The Ultimate Fighter: Team Liddell vs. Team Ortiz

The Ultimate Fighter: Team Liddell vs. Team Ortiz (also known as The Ultimate Fighter: Team Liddell vs. Team Franklin for the final episode of the season) was the eleventh installment of the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC)-produced reality television series The Ultimate Fighter. The show began taping in early 2010^[2] and premiered on Spike on March 31, 2010.^[1] The live finale of the show is scheduled for June 19, 2010.^[3][4]

The UFC and Spike TV held open tryouts on October 26, 2009, in Los Angeles, California. The casting call went out for middleweight and light heavyweight fighters. Fighters wanting to try out for the show must have been at least 21 years old and have had a professional MMA record.^[3] 300 fighters showed up to the tryouts including UFC veterans Jason Lambert,^[5] Nick Thompson and Logan Clark,^[2] International Fight League and EliteXC veteran Wayne Cole,^[5] as well as season 1 TUF competitor and former Strikeforce light heavyweight champion Bobby Southworth.^[2] In addition to the open tryouts, the UFC also accepted applications available through its website until November 9, 2009.^[6]

During The Ultimate Fighter: Heavyweights Finale, Dana White announced that the coaches would be Tito Ortiz and Chuck Liddell. White also announced that the fighters for this season would compete in the middleweight weight class. The season will feature 28 fighters as opposed to the usual 16 or 32. The series boasts a new "wildcard" format in which the two coaches will pick two fighters who lost their preliminary bouts to face each other for the eighth spot in the quarter-finals.^[4]

Cast

Coaches

•      Team Liddell

  • Chuck Liddell
  • Howard Davis Jr.^[7]
  • Scott Epstein^[7][8]
  • John Hackleman^[7]
  • Jake Shields^[7]
  • Antonio Banuelos

•      Team Punishment^[9]

  • Tito Ortiz
  • Cleber Luciano^[10]
  • Rob McCullough^[11]
  • Saul Soliz^[12]

*In the final episode of the season, Tito Ortiz and his coaching staff are replaced by Rich Franklin and his team.

•      Team Franklin

  • Rich Franklin
  • Forrest Griffin
  • Tyson Griffin
  • Gray Maynard

Fighters

(In order in which they were picked)

• Team Liddell

• Kyle Noke, Rich Attonito, Charles Blanchard, Josh Bryant, Brad Tavares, Court McGee, Joseph Henle

• Team Punishment

• Nick Ring, Kyacey Uscola, Kris McCray, Jamie Yager, James Hammortree, Clayton McKinney, Seth Baczynski (Replaced Chris Camozzi)

• Fighters eliminated before entry round

• Seth Baczynski , Brent Cooper, Jacen Flynn, Charley Lynch, Victor O'Donnell, Norman Paraisy, Constantinos Philippou, Greg Rebello, Jordan Smith, Ben Stark, Lyle Steffens, Warren Thompson, Cleburn Walker, Woody Weatherby

• Removed due to injury

• Chris Camozzi – fractured jaw, asked to leave in Episode 3.

Episodes

Episode 1: Smashed Up

• Dana White welcomed 28 fighters to the "new and improved" UFC training facility and announced that only 14 would get to go to The Ultimate Fighter house. He also announced a format change for the season: following the first round, White and the coaches would pick two fighters who were eliminated in the first round to be wild cards. Those two wild card fighters would fight for another chance to go to the second round.
• The 28 fighters then fought to determine who would go to The Ultimate Fighter house. Elimination round matches were for two rounds. If there was a draw after two rounds, a third round would be fought.
• Jamie Yager defeated Ben Stark by knockout (head kick) at 0:26 of round 1
• Brad Tavares defeated Jordan Smith by knockout (strikes) at 0:37 of round 1
• Kris McCray defeated Cleburn Walker by TKO (shoulder injury) at 0:15 of round 1
• James Hammortree defeated Norman Paraisy by TKO (could not answer bell) at the end of round 1
• Nick Ring defeated Woody Weatherby by TKO (punches) at 2:42 of round 1
• Kyle Noke defeated Warren Thompson by unanimous decision (20–18, 20–18, 20–18)
• Court McGee defeated Seth Baczynski by unanimous decision (29–28, 29–28, 29–28)
• Chris Camozzi defeated Victor O'Donnell by unanimous decision (29–28, 29–28, 29–28)
• Kyacey Uscola defeated Brent Cooper by knockout (punches) at 0:25 of round 1
• Joseph Henle defeated Constantinos Philippou by submission (armbar) at 2:17 of round 2
• Rich Attonito defeated Lyle Steffens by unanimous decision (20–18, 20–18, 20–18)
• Josh Bryant defeated Greg Rebello by majority decision (20–18, 19–19, 20–18)
• Charles Blanchard defeated Jacen Flynn by TKO (referee stoppage) at the end of round 1
• Clayton McKinney defeated Charley Lynch by TKO (punches) at 4:07 of round 1

Episode 2: Suck it Up

• Chuck Liddell and Tito Ortiz picked teams. Dana flips a coin to decide who got the first pick. Tito got to pick the first fighter, while Chuck got to pick the first fight.
• Dana confronted Chuck about his team, believing that Liddell's picks were much weaker than Tito's due to a size and height difference between the two teams. He revealed that he and Chuck often have different assessments about fighters.
• Team Liddell chooses Kyle Noke to fight Clayton McKinney.
• Tension heated up between Jamie Yager and Clayton McKinney as Yager, Tavares and McCray used blowhorns at 3:00 a.m. and wake the other fighters.
• Clayton McKinney thought his shoulder injury was a torn rotator cuff, leading Tito to believe Clayton was mentally weak and makes a point of pushing him harder. After an MRI, the doctor wrongly diagnoses the injury as just a bone contusion, therefore painful, but not serious.
• Kyle Noke defeated Clayton McKinney by submission (triangle choke) at 2:44 of round 1.
• A visibly frustrated McKinney walked away in disappointment, but was called back by Ortiz to immediately practice triangle submission escapes. Attempting to boost the morale of McKinney and his team-mates, Ortiz reminded McKinney that he could still win a wildcard slot.

Episode 3: A Lotta Heart

• Dana White called out Chris Camozzi telling him that what he thought was just a minor tooth ache, was actually a broken jaw. Because of this injury, Camozzi was sent home. Seth Baczynski replaced him.
• Team Liddell chose Brad Tavares to fight James Hammortree.
• Tensions boiled between Jamie Yager and Nick Ring during the training session with Yager claiming that Ring was coming on strong with kicks. Yager then called him a "bitch" angering Ring.
• Brad Tavares defeated James Hammortree by unanimous decision after 3 rounds.

Episode 4: Clown Box

• Nick Ring confronted Jamie Yager for cheering for Brad Tavares during his fight with James Hammortree, despite Tavares being a member of the opposing team.
• Team Liddell chose Rich Attonito to fight Kyacey Uscola.
• Tensions rose between Jamie Yager and Kyacey Uscola when Kyacey accused Jamie of stealing his clothes.
• Rich Attonito defeated Kyacey Uscola by disqualification (Illegal Knee) at 3:36 of round 1. After a dominating first few minutes by Attonito, Uscola began to come back, but then appeared to land an illegal knee to the head of a grounded Attonito. A flattened out Attonito appeared to be unable to continue and was ruled the winner by disqualification. Immediately following the match debate ensued regarding the illegal knee, as post-fight replays and the interpretations of witnessing fighters and trainers resulted in the creation of a controversial decision. Dana White admitted that there was controversy surrounding the decision, but stated that he felt the referee had made the correct decision. After the fight, a frustrated Tito Ortiz punched a door off of its hinges on his way out of the gym.
• Attonito returned to the house and broke the news that his hand was injured and may be broken.
• Team Liddell chooses Charles Blanchard to fight Jamie Yager.
• Jamie Yager defeated Charles Blanchard by TKO (strikes) at 1:09 of round 1. Team Ortiz gains control of the matchups.

Episode 5: If It Breathes, It Bleeds

• Wildcard predictions began by the fighters and James Hammortree stated his case, because of his "controversial" decision loss to Brad Tavares.
• It was revealed that the "bruised bone" Clayton McKinney was diagnosed with was actually a ripped off labrum ligament. While describing the surgery to his housemates, McKinney tells them that the doctor had to scrape the humeral bone, put screws in it, shave the ligament and then anchor the labrum to the humeral by using the screws. Since this type of injury takes 3–6 months to heal completely, it eliminated McKinney from the wildcard race, along with Charles Blanchard who claimed that he is in no condition to beat anybody right now.
• Tito Ortiz made an apology to Clayton McKinney for making remarks about Clayton not giving 100% during the earlier team training. Clayton accepted Ortiz's apology but as Ortiz walks away, Clayton gave him the middle finger.
• Team Ortiz chooses Kris McCray to fight Josh Bryant.
• Josh Bryant defeated Kris McCray by unanimous decision after 3 rounds. Team Liddell regained control of the matchups.

Episode 6: Did Your Dizzle

• Uscola expressed concern that Ortiz's training methods were "too rough," believing they caused McCray's loss. His teammates, including McCray, however, thought otherwise.
• Team Liddell swept Team Ortiz in dodgeball to win this year's Coach Challenge.
• Team Liddell chose Court McGee to fight Nick Ring.
• James Hammortree was sent to the hospital after being thrown by McCray and later revealed it may be a slipped disk.
• Nick Ring defeated Court McGee by majority decision after 2 rounds. Team Ortiz regains control of the matchups.
• Liddell didn't agree with the decision and showed anger and disdain towards Dana White and other people in attendance.

Episode 7: Coming for Blood

• Nick Ring expressed concern about a possible re-occurrence of a three year old knee injury.
• Seth Baczynski defeated Joseph Henle via unanimous decision after three rounds.
• The wildcards were announced as Kyacey Uscola and Kris McCray.
• As Rich Attonito had to withdraw from the competition, his spot was open. Dana White gave the slot to Court McGee, without having to fight for it, which upset Henle and Hammortree who both believed they did enough in their fights to earn either a wildcard slot or Attonito's slot.

Episode 8: Closed Mouth Don't Get Fed

• Kris McCray defeated Kyacey Uscola via submission (keylock) at 0:59 of round 2.
• The quarter final matchups were announced as:

• Nick Ring vs. Court McGee
• Kyle Noke vs. Kris McCray
• Brad Tavares vs. Seth Baczynski
• Jamie Yager vs. Josh Bryant

• Nick Ring discovers that he required his third ACL reconstruction surgery and faced the choice between fighting on and risking tearing his meniscus, or withdrawing from the competition. Ring withdrew and was replaced by James Hammortree after Hammortree ran after Dana White as he was leaving the house, stating he wanted the fight.
• Court McGee defeated James Hammortree via submission (guillotine choke standing) at 0:28 of round 2.

Episode 9: Civilized Sport

• Tito Ortiz reveals that his doctors want him to have neck surgery immediately, as Ortiz is now regularly experiencing numbness in his limbs.
• Kris McCray defeated Kyle Noke via unanimous decision after three rounds.
• Brad Tavares defeated Seth Baczynski via disqualification (illegal soccer kick) at the end of round 1. Seth Baczynski soccer kicked Tavares in the head as the buzzer went signalling the end of the first round. Tavares then faceplanted, leading Baczynski to apologise immediately. Tavares then asked "for what?" clearly not knowing what had just happened. After consulting with the doctors, Herb Dean ended the fight, declaring Tavares the winner via disqualification, which marked the second time this season that such an event occurred. The decision sparks a near-riot after Saul Soliz and Tito Ortiz claim that the soccer kick caught Tavares in the armpit. Saul Saliz claims team Liddell already got one bad decision go their way, this angered Rich Attonito who called out Saul for disrespecting him. After arguing with Joseph Henle about it, Tito Ortiz proceeded to march towards him, leading Chuck Liddell to be stand up for his fighter. Liddell was then restrained by teammates. It was later revealed by the replay that the kick landed solidly on the head.
• Liddell was pulled aside by Dana White who informed him that Ortiz had pulled out of their intended fight at UFC 115. The episode ends with Liddell walking out of the room saying "I'm going to punch him"

Episode 10: Shocked and Awed

• Josh Bryant defeated Jamie Yager via TKO (failure to answer bell) at the end of round 2. After two rounds, the judges declared the fight a draw and the fight was to go to a third round. Yager complained about not being able to see and left the octagon in an ambulance with his neck stabilized as a precaution. No substantive injuries were found in the hospital examination, however, and he was discharged in a few hours.
• Tito Ortiz is informed that he is being replaced as a coach. Ortiz at first leaves without explaining to his team, leading Dana White to have to inform them of Ortiz' withdrawal. Ortiz then explains to his team a couple of hours later at the house.
• The semi-final matchups are announced as:

• Brad Tavares vs. Court McGee
• Kris McCray vs. Josh Bryant

• Rich Franklin replaced Tito Ortiz as coach.

Episode 11: A Will to Win

For this episode, the starting credits changed to reflect Ortiz' departure and Franklin's entrance. The season was renamed "Team Liddell vs. Team Franklin." This was also a two-hour episode.

• Forrest Griffin, Tyson Griffin and Gray Maynard also come in as the assistant coaches.^[13]
• A number of fighters within the house decided to play a prank on Brad Tavares, Jamie Yager, Kris McCray and Kyle Noke in order to get revenge on a previous incident in which Tavares, Yager and McCray set off air horns in the middle of the night. This prank follows a similar structure to the original, in that it involves air horns during the early hours of the morning. This angers Tavares, who vows to get revenge.
• Court McGee defeated Brad Tavares via technical submission (rear naked choke) at 4:45 of round 3.
• Dana called the fighters to the gym where he introduces them to several members of the US Marines. The fighters spent the day training with the Marines before going back to the house and having a barbecue.
• Tavares and Yager made up a concoction of flour and beans which they began to throw out of their window at some of their housemates who were sunbathing. This eventually caused a heated confrontation between Yager and James Hammortree, followed by another confrontation between Yager and Kyacey Uscola. Yager insulted Uscola's fighting credentials and Uscola offered to fight him outside, to which Yager agreed. However, as Uscola stands outside waiting for Yager and calling him out through his window, Yager simply shuts his window and remains in his room.
• Kris McCray defeated Josh Bryant via unanimous decision after three rounds.
• After the fight, Rich Franklin jokes that he's the only undefeated coach in the history of The Ultimate Fighter.
• Court McGee and Kris McCray are announced as the season's finalists. Special mention was made of Kris McCray setting the new record for fights per season, having fought five times ("literally every Tuesday" according to Dana White).

Finale

The finale was held on June 19, 2010 in Las Vegas, Nevada.^[14]

• Middleweight bout: Court McGee vs. Kris McCray

McGee defeated McCray via submission (rear naked choke) at 3:41 of round 2 to become the Season 11 Middleweight winner of The Ultimate Fighter.

Tournament bracket

^ 1: Seth Baczynski returned, to replace an injured Chris Camozzi.
^ 2: Kyacey Uscola and Kris McCray were announced as this season's wildcards, allowing them to return despite earlier defeat in the first round.
^ 3: Court McGee replaced an injured Rich Attonito who withdrew with a hand injury
^ 4: James Hammortree replaced Nick Ring who withdrew with a knee injury

References

External links

• The Ultimate Fighter website
• Official UFC website
• The Ultimate Fighter on SpikeTV