The Ultimate Fighter season 19 got its second fight under its belt when Daniel Spohn defeated Todd Monaghan by unanimous decision after 10 minutes of work. The episode opened with Cathal Pendred talking with Hector Urbina in the kitchen. The two combatants who had just fought remain cordial, but the pain of losing was still written on Urbina’s face.
Spohn kept the control in Team Penn’s hands for at least one more week. The third episode gave us a look into the two fighters, but also the division of the two teams as the competition drags on.
Here is the good, the bad, and the ugly coming off of the third episode.
The Good:
- Team Edgar got a guest coach this episode, and it was Renzo Gracie. Gracie is one of the most charismatic coaches in the game today, and offers an array of knowledge. His presence will surely help the group of fighters develop their ground skills.
- The coaching goodness was not just limited to Edgar’s squad. While Team Penn did not have a guest coach, Team Penn’s Mark Coleman and Andre Pederneiras offered fantastic tips to their group of fighters. This season offers a very high level of coaching for its participants.
- Spohn got some of the Team Penn members to participate in some of the low-impact training that he teaches outside of the show. After only 10 minutes, they were sweating heavily. It is nice to see someone try something new while not being subjected to any more potentially dangerous situations while relaxing at the house.
- BJ Penn was famous for his yelling on the fifth season of TUF. He has taken a backseat to one of the best screamers in MMA, Mark Coleman. Penn will tell Coleman the instructions, and the loudmouthed Ohioan will relay that into the cage. It is humorous for those of us who watched Penn in season five.
- Spohn and his coaches understand TUF. It is a tournament, and there is little need to go all out seeking a knockout. They played it smart in this fight — utilize Spohn’s wrestling game to take the decision and not risk injury. It was a smart tactic that got the win.
The Bad:
- Unfortunately, we did not get to see nearly enough of Renzo. For all of the hype of his appearance on the show, we did not hear from him nearly enough.
- Spohn went to Monaghan’s sermon in the house, and that’s fine. But in the talking head interview he mentioned that he went to see where Monaghan’s head was at before their fight. While some may consider that smart, it is also a bit skeevy for my taste. There is a time and place for that, and someone giving a sermon is not it.
- Team Penn requested training mats to put in extra work at the house. That seems like good dedication, but I list it as “bad” because it could have a harmful impact. There will be a risk of injury, and it could affect when they peak. There is such a thing as over-training.
- During and after the fight Dana White commented on Spohn’s tactics. He was not pleased, but I could not disagree more. It was smart. Sure, Spohn hit Monoghan hard, but he risks breaking a hand by delivering more big blows. The takedowns were there easily and kept him injury-free moving forward. Also, White stated Spohn was doing nothing while in the mount, and that he should have done more. While his offensive output was low, Spohn spent a lot of time struggling to maintain position on Monoghan, who was trying to fight back up.
The Ugly:
- Harley Davidson and Smith & Forge Hard Cider are sponsors for this season, and I generally have little problem with product placement or advertisements on the mat. I expect that on a TV series. However, I do not expect an in-show advertisement to take up ¾ of the screen when the show comes back from commercial break.
- Following Monoghan’s sermon, Team Penn ran Monoghan down in their team van. It was tacky. While they had some legitimate criticisms, it was just plain tacky. It was clear that Monoghan was trying to be genuine, and there is little need to attack his character like they did. It came off as being more malicious then is should.
Following the fight, Penn selected Tim Williams to go opposite Team Edgar’s Dhiego Lima for next week’s match-up.
TUF 19: Team Edgar vs. Team Penn
• Daniel Spohn vs. Todd Monaghan: Daniel Spohn def. Todd Monaghan via unanimous decision.
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