Cardio Freak 12.13.07: The Ultimate Fighter 6 Wrap-Up

Posted by Jeremy Lambert on 12.13.2007

After 12 episodes of fights and drama and one awesome finale, The Ultimate Fighter 6 has come to an end. 411's Jeremy Lambert takes a look back at season 6 of the reality show and a look forward to where the competitors go from here!

The Ultimate Fighter 6 is in the record books. 16 fighters survived the house, their trainers, and each other and this past Saturday night, a champion was crowned.

After six seasons of this show, it has lost a bit of luster. We get fights, we get coaches arguing, and we get drunks. It's almost tiring. Still, it's hard to argue with the success of this show when it comes to breeding fighters. Forrest Griffin is the #1 Contender to Light Heavyweight Champion Quinton Jackson, Joe Stevenson will be fighting for the Lightweight title in January, Michael Bisping is a huge star in the UK, Matt Serra is the current Welterweight Champion, and Nate Diaz looks to be a top competitor in the Lightweight division. And those are just some of the winners. Lets not forget the other winners (Evans, Sanchez, Grove, and Lutter) and even guys who didn't win (Bonnar, Florian, Koscheck, Jardine, Herman, ect…). The Ultimate Fighter introduces fans to new fighters sets up the future of the UFC.

Lets take a look back on The Ultimate Fighter 6 remembering great moments, great fights, and finally seeing who will stay in the UFC and who will go.

TUF Storylines

*Joe Scarola Quits: Aftering being picked first overall by his good friend Matt Serra, Joe lost in the first round to Mac Danzig. After that, he was ready to leave the show. He felt there was no reason to stick around after losing and thinking he couldn't make it to the finals. All of Joe's bitching led to an awesome line by Matt Serra during a team training session, "I gotta go deal with a bitch, you get your sparrin on, and I'm kickin this guy the fuck off the show."

Looking back, if Joe had stayed, he could have fought Mac again in the semi-finals after Matt Arroyo pulled out with a rib injury. That's what I don't understand about guys who want to leave. Yes, you lost, everyone loses. When you're on this show, 9 out of 10 times a guy has to pull out of a fight and there's a chance you can take his place. Do I think Joe would have been mentally ready to fight Mac? I doubt it but you can bet that Serra would have pushed for him.

*Team Hughes Losing Streak: After winning the first fight, Team Hughes went on to lose 6 straight fights and Matt Hughes was on the verge of suicide. Hughes was getting pissed at his guys for not following the gameplan and just DOING MOVES! He even threatened to leave the show at one point.

I really believe that Matt Hughes thought he was the guy fighting in these fights. Comments like, "I need this win" and "You have to win this fight for me" took out the team aspect and made it all about Hughes.

In the end, Matt Hughes got two guys in the finals and Matt Serra got none and the losing streak was an afterthought.

*Grumpy Mac Danzig: After defeating Joe Scarola in the first fight of the season and receiving a ton of praise from everyone, it seemed like Mac Danzig was a lock to make it to the finals. Well, he was but there were some bumps along the way.

Mac never got along with Blake Bowman, thinking he was just a stand up comedian and not a fighter. That led to a lot of tension between the two fighters although to his credit, Mac has gone on record and said that the editors made it a lot worse than it actually was. To go with the tension with Blake, Mac thought Richie Hightower was a goof and wanted to fight him at any cost. Unfortunately, that fight never happened, mainly thanks to Richie's lack of desire to fight Mac. On top of that, many Team Serra guys didn't like Mac just because he was grumpy and different than all of them (didn't eat meat and cared about the environment).

Say what you will about his attitude but Mac proved that he was the best fighter in the house when the season ended, winning all of his fights and winning them in convincing fashion.

TUF Fights

*Best Fight: Dan Barrera vs. Ben Saunders: Episode 6

This was the first fight on the show to make it out of the first round and it didn't disappoint. In the first round, both men score knockdowns with Dan connecting with the bigger blow. Dan failed on multiple occasions to either let Ben get to his feet or pound him out on the ground and I think that cost him the round and eventually the fight. By the end of the first round, both men were a mess. The first round was razor close and I thought Dan won the round but it could have gone either way.

The second round was all Ben. He threw multiple leg kicks and combos and had Dan running to avoid shots by the middle of the round. Late in the round, the ref asked Dan if he wanted to fight anymore and at first Dan said no but then immediately said yes. The round ended and Ben easily won the round.

Almost everyone on the show thought they were going to a third and final round but that wasn't the case. Two judges scored the fight two rounds to none for Ben and he moved on in the competition. Matt Hughes was obviously upset with the decision and Dana White thought it was a bad decision as well. For their effort, Dana handed them $5,000.

*Worst Fight: Billy Miles vs. John Kolosci: Episode 3

This was honestly tough to pick as no fight was flat out boring, some were just too quick to be highly entertaining.

Billy vs. John was one of those quick fights but it was pretty boring until the ending. Basically what happened was John got a takedown, Billy reversed, Billy held John up against the cage in a seated position, John locked in a guillotine choke, Billy tapped out. Not much too it and Billy looked lost out there against John, who doesn't look to be a star in the making or anything.

*Best Knockout: Paul Georgieff vs. Troy Mandaloniz: Episode 5

I know most people loved the KO with Tommy and George and while it was awesome, I liked this one just a bit more. This was a one punch KO and everyone knew it was over when Paul hit the mat. Troy proved that his KO power was no joke in this fight and at the finale.

*Best Submission: Mac Danzig vs. Joe Scarola: Episode 1

There were plenty of submissions this season but this one stood out because Joe tapped out with just six seconds remaining in the round. To add to the drama, Matt Serra was yelling at Joe not to tap out and was pissed when he finally did. Serra believes Joe phoned it in (and he may have) but lets give Danzig credit for locking in a triangle choke and finishing as the round ended.

The Ultimate Fighter 6 Finale

*Jonathan Goulet over Paul Georgieff at 4:42 in Round One by Submission: Paul really got screwed in the booking since he was the only TUF6 competitor not to face another TUF6 competitor (Blake Bowman was injured). He actually rocked Goulet in this fight but was then taken down and submitted. Paul doesn't strike me as a guy who will make it in the UFC. He's got some talent but not enough to be a champion. He'll likely be brought back to face someone more on his level and they'll go with him from there.

*Roman Mitichyan over Dorian Price at :23 in Round One by Submission: Roman, who left the show on the first episode due to an arm injury, made quick work of Dorian. Roman proved that he has skills but Dorian is pretty much a can and a joke of a fighter.

*Ben Saunders over Dan Barrera by Decision: This was the rematch of their very good show fight. Unfortunately for fans and the competitors, it didn't live up to the hype. Dan looked like he didn't know what was going on and Ben did enough to win but didn't show anything special. Ben has a lot of charisma and made himself into a star based on that alone but his skills will have to improve if he wants to go any further. Dan has a lot of dedication but that can only carry someone so far.

*George Sotiropoulos over Billy Miles at 1:32 in Round One by Submission: Billy is another fighter that just looks lost. He looked lost against John Kolosci and he looked lost against George. I'd be happy if I never had to watch him fight again. George on the other hand showed the talent we heard about all show. He's got a great ground game and looked much better than the guy we saw on the show. George seems to have a bright future but the Welterweight Division is so deep right now that it's tough to determine how far he'll go.

*Troy Mandaloniz over Richie Hightower at 4:20 in Round One by TKO: This was a fun fight to watch just because the expectations weren't very high. Richie seems to be a lot like Josh Haynes from Season 3 where everyone knows he has no chance but he goes out there, gives it his all, and makes for an exciting fight. Troy seems to be a lot like Chris Leben from Season 1 where he just loves to stand and bang but if it goes to the ground, he's screwed (although Leben had a much improved ground game against Martin). I don't think either will be a champion but they both have potential to put on exciting fights and that counts for something.

*Jon Koppenhaver over Jared Rollins at 2:01 in Round Three by TKO: This fight was awesome. Both guys will get at least one more fight in the UFC just based on this fight alone. Rollins was in control through most of the third and Koppenhaver looked dead. Koppenhaver decided to HULK UP!, reverse Rollins into a mount, and the fight was stopped. Rollins is supposed to be a ground wizard although we have yet to see that from him. Koppenhaver has the look of a fighter but I don't think he has the skills at this point to make it. With a good camp, he could turn into a very good fighter though.

*Matt Arroyo over John Kolosci at 4:42 in Round One by Submission: Arroyo looked impressive in this fight. It's a shame he had to drop out of the semi-finals with a rib injury but what are you gonna do? He locked in a number of submissions and finally finished with an armbar. Working with Matt Serra should do nothing but great things for his already solid ground game. Kolosci on the other hand just isn't very good. I admire his heart and determination but once the fight hits the ground, he's screwed.

*Mac Danzig over Tommy Speer at 2:01 in Round One by Submission: Mac Danzig's dream finally came true. He made very short work of Tommy Speer (possibly the most dominating finale performance in six seasons) and now he'll always be known as the TUF6 Champion. Mac stated that he would be dropping to Lightweight after this fight and I like that decision. He's well-rounded with a great game and has the potential to put on exciting fights with anyone in the division. The Lightweight division already ruled, now it's just that much better. Tommy didn't put up much of a fight and was actually takendown by the smaller Danzig. He's got raw power but there are better wrestlers than him in the Welterweight division. He'll be back though and may surprise some people, myself included.

In the main event we saw Roger Huerta and Clay Guida put on a war. I'm not going to go into detail of the fight because there's already plenty of great columns talking about it and this column is more about the TUF6 cast. I would like to thank Huerta and Guida for their effort this past Saturday as they converted 5 of my friends into MMA fans. I can't wait to see these two back in the Octagon, no matter whom they face.

Do You Want to be a Fucking Fighter?

After every season of The Ultimate Fighter you can always look back and say, "That guy is going to make it" and "That guy has no shot." With a very deep Welterweight Division, how will the TUF6 alum fair in the coming years?

I think Mac and George have a bright future in the sport. Mac already has a lot of experience and a move to the Lightweight division allows him to fight people more his size. George is great on the ground and if he gets in the right camp, he could be a star in a few years.

Tommy, Ben, Matt, and Jon have potential but they all have flaws. Tommy has raw power but is no better than Josh Koscheck was on Season 1, Ben has great charisma but has game hasn't taken shape yet, Matt is another guy with a great ground game and has already taken a step in the right direction when he joined Serra's camp, and Jon has the look needs more time to develop. Out of the four, I think Matt will go the furthest.

Troy, Jared, Roman, Paul, and Richie will likely be given another fight. Troy has great power but no ground game, Jared supposedly has a ground game but we have yet to see it, Roman proved very little by submitting Dorian in record time, Paul has shown some skill but has ran into tough situations, and Richie seems to make things interesting in his fights. If Troy uses his friendship with BJ Penn to his advantage he could develop a ground game and become a threat over time. Roman trains with Karo Parisyan and Manny Gambuyrn so he's at an advantage there. Those two have the most potential out of this group.

Blake, Dan, Dorian, and John should all be finished. Blake will likely get one fight because every TUF alum gets at least one fight but I expect him to lose and be gone, Dan has great dedication but is just a boring fighter who looks lost, Dorian is a joke, and John seems like a good guy but he looks lost as well. None of them have much a shot to make it but Blake would be the best bet if you're willing to risk a little cash.

The Ultimate Fighter 7

Not much is known about this season outside of Middleweights will be featured and Light Heavyweight Champion Quinton Jackson and #1 Contender Forrest Griffin will be the coaches. The show will also be revamped.

Thank God UFC is doing something about their Middleweight division. Whoever is on this show has a real shot to already become a player in a thin division. They won't get a title shot right away but two or three wins could separate them from the bunched up middle that seems to be going nowhere.

Jackson and Griffin coaching should make for the most dynamic season yet. Some seasons have included one dynamic personality (Ortiz, Serra) but no season has included two guys who are just funny but get down to business when they need to. With Jackson and Griffin, we're likely to see great training along with great fun.

I'm not sure how they can revamp the show at this point. I'm a fan of the tournament style format where everyone has to fight. Maybe challenges will return as those tested fighters and gave coaches incentive if they won. Dana White promises that these changes will better the show and we all know that Dana White never lies.

I believe filming starts in January and the show is scheduled to air in April. That puts the Light Heavyweight division on ice until then, which sucks and shows that UFC didn't learn much from putting the Welterweight Division on ice thanks to The Ultimate Fighter 6 and the build towards Hughes vs. Serra.

And It's All Over

Thanks for joining me everyone. Feel free to send feedback either through comments or email. I'll be back next week with a regular column instead of a wrap up. Enjoy your week until then and I hope all you college kids survived finals.