"Karate is back."

Those were the words uttered by new UFC light heavyweight champion, Lyoto "The Dragon" Machida minutes after he won the title in emphatic fashion. In a battle of unbeatens, Machida was the one to leave UFC 98 unblemished after finishing off former champion, Rashad Evans.

In 2009, Machida has transformed as a fighter. Prior to this year, all but one of his UFC bouts went to judges' decision in what were calculated, technical, even boring fights. In January he bucked the trend by leveling Thiago Silva with a knockout.

In his battle with Evans, fans saw this new offense-minded side of Machida as he rocked Evans with a straight left and aggressively went in for the finish with a kick and punches to seal it.

Overnight, Machida was able to do something many people never would have expected a year ago -- gain a substantial fan following.

As alluded to earlier, a remarkable thing here is the fighting discipline that Machida comes from -- karate.

There's some important history here that dates all the way back to the second UFC ever. In one of the most influential bouts in the history of worldwide combat sports, Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu grappler Royce Gracie was pitted against Japanese karate master, Minoki Ichihara.

No one knew what to expect. Gracie handily defeated Ichihara after taking the striker to the ground and relegating him to a fish out of water. Gracie went on to use his grappling skills to choke or armbar his way to three early UFC titles.

Since the Gracie Era, the flavor of choice for aspiring mixed martial artists has been grappling disciplines like Jiu-Jitsu or wrestling.

After laying dormant for fifteen years, and riding the waves of Machida's victory in the UFC's glamor division of light heavyweight, karate may be seeing a comeback.

Karate has seen some other glimmers of success. Before Georges St. Pierre evolved into the ground and pound wrestler we see today, he struck down opponent after opponent using his foundation martial art, Kyokushin karate. Chuck "The Iceman" Liddell was able to rely on his Kempo karate skills to maintain championship success.

It's possible that Machida's title victory and 15-0 record may usher in a renaissance for karate, the martial art that's always been popular in film, but dismissed as an inferior discipline when it applies to MMA. Some people including UFC commentator, Joe Rogan have hinted we're now in the Machida Era.

To that bold statement one can point out that it was a major title victory, but it was still just one victory in the UFC's most stacked division. The UFC light heavyweight title belt has been passed to a new fighter the last four times it's been fought for; no one has been able to defend it.

It does appear that Machida has an inside track on being the first to defend the belt in a long time. The unpopularity of karate in MMA may help him.

Machida is an aberration. No one knows how to attack him. One can see that Machida's head and shoulders leaned back fighting stance is like none other in the UFC. It's uncommon for fighters to hurt him because they have difficultly reaching his head. When they attempt to strike he's elusive and calculated with his counter punches.

Rogan put it best when talking to UFC president Dana White afterthe bout. "How to you fight this?" Rogan asked as he leaned back to 110 degrees. "That's a weird style, man. That's hard to deal with."

Machida will be facing some formidable opponents to retain his championship. Potential contenders such as Rampage Jackson, Shogun Rua, and Forrest Griffin may find a way to solve the Machida puzzle.

Defending a title in this division will be essential in establishing an era. In attempting to do so, Machida may also be carrying the hopes of an entire discipline on his recessed shoulders.

David Estrada Jr. is a Mixed Martial Arts columnist for the Port Arthur News. He can be e-mailed at DavidEstrada@DavidEstrada.com