Heavyweights Pedro Rizzo and Ricco Rodriguez showed little urgency in their matchup, with Rizzo winning a lackluster three-round decision over the former heavyweight champion. Scores were 30-27 twice and 29-28 for Rizzo.
Local middleweight Keith Rockel thrilled the fans who came down from nearby Massachusetts as he scored a first-round submission win over newcomer Chris Liguori. The end came via a guillotine choke.
In the first preliminary bout, lightweight contender Yves Edwards stayed busy with a second round TKO of late sub Nick Agallar.
A pre-main event ceremony saw Royce Gracie and Ken Shamrock honored as the first inductees in the UFC Hall of Fame. Also in attendance to receive Viewer’s Choice Awards were former UFC competitors Oleg Taktarov, Marco Ruas, Mark Coleman, and Don Frye.
Fight of the Night (unofficial) – Tanner TKO1 Baroni
Knockout of the Night (unofficial) – Tanner TKO1 Baroni
Submission of the Night (unofficial) – Hughes Wsub1 Trigg
Debuts – Frank Trigg, Chris Ligouri, Nick Agallar
One Hit Wonders – Chris Ligouri, Nick Agallar
Both Ligouri and Agallar made early exits at UFC 45, prompting their release from the organization, but neither stopped fighting.
Excerpted from the UFC Encyclopedia