The dust has settled and the sweat stopped dripping after MFC 18: Famous which turned out to be a very interesting evening of fights.

A few things went as expected, but probably far fewer than was originally
thought. There were upsets - how big they were sort of depends on what your
original predictions for the fights were - though there were certainly some
surprises. All in all, some questions were answered and intriguingly enough
some questions have arisen since the fights.

Probably the biggest surprise to most people watching Famous was the domination of Emanuel Newton over David Heath. Newton was on a big roll coming into the fight but Heath had the much better pedigree. Newton was superior in every aspect and deservingly will get his shot at light heavyweight champ Roger Hollett.

As for Heath, the loss was hard to accept but even moreso was the way in
which he lost. He was totally spent after the first round and couldn't explain the reason why. He badly wants to prove that this was a misstep and I think he may just get that opportunity in a very intriguing encounter (stay tuned).

The upset of the night clearly belonged to Jay Whitford. How this guy pulls out victories is truly pause for thought. He's not exactly in the most tip-top shape, but a granite head and some of the slickest submission skills around first got him through slugger Jason Kuchera and then at Famous got him past another big puncher in Aron Lofton.

What was most interesting to watch was the crowd reaction. Lofton had become a bit of a fan favorite around the River Cree Resort and Casino especially with female fans and he endeared himself to the organization and media with his outgoing personality. But when Whitford forced the tapout it was one of the biggest ovations ever inside The Venue at River Cree. Figuring out why took a moment but then it dawned on everyone around ringside. Lofton's
bravado and charisma had attracted some attention but it was Whitford blue-collar, humble-pie, everyday-Joe style that won the crowd over.

Lofton is the Ferrari and Whitford the pickup truck and in that arena and on that night the fans wanted to cheer for something they could relate to as opposed to something flashy. The weird part about the whole thing is that while a Lofton-Kuchera rematch is a given after Famous, it's not as easy to figure out what is next for Whitford but he definitely deserves a bigger challenge.

What I saw out of Ryan Ford was a fighter determined to get a second shot at
a title that he so badly covets. You had to like the fact that after his heartbreaking home-town loss to Pat Healy he was able to bounce back and
look good against another solid veteran in LaVerne Clark. Rightly or wrongly, I'll throw this out there - the one thing that Ford needs to do heading into the rematch with Healy is be less predictable.

At times he seems to get stuck in the mode of shoot-and-slam. It's a crowd-pleasing strategy but one that nearly cost him against Pete Spratt when he ate two hard kicks and it ultimately had a role in him getting caught in a series of armbars by Healy. If Ford wants the title he has to mix it up more. His standup is more than good enough to trade with Healy and others - it should be a key component in what has to be less obvious game plan that could pay off in a big way.

RANDOM THOUGHTS: Cause for reflection - what is to become of both Chris
Camozzi and Elliot Duff? Camozzi won their fight but again he didn't finish (as happened against both Jesse Forbes and Dwayne Lewis) and that's a real
concern. Meanwhile, Duff has all the tools but what became clear from that
night was that he needs better guidance from his corner who offered a good
amount of encouragement but far too little in the way of actual instruction. Simon Marini - you have to like his willingness to stand and trade. His opponent, Gerald Lovato - might have deserved a better result and may very well be a wrecking ball in the MFC's new 145-pound division . Has Ryan Machan elevated his game enough to belong in big-time lightweight tilt with someone like Ben Henderson or Donald Sanchez? The answer is yes.

COMING ATTRACTIONS: MFC 19: Long Time Coming is just around the corner and it is the first card on a new three-show deal between the MFC and HDNet.
There are two title fights in the works as Newton will get a shot at light
heavyweight champ Roger "The Hulk" Hollett and Ford gets his chance at
redemption against Pat Healy for the welterweight belt. I'm very interested to see Hollett back in serious competition following his long injury layoff and a cakewalk tuneup fight . Watch for at least one major superfight to be featured on the card as well as the MFC debut of budding superstar Ariel Sexton.