New Fighters Impress in Finale (TUF Brazil III Finale Review)
In the second fight of the day the UFC would continue to show off their growth throughout the last decade. It is still considered by some the fast growing sport in the world but others would say it has reached a plateau. It is not to say that the decline is coming or that there isn’t room for more growth but for now the UFC seems to be steadily just on the outside of the biggest sports in the world. Still they continue to try to grow and tend to use the show that got them to where they are now to do just that. The Ultimate Fighter continues to be one of the best ways for the UFC to introduce new fighters to the UFC and with the next season, TUF 20, featuring an entirely new division and ending with a title fight the show continues to grow and evolve. That includes the addition of more reality shows on the card of the UFC with international series continuing on. That would be the case in Brazil where The Ultimate Fighter is becoming a staple much like The Ultimate Fighter already is in North America. The second fight on a big day of fights would feature the third instalment of TUF Brazil and would introduce two more Brazilian fighters to the UFC. The show would bring to light just how much talent there is in Brazil as Wanderlei Silva and Chael Sonnen would coach two teams of great fighters with the four best earning a slot on the Ultimate Fighter Brazil III Finale card. The two teams on the show would be divided in a strange way as Sonnen would pick fighters that all tended to be better strikers with the hopes that he could teach them wrestling techniques that he has been teaching for a long time. Wanderlei’s team would be the opposite as he would pick fighters that tended to be BJJ experts and that preferred to fight on the ground. In the Middleweight division the striking strategy would pay off as two Team Sonnen fighters would make the finals. In one corner would be the awkward karate style of Marcio Alexandre who was nicknamed “Lyoto” because his style is so similar to Lyoto Machida. In the other corner would be the aggressive striker Warlley Alves who looked like the toughest fighter on the show. When they faced off both fighters would see the dominance that Warlley put on throughout the show on full display. From the starting bell Warlley Alves would continue to press the action and pick his spots in the fight. He would take away the awkward fighting style of “Lyoto” and put the fight where he wanted it. In the end Warlley would get the takedown in the third round and sink in a guillotine choke that would end the fight and earn him a UFC contract. Now he will move into the Middleweight division, or possibly move down in weight, and look to be a force as his dominance throughout the show and the finale are proof tha the could be the best fighter to come from TUF Brazil. The Light Heavyweight tournament would be a little more balanced as Sonnen and Wanderlei would see a fighter each move into the finals. For Wanderlei it would be Antonio Carlos Junior who would make the finals with his balanced abilities but above all his aggressive jiu jitsu game. For Team Sonnen it would be Vitor Miranda who used his smart and powerful striking to get through to the finals. Both would face off in a classic matchup as they tried to earn a contract with the UFC to become the latest to enter the UFC through TUF Brazil. The Light Heavyweight fight would be another dominant display by one fighter as Carlos Junior would completely outclass Miranda. Carlos would be able to put the fight wherever he wanted it and Vitor could do nothing to stop him from taking the fight anywhere he wanted. Throughout three rounds the Team Wanderlei product would continue to dominate and would take the win and a UFC contract. It was the second dominant performance by someone on the show and it would mark a promising future for TUF Brazil as both Warlley Alves and Antonio Carlos Junior look to be promising prospects that could make some noise in whatever weight class they decide to compete in going forward.
After two new contracts were handed out the main event would see two heavyweights looking to make an impact on the second main event fight of the day. For Fabio Maldonado it would be his first chance to make a big impact in the heavyweight division. After spending his career in the light heavyweight division Maldonado would step in for an injured Junior Dos Santos. The fight was supposed to be a big fight between two true contenders in the division with the winner taking another step closer to the heavyweight title shot. Dos Santos was supposed to face Stipe Miocic in a matchup of two top 10 opponents but a hand injury would take Dos Santos out of the fight. Instead Fabio Maldonado would step in to the fight taking on the #7 fighter in the heavyweight division in his first heavyweight fight in the UFC. Maldonado has not been the best fighter in the light heavyweight division but he has a reputation for being one of the toughest with one of the best chins in the UFC. He would take on a new challenge in facing the much heavier hitters at 265 lbs. Added to that would be the challenge of facing the technical boxer in Stipe Miocic who has knocked out tough guys before. The fight was a nothing to lose fight for Maldonado who essentially fighting on short notice to fill a spot. If Maldonado lost he would return to the light heavyweight division with a main event under his belt but if he could win it would mean a new life in the heavyweight division. The fight would not last long as the move up in weight class would prove to be a mistake for Maldonado. Miocic would immediately catch Maldonado but would not finish him right away although he would continue to stock his opponent. A few moments later Miocic would land a big right hand dropping Maldonado and Miocic would jump on the chance finishing the fight. The loss for Maldonado was a very poor showing as he will likely not be seen in the heavyweight division again as he will return to the light heavyweight division where he holds a three-fight win streak. For Miocic the win would be a great showing and a convincing win that he might not get a huge boost from with Maldonado not in the weight class. The fight that was originally schedule against Junior dos Santos may be next though and if he can win that a title shot may not be far away.
Fight Bonuses
Performance of the Night
The main event would be a quick lesson in how good Stipe Miocic’s striking is and he would earn a $50,000 bonus for showing it off and knocking out Fabio Maldonado for the first time in his career
Performance of the Night
The final fighters in The Ultimate Fighter were looking to make an impression as they went for their UFC contract and Warlley Alves would do just that earning a fight bonus for his submission win in the Middleweight finals
Fight of the Night
The Fight of the Night would be an undercard fight between Edimilson Souza and Mark Eddiva as both would earn an extra payday with a back and forth stand-up battle that would end with Souza earning the TKO victory in round 2
Fight Results
Main Event:
Stipe Miocic def. Fabio “Caipira de Aço” Maldonado
(TKO; Rd. 1)
Main Card:
Antônio “Cara de Sapato” Carlos Junior def. Vitor “Lex Luther” Miranda [TUF Brazil III Light Heavyweight Title]
(Unanimous Decision)
Warlley Alves def. Marcio “Lyoto” Alexandre Junior [TUF Brazil III Middleweight Title]
(Submission; Guillotine Choke, Rd. 3)
Demian Maia def. Alexander “Bad Boy” Yakovlev
(Unanimous Decision)
Robbie “Problems” Peralta def. Rony Jason
(Split Decision)
Undercard:
Rashid Magomedov def. Rodrigo Damm
(Unanimous Decision)
Elias “Xuxu” Silverio def. Ernest “The Mad Titan” Chavez
(Submission; Rear Naked Choke, Rd. 3)
Gasan “Cobra” Umalatov def. Paulo Thiago
(Unanimous Decision)
Edimilson “Kevin” Souza def. Mark Eddiva
(TKO; Rd. 2)
“Demente” Ricardo Abreu def. Wagner “Wagnão” Silva
(Submission; Rear Naked Choke, Rd. 2)
Marcos “Pezão” Rogério De Lim def. Richardson “Rick Monstro” Moreira
(KO; Rd. 1)
Pedro “The Young Punisher” Munhoz def. Matt “The Crowbar” Hobar
(TKO; Rd. 1)
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Main Event: James Te Huna vs. Nate “The Great” Marquardt
Notable: Soa “The Hulk” Palelei vs. Jared “The Big Show” Rosholt
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