‘TUF 11’ episode 10 recap
The highly anticipated 10th episode of “The Ultimate Fighter 11” opens up with Chuck Liddell still processing the news that…
The highly anticipated 10th episode of “The Ultimate Fighter 11” opens up with Chuck Liddell still processing the news that his opposing “TUF” coach, Tito Ortiz, was dropping out the pair’s planned UFC 115 matchup.
Liddell is furious, and he tells UFC president Dana White that he predicted that Ortiz would pull out. Liddell says Ortiz shouldn’t be allowed to fight in the UFC again.
Back at the house, Team Ortiz’s Jamie Yageris preparing himself. Yager says he doesn’t believe that Team Liddell’s Josh Bryant will simply quit, but “There’s no cardio in the chin.”
JOSH BRYANT (Team Liddell) VS. JAMIE YAGER (Team Ortiz)
Referee Steve Mazzagatti calls the action after some last-minute advice to the fighters from both coaches. After two rounds, White enters the cage to announce the fight is a draw through two frames and will need a “sudden victory” third frame.
Yager’s body language is not good in the corner, and as he slumps on his stool, he tells his corner that he can’t see. Mazzagatti waves off the fight, and Ortiz looks beside himself.
Liddell comes in to celebrate and can’t refrain from drawing the connection between Yager’s refusal to continue and Ortiz’s withdrawal from the coaches’ fight.
* Josh Bryant def. Jamie Yager via TKO (refused to answer bell) – Round 2, 5:00
Yager is helped from the cage, while White apologizes to Liddell for doubting his team selection at the beginning of the season. White is thrilled at the action in the cage. Ortiz isn’t, and he suggests Yager is heartless.
Yager heads off to the hospital for assessment, and White pulls Ortiz from the locker room for a chat. The UFC exec tells Ortiz he’s got a doctor’s appointment set up for the former champ the following day. Ortiz seems on board with the call, and he says he appreciates the recommendation.
He disagrees with what comes
Ortiz appears truly shocked by the decision, but White says he had little choice in the matter. With the unique situation of a coach pulling out of the fight, White felt he had to make another matchup for Liddell. Ortiz is visibly shaken, but he doesn’t protest too much.
Ortiz is obviously emotional as he leaves the UFC Training Center. He walks right by his team’s van, and the fighters are left to wonder exactly what is going on as Ortiz hops in his car and drives away.
Despite the drama, there’s still some business to tend to at the gym, and the semifinal matchups are announced the following morning. In semifinal No. 1, Team Liddell partners Brad Tavares and Court McGee are matched up, while the second fight sees McCray face Bryant.
Now all that’s left is to determine who will coach McCray. The answer comes shortly after, and the former Team Ortiz is introduced to their new head coach: former UFC middleweight champion Rich Franklin.