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By Frank Hyden, MMATorch contributor The Ultimate Fighter review
September 24, 2008
By Frank Hyden
The show starts straight into a fight. Not even an opening, just a recap of last week's show.
FIGHT 1- Wesley Murch vs. John Polakowski
ROUND 1-There's a lot of jockeying for position early. Wes gets on top and tries for a heel hook. John reverse and gets on top. They both stand and exchange on their feet. Wes takes John's back but the round ends before anything major happens. Wes hurt his shin really badly during that round. I didn't see how.
ROUND 2- They start round 2 and Wes tries a kick. As his weight moves onto his injured leg he can't handle it and buckles to the ground. The fight is stopped.
WINNER- John Polakowski by Ref Stoppage
FIGHT 2- Shane Primm vs. Sean O'Connell
ROUND 1- Sean hits a mini-slam on Shane, it doesn't appear to damage Shane too much. Shane tries for an armbar but Sean escapes. Shane hits some nice knees before they roll to the ground where Shane tries for a kimura. Shane finishes the fight with a Rear-Naked Choke
WINNER- Shane Primm by Rear-Naked Choke
FIGHT 3- Ido Pariente vs. Efrain Escudero
ROUND 1- Efrain takes him Ido down. Eventually they stand back up and Efrain shows some great trip defense. He's got excellent balance. Ido has some good takedowns but Efrain shows a great sprawl. They go to the ground and Efrain ends it with a Rear-Naked Choke.
WINNER- Efrain Escudero by Rear-Naked Choke
FIGHT 4- Ryan Lopez vs. Tom Lawlor
ROUND 1- Tom gets a quick takedown and takes Ryan's back. A Rear-Naked Choke ends it.
WINNER- Tom Lawlor by Rear-Naked Choke
FIGHT 5- Roli Delgado vs. George Roop
ROUND 1- Highlights of this fight show Frank Mir coaching George out of a choke attempt by Roli. George wins a decision.
WINNER- George Roop by Decision
FIGHT 6- Kyle Kingsbury vs. Ryan Bader
ROUND 1- Quick highlights of this fight show Ryan winning with an arm triangle.
WINNER- Ryan Bader by Arm Triangle
FIGHT 7- Charles Diaz vs. Shane Nelson
ROUND 1- Highlights show Shane winning a tough decision.
WINNER- Shane Nelson by Decision
FIGHT 8- Eliot Marshall vs. Karen Gregoryan
ROUND 1- Karen gets Eliot's back but Eliot reverses it and gets guard. There's a lot of groundfighting. Eliot's on top, then Karen's on top. They keep flip-flopping positions as the round ends.
ROUND 2- Both fighters throw some good punches. Nice exchanges. They're throwing haymakers as this turns into a slugfest. I wrote too soon as they go to the ground. Eliot gets side control but the round ends. We're going to a 3rd round.
ROUND 3- Karen on top, then Eliot on top. Eliot gets Karen's back and transitions into getting on top again. Karen reverse and gets on top but he's bleeding bigtime. His blood pours down onto Eliot's chest. The round ends.
WINNER- Karen Gregoryan by Split Decision
Eliot is not happy and neither is Frank Mir. The both seem dumbstruck by the decision. Dana White chimes in and says he also would have given the fight to Eliot. Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira says that Karen probably won because he kept coming forward and the judges reward aggression.
Dana talks with all 32 fighters and congratulates the 16 winner. He then announces that Antwain Britt broke his hand during his win last episode and can't compete. Eliot Marshall is going to take his place. Dana says all is right with the world and justice is served.
This was a pretty good show. It had some good action and another abundance of rear-naked chokes. I wouldn't call the last fight a bloodbath, like I had seen the commercials for this episode saying, but it was still enjoyable. Anytime a guy starts bleeding all over it ups the intensity of the fight. This season seems to be shaping up a pretty equal competition. No guy seemed overly dominant in his fight, at least not to the degree that he could be called the favorite. The previews for this season showed some crazy action coming up outside the octagon. We can only hope that the action inside the octagon is as entertaining.
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