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Later on this evening (Sat., Dec. 15, 2012) at the Hard Rock Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas, Nevada, Roy Nelson's stint as coach on season 16 of The Ultimate Fighter (TUF) will culminate at the live Finale when he takes on Matt Mitrione in a heavyweight slugfest.
It wasn't supposed to be Nelson vs. Mitrione. It was supposed to be Nelson vs. Shane Carwin but "The Engineer" once again had to hit the shop for repairs and "Meathead" was eager enough to please that he stepped up to fill the void.
"Big Country" says if you're expecting a show, he'll be giving you one:
"He was an elite athlete in the NFL. He just came over and he's doing this for fun. He's actually doing this to where he can actually take it in a lot more. He's doing this as fun and he's evolved tremendously the last three years.
"I wanted to fight Shane. He claimed he wanted to punch me my face a lot but apparently not that much. So now I'm fighting Matt.
"I think fans always expect a show out of me and I always give them one."
As for Mitrione, he promises to get the job done by knockout, submission, whatever:
"I feel that Roy is an interesting fight. He has a lot power, a lot of ground game, a lot of stamina and that is where I want to test myself right now. I thought in this point in my career, I have been doing so much work, took some time off and developed a lot. My training coaches and I thought it was a good fight for me.
"Roy legitimately has a case for being one of the toughest people in the world. He is incredibly tough. My first fight was in UFC and I have no anxiety about fighting. I am a performer, an athlete and a competitor. I expect to get my hand raise on Saturday. I don't care how it happens - knock him out, submit him, fold him up like a pretzel. I am getting paid."
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