History was on display at UFC 98: Evans vs. Machida when two undefeated fighters squared off for the light heavyweight title. The Ultimate Fighting Championship now has a new champion in that division for the third consecutive title fight.

Lyoto ‘The Dragon’ Machida improved his record to 15-0 while cashing tickets as a $2.50 favorite (bet $250 to win $100) with a devastating knockout victory at 3:57 of the second round. Machida opened as a $1.80 favorite before being bet up to $2.20 when the fighters entered the octagon. ‘The Dragon’ has now won his seven fights with the UFC without dropping a round.

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“I tried all my life to be a champion, and I’m very, very happy,” stated an ecstatic Machida after the fight. “If you have a dream in your life, go ahead because it is possible.”

There wasn’t much action the first half of the opening round, with both fighters trying to find their distance. A leg kick by Machida knocked Evans back before the former Michigan State wrestler responded with a pair of overhand rights that missed their target.

The second round was more of the same, with Evans trying to pick his spots while Machida would try to land a couple of kicks. The end came when the Brazilian fired off a kick and numerous punches before connecting with a left hook that finished the contest in spectacular fashion.

Evans (13-1-1) suffered his first loss in Mixed Martial Arts, and dropped additional money when he bet on himself before the fight. ‘Sugar’ opened as a $1.80 underdog, but saw his odds move to plus-$2.10 (bet $100 to win $210) by fight night. The former champ was gracious in the postfight interview.

“It was a good fight, and I take my hat off to him,” stated Evans. “You’ve got to take it like you give it, I come out here always trying to prove myself.”

While the UFC now has a new champion in one of its marquee divisions, a welterweight grudge matchup was settled in the co-main event.

Matt Hughes (43-7) earned a hard-fought unanimous decision over Matt ‘The Terror’ Serra (9-6) in a fight that was originally scheduled for UFC 79 before being delayed due to various injuries. Bettors backed Hughes in the sportsbook, moving him from an opening $2.50 favorite all the way to a $2.80 'chalk.'

Hughes was rocked early in the contest with an overhand right, and wobbled back to the cage before eventually recovering. Serra, the $2.20 underdog, was unable to capitalize but not for a lack of effort. The New York native took the first round, but Hughes showed some signs of life when he got a takedown and side control with a minute and a half remaining.

“I wanted to keep my cool and finish him off,” stated Serra in the octagon after the fight. “He’s got a good chin and he hung in there. I just want exciting fights, and I think that was a good fight.”

Hughes then took control of the fight the next two rounds with his wrestling ability, appearing to be much stronger than his opponent. The Hillsboro, Illinois native would get the takedown, and drop hooks to the body and head of Serra. That’s the recipe that won the fight for the future Hall of Fame fighter.

Referee Steve Mazzagatti could have stood the fight up earlier in both the second and third rounds, but there was still plenty of action. Both fighters refused to touch gloves at the beginning, but embraced each other after the final buzzer. Hughes won on all three scorecards, 29-28.

“I asked how I got knocked down in the first round, I didn’t know if it was from a punch or a head butt,” said Hughes. “My contract expires after this fight, but I’d still like to fight one more time in my home area.”

I’ve always stated in the past that Hughes’ entrance to ‘A Country Boy Can Survive’ is the best in mixed martial arts, but Serra topped him Saturday night by coming out to the ‘Rocky’ theme.

**Octagon Extras**

-Frankie ‘The Answer’ Edgar (10-1) will move back into our top-5 lightweight Power Rankings after his unanimous decision victory over Sean ‘The Muscle Shark’ Sherk (33-4-1). In a battle of two wrestlers, Edgar repeatedly got off quicker en route to the biggest victory of his career. All three judges along with VegasInsider.com scored the bout, 30-27, in favor of the New Jersey native.

-I stated on Brian Blessing’s radio show earlier in the week that Edgar was a ‘live dog’ in this spot. Edgar cashed tickets as a decided $2.50 underdog after opening as a $2.20 ‘dog. I figured that a boxing match would ensue between two wrestlers, and Sherk has a disadvantage in the standup game to his short reach. Color commentator Joe Rogan has referred to Sherk as a Tyrannosaurus Rex in the past.

-Knockout of the Night consideration (before the main event) went to Drew ‘The Massacre’ McFedries (8-5) when he decked Xavier ‘Professor X’ Foupa-Pokam (20-11) in just 37 seconds. McFedries began the onslaught with an overhand right before pouncing on the downed opponent. Foupa-Pokam got back up briefly before taking more punishment at the end of the contest.

-There was a major referee gaffe in the Phillipe Nover-Kyle Bradley contest on the undercard. Nover (5-2-1) has dropped his last two fights since UFC President Dana White declared him as the next Anderson Silva during taping of The Ultimate Fighter 9. Referee Yves Lavigne stopped the fight just 1:03 into the contest when Bradley (14-6) connected with a huge right hand that dropped Nover. However, replays clearly showed that Nover wasn’t hurt and was able to continue to fight. Bradley was the biggest upset winner of the night, entering the octagon as a $2.90 ‘dog.

-The UFC does not appoint referees, the Nevada State Athletic Commission does. I wonder how loudly White will complain after some other recent high-profile ref mistakes in past pay-per-views?

-Krzysztof ‘The Polish Experiment’ Soszynski (18-8-1), another TUF alum but from Season 8, continues to impress. The light heavyweight dominated Andre Gusmao (5-2), and prevailed just 3:17 into the first round with a technical knockout victory. Soszynski trapped Gusmao along the cage before unloading a barrage of punches to finish the fight.

-Chael Sonnen (23-10-1) perhaps turned in the most impressive performance of the night with his unanimous decision victory over Dan Miller. Stylistically it wasn’t the most pleasing fight by any means, with Sonnen spending most of the time in Miller’s guard. What made the victory noticeable is that Sonnen took the fight on short notice, and had to drop around 30 pounds in just a couple of weeks.

Brad Young can be reached at byoung@vegasinsider.com.