TUF Coaches Solve Rivalry
There is no doubt that a big part of the night at the TUF 23 Finale was the introduction of two new fighters to the UFC.
This season men and women joined in the same house with a spot on the strawweight and light heavyweight roster on the line.
In the strawweight division, Tatiana Suarez took home the title after being picked first overall and submitting her way through the house.
Suarez got another submission to take the title as she was able to take advantage on the ground locking in a D’Arce Choke to get the win and the contract.
The light heavyweight tournament saw another top pick in Andrew Sanchez take home the title after being selected first overall and dominating throughout the show.
Sanchez did not do things as flashy after taking the fight to the ground and doing just enough to keep it on the ground against Khalil Rountree taking the unanimous decision.
Despite the focus on the two new fighters, there was one more fight that had plenty of history and plenty of hate behind it.
That was the fight between the two coaches of this season of The Ultimate Fighter and the latest strawweight title fight.
For champion Joanna Jędrzejczyk it is the most dangerous fight she has had since the first time they faced off.
She has been a truly dominant champion as she brought a new style to the women’s game with absolutely brutal technical boxing.
She has beat all challengers with that boxing and has beat up some very good women on her way to taking the title.
There was one bump in the road though as her second fight in the UFC was one of the most controversial of her career.
Against Claudia Gadelha, Jędrzejczyk was not the dominant champion she is today as the Brazilian gave her a true test.
Gadelha is one of the stronger 115 pounders and that proved to be tough for the now champion to handle.
Jędrzejczyk was consistently pushed up against the fence and brought to the ground repeatedly, where Gadelha has a heavy advantage.
The fight was a close one as Jędrzejczyk got her shots in and knocked Gadelha down showing her technical ability.
It was a tough fight to call but many had Gadelha winning with her control against the fence clinching it for some.
Two judges didn’t see it the same way and Jędrzejczyk got the split decision win.
Gadelha thought she had done enough to take the win while Jędrzejczyk thinks the same and both have made no attempt to silence themselves about their opinions.
The talk has been intense since the end of the fight as both women have continued to claim victory in the fight.
What makes things that much worse for Gadelha is that the win by Jędrzejczyk gave her the title shot against the first strawweight champion, Carla Esparza.
Jędrzejczyk won that fight and has been the title holder ever since as she has had a fairly easy time with every challenger in her way.
For Gadelha that championship shot should have been hers and the belt should also be hers as she believes she is better than Jędrzejczyk.
Throughout The Ultimate Fighter, the tension that the first fight created was clear as both coaches talked throughout the show and eventually got into a fight in the last episode.
All of that talk would be solved in the octagon though as both fighters faced off in the main event of the TUF 23 Finale.
Gadelha had her chance to prove to everyone that she has always been the better fighter while Jędrzejczyk looked to prove that everything happened the way it was supposed.
The second time the two faced off it was looking very familiar to the first time that they fought.
Gadelha controlled the fight at the start landing a big shot to put the champion on the mat and then going to her bread and butter with BJJ.
It was much the same as the first fight as Gadelha came out great in the first fight only to fall to the striking of Jędrzejczyk.
This time, she was setting a good pace through the first two rounds but that pace seemed to catch up to her in the third.
Gadelha was slowing down while the champion was getting better and quickly the lead that the challenger had built was disappearing.
By the end of the fight, Jędrzejczyk had asserted her dominance and had proven to everyone who the better fighter was.
This time around there was no controversy or close calls it was a clear-cut win for Jędrzejczyk who remained the champion and continued to clean out the division.
Gadelha still gave Jędrzejczyk a tougher test than most but to get a third fight she will need to get through a lot more fighters and prove that she is the next best fighter.
For Jędrzejczyk it is now moving onto the next challenger as she hopes to continue to clear out a division with plenty of challengers coming up in the strawweight division.
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