What was the high spot of this fight?
There were a few, but the best was likely halfway through the first when the two fighters were warned by the referee to keep busy, and responded immediately with a ferocious striking exchange that was more than a little similar to the glory days of Don Frye vs. Yoshihiro Takayama. There were numerous other similar exchanges throughout the fight.
Where do these guys go from here?
Joey Beltran moved to 3-2 in the UFC and has quietly earned a lot of fans with his grit and tenacity. The logical matchmakers of the night want to see Dave Herman vs. Joey Beltran next, which is hard to argue with. Beltran's likely never going to see the top of the heap at heavyweight, but there are a few other entertaining matchups for him in the division if they're not interested in The Mexicutioner vs. Pee Wee.
It's tough to say where Aaron Rosa goes from here. The former light heavyweight took this fight on late notice, but it's still obvious that he is much bigger than he needs to be to be a competitive fighter in the UFC. He showed a lot of heart though, so you can expect the UFC to give him another shot. Perhaps a matchup with a guy that pulled out of 131 with an injury, Rob Broughton?
Watch it now, later, or never?
Now. While it isn't exactly technical mastery, the fight was an awesome slugfest and full of action. Some might complain it looks similar to a toughman contest, but I'm willing to take off my elitist MMA fan hat every so often and just enjoy a good pier six brawl. You should too.
More UFC 131 Results and Analysis from Bloody Elbow after the jump.
UFC 131 Results: Junior dos Santos Impresses and Other Post-Hangover Thoughts - Brent Brookhouse
UFC 131 Results: FightMetric Reports for Dos Santos vs. Carwin, Florian vs. Nunes, and Maia vs. Munoz - Mike Fagan
UFC 131 Results: The Reality of Kenny Florian's Run in the UFC's Featherweight Division - Leland Roling
UFC 131 Results: Kenny Florian vs. Diego Nunes Fight Video Highlights
UFC 131 Results: Was This Shane Carwin's Last Chance? - Fraser Coffeen
UFC 131 Results: What's Next For Show's Winners? - Matt Bishop
UFC 131 Results: Junior dos Santos vs. Shane Carwin Fight Video Highlights
UFC 131 Results: Brainless Judging Prominent Despite Cageside Monitors - Leland Roling
UFC 131 Results: Shane Carwin's Battered Face Says It All - Kid Nate
UFC 131 Results: Junior dos Santos Is Coming for Champ Cain Velasquez - Kid Nate
UFC 131 Results: Junior dos Santos vs. Shane Carwin Post-Fight Recap and Analysis - Mike Fagan
Bad Boy Presents Bloody Elbow Radio - Episode 45: UFC 131 Results Review
UFC 131 Post-Fight Press Conference Video
UFC 131 Results: Junior dos Santos Outclasses Shane Carwin to Earn Title Shot - Matt Bishop
UFC 131 Results: Carwin vs. dos Santos - Play by Play and Live Commentary
UFC 131 Results: Kenny Florian Survives Scare, Bests Diego Nunes - Matt Bishop
UFC 131 Results: Mark Munoz Edges Demian Maia - Matt Bishop
UFC 131 Results: Dave Herman Stops Jon Olav Einemo - Matt Bishop
UFC 131 Results: Donald Cerrone's Kicks Too Much for Vagner Rocha - Matt Bishop
UFC 131 Results: Sam Stout Lays Out Yves Edwards - Matt Bishop
UFC 131 Results: Chris Weidman Submits Jesse Bongfeldt - Matt Bishop
UFC 131 Results: Krzysztof Soszynski Decisions Mike Massenzio - Leland Roling
UFC 131 Results: Nick Ring Demolishes James Head After Early Scare - Leland Roling
UFC 131 Results: Dustin Poirier Edges Jason Young in Exciting Battle - Leland Roling
UFC 131 Results: Joey Beltran TKO's Aaron Rosa in Wild Affair - Leland Roling
UFC 131 Results: Darren Elkins Defeats Michihiro Omigawa by Unanimous Decision - Leland Roling