The heavyweights took centre stage tonight as Season 10 of The Ultimate Fighter reality show concluded with former NFL standout Brendan Schaub falling victim to final IFL Heavyweight Champion Roy “Big Country” Nelson, who became the winner of this season’s six-figure UFC contract.
In other action on the card, Matt “The Hammer” Hamill took on undefeated striking sensation Jon “Bones” Jones, while Kevin “Kimbo Slice” Ferguson faced Houston “The Assassin” Alexander. MMARising.com has live play-by-play of the event.
TUF 10 Heavyweight Final
Roy “Big Country” Nelson vs Brendan “The Hybrid” Schaub
Round 1:
Schaub landed stiff jabs early on and shrugged off a takedown attempt. Both fighters swung wildly with punches and Schaub got the better of the exchange. Nelson took Schaub down and landed in half-guard. He worked for a keylock, but Schaub defended. Nelson moved to side-control and tried to isolate Schaub’s arms. Schaub scrambled to his feet and landed a nice combination.
Both fighters connected with powerful right hooks and an exchange of jabs followed. Big punches scored for both and Schaub backed Nelson up with a one-two. Nelson battled back with a flurry of his own and he floored Schaub with a massive overhand right. A follow-up punch on the ground was an afterthought, as Schaub was out cold.
With the emphatic victory, Nelson silences critics and becomes the winner of this season of The Ultimate Fighter.
Winner: Roy Nelson by KO (Punch) at 3:45 of round one. He improves to 14-4-0 and becomes the TUF 10 Heavyweight Winner.
Matt “The Hammer” Hamill vs Jon “Bones” Jones
Round 1:
Jones just missed with a front kick to the face early on and Hamill answered with a lead left hook. Two jabs landed for Hamill and Jones attempted more unorthodox strikes. A right hand scored for Jones and he followed with a kick, then fought off a takedown. A spinning back elbow partially landed for Jones and he drilled Hamill with kicks to the leg and head.
An emphatic slam takedown followed for Jones and he absolutely teed off with massive elbow strikes from mount. Hamill tried to block as much as possible, but Jones’s elbows were relentless. He cut Hamill on the bridge of the nose and landed more punches and elbows.
The fight then ended in extremely strange fashion, as two illegal downward elbows from Jones resulted in a timeout. He was deducted one point for the illegal strikes, but Hamill, bleeding all over the place and with a potentially broken nose and clearly separated shoulder, was unable to continue.
Since the illegal elbows were incorrectly deemed as the reason for Hamill’s inability to fight on, Jones was disqualified and Hamill took a highly controversial win. Excluding the unintentionally illegal elbows at the end, this was an incredibly impressive performance from Jones and he was robbed in this decision.
Winner: Matt Hamill by Disqualification (Illegal Elbows) at 4:03 of round one. He improves to 8-2-0.
Kevin “Kimbo Slice” Ferguson vs Houston “The Assassin” Alexander
Round 1:
Alexander circled around in the opening minute and Slice remained in the centre of the ring. This continued all the way until the 90-second mark when Alexander landed two leg kicks. The bizarre fight continued with little happening as Alexander circled around the cage. Another leg kick landed for Alexander and Slice finally countered with a right hook.
Alexander secured a clinch and threw two knees, but Slice punched his way free. Seconds later, Alexander trapped Slice in another Thai clinch and landed knees, but Slice once again escaped with punches over the top. Alexander kept his distance and landed a handful of leg kicks in the final minute. Very strange round. 10-9 Alexander.
Round 2:
A full minute went by in round two before Alexander landed two leg kicks. Slice missed with a wild uppercut and Alexander circled some more. Two leg kicks landed for Alexander and Slice answered with a stiff left jab. He took Alexander down and landed in mount, but Alexander battled to his feet.
Slice countered a kick with a big one-two that rocked Alexander and he slammed Alexander on his head with a vicious slam. Alexander survived and stood up, but was taken down again. Slice punched from mount and Alexander gave up his back. More punches landed for Slice and he went for a rear naked choke.
Slice moved back to mount and landed two punches, then took Alexander’s back again. Alexander stood up and the fighters traded punches. Slice connected with a big hook to the body and tried for a takedown at the bell. 10-8 Slice, complete domination.
Round 3:
Alexander connected with a one-two early in the final round and that set off a big exchange of power punches, with both landing. The action slowed again as Alexander became tentative. A one-two landed for Slice and Alexander answered with a flurry. A jab landed for Alexander and Slice urged him to hit him again. Slice just missed with a looping hook.
Alexander dropped Slice with a hard leg kick and landed punches as Slice stood up. Slice scored a takedown and landed hammerfists from half-guard. Slice punched the ribs of Alexander until the referee stood the exhausted fighters up. Leg kicks landed for Alexander and Slice could not find his range with counterpunches. Slice pushed forward with punches, but ate an elbow and a right hook. Extremely close round. 10-9 Alexander, barely.
Winner: Kevin Ferguson by Unanimous Decision (30-27, 29-28, 29-28) after three rounds. He improves to 4-1-0.
Frankie “The Answer” Edgar vs Matt Veach
Round 1:
Veach shot in for a takedown, but Edgar easily stuffed it. Again, Veach tried for a single-leg, but Edgar had none of it. Edgar landed two knees in a clinch and followed with a head kick, but Veach took him down. Edgar stood up and Veach violently slammed him to the mat. He took Edgar’s back, but Edgar scrambled to his feet. Veach slammed Edgar down again, but Edgar immediately stood up.
In a scramble, Edgar briefly took Veach’s back, then backed away. A liver kick from Edgar sent Veach off-balance and Edgar followed with a nice one-two. Hooks landed for both fighters and Edgar began to target the body. Stiff jabs scored for both and Veach landed a combination. Veach began to get wild with his punches and he backed away as Edgar looked to push the action. Close round. 10-9 Veach.
Round 2:
Both fighters tried for takedowns early in round two and Veach was successful in his second attempt. Edgar worked back to his feet and circled away. He landed a one-two and Veach answered with one of his own.
Edgar dropped Veach with a big right hook and pounced with hammerfists. He took Veach’s back briefly, then teed off with punches from half-guard. Veach gave up his back again and Edgar landed more punches. He quickly secured a rear naked choke and Veach was forced to submit.
Winner: Frankie Edgar by Submission (Rear Naked Choke) at 2:22 of round two. He improves to 11-1-0.