While attempting to avoid the two giants squaring off in the center of the ring, gyoji Shozaburo Kimura found himself trapped in the corner when he was suddenly knocked off the platform and onto the floor below.  Reports indicate that he was unconscious and had to be stretchered off, but thankfully, he has only sustained a concussion and is expected to be okay.

Here is a look at the incident.

Hat Tip – [Fark.com]

Approximately six minutes into the third period, the Pens’ Arron Asham and the Caps’ Jay Beagle dropped the gloves in the neutral zone and engaged in a mutually agreed upon fight, which was won by Asham after he knocked Beagle out cold with two devastating right hands.  That was just the beginning.

With an unconscious Beagle laying face-down on the ice, Asham made a gesture to the crowd, informing them that he had just finished off his opponent and put him to sleep.  It was done in the heat of the moment, but it certainly did not sit well with many of the Caps players, and even Asham was able to admit that it was a “classless” gesture when he reflected on it during a post-game interview.  He had the following to say about it:

“It’s unfortunate the way the fight ended.  I obviously want to win but I don’t want to go out there and hurt anyone. My gesture after it was done – I was into the game – it was uncalled for; classless on my part. I think those guys know I’m not that kind of guy to be going off, but it was a big game, I wanted to get my bench going, and classless move on my part.”

Beagle was eventually taken off the ice with the help of his teammates and trainers, and he did not return to the game.

As for Asham, although we’ll applaud him for apologizing and owning up to his mistake, what’s done is done, and I wouldn’t expect the Caps players to forget that come December 1st when the two teams meet again in Washington.

Here is a look at the fight and the ensuing taunt.

Drogba went up up for a header, and although he was offside on the play, he was still leveled midair by Ruddy, causing the Ivory Coast international to come crashing down and smack his head on the pitch at Stamford Bridge.  He remained unconscious for several minutes before being carted off the field wearing a breathing aid and taken to the hospital.  He continues to recover from a concussion in London under the supervision of Chelsea’s medical staff.

As for Ruddy, he was not penalized for the challenge on Drogba, but he was assessed a straight red card following a challenge on The Blues’ Ramires in the 80th minute.  Frank Lampard would capitalize on the ensuing penalty kick, and Juan Mata added another goal in extra time to give Chelsea the 3-1 victory.

After taking several hard punches and elbows while on the ground in the first round, Couture found herself trapped in a rare scissor lock.  A few seconds later, she was unconscious, as her right leg could be seen flopping to the ground.  A few second later, her left leg followed suit, collapsing to the ground.  Still no stoppage.  Not until he lifted her arm a few seconds later did the referee in charge realize that Couture was unconscious.  At that point the fight was finally stopped and Bird was awarded the victory.

The official results read Bird by technical submission at 1:48 of the first round, but a look at the video below will show that the real time should be somewhere around 1:38.

(If you want to go right to the submission, it’s at the 1:58 mark of the video)

Hat Tip – [Yahoo! Sports]

Things got a little out of hand for reporter Aaron Tru of MMA Worldwide when he interviewed Cyborg about her upcoming title match with Gina Carano.  When asked how long it takes to choke someone out, she replied “3 seconds” through her translator.  The Brazilian female MMA star does not speak much English, and that turned out to be a problem for Aaron.  Maybe the translator was playing a little joke and told Cyborg he asked to be choked unconscious.

Whether or not that was the case, that’s what would eventually happen.  The extremely tough and capable Cris Santos put Tru in a rear-naked choke and kept a tight grip until he was out.  At that point, her trainers eventually stepped in telling her to release him and bringing Aaron back to consciousness.  It had a similar flare to Toby Imada’s inverted triangle choke.

Cyborg is preparing for her big title shot, and if Carano expects to hold on to her belt she will have to put on a much tougher fight than this poor reporter.  If not, then the loss will be just another first that Gina will be able to talk about.

Hat Tip Video – [MMA Worldwide]