TUF 11 Finale Thoughts And Commentary

For an event that many were not looking foward to(I wasn't overly enthused about it), it turned out to be an event with some good fights on it.  We got to see a war between Hamill and Jardine, some subs, and some vicious GnP.  I mean what more could you ask for right?  On to the fights:

-Yager vs. Attonito:  Yager reminds me of a big bully that just wilts under the pressure once you stand up to him.  It happened on the show and happened again last night.  Yager controlled the majority of the action in the first round, but it was a wrap once that fight hit the second right.  Yager started to fade and Attonito basically imposed his will and finished him.  I was happy for Attonito since he didn't really get a fair shake while on the show since he got injured.  He won't be winning any UFC belts anytime soon though.

-Fisher vs. Siver:  I have no idea how Siver makes 155 because he's built like a tank.  After a very close first round that I awarded to Fisher, Siver just kept on coming relentlessly and I think that was the difference in the fight.  Fisher was content with countering most of the night, but Siver's high volume attack was enough to give him the decision.  It was VERY close fight, but I felt that Siver deserved to get the nod.  That's two losses in a row for Fisher, but due to his fighting style, he'll probably be giving another shot in the UFC even though Siver isn't highly ranked at all. 

-Simpson vs. Leben:  Well, the A-Train finally ran out of gas.  I wonder if he came into the fight with an injury because he's usually in shape and a lot more explosive than he was last night.  He couldn't take Leben down besides that one big slam and Leben doesn't exactly have the best takedown defense.  However, he still possesses big power and that combined with Simpson running out of gas was the death stroke for son son.  That's two in a row for Leben after losing two in a row.  Simpson is now in a difficult situation although it's only his first career loss.  He lost to the ultimate gatekeeper in Leben, which means he's gonna really have to get after it to see Zuffa push his career.

Jardine vs. Hamill:  Great fight with both fighters exhibiting a lot of heart.  I thought Jardine was doing a good job of landing some punches while ending the combo's with those devastating leg kicks that he's known for.  He basically was implementing the same game plan he had against Chuck Liddell last night.  However, in the second round Hamill became much more aggressive and basically walked thru Jardine's attacks to attack himself.  Putting Jardine in a great deal of trouble until the eye poke that was unintentional.  However, as I said last night, if that eye poke had not happened I really think Hamill would have finished Jardine because he was certainly in trouble at the moment.  That point deduction was BS, but I think Herb Dean took the POV that Jardine was in trouble and and eype poked saved him or something because he never warned Jardine or anything before taking the point.  I wonder wha the UFC will do with Jardine.  He's gotta be gone after this loss.  That's four in a row granted they are all tough guys.  Hamill will never be champion but you have to respect the way that guy fights.  I don't know if he's ever been in a boring fight.

McGee vs. McCray:  Great feel good story with McGee overcoming all that adversity to win it all.  It was a good fight as well, but McGee just seemed to be in rhythm more and certainly could control where the fight was to take place.  I didn't think he'd finish McCray but I thought he would win.  McGee strikes me as the Amir Sadollah mold in that he's a decent fighter but will not be making contender status.  However, he has two things going for him that Sadollah doesn't.  He's more experienced and has wrestling in his arsenal. 

Browne vs. McSweeney:  Browne is a big ol boy and I liked the way he fought.  McSweeney did a good job of moving in and out of Browne's range at first but Browne eventually clipped him and that was pretty much it.  The most impressive thing was the way that Browne really went for the finish once he had McSweeney mounted.  That GnP was pretty vicious.      


Overall it was a pretty good show although the majority of the fights were ultimate kickboxing affairs.