The Ultimate Fighter 9: U.S. vs. U.K. Episode 9 Recap & Review
Following all of the Pierce-induced drama on Episode 8 of this season’s Ultimate Fighter, the prospect of an exciting match up between the U.K. team’s top prospect and a wounded and weary member of Team U.S. was still somewhat appealing for the sole reason that the TV audience would finally get to see what David Faulkner—Michael Bisping’s golden boy—was really made of.
Apparently, it isn’t anything worth writing home about.
Following Jason Pierce’s forceful removable from active competition by UFC President Dana White, the slot was open for U.S. cast members Frank Lester or Mark Miller to regain entry back into the competition. After speaking to each of the fighters individually, White and the powers that be made the decision to allow the banged up and battered—yet still somewhat charismatic Frank Lester fill the void on account of his eager attitude and willingness to fight with the absence of front teeth.
Most of the fighters on the show, including those from his own team, discounted Frank on account of his mediocre skill set, his bruised exterior, and the openly discussed attributes possessed by his U.K. opponent. While not completely immune to the pressures of fighting Bisping’s favorite, Lester essentially toughed out some truly painful training sessions with U.S. coach Dan Henderson en route to his battle with the mow hawk-toting Faulkner.
Of course, an episode of TUF would not be complete without a dramatic centerpiece to anchor the episode, and this one occurred when coaches Henderson and Bisping had a civil argument over changing training times. While Henderson appeared cool and collected, even somewhat bored during the exchange, Bisping grew increasingly agitated and stand offish with Henderson’s demand to force Team U.K. to wake up early for a weak.
Damarques Johnson got his moment in the sun—again—after coach Bisping squirted him in the face with water after mistakenly believing Johnson to be responsible for what he considered to be racially-charged comments made during the coaches’ tennis match a few weeks ago. Bisping quickly apologized for the mistake, but Johnson was unwilling to accept, storming off to sulk in the parking lot outside of the training center before the final match-up was announced.
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David Faulkner—who continued to struggle with his gag-related mouthpiece issues while training for his fight with Lester—disappointed Bisping and the majority of the U.K. team with his genuinely confusing attitude following his loss. After controlling most of the first round with superior strength and clinch work, Faulkner gassed in the second and allowed Lester the chance for a come back with several unanswered punching combinations.
Faulkner declared that he would not go out to fight for the third round, much to the frustrated dismay of Bisping, who cautioned against making “the biggest mistake” of Faulkner’s life by refusing to fight a man many thought he would handily beat.
The quarterfinals are now over and the semifinals are set to commence next week as the teams stand at 4-4 following Lester’s inspiring performance against Faulkner.
By Steven T. Kelliher
ProFighting-fans.com Staff Writer
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