TUF 10 Finale Preview: Attack of the Big Belly
Published by Jim Genia on December 3rd, 2009 in Current Events

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Based on resume alone, it was a forgone conclusion that Roy “Big Country” Nelson was going to make it to the TUF 10 finals. Consider his career path, an extensive record of unequivocal wins marred only by convincing losses to Andrei Arlovski and Josh Curran and highly-questionable losses to Jeff Monson and Ben Rothwell. With 17 bouts to his name plus an IFL championship belt, Nelson was the man before he even set foot in the TUF House, the epitome of The Ultimate Fighter 10 Finale shoe-in. Of course, he wasn’t the star of the season – the indomitable Kimbo Slice bears that “honor” – but what can you do when you have to share screen time with the most popular personality the sport has ever seen? Truly, you can only fight and win, over and over again, which The Man With The Big Belly did, defeating Kimbo and two forgettable heavyweights to earn his shot a becoming the Ultimate Fighter.

For his part, Brendan Schaub too has made the most of a TUF season centered on the Bearded One. Winning via a submission and two knockouts, one of which was over the impressive behemoth Marcus Jones, Schaub is a well-rounded Greg Jackson-trained fighter who proved to be capable and dangerous everywhere, and a fitting Ultimate Fighter candidate in his own right. Will there be fireworks in Nelson versus Schaub? Sure. Is the bout compelling? Heck no. Schaub is spry and feisty, but the The Man With The Big Belly is too experienced, and we’re likely going to be treated to one very large man lying atop another for a six-figure contract and a Lucite trophy.

Thankfully, in a season devoted to just one weight class, we get a finale with room for match-ups more interesting and worthwhile – not the least of which is ace wrestler Matt Hamill against Greco-Roman magician Jon Jones. Despite a TKO loss to Rich Franklin, Hamill has continually looked sharp and impressive, and Jones has looked absolutely unreal every time he’s stepped into the Octagon (remember his complete handling of Stephan Bonnar?). This bout has all the makings of a crowd-pleaser, and though it’s a toss-up as to who will emerge with the “W”, it should be a fun ride while it happens.

Also fun: Kimbo versus Houston Alexander, two hard-hitters with physiques like action figures and questionable chins. This 215-pound pairing has zero relevance to any rankings, it’s just pure fan-candy and an opportunity for viewers to get more Kimbo, as well as for SpikeTV to soak up more ratings (and Kimbo undeniably equals monster ratings). This one, too, is a toss-up, although the possibility exists that they’ll execute the organization’s first simultaneous knockout.

UFC lightweight contender Frankie Edgar will finally receive his reward for defeating the ultra-tough Sean Sherk. Is it a title fight? A title elimination bout? No, Edgar gets HIT Squad member Matt Veach, who’s fought in the UFC once. As this is the equivalent of an easy paycheck, expect Edgar to chew up Veach and spit him out with a referee stoppage.

If you were one of the diminishing few who stuck with TUF after it was clear Kimbo wasn’t fighting again, maybe you care about Marcus Jones versus Matt Mitrione. Or maybe you don’t. Either way, we get another bout, this one featuring two ex-NFLers of differing skill and likeability levels mixing it up. Jones, a superior grappler, should have little trouble getting the big-punching Mitrione down and tearing off a limb.