FanHouse EricSchafer

Former Ultimate Fighter winner Ryan Bader stayed undefeated with perhaps the biggest win of his MMA career, beating Eric Schafer by unanimous decision at UFC 104 in a fight that started fast, ended slow and represented a small step forward for one of the UFC's rising stars.

This is the UFC 104 live blog for Ryan Bader vs. Eric Schafer, a light heavyweight bout on the Spike TV card.

The Ultimate Fighter 8 winner Bader will look to wrestle his way towards 11 straight wins when he takes on Schafer, the dangerous grappler out of Duke Roufus' gym.

The live blog begins below.

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The Ultimate Fighter 8 winner Ryan Bader says his keys to beating Eric "Red" Schafer at UFC 104 is to dictate the fight and avoid Schafer's experienced Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu game.

Bader, one of the many wrestler-turned-MMA fighters out of the Arizona Combat Sports camp in Tempe, recently spoke with FanHouse as he looks to improve his undefeated MMA and UFC records to 11-0 and 3-0, respectively, on Nov. 24 at the Staples Center in Los Angeles, Calif.

The UFC will show two live undercard fights on Spike TV during its UFC 104 show, once again giving fans a couple of fights for free to whet their appetites for pay-per-view.

Spike said today that it will air two preliminary fights -- Ryan Bader vs. Eric Schafer and Antoni Hardonk vs. Pat Barry -- live at 9 PM ET on October 24, an hour before the UFC 104 pay-per-view broadcast begins. The one-hour broadcast will air without commercials and could include other fights on tape delay, time permitting.

UFC President Dana White has pulled the plugs on his popular but controversial video blogs, but that doesn't mean YouTube-loving MMA fans will be short on content. A number of mixed martial artists have launched their own YouTube channels, including former Ultimate Fighter winner Ryan Bader, who is out today with his first UFC 104 video blog.

UFC light-heavyweight brawler Houston Alexander has broken his hand, forcing him out of his UFC 98 matchup with Andre Gusmao.

The news was first reported on the UFC's Twitter page.

The 37-year-old Alexander made a major first impression on UFC fans, knocking out Keith Jardine as a major underdog in his May 2007 debut, then following it up with another highlight-reel KO over Alessio Sakara.

Eric Schafer submitted Houston Alexander with an arm triangle choke with just seconds remaining in the first round tonight in Omaha, winning a sensational fight to kick off tonight's UFC Fight Night on Spike.

The loss is a major disappointment for Alexander and for the home-town fans who came to cheer him on, and it raises the question of whether Alexander might be in danger of losing his UFC contract. Alexander is an exciting fighter and a fan favorite, but this is his third consecutive first-round loss, and the buzz heading into the fight was that it was a must-win for Alexander if he wanted to stay in the UFC.

Schafer was very impressive, mounting Alexander and dominating him on the ground before finally choking him out. In a classy move after the fight, he dedicated his win to the late Evan Tanner.

As for Alexander, he hasn't been impressive recently, but I hope Dana White keeps him around. Alexander is the kind of fighter who gives the fans a good show even when he doesn't fight particularly well, and there's always a place for guys like that on undercards. He'll never be a UFC champion, but Alexander deserves to keep fighting in the Octagon.