Former IFL champion Roy Nelson has fought his way into the Dec. 5 Ultimate Fighter (TUF) 10 Finale and will face fellow contestant and undefeated Greg Jackson disciple Brendan Schaub this Saturday, live from "The Pearl" at the Palms Resort and Casino in Las Vegas, Nevada, on Spike TV.
"Big Country" quickly put an end to the Kimbo Slice experiment in front of a record-breaking 6.1 million viewers on Episode 3 of the Spike TV reality show. While UFC President Dana White panned the performance, it was still good enough to move him into the quarterfinals.
His second fight was far from the dominant performance of the first, as Nelson opted to throw leather for two rounds against Justin Wren. He squeaked past "The Viking" via majority decision and into a semifinal bout against James McSweeney.
Once again, Nelson kept it standing, but when a cocky McSweeney ate a hard right hand, the portly jiu-jitsu black belt capitalized on the rubber legs and took the fight to the ground. From there it was academic, as he used the same belly crucifix he used to pound out Kimbo Slice to finish McSweeney and launch himself into the live Finale.
He'll definitely have his hands full against Schaub.
The undefeated Colorado native took a few shots from Demico Rogers in his opening elimination fight, but stayed composed and secured an anaconda choke to finish "Night Train" and advance to the quarterfinals.
Waiting for him was Jon Madsen, who used his wrestling prowess to keep Schaub's hands at bay; however, Schaub was able to catch the H.I.T. Squad member with a brutal combination, putting him to sleep in the second round.
His final test would be against Marcus Jones in the semifinals. "The Darkness' powered him to the ground and tried to keep him there, but the wily Schaub battled back and once again used his superior stand-up to finish his larger foe.
Now he'll look to keep his perfect record intact against Roy Nelson on Dec. 5.
Who takes it?
TUF 10 Finale will feature a showdown between the top two finalists from the Spike TV reality show, Roy Nelson and Brendan Schaub, as well as a light heavyweight war featuring Jon "Bones" Jones as he inches his way closer to contention against Matt "The Hammer" Hamill.
Remember that MMAmania.com will provide LIVE blow-by-blow, round-by-round coverage of the TUF 10 Finale, beginning with the Spike TV telecast at 9 p.m. ET. In addition, we will deliver up-to-the-minute quick results of all the under card action on fight night.
To check out the latest TUF 10 Finale fight card and rumors click here.
Get the latest gear
