurgel, will take on "Ultimate Fighter 5" contestant, Cole Miller. Both fighters have a lot of respect for one another so don’t look for any bad blood here. While Jorge is usually a very exciting fighter, he has lacked the ability to finish with his last 5 fights going to the cards. He is coming off of a win over John Halverson at UFC 82 that extended his record to 12-3.

While Cole Miller might lack the physique of some of the stronger fighters, he makes up for it with his tenacious style and tons of heart. At 13-3 this kid has a bright future ahead of him and knows how to finish fights. He will be looking to get back on the winning track in his fight with Gurgel after losing his last bout to Jeremy Stephan’s via TKO at Fight Night 12.

All of these fights will be leading up to the main event which features a showdown between two of the funniest personalities in the sport, Quinton "Rampage" Jackson and Forrest Griffin. Currently coaches on this years season of "The Ultimate Fighter", Jackson and Griffin who were friends have somewhat distanced themselves from one another and look to settle the score come July 5. The event takes place at the Mandalay Bay Events Center in Las Vegas, NV.

For the full UFC 86 fight card as well as fight cards for other televised and online events visit the MMA Events page.

More MMA news is right around the corner!

The UFC has added some big names to their fight cards for upcoming UFC 84, 85 and 86 events scheduled over the next 4 months. I wanted to keep you up to date on the most recent additions which include some big names.

UFC 84 "Ill Will" Fight Card Update:

At UFC 84 on May 24 at the MGM Grand Garden Arena we will see the much anticipated return of Ivan Salaverry. He will be taking on Brazilian Top Team member and submission specialist Rousimar Palhares who has a record of 7-1. Palhares actually fought in Ultimate Brazil back in 1998 where he defeated Adriano Santos via TKO.

Salaverry hasn’t fought since UFC 71 "Liddell vs Jackson" in May of 2007 where he was defeated by Terry Martin via a suplex and strikes. Ivan has only fight 2 fights in the last two years and looks to make his comeback in 2008.

Also added to the UFC 84 undercard is Terry Etim taking on "Ultimate Fighter" alumni Rob Emerson in a lightweight match up and finally Christian Wellisch battling Shane Carwin in a heavyweight bout.

UFC 85 "Liddell vs Evans" Fight Card Update:

A ton of big names have been added to the UFC 85 "Liddell vs Evans" event which is set to take place on June 7 at the O2 Arena in London, England. On the main televised card "El Conquistador" Jorge Rivera will be taking on "The Hitman" Martin Kampmann. Jorge is coming off of a huge win over Team Punishment fighter Kendall Grove at UFC 80 back in January. It has been over a year since Kampmann entered the octagon. His last appearance was also impressive with a big comeback submission win over heavy slugger Drew McFedries.

Also added to the main card for UFC 85 is Marcus Davis who is on an impressive 6 fight win streak in the UFC. He will be squaring off against Mike "Quick" Swick who is coming off of a close decision win over Josh Burkman. Davis has made quick work of his opponents with his last three fight times totaling under 7 minutes. Most recently Marcus knocked out Jess Liaudin at UFC 80 with a brutal punch.

Nate Marquardt will be making his return at UFC 85 to face world class grappler, Thales Leites, who is 12-1 as a pro. Nate was supposed to fight Thales at UFC 81 but Thales suffered a broken hand and was replaced by Horn. Marquardt defeated Jeremy Horn choking him out early in the second round. Before that Nate had suffered his first UFC loss to Anderson Silva via TKO in July of 2007. Leites has won three straight in the UFC finishing his last two fights via submission. We could end up seeing a stand up war in this fight due to the fact that both fighters have extremely tight ground games.

Another big bout has been added to the undercard for UFC 85 as well. "The Punisher" Jason Lambert will be taking on Luiz Cane in a light heavyweight match up. Lambert suffered one of his only two losses out of his eight fights in the UFC at UFC 80 back in January. His only other loss was to the undefeated Rashad Evans at UFC 63 where he was knocked out in the second round. Luiz Cane will be looking to redeem himself after losing his only fight in the UFC due to disqualification back at UFC 79 against James Irvin.

UFC 86 "Jackson vs Griffin" Fight Card Update:

UFC 86 is shaping up nicely with three new bouts added to the much anticipated event set for July 5 at the Mandalay Bay Events Center in Las Vegas, NV. On the main card, Joe Stevenson will be making his return after losing to BJ Penn back in January. He will be fighting Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu artist Gleison Tibau in a lightweight match that should be highly explosive from start to finish. Also appearing on the televised card will be former heavyweight champ and commentator for the WEC, Frank Mir, who will take on Justin McCully from Team Punishment.

Finally on the undercard for UFC 85, the soft spoken Melvin Guillard will battle Dennis Siver in a lightweight match up. I have a feeling this fight might be over in the first round. Guillard left the UFC after losing to Rich Clementi at UFC 79 to gain more experience by fighting in some smaller shows. He will have a lot to prove in this fight against the 11-5 Siver.

To view updated fight cards for all upcoming UFC’s and other events visit the MMA Events page here at RedSweat.com. Stand by for more MMA news at a fighters pace!