Episode 2 from The Ultimate Fighter: Team Edgar vs. Team Penn is in the books, and in all honesty, it wasn't super eventful. That's what happens on this show when you have a fight go the full three rounds, there's just not a ton of time for anything else. And maybe that's OK, because frankly, it doesn't seem like too much else happened. The fighters moved into the house, but no one has yet thrown their name into the hat for season's biggest toolbox, so everything seemed calm and collected. We shall see.
On to the fight:
FIGHT RESULTS: Cathal Pendred (Penn) def. Hector Urbina (Edgar), Decision (R3)
Team Penn up 1-0
Entertaining scrap between Pendred and Urbina. I'll admit, I thought Pendred would be the better fighter all around, but in round 1, this was all Urbina. He came out swinging and determined and looked very close to stopping it. I thought the upset was a given. Pendred dragged his way back into it in the 2nd, sending things to the overtime round. It's cliche to say, but in the end, that 3rd round just came down to gas and heart, and Pendred won it on the strength of his cardio. Pendred has a fair amount of hype, and though he struggled with Urbina here, that shouldn't negate that hype. Urbina has a wealth of experience, and despite some rough patches, Pendred dug deep and got the victory. Nice win for him.
One other note on the fight - Mazzagatti has problems as a ref, but I thought he handled the kneeing issues quite well. The way you can lightly brush the mat and avoid being kneed remains stupid, and though Pendred may have landed a few sketchy knees, I thought it was a good non-call. I also liked Pendred asking Maz to tell him when Urbina was not grounded and Maz essentially telling him to screw off and be responsible for that himself. Well played.
Other thoughts from this week:
- Edgar points out that the fights he had with Penn were in 2010. Which makes me ponder the passage of time. It's seriously been FOUR YEARS since they fought? That is nuts.
- Edgar mentioned this last week, and I forgot to talk about it, but he shares that he tried out for TUF 5 (the Penn vs. Pulver season) and did not make it. That was an amazing season with Nate Diaz, Gray Maynard, Joe Lauzon, Matt Wiman... interesting to consider what might have happened had Edgar been part of that.
- B.J. Penn on Cathal Pendred: "He's the only guy ever who's gotten into the house without fighting." Never let the truth get in the way of a good story B.J.
- Not a single moment of silly house drama. It's almost as if this is a show about high level athletes competing for a spot in the highest level of their profession. Crazy, isn't it?
Next week: In the LHW division, Penn chooses his #3 pick Dan Spohn (8-3) vs. Team Edgar's #4 Todd Monaghan (5-3). Smart choice from Penn there, as I like the heavy hands of Spohn to take the win. But Monaghan has a ton of fast stoppage wins on his resume, and given how suddenly he got the armbar win in his last fight, this could be a fast and furious affair. Plus, Renzo Gracie trains with Team Edgar. Cool.
See you on Wednesday.