UFC Quick Quote: WWE's Paul Heyman 'saved' The Ultimate Fighter (TUF): 'Brazil 3'

"To say [Wanderlei] was ruining the show may be extreme, but the interaction between he and I is an element of the show that's important. There has to be the interaction of the coaches. It's an important factor. I didn't know what to do. I didn't know how to handle this. This is the same time I'm losing my grip on my character as a heel. I can feel it slipping away. He's being aggressive. He's skipping practices. He's partying. I don't know what to do. I don't know how to handle this. Paul was a guy that even without knowing him, I knew I could trust him. We have mutual friends, Brock Lesnar and C.M. Punk. I knew he was an expert in psychology and I was stuck, working through this spot, having to deal with this, him not talking to me and the reversal of roles that I didn't see coming. He told me, `Listen, you have to shoot (be completely real, not holding back verbally) on him. If he's not playing along, you have to drop everything and shoot on him.' He laid it out a lot more aggressive than that. `You have to drop everything and come clean.' He went into it a lot more detail than that. In many ways, Paul Heyman saved Ultimate Fighter (Brazil) 3. He kept his word. He kept his secrecy up. So not only should we thank Paul for the huge ratings, but we can also blame him for all the bad things."

Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) light heavyweight and master manipulator, Chael Sonnen, found himself in unfamiliar territory when paired off against fellow Ultimate Fighter (TUF): "Brazil 3" coach Wanderlei Silva, who wouldn't stick to the script and assume the role of national hero. While "The Axe Murderer" blamed sneaky producers and select editing for his public perception heading into UFC 175, Sonnen tells Dave Meltzer (via MMA Fighting) that his Brazilian foe was throwing him a curveball at every at bat. Perhaps Silva was playing some mind games of his own? That could explain why Sonnen enlisted the services of WWE manager and longtime professional wrestling icon Paul Heyman, who if nothing else, knows how to craft a good storyline, and helped "save" TUF by giving Sonnen a road map for television psychology. Did it work? Only the viewers can say for sure, so head over to our TUF: "Brazil 3" weekly thread to see what they're saying by clicking here.