Matt Brown snaps losing skid with decision over John Howard

PITTSBURGH -- Before their bout, John Howard predicted that he and Matt Brown would get the Fight of the Night bonus, but that seems unlikely after their fight on Sunday night. Brown won the grappling-filled bout 29-28 on all three judges' cards.

Howard used lots of snapping leg kicks to start the round, until they moved into the clinch. Howard swung the fight to the ground for a second, but they returned to their feet quickly, where Brown made headway with striking. He hit Brown with a kick and two strikes before Howard took Brown down. They stood back up, and Brown continued to show impressive striking, until Howard threw Brown down on his back.

Brown's legs were reddened by the second round from Howard's leg kicks, a weapon Howard continued to use. The fight oddly went to the ground about halfway through the round, as Howard tried for a takedown and ended up on his back. Brown joined him there for a grappling session to finish out the round.

Again, Howard used the leg kick to start the third round, but then tried for higher kicks after that. To stop the onslaught of kicks, Brown got a takedown, but he let Howard reverse his position and take Brown's back.

Brown finally got loose and tried to work his stand-up game, but it didn't work, as Howard got another takedown. Brown finished the round with as much ground and pound as he could.

"I feel amazing on the win.� My team really keeps me on my game, especially mentally. I've got the skills, but now I'm fighting smarter," Brown said. "I think this may have been my smartest fight. But I still have a lot of work to do on my wrestling and grappling. I loved fighting here. I always fight better around my home. Always have, always will.� I wanted a win, even if it meant a decision."

This win straps a losing skid for Brown, who had three losses in a row. Howard is now the one with the three-fight losing streak. He has recent losses to Thiago Alves, Jake Ellenberger and now Brown.

Junie Browning Paul Buentello  Josh Burkman  Mikey Burnett  Murilo Bustamante