Roy Nelson was supposed to fight Shane Carwin tonight (Sat., Dec. 15, 2012) at The Ultimate Fighter (TUF) 16 Finale at the Hard Rock Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas, Nevada, but injury forced a change in plans. Instead, he took on Matt Mitrione in a simple heavyweight match-up for divisional relevance.

Plus, it was going to be fun. Or so we hoped.

After some early exchanging that saw Nelson unload a few wild haymakers and Mitrione fire off kicks to the legs, body, and head, "Big Country" shot in to get a takedown. "Meathead" stayed disciplined, though, and a battle against the fence yielded a stalemate that led to a reset.

The beginning of the end.

Nelson continued to fire off bombs and an uppercut that caught Mitrione by surprise pushed him back enough to give Nelson all the opening he needed to blitz his hurt opponent and finish the job.

Referee Herb Dean stepped in to stop it and that was that.

Coach Nelson won his fight and Colton Smith, one of Nelson's fighters on TUF 16, won the six-figure contract. A successful season for a man UFC President Dana White is no real fan of, wouldn't you say?

For complete TUF 16 results and blow-by-blow coverage of all the night's action click here and here.