The Summer Of 2010 Will Be Remembered As One Of MMA's Most Historic

Labor Day Weekend.  For most people out there, this annual long weekend at the beginning of September signifies a time of transition.  Students and teachers everywhere are ending their summer vacation and heading back to the classroom.  Adults settle in for the fall and winter while thinking about their next vacation which will most likely be 9 months away.  Baseball season is about to come to an end while football, basketball and hockey teams are starting to gear up for the start of a brand new campaign. 

All this change got me thinking about what has happened over the summer of 2010 in MMA.  Clearly, there were some major events and fights that are going to be remembered for a long, long time, but when we all look back years from now at this past summer, it is probably going to be remembered for the very thing Labor Day weekend represents, transition. 

While there were numerous events and fights this summer that could be viewed as a change in the MMA landscape, these four fights after the jump will be looked at as the major events that caused the changing of the guard in MMA.

June 26, 2010, Strikeforce: Fedor vs. Werdum - Fedor Emelianenko's decade of dominance ended in one minute and nine seconds after getting caught in a triangle choke by Fabricio Werdum.  The man that was regarded for almost 10 years as the best pound for pound fighter in the world lost his status with one, quick, single tap. 

July 3, 2010, UFC 116: Lesnar vs. Carwin - One week after the tap heard round the world, UFC Heavyweights, Brock Lesnar and Shane Carwin, face off to see who is going to fill the void left by Fedor as the best Heavyweight on the planet.  After surviving a pounding in the first round, Lesnar stages a comeback for the ages by choking out Carwin halfway through the second round to retain the UFC Heavyweight title.  With the win, Lesnar has taken up Fedor's mantle as "baddest man on the planet".

August 7, 2010, UFC 117: Silva vs. Sonnen - In June 2006, Anderson Silva made an emphatic debut in the UFC by demolishing Chris Leben in the first round.  Four years and numerous fights later, Silva, the long time regaining UFC Middleweight champ, seemed to have an aura of invincibility about him.  That aura didn't deter Chael Sonnen from verbally beating Silva leading up to the fight and dominating the Brazilian for four and a half rounds before getting caught in a triangle choke/armbar.  Even though he won, it seemed to everyone that watch the fight that reign of Anderson Silva in the 185 pound division could be coming to an end soon. 

August 28, 2010, UFC 118: Penn vs. Edgar 2 - Widely regarded as the best 155 pound fighter in the world, BJ Penn looked to avenge his controversial loss at UFC 112 to Frankie Edgar and recapture the UFC Lightweight title.  As we all know, Penn didn't recapture the belt and looked old losing to Edgar who picked the former champ apart for twenty five minutes.  While Penn may still make another run at the belt, it's unlikely he will achieve the same level of success that made him one of the greatest fighters of all time.