The TUF 27 TUFtermath
It’s time for the fifth episode of the The Ultimate Fighter’s 27th season! Daniel Cormier and his team are looking to continue their winning streak, while Stipe Miocic looks to turn the tide. Thailand Clark and Mike Trizano would be doing battle for their teams, respectively The prank war deescalates, but mind games intensify. The injury bug also pays a visit to Team Miocic. So, let’s get down to the TUF 27 business and break down this episode.
The Big Three
#1) Taking it Down a Notch – Team Cormier decided to get in one the prank action this week, taking a moment to tape over the “Un” of “Undefeated” on all the Team Miocic nameplates. Marc Montoya, One of the assistant coaches for Team Miocic was able to remove the tape before his charges came in, but it was a very mild retaliation from a team forced to see the UFC Heavyweight Championship’s genitalia.
#2) The Injury Bug Returns – Unfortunately for Team Miocic’s Suman Mokhtarian, a morning of talking smack to Team Cormier’s Tyler Diamond was followed up by an injured knee in training. Mokhtarian was lucky enough to avoid injury, thankfully. However, his training will be limited for the foreseeable future.
#3) Supreme Art of Strategy, Playing on the Mind – While Mokhtarian was getting checked out at the UFC Performance Institute, Team Cormier assistant coach Deron Winn walked in and began needling the Team Miocic member, making it clear he could see what was injured and getting into Suman’s head. In a cutaway, Cain Velasquez revealed that this was part of a greater strategy to get inside Suman Mokhtarian’s head. Team Cormier’s goal is to rile up Mokhtarian, so his emotions get the better of him before his bout with Tyler Diamond.
The Stock Report
Stock up – Mike Trizano. Trizano was able to shake the pressure of his team going 0-4 prior to his bout en route to a second round finish. He was also able to make the adjustments needed to go from a close first round to a dominant secound.
Stock down – Thailand Clark. While he was able to keep it close in the first round, even scoring a knockdown, Clark showed a fatal defensive flaw. His takedown defense against the cage would be his undoing. This is something that he will need to work on religiously if he hopes to make it to the UFC full-time.
The Fight
The first round of Mike Trizano vs. Thailand Clark was close. It was relatively even on the feet, with Clark able to score a knockdown mid-way through the stanza. Trizano would discover the weakness in Clark’s armor soon after, though, and began using takedowns against the cage to tire out his Team Cormier foe. It was a tough round to call, but looking back, I’d give it to Trizano.
The second round saw Mike Trizano take down Thailand Clark and begin to dominate. He was able to keep Trizano use submission attempts and ground strikes wear down Clark and force the stoppage near the end of the round. The second round TKO finish for Trizano gave Team Miocic their first win of the season.
Next week, Team Miocic will look to continue their winning ways as Suman Mokhtarian takes on Team Cormier’s Ricky Steele. Keep it locked to MMASucka.com for the next TUFtermath!
