MMAjunkie's 'Fight of the Month' for October: A Brit's revenge, a flyweight five-rounder or a 'Platinum' brawl?

With another action-packed month of MMA in the books, MMAjunkie takes a look at the best fights from October. Here are the five nominees, listed in chronological order, and winner of MMAjunkie’s “Fight of the Month” award for October.

At the bottom of the post, let us know if we got it right by voting on your choice.

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The Nominees

Andre Fili def. Hacran Dias at UFC Fight Night 96

Andre Fili (16-4 MMA, 4-3 UFC) put Hacran Dias (23-5-1 MMA, 3-4 UFC) down early in their catchweight showdown (Dias missed weight for the featherweight division), but despite having his opponent on the verge of a stoppage, couldn’t put him away inside the distance.

But as Dias rebounded to bring the fight into the later rounds, Fili met him step for step, ensuring he led the exciting dance for all 15 minutes and eventually claiming the upset victory via unanimous decision victory after three hard-fought rounds.

John Lineker def. John Dodson at UFC Fight Night 96

Although he missed weight for the fifth time in his UFC career prior to the contest, John Lineker (29-7 MMA, 10-2 UFC) picked up arguably the biggest victory of his career when he defeated two-time UFC title challenger John Dodson (18-8 MMA, 7-3 UFC) in a highly competitive affair.

It was a back-and-forth battle for five furious rounds, and in the end Lineker outpointed Dodson by split decision on the scorecards. “Hands of Stone” once again lived up to his reputation of landing and absorbing big shots en route to his sixth consecutive octagon win.

Mike Perry def. Danny Roberts at UFC 204

For nearly three full rounds, Mike Perry (9-0 MMA, 2-0 UFC) and Danny Roberts (13-2 MMA, 2-1 UFC) traded the kind of blows that could have easily ended the welterweight fight at any moment.

But after several wild exchanges and near finishes, Perry landed the deciding blow and floored Roberts in the final minute. He followed up with an outright violent assault of follow-up shots to decisively end the bout and keep his undefeated record intact.

Michael Bisping def. Dan Henderson at UFC 204

Michael Bisping (30-7 MMA, 20-7 UFC) held on to the UFC middleweight championship in his long-awaited rematch with Dan Henderson (32-15 MMA, 9-9 UFC), but the first defense of his title didn’t come without hardship.

Bisping retained the belt, avenged a career-defining loss and set the record for most wins in UFC history when he bested Henderson by unanimous decision in a blood-soaked five-round battle. It was a tense, back-and-forth fight which many people scored differently, but in the end, it was “The Count” who left with the title still around his waist.

Alexander Shlemenko def. Kendall Grove at Bellator 162

Former middleweight champion Alexander Shlemenko’s (54-9 MMA, 12-3 BMMA) Bellator homecoming was a victorious one, because after being forced to fight overseas due to a failed drug test and lengthy fight with the California State Athletic Commission, Shlemenko was in fine form during a hard-fought TKO win over vet Kendall Grove (23-16 MMA, 4-3 BMMA).

During a mid-cage exchange in the second round, Shlemenko landed a crippling left to the liver and quickly followed with a right to the head. The body shot forced Grove to retreat to the mat, and Shlemenko then unloaded a barrage of punches to force the stoppage less than two minutes into the second frame.

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The Winner: Michael Bisping vs. Dan Henderson

History nearly repeated itself on two occasions when Henderson dropped UFC middleweight champ Bisping to the canvas in their rematch seven years in the making.

But Bisping, fighting before a hometown crowd, got back to his feet this time and proceeded to outwork Henderson in the championship rounds to earn a unanimous decision.

Judges scored the bout 48-47 twice and 49-46 for Bisping, who used his post-fight speech to celebrate Henderson’s toughness and berate most of his division’s contenders.

“All you (expletive) (expletive) who are in the rest of the division,” said the brash Brit. “(Chris) Weidman, what the hell? You lost your last fight. I’ve had three victories since you got your ass kicked by Luke Rockhold. Rockhold, I knocked you out in three minutes, buddy. Yoel Romero, you’re suspended for steroids! Shame on you. All of you win a fight, get off the couch, and let’s (expletive) do this.”

At several points, Henderson looked every bit his 46 years of age, particularly when Bisping employed a high-pace strategy that kept him on his heels. A persistent jab kept him from loading up his famed right hand, and Bisping employed a stutter-step to cloak kick attacks.

But periodically, he managed to plant and uncork his favored weapon, and it landed, so well that it sent the champion to the mat, just as it did seven years ago at UFC 100. Henderson was an elbow or two away from turning off the lights on Bisping. But unlike the previous fight, the strikes didn’t finish the job, and the champ survived the round.

Bisping hung on again in the second round when pretty much the exact same thing happened. His left eye a swollen mess after the near-finish and bleeding generously from his forehead, Bisping charged right back into the fray and continued to work quick combinations. And still he managed to catch the right hand.

As the fight went into the third round, however, there was less steam on Henderson’s punches. Bisping, no spring chicken at 37 but conditioned for a long slog, took the same shot and continued to push the pace.

A groin shot afforded Henderson a short break in the fourth round, to the point where Bisping chided him before the audience. When the pace picked up, a knee up the middle showed there were still signs of life from the elder fighter.

Advised by his cornerman to go for broke, Henderson fought moving forward and landed some big knees up the middle. Bisping took them and stayed true to his gameplan, angling off to land hard right hands.

In the final seconds of the bout, Henderson decided to end his career with a rolling thunder kick. Not one for sentimentality, Bisping jumped on him and tried to knock him senseless.