The final two episodes of "The
Ultimate Fighter 2" aired this week and set the
stage for the live finale on Saturday night, November
5, on Spike TV.
Luke Cummo, the last one picked when
teams were chosen, was the first one to make it into
the finals. Ironic, isn't it?
On Monday night's TUF episode, Rashad
"The Showboat" Evans beat Keith Jardine
to move on to the heavyweight final match. Rashad
grumbled about Matt Hughes being in his corner for
the semi-final fight, but for all his fussing, it
turned out to be a blessing in disguise. Hughes' advice
during the match turned out to be what kept Rashad
going, and following the match he thanked Hughes for
his motivation. Hughes, who never seemed to miss an
opportunity to diss Rashad, said he'd gained a new
respect for his ability. And Rashad, who'd felt the
sting of that disrespect, finally understood the reasoning
behind Hughes' hard-ass style of coaching. The two
made up in a heartfelt moment, and Rashad not only
won his way into the finals, but came away with a
renewed purpose instilled by Hughes.
The last two semi-final matches aired
on Tuesday night. Jason Von Flue was relieved when
the doctor cleared him to fight, although that meant
stand-by Marcus Davis' second chance at UFC fame flew
out the window. Jason's opponent was Joe Stevenson,
who took the win with an armbar and moved on to the
welterweight final.
Last, but not least, was the heavyweight
semi-final match between Brad Imes and Seth Petruzelli.
Big Brad had a 7-inch height advantage and was 25
pounds heavier than Seth. This was not the most action-packed
fight ever, but Brad exploited Seth's previous ear
injury and won by a split decision. Emboldened by
the win, Brad is now calling himself the Hillbilly
Heartthrob.
The final four experienced the blood,
the sweat (handled nicely by Right Guard Extreme,
thank you), and plenty of tears. Although they're
all winners for making it this far, we'll soon know
which two will ultimately win the six-figure UFC contracts.
The three-hour season finale will air
live on Spike TV Saturday night beginning at 9:00
p.m. (ET). Emanating from The Joint at the Hard Rock
Cafe in Las Vegas, the card will include:
Heavyweight final match: Rashad
Evans vs. Brad Imes.
Rashad, from Lansing, Michigan, is 5'11"
and 225 pounds. He won three matches during the 37
days of the TUF2 series, beating Tom Murphy, Mike
Whitehead and Keith Jardine. Whitehead and Jardine
were considered favorites to make it into the finals,
but it's Rashad who's fighting for one of the coveted
UFC contracts.
His opponent, Brad Imes, is from Sacramento,
California, stands 6'7" and weighs 260 pounds.
He beat Rob McDonald and Seth Petruzelli to get to
this point, but even with his sizable reach advantage,
my pick to win is Rashad.
Welterweight final match: Luke
Cummo vs. Joe Stevenson.
Luke, is from New Hyde Park, New York,
and is 6'0" and 170 pounds. During the show he
demonstrated some unorthodox training and eating habits
which may have contributed to his wins over Anthony
Torres and Sammy Morgan to get to the welterweight
final. In one of his typical deadpan promos, Luke
said he'd be a "pig covered in grease" Saturday
night. Okey dokey.
Joe Stevenson, fighting out of Las Vegas,
Nevada, is 5'7", and weighs 170 pounds. He is
well respected for his skills and beat Marcus Davis
and Jason Von Flue on his journey to the finals. I
have a feeling that quirky Luke may have met his match
in Joe, who is my pick to win.
Main Event: Diego Sanchez vs.
Nick Diaz.
Diego, who won one of UFC contracts
in season one, is from Albuquerque, New Mexico, is
5'8" and weighs 170 pounds. He won his first
UFC fight against Brian Gassaway, and his current
MMA record is an impressive 15-0. Diego my pick to
win this match and make it 16 and 0.
Nick Diaz is from Stockton, California,
stands 6'0" and weighs 170 pounds. His current
MMA record is 11-3-0. He has a bright MMA future,
but Diego is an intense and spiritual force to be
reckoned with.
The other televised match will
be Kenny Florian (also of season one) vs. Kit Cope.
Non-televised matches will feature fighters
eliminated from season two and hopefully we'll get
to see the fights at some point on UFC programming
(although with three hours to fill and only four matches
on the card, it's possible that at least one or two
may be shown on the finale).
- Kerry Schall vs. Keith
Jardine
- Melvin Guillard vs. Marcus
Davis
- Sam Morgan vs. Josh Burkman
Enjoy the show and check back here at
WorldWrestlingInsanity.com for my review.
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Buy
The Ultimate Fighter Season 1 on DVD
