The Ultimate Fighter was back, but not better than ever. Another lackluster fight was given to us by the 19th season cast. Eddie Gordon defeated Mike King in a three round fight. There was not much to be said about the actual fight, but Gordon advanced, and that is all that matters in the tournament format.
UFC President Dana White was not very pleased either, and that looks to continue next week during interviews for the semi-final match-ups. However, we will get to that next week.
As for this week, it’s time to break down the good, the bad, and the ugly of the latest episode.
The Good
- BJ Penn and Mark Coleman tried to lay out some sensible coaching for their fighter prior to the fight. They both told King that he should look to grapple with Gordon to wear him out. They acknowledged that it was ultimately his decision, but they tried to offer quality advice. Why these TUF rookies disregard advice from UFC legends I will never know.
- The coaches’ challenge is always a fun time, and this time it was a kayak race between Frankie Edgar and the Hawaiian, Penn. Naturally, Penn took the contest, but it was entertaining nonetheless.
- One good note from the coaches’ challenge is the respect shown from Penn to Edgar. Chael Sonnen was recently featured in a video about his rivalry with Anderson Silva, and he said that once a fighter beats you twice you have to shut up. Penn never talked trash to Edgar, but it is clear that the New Jersey native has his utmost respect after two fights.
- King suffered an eye poke in the fight and he, fought through it. He clearly could not see out of the eye, but he continued on. It was not the smartest decision perhaps, but it showed that this meant a lot to him.
The Bad
- Round 1 was not very good. A lot of single punches, and the majority of those were errant. Nothing notable happened.
- When the doctor checked on King’s eye, he didn’t seem to do a thorough job. Editing may have played a role in how it appeared, but King asked him about the eye and all the viewers heard was, “It looks OK.” Not exactly a vote of confidence. Again, perhaps the doctor deserves the benefit of the doubt due to editing.
- Round 3 was not great. As Dana White said in the talking head interview, it didn’t seem like there was urgency from either guy. Disappointing.
The Ugly
- Gordon opened the show with some classic, good ol’ fashioned sexism. Team Penn left a note for Team Edgar to clean the dishes that were garnering interest from flies, and Gordon responded that a woman must have left the note. Because, I suppose, that is what he thinks their place is in life. Give me a break.
That is it for this week. Now we turn our attention towards next Wednesday.
Matt Van Buren vs. Chris Fields will round out the light heavyweight quarterfinals, and these two don’t like one another. Perhaps we will get to see a fight with a little action.
TUF 19: Team Edgar vs. Team Penn
• Eddie Gordon vs. Mike King: Eddie Gordon def. Mike King via decision.
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