The 11th episode of “The Ultimate Fighter” Season 31 aired tonight and we got to see Louisiana native UFC veteran Kurt Holobaugh square off with his friend, teammate, and roommate Jason “The Kid” Knight in a fight that was supposed to happen over a decade ago on the regional scene of the bayou.
For the second time in the semi finals two Team Chandler lightweights who shared a room, swapped stories, trained together, and became friends had to handle their business in the octagon for a spot in the finale. I don’t know how I would have handled fighting someone I grew close to on the show. Hunter was the bantamweight who I built the greatest relationship with and it definitely would have been a challenge to put the friendship aside and fight him but that’s not how the cookie crumbled for me so I was happy I didn’t have to deal with that. For Jason and Kurt, however, it seemed like something they were both excited about and was a fight that had over a decade of history that was finally coming to fruition.This week also featured the traditional coaches challenge competition that put the pressure on the coaches instead of the fighters. The UFC had very tight lips around what the challenge was going to be this year. The fighters were excited because our lives had predominantly only been spent at the UFC Apex training facility, the house, and a couple of trips to the UFC PI. Outside of that, many of us had not been anywhere else in nearly six weeks. When the UFC vans pulled up to the Apex for the challenge, a lot of the fighters joked around about how we were right back to the place we were at everyday for training so it was a little bit of a let down. Up until the doors opened, no one knew exactly what was going to happen so when we walked into the Apex and saw the ice baths it was a surprise to us all.
The editing team did a really good job of making the competition look legitimate but the reality was that the entire challenge was kind of a mess from the beginning. The questions appeared on a tv monitor directly behind where the fighters were sitting during the competition and it was hard for Chandler and McGregor to read from so far away. Whoever put together the power point with the questions/answers also fumbled because a few of the questions showed the answer on the same screen as the questions. The craziest part about the entire challenge was the amount of time the coaches spent in the ice bath. Between the various fumbles from production, I would estimate that those guys were in that bath for damn near 45 minutes. When they got out, Connor’s body looked like it had been eaten by a lobster. He had red spots all over and it took both coaches some time wrapped in blankets before their temperatures returned to normal ranges.
Before Kurt and Jason settled the bracket and got into the cage, both guys were given an opportunity to call home to touch base with their loved ones. Being a father is a job that none of the guys on the show took lightly, so I wasn’t surprised to see Kurt get emotional when he saw his wife and kids. Six weeks without contact is a hard enough thing as it is. Coupled on top of that the stresses that come with the format and nature of the show, to say we were all ready to go home by this time in the season would be a degrading understatement to say the least.
Tonight was the first time I got to see the fight as well. On the actual show, I was in the back during this fight and was coming out next for mine. I didn’t get to see it but when it ended and I heard the results, I had a swirl of emotions as my heart hurt for Jason while I was happy and excited for Kurt. This television program isn’t natural, not in any way I’ve ever experienced as a fighter. The relationships you build and the reality that only one man can walk away the winner of this competition makes the entirety of this whole experience the circus that it was. As you all probably saw, Kurt was on fire that night. His right hand landed clean time and time again and his tight boxing from within the pocket was giving Jason fits from the opening bell. I also felt like Jason needed to get on his bicycle a little bit and move his feet because every time these two collided it seemed like Kurt was getting the better end of the crash. The nature of the semi finals fights where both Team Chandler fighters fought each other also made this one hard to watch. The defining silence of the room made every shot seem that much louder, every thud that much more real. In the end, Kurt earned his victory and put Jason away and is moving on to the finals to fight Austin. Jason’s fought better fights. I’ve seen them. But in that cage, on this night, Kurt proved to be the superior fighter and I’m excited to see those two guys collide in the finale.
Next Week, my semi finals fight with Ricco will air and be the final episode of the season. I’m excited to watch it with you all and be able to talk about the experience without having to curate what I say and when I say it. If you’ve gotten this far, I appreciate you following along. Until next time,
Cody “The Renegade” Gibson
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