The Ultimate Fighter: Liddell vs. Ortiz Episode 8 Recap

We’re deep in the eleventh season of “The Ultimate Fighter” now, and the field has really thinned out.  Last week, we saw Seth Baczynski defeat Joe Henle, while Nick Ring appeared to have a problem with recurring knee injuries.  This week, we will see Kyacey Uscola and Kris McCray duel it out in a wildcard matchup, which is a new wrinkle added to the show this time around that gives fighters who lose a glimpse of hope.  Only a glimpse, though!  A flash, really.

We open with a Hallmark moment, as Kyacey Uscola makes a call home to find out that his son, Charles has been born.  No time for tears, though, as Uscola hangs up the phone and gets right back to getting ready to kick some ass.  McCray lists off all of the areas where Uscola is better, prompting my brother Chris to wonder aloud: “So, how are you gonna beat him?”  Good question.  Tito, who coaches both fighters, says he will be “on the bleachers” and won’t say anything.  We’re getting right into the action this time, as we’re a few minutes in and Uscola is in the cage, ready to fight.

Referee “Sugar” Steve Mazzagatti gets us started.  McCray looks aggressive and Uscola is countering, though he lands a nice leg kick.  McCray trying to find the jab, though Uscola is moving in and out of range well.  Uscola lands a really unorthodox leg kick where he uses his back leg to thrust kick the shin of McCray, and McCray winces noticeably and seizes up, allowing Uscola to close the distance for a takedown attempt.  McCray seems to recover, defending and clinching Uscola up against the cage, landing knees against his thighs in the process.  Not a lot else is happening here.

With two minutes to go, McCray lands a knee to the nards, and Mazzagatti gives a warning and restarts them standing.  McCray’s left knee is still bothering him as the two exchange punches.  He does plant on it to throw a right kick, though.  Nice leg kick from McCray, and Uscola goes back to the kick that hurt McCray.  McCray in for a takedown attempt, Uscola tosses him aside, but McCray stands and eats a knee in the process.  McCray still looking aggressive, picks up Uscola, slams him and ends up in side mount.  He quickly mounts, and Uscola goes to his hands and knees as McCray works for position and throws some strikes.  Uscola is on his moving around, trying to stick it out as the round ends and McCray makes his life as uncomfortable as possible.  10-9 McCray for sure.

As the second round starts, Uscola swings wildly, misses and clinches against the cage.  McCray makes space for an uppercut, circles away from the fence and picks up Uscola, slamming him to the mat.  McCray’s in side mount and working on an Americana, which has Uscola in obvious pain.  He finally taps after several seconds of McCray cranking it.  McCray’s cardio looked a lot better this go round, though it was only about a six-minute fight.  It’s unfortunate for Uscola, who is a veteran fighter who went 0-2 on the show.  “I don’t mind losing, but it was just a shitty performance,” says Uscola.

Now, the coaches and Dana White are making matchups.  “Who are the best four fighters here?” asks White.  Liddell stutters and stammers that he doesn’t know, and after Ortiz gives his opinion, Liddell disagrees with him.  Liddell’s like the dude who “doesn’t care” where everyone eats, then disagrees with the suggestions that others come up with.  Ortiz wants Nick Ring and Court McGee to face off again, saying that it will help to decide the real winner.  Liddell doesn’t like that Ortiz is getting what he wants, and White is perfectly playing the role of the parent with two bickering kids.

White announces the matchups: Nick Ring will face Court McGee (“For once, Dana agreed with me,” Tito says.  “I didn’t want Tito to win anything,” Liddell humorously says).  We also get Kyle Noke vs. Kris McCray, Brad Tavares vs. Seth Baczynski and Jamie Yager vs. Josh Bryant.  Jamie’s Afro only makes the height advantage even more “definitive” (c) Mike Goldberg.  Later that night, Forrest Griffin shows up in a trenchcoat with UFC Undisputed 2010 for a cheap plug night of gaming for the guys.  The next few minutes are a commercial for the game, as each fighter adds there two cents on what has improved about the game.  And what do you know?  It comes out next week!  Griffin is rocking a sweet beard, by the way.

Ring goes to the doctor to get his knee looked at, and the doctor tells him that he will eventually need a third ACL reconstruction.  “The best case scenario is you put up with a bit of ache, you put up with a little swelling,” he says.  He also adds that Ring could tear the meniscus or damage the bone, if he isn’t careful.  Ring has to decide whether to take the chance or “live to fight another day,” as he puts it.  As we go to commercial, White walks into the house, which is always a foreboding sign.

Alright, so White walks in and says he’s looking for Ring.  He takes him outside, and asks about whether the injury was pre-existing.  White wants to know whether Ring is actually going to fight.  Ring says that he doesn’t have any other options but going in and pulling guard.  Ring says it’s “nuts” for him to continue, saying that he doesn’t think that he can win a fight in his condition.  White is kind of giving him a guilt trip, in my opinion.  When he becomes a pro fighter with a torn ACL, he can have a valid opinion on this kind of issue.

White’s not sure who will fight, but he tells the guys that he will talk to Ortiz and Liddell.  Henle is optimistic, as there are several people who have injuries that are eliminated already, and he figures that the opportunity is pretty much his.  As he leaves, the camera pans over to the sign next to the door that quotes White’s infamous “Do You Want to Be a F**king Fighter?”  M’kay.  James Hammortree walks outside and tells White that he wants to be the guy, and White says he’s got it.  You can guess how Henle feels about that.  Henle correctly states that if he had known it would have made a difference, he would have gone out there and told White that he wanted to fight (and choked Hammortree out on the way).  Of course, White said that it would be decided between himself and the coaches, so how would he know different?  Yager sums it all up with, “Closed mouth don’t get fed!”

The weigh-in is rushed through, as it should be, and we get our “fighters gettin’ ready to fight” montage.  Hammortree wants to stay standing and test the waters there.  McGee feels that Hammortree will be an easier fight than Ring, and plans to “put hands on him first,” which is always a sound strategy.  During the commercials, Randy Couture tells me that I need to stop being a “princess” and order a “home gym” that attaches to any doorway in my home.  That’s how champions train!

Back in the cage, our referee is “Handy” Herb Dean.  The two feel each other out, with McGee half-heartedly trying for a takedown, then backing off and standing with Hammortree again.  Hammortree blocks a kick and moves out of range of some strikes from McGee, who is the much more active fighter early on.  Hammortree is mostly countering, but lands a leg kick that McGee catches, using it to get Hammortree’s back from a standing position.  He switches to a single leg takedown, gets it, but Hammortree stands and turns away from McGee, throwing a couple of punches that don’t land.  McGee with a leg kick.

Hammortree gets more active with his punches and lands a jab, then a left hook in a later exchange.  Ortiz keeps asking for double jabs, but Hammortree is usually leading with his right.  He does land a nice 1-2, as McGee clinches and gets a takedown right afterward.  Hammortree uses the cage to stand and McGee almost takes his back for a choke, but Hammortree escapes.  McGee lands a body kick.  McGee lands a jab, goes for a takedown that Hammortree defends and then tries for a double, but Hammortree gets away and creates distance again.  Now Hammortree gets underhooks and takes down McGee, who stands up and goes for a double leg takedown of his own.  He eventually sucks Hammortree in and puts him on his back, but isn’t able to do much before the round ends.  Pretty active round, 10-9 McGee.

McGee probes with jabs to start the second, and Hammortree comes forward with a 1-2.  he tries for a tkedown, but McGee stuffs it and goes for a standing guillotine.  Hammortree taps and then falls to the mat, as he almost passed out, apparently.  That happened really quickly.  In his recap, Ortiz says Hammortree “barely won the first round”, apparently by getting outstruck, outworked and taken down.  Liddell is pumped up at sticking it to Ortiz again.  McGee feels like he “outclassed” Hammortree, and video evidence seems to back up his claim.  White calls McGee the dark horse of the competition, though he may have a pretty good shot now that Ring is out of the competition.

Next time, we will get “shocking news” for Team Ortiz, as apparently we will finally find out what happened to Ortiz.  “Is the fight between Tito and Chuck in jeopardy?” the voice-over guy.  Apparently, he is the only person in the world who hasn’t heard that Ortiz pulled out weeks ago.  Also, the coaches squabble after a fight ends in a controversial way, with Ortiz pulling the “hold me back, hold me back” routine while staying a safe distance away from Liddell.

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Tags: Chuck Liddell, Court McGee, Dana White, James Hammortree, Kris McCray, Kyacey Uscola, The Ultimate Fighter 11, The Ultimate Fighter Liddell vs Ortiz, Tito Ortiz, UFC