Episode four of The Ultimate Fighter (TUF) Season 10 gets underway and we get a recap of last week's Kimbo Slice vs Roy Nelson fight -- as if anyone tuning in tonight didn't watch the highly-anticipated showdown in episode three.
In any event, for the few hundred thousand that remain from last week's 6+ million, we get to hear the rest of the house share pretty much the same sentiments that most fanboys did: Kimbo is green and Nelson is fat.
Coach Jackson doesn't approve of "Big Country's" cockiness after the fight. Slice gets the requisite pat on the back from his coaches but Kimbo isn't havin' it -- he wants in if another fighter gets hurt or drops out.
In a matter that reeks of either extremely coincidental timing or extremely convenient editing, Marcus Jones channels Kenny Stevens and lumbers out of the bathroom, sweating profusely and speaking incoherently.
Brendan Schaub blames the incident on the rigors of MMA training, which newcomers like Marcus may not be accustomed to. Kimbo practically steps over Jones' limp body to tell the camera he's ready to take his place.
Team Evans hits the gym in good spirits, up 3-0 on Team Jackson. "Sugar" wants to guide his team without reinventing the wheel -- time to polish, not start over.
With Kimbo on the sidelines, we finally get a closer look at some of the other guys in the house. Truth be told, the Evans gang is looking pretty good so far as they run down the roster and strategically match up the remaining fighters to keep it to their advantage.
Rashad wants Justin Wren to fight Scott Junk but Wren has a problem with that pairing because he and Junk are boys back home. Since Rashad already went through that scenario with Keith Jardine a while back in the UFC, he's somewhat sympathetic to the plea.
Team Jackson arrives at the gym and a bitter Rampage immediately starts with the fat jokes when he sees Roy Nelson. Like Team Evans, we start to get more from the guys picked by the former light heavyweight champ.
Jackson tries to convince the camera he can coach one of his guys to the finals. If this is the kind of acting he took with him to the A-Team audition, I have serious doubts about the competency of their casting director.
As expected, all the efforts Team Evans made to pick strategic match-ups gets leaked to everyone inside the house when Matt Mitrione gets afflicted with diarrhea of the mouth.
During the commercial break I see an ad for HDNet that features Alistair Overeem throwing hands. I resign myself to the fact that these promos are probably the only time he'll ever be seen again in the United States.
Back at the house, James McSweeney suspects Mitrione squealed to get the fights switched because he was afraid to fight Marcus Jones. Coach Evans gets wind of the blabbery and contemplates a new strategy. Schaub appoints himself Team Advisor and starts interjecting his own ideas for match-ups.
When it comes down to the official fight selection, Coach Evans picks Brendan Schaub to face Team Rampage fighter Demico Rogers. Jackson is (once again) pleased with the pick. He also admits to fantasizing about pulling out Rashad's brain and then kicking him in the nuts.
Schaub hits the gym and gets high praise from Coach and Team Jackson "brother" Rashad Evans. He shows his hands and works stand-up because he believes a knockout will end this fight.
Now Rogers gets a turn for a pre-fight workout and wrestling is the order of the day. Rampage continues his stellar run as coach and mentor by standing on the sidelines and muttering "I like it!"
It's fight time and Schaub can be seen sparring and getting loose inside the locker room as his team psyches him up. On the other side of the gym, Rogers is also in the locker room -- sitting down and having a drink of water amidst muffled conversation. I don't think it takes a clairvoyant to see where this is going.
In Rogers' defense, he does let out a roar as he walks to the cage.
Heavyweight elimination fight #4: Brendan Schaub (4-0) vs. Demico Rogers (4-0)
Round 1: Low kick by Rogers followed by a sloppy shoot. Schaub spins out and gets muscled to the cage. They push off and trade punches. Rogers secures a much better takedown and they hit the floor. Schaub working from a very stingy guard. Rogers postures up and dives in but gets nothing. Schaub uses the cage to try and spin out but Rogers swings into half guard. Nice elbow by Rogers, who briefly relaxes his mount and ends up getting reversed. Schaub now punching from the top. Rogers rolls over and goes flat, allowing Schaub to lock in a guillotine and transition to an anaconda choke. From there, it's academic.
Brendan Schaub defeats Demico Rogers via submission (anaconda choke)
After the fight, Demico is abandoned inside the cage. No coach, no team, no nothing. Mercifully, Coach Evans comes over to console him. Hopefully Rampage is somewhere watching and taking notes so that he can get a better idea of what he should be doing.
Schaub came into the season with a lot of hype and while he did pull out the win, his performance tonight was merely average.
Team Jackson hits the locker room and Rampage begins to unravel, complaining that his guys are too green and his coaches are advising them to do all the wrong things. You know, terrible things, like passing guard and improving position.
Don't these guys know the best way to win a fight is to just lay in your opponent's guard? I was secretly hoping that someone would bring Rampage a mirror.
In an unrelated note, new memberships at the famed Wolfslair Academy have plummeted 65-percent since episode one.
Stay tuned next week as a fighter gets labeled a "black sheep," Matt Mitrione further endears himself to Team Evans with a phantom injury and of course -- more arguing between Rashad and Rampage.
See you in seven!
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