Kenny Florian (Pictures) toppled Joe Lauzon (Pictures) in the main event of UFC Fight Night last Wednesday, a solid event that was the perfect segue to season seven of the hit television series "The Ultimate Fighter."

It was a stellar performance by the inaugural "first runner up" from the first TUF reality series, and the win came against a sturdy, albeit young, opponent. But in the wake of Florian's second-round triumph over "J-Lau," the question remains: Exactly how good is Florian?

It's a bit premature to label him a future champion, and he clearly is no reality TV flash in the pan. No, Florian is the real deal and he'll be a threat to anybody who lurks atop the lightweight division.

However, I'm not quite convinced that he is a fighter who will someday tear the 155-pound weight class asunder and waltz into the eventual MMA Hall of Fame on the first ballot. Florian is as tough as leather, a fighter who doesn't seem to have the word "quit" in his vocabulary. His submission prowess is excellent as well, and he's not exactly a chump when it comes to striking.

But something is amiss with Florian, in my opinion, as he doesn't quite yet have "it." The Ben Stiller look-a-like, as good a guy as he is, doesn't quite grasp fight fans' imaginations like so many of his peers.

Florian is, however, the prototypical contender who will give any fighter nightmares. He's a jack of all trades, a master of none -- though he still finds ways to win against very good fighters.

Don't get me wrong. I look forward to each and every Florian fight, in particular his thumping of Lauzon just outside of Denver last week. He's one of my favorite fighters to watch perform inside the Octagon because I never know what to expect.

Will he be trailing badly on the scorecards and then somehow rip his adversary's face open with a right elbow? Or will he use his underrated muay Thai to crack his opponent on the jaw and pull off a knockout? Or will he wear his man down for a few rounds and then lure him into some sort of submission?

And that sort of mysterious allure around the fighter I jokingly call "Focker" prevents me at this point from labeling him a future all-time great. Is he capable of toppling guys like Penn, Sean Sherk (Pictures) (in a rematch) or any other top fighter at 155? Absolutely, but I tend to doubt it at the same time.

When he does oppose anybody in the elite status of his weight class, he'll usually be at a gross disadvantage at some aspect of mixed martial arts. Penn is better at submissions; Sherk is much stronger. Still, it's hard to discredit what he's achieved thus far in his still-blossoming career and it's impossible for me to believe he stands no chance against the top dogs at lightweight.

So just how good is Kenny Florian (Pictures)? I guess we'll find out in the years to come.

Misc. Debris

Nothing is as anticlimactic as a fight that ends via injury, as was the case with the Frank Shamrock (Pictures)-Cung Le (Pictures) duel. The battle was entertaining (vastly overrated, though), and it ended with Shamrock calling it a day because his wrist was turned into a bag of broken glass. Le was winning the fight, and I thought his side kick midway through the second round had shattered one of Frank's ribs; when Shamrock couldn't score the knockout the following round, it seemed like he succumbed to the pain. Alas, it was a blocked Le kick in the third that sealed Shamrock's fate, a strike that put a damper on what could have been a superb and emphatic finish to what was already a decent scrap. …

In keeping with the theme of the meat of this column and with Shamrock-Le, it's still hard to determine how good those two are. Shamrock did well against a far superior striker, and Le triumphed over a legend to the hardcore fans. Still, I question whether the great Shamrock can still compete against the best and whether Le is that good. …

I learned at a very young age that drugs are illegal and that I shouldn't use, buy or sell them. Virtually every kid, teen and adult in this country knows that, yet it blows my mind that people still get caught and sent to prison for drug trafficking. Leonard Garcia (Pictures) obviously didn't know any better, and it's a shame that he, one of the most exciting young fighters in the sport, squandered his talent in MMA. …

Going back to the UFC Fight Night show from Wednesday: Referee Steve Mazzagatti make excellent calls in both the Thiago Alves (Pictures)-Karo Parisyan (Pictures) and James Irvin (Pictures)-Houston Alexander (Pictures) fights. When Alexander tried getting back up after he was dropped in three seconds, the third punch from Irvin made the Nebraskan's body fall limply back to the canvas. Regardless of the fact that he bounced right back up and protested the stoppage, he was out cold and Mazzagatti made the right call. And when Karo was floored by the knee and ate four consecutive unanswered blows because he was basically face down, Mazzagatti again made the right call. …

By deciding to make Gesias Calvancante (Pictures) and Shinya Aoki (Pictures) fight each other again to settle their dubious "no contest" from March, Dream also made the correct call. I wish more companies would act quickly like Dream and create much-needed do-overs of bouts that end on such lousy terms. …

Just imagine how good Gray Maynard (Pictures) will be if he decides to take his time and not rush into a title shot. He's as tough as they come and he's just hit the tip of the iceberg in terms of ability. If he keeps his focus for the next several years, we may have another dominant force akin to Matt Hughes (Pictures) and Randy Couture (Pictures).

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