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Middleweight champion Anderson Silva knocked out Vitor Belfort in the first round at UFC 126 on Saturday night.
The fight started slowly but ended violently as Silva won at the expense of his Brazilian rival.
Silva (28-4) threw a front kick that connected flush on Belfort's chin and the challenger fell backwards. Silva threw two more punches and referee Mario Yamasaki stepped in at three minutes 25 seconds.
It took almost three minutes for someone (Belfort) to launch an attack after the bell rang. The two circled each other, there were a couple of quick exchanges and then Silva finished it.
The two Brazilians had got in each other face each time they met before the fight, but Silva consoled Belfort (19-9) afterwards and urged the crowd to show the loser respect.
"He caught me with a kick," Belfort said. "Anderson Silva is a very good fighter."
"He faked the body and kicked to the head," he added.
Silva, 35, came into the fight with a record 12 straight UFC wins and seven title defences. But he had to dig deep last time out in August when, fighting with a rib injury, he was dominated for more than four rounds before managing to submit Chael Sonnen.
A Silva win means a super-fight with Canadian Georges St-Pierre is one step closer. Should St-Pierre defend his welterweight title against Jake Shields in Toronto at UFC 129 on April 30, UFC president Dana White has said he will look to match the two champions.
Meanwhile, Jon (Bones) Jones continued his rapid rise up the light-heavyweight ranks, choking out Ryan (Darth) Bader in the second round.
"It's my time. I'm hungry and I'm going for it," Jones said.
Second later the 23-year-old found out it could well be his championship time.
Jones (12-1) learned in the cage after the fight that he will step in for the injured Rashad Evans against light-heavyweight champion Mauricio (Shogun) Rua at UFC 128 on March 19.
Evans suffered a strained knee ligament in training Friday. Rua was on hand Saturday night to greet his new opponent.
In the co-main event, light-heavyweight Forrest Griffin used his strength and size to earn a unanimous 29-28 decision over Rich Franklin in a battle of former champions (Griffin at 205 pounds, Franklin at 185).
Franklin (28-6 with one no contest) ended up underneath Griffin in the first round when both men attempted kicks at the same time. The bigger Griffin (18-6) muscled Franklin from on top for the rest of the round, swinging elbows.
"I was just able to grind on him a little bit," said Griffin, who had been out since November 2009 because of shoulder surgery.
Franklin, his face showing damage, tried to get his outside game going in the second round but was taken down again. This time he managed to escape without paying the price. Franklin scored with counter-punches later in the round.
Neither man managed much of an advantage in an even third. Griffin landed a late takedown, only to be reversed by Franklin.
Griffin was later diagnosed with a broken foot and strained bicep.
The six-foot-four Jones had two inches in height and 10.5 inches in reach on Bader, who won Season 8 of "The Ultimate Fighter." And the bigger man wasted little time imposing his presence.
Jones got Bader down early, attempting a choke but Bader fought his way up midway through the first round. A takedown attempt by Bader then backfired as Jones got the better position. Jones had the upper hand throughout the round, at one point leaping over a bent-over Baker to grab his back.
Jones stalked Bader (13-1) in the second and when the fight went to the ground, he locked on a slick guillotine.
Bader, who had no answers for Jones, had to tap out at 4:20 of the second round.
Former WEC bantamweight champion Miguel Angel Torres, with Montreal coach Firas Zahabi in his corner, fought a smart fight in winning a unanimous 30-27 decision over Antonio Banuelos.
"I did what my coaches told me to do," said Torres.
At five foot nine, Torres had six inches on Banuelos (19-7) and used his reach advantage to great effect with jabs and kicks. The fight drew boos but the sometimes hot-headed Torres stuck to his game plan, battering Banuelos from the outside.
"I know I broke his nose," said Torres in complimenting Banuelos' toughness. "I heard it crunch a few times."
Torres (38-3) has trained in Canada for his last two fights and was introduced as fighting out of Montreal, by way of East Chicago, Ind.
Welterweight Jake Ellenberger (24-5) survived Carlos Eduardo Rocha's submission skills to win by split decision (27-30, 29-28, 29-8). Rocha (9-1) had won eight of his previous fights via submission.
Donald (Cowboy) Cerrone, successfully making the move from the WEC to the UFC, choked out English lightweight Paul Kelly at 3:48 of the second round.
Cerrone (14-3 with one no contest) kept Kelly (12-4) at distance standing and scored with his takedowns.
Bantamweight Demetrious (Mighty Mouse) Johnson (13-1) spoiled Norifumi (Kid) Yamamoto's UFC debut in a fight in which the Japanese star failed to live up to his billing.
The 33-year-old Yamamoto (18-4 with one no contest) looked slow, tentative and unimaginative in losing a 29-28, 30-27, 30-27 decision.
Light-heavyweight Kyle Kingsbury (10-2 with one no contest) made short work of Ricardo Romero (11-2), hammering away at the fence with punches and knees before stopping him in just 21 seconds.
English lightweight Paul (Relentless) Taylor (11-6-1 with one no contest) showed off his superior striking before felling Gabe (Godzilla) Ruediger with a kick to the face at 1:42 of the second round.
Featherweight Chad (Money) Mendes (10-0) outmuscled Michihiro Omigawa (12-9-1) en route to a dominating 30-27 decision.
Welterweight Mike Pierce (12-3) knocked out Kenny Robertson (10-1) 29 seconds into the second round.
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