TUF 13 Diary: Episode 8 Recap and Analysis
Posted on May 19, 2011, 04:24 AM by Ryan VenturaSometimes I feel like a broken record when watching TUF. To be honest and I think I could speak for a big chunk of you Lowkickers out there, but the 13th season of The Ultimate Fighter reality TV show hasn't wowed me. The only guy that really stood out for me was Team dos Santos member Ryan McGillivray. But other than him there hasn’t been a moment of brilliance on the show yet that has led me to believe that we have a bona fide Mixed Martial Arts superstar coming out of this show. TUF in the past has brought us many UFC superstars. Names like Josh Koscheck, Rashad Evans, Forrest Griffin, Diego Sanchez, just to name a few.
This current season I feel like the fighters chosen on the show are not as hungry as they used to be. If you've been following the show recently you are well aware that these fights haven't been the most entertaining. And the drama on the show has become so predictable and all the characters have become cliches. The UFC and Spike really wanted to concentrate this season on stories. I think I've heard the same story for the last five seasons and it's getting a bit old. The series is in need of a refresh to not only encourage fans to loyally tune in, but for up and comers that want to have their shot at the highest level.
The Ultimate Fighter isn't the only way into the UFC. It's a big way to get your foot in the door, but there are other ways to make your name in the game. M-1 Global is a great option, Bellator, King of the Cage, Shooto, and many more where fighters can hone their craft. I remember when I first saw TUF it was a big deal. For crying aloud the future and potential stars of our sport are being showcased on international television and it's huge exposure for them. I feel like now in 2011 (maybe earlier than that) this show has become a gimmick and just another “reality” TV series. The show needs to be put back on that level of respectability where people care about the fighters, their growth, and learn to respect our sport. But hey what do I know I'm just a hardcore fan with an opinion and a keyboard. There's a comment box below let us discuss the matter further.
Well that was my rant for this edition of the TUF 13 diary. Here's what happened on the 8th episode of The Ultimate Fighter 13:
-Team JDS member Shamar Bailey feels like he hurt his back during training, but is committed to fighting Team Lesnar's Chris Cope.
-Ramsey Nijem from Team JDS prepares for his fight against Team Lesnar's Clay Harvison. We get to know a bit his Palestinian background and is grateful for this opportunity.
-Dana White brings in Brian Stann former WEC Light Heavyweight champion and marine to speak words of encouragement to the TUF fighters. Interesting side note, Team Lesnar's Clay Harvison actually has trained alongside Brian Stann in the past.
-To help prepare for Ramsey's wrestling, Brock Lesnar teaches Clay Harvison a technique that was actually used against Lesnar in his fight with Shane Carwin.
-Minutes before the fight, Ramsey Nijem feels sick and throws up while warming up. Even through his sickness Ramsey feels confident in his abilities against Clay.
-The fight between Clay and Ramsey starts out recklessly on the feet. Within seconds Ramsey takes the fight to the ground manages to get Clay's back and earns a very quick submission victory.
-While preparing for his fight with Chris Cope, Shamar Bailey explains his game plan going into this fight, and why he wanted to fight him.
-Even though Shamar doesn't like Chris personally, during Chris' preparation he admits that he has no problems with Shamar Bailey at all.
-Shamar Bailey's first opponent in the very first episode Nordin Asrih discusses strategy with Chris Cope going into this fight.
-The fight between Bailey and Cope started off as a hesitant stand up affair. Eventually Bailey decided to try his wrestling against Cope. Cope actually did a wonderful job defending against the takedown but was pushed against the cage and held there for a period of time against Bailey.
-In the 2nd round Team Lesnar instructed Chris Cope to let his hands go a bit more and is winning in the stand up exchange. Interesting note the never went to the ground once. At the end of two rounds Chris Cope was victorious with the unanimous judges decision. However, Junior dos Santos and Shamar Bailey felt like they clearly won the fight. After the bout Shamar explained his performance to Dana White and Dana wasn't really too impressed.
What to expect in the next episode:
-The two remain quarterfinal bouts
-Tony Ferguson loses it
-A broken door
-The Semi finals announcements
Be sure to come back next week for my episode 9 recap.
Comments
JDS shouldn't be too surprised about the decision. All Bailey did was press Cope against the cage a few times, he couldn't hold him there or do damage. And he couldn't get a single takedown.
Bailey may have held the centre, but he didn't actually strike convincingly or aggressively. Cope was pushed back because he was weary of the takedown - and he won more of their exchanges.
I thought it was a very good call by the judges. Labelling Bailey as the winner would be another example of giving too much credit to bad wrestling and lean 'n' pray tactics.
Fair play to Chris Cope.
Bailey landed maybe 2 shots the entire fight. Cope landed a lot of counter punches. They weren't hard shots and they did no damage, but they landed. Bailey had no takedowns and no significant offense.
It was the correct decision.
Then Bailey said, "you can't win a fight going backwards." Clearly he never saw Anderson Silva vs. Forrest Griffin.
Nah, I could see the first round being called even. But I get your point.
The fight could have done with a 3rd round - But it wasn't outrageous that it wasn't put on. It would have been more of a farce if they'd given it to Bailey.
A sudden death round would have been the best outcome. But equally I can see why the judges put greater emphasis on Cope winning round 2. The shots looked better, and once again not a single takedown attempt succeeded. Also, when you press a guy up on the cage and he is the only one throwing punchs, that is by no means a decisive example of controlling a position.
The lame thing is that fans like us wouldn't have to argue if the judging itself wasn't so haphazard, and some kind of scoring hierarchy was put into use.
Better punches???
None of them landed. None.
Chris Cope landed 10 shots for every 1 Shamar Bailey landed. I don't know what you were watching. The only thing Bailey had in his favor was moving forward. He was being the aggressor, but he was doing so very unsuccessfully. Cope defended everything he tried, and landed some counters. Not a convincing win, but a clear one.
Full disclosure, Bailey seems like a cokky a-hole to me, and I was glad to see him lose.
ramsey is gonna win it. when it comes to skills, none of them are great, but id say its his conditioning that puts him ahead of the pack.
...I don't know I'm pretty damn impressed with Ramsey. He looks insanely strong and I think it takes a lot of skill to be able to tap out people so damn quick FEELING SICK. To me, he makes up for all the other crappy fighters in this season.
He's a very good wrestler and grappler, and like you said, he's a good athlete with good conditioning. I don't see any of these other guys beating him, barring some injury.
if all else is even, 4 unsuccessfull take down attempts should lose out to 4 successful takedown defenses.
4 unsuccessfull take down attempts against 4 successful takedown defenses is a draw. With all else being even. You don't get points in wrestling for defending a takedown, so why would you in MMA? That's like getting points for a blocked shot in basketball.
However, if you defend the takedown while punching the guy in the head and taking zero punishment in the process, as Cope did, you should win.
I don't know if it is ability or hunger, but i totally agree this years crop fighters seem to be lacking that certain something that clearly defines good MMA fighters.