With a hard fought victory in the books for Raquel Pennington of Team Tate last week, Coach Cupcake and her crew placed themselves back in the lead. With that, she placed ace wrestler Josh Hill against Team Rousey’s last pick, Michael Wooten. Who will earn a slot in the semi finals? Will there be more drama? Let’s find out.

TUF 18 Report: Episode 7

We begin the episode in Team Rousey’s locker room, with everybody either consoling each other after the loss. Jessamyn Duke gives Ronda a big hug and thanks her for talking with her after her defeat, and is thanked in kind before being told to take aspirin that night. Duke gets a monologue, discussing how the even with the defeat, it’s not the end of the world, and she’ll continue to work harder with her supportive team and coaches there.

Outside, Dana White has pulled Raquel Pennington aside for a chat. They discuss how she got cut during her fight, and Dana commends her for her skills. He then advises her to be more willing to let her hands go, saying she’ll beat anybody there if she does. They part with a high five and a handshake, and we hear “Rocky” talking about how she appreciated it. Upon returning to the van, she refuses to talk about what was discussed with the UFC head honcho. We jump to Julianna Pena, who talks about her own conversation with Dana, and then reveals some jealousy in hoping that White did not give similar encouragements to her teammate, as she would be crushed if that happened.

Back at the TUF House, Shayna Baszler expounds on the effects of homesickness, and how it especially affects the fighters with children, noting that the day was Father’s Day. On cue, Ronda Rousey shows up with gifts of shaving kits for all the dads in the house, including Team Tate’s Cody Bollinger. This made the proud father of one’s day, who appreciated it especially because he wasn’t even on her team. “Rocky” then chimes in, asking if that was why “Bam Bam” was unusually quiet today, which he confirms. We also see Chris Beal and Davey Grant getting their gifts, with Beal over the moon that his gift included pictures of his son, which he had neglected to bring in order to try and avoid getting too emotional. Davey Grant’s gift also came with a picture, of the Brit and his whole family with a special message for him. After Davey thanks his coach for the thoughtful gift, we cut back to Cody Bollinger, who walks off for some alone time. He pulls pictures of his daughter and wife out of his backpack and begins to cry. He talks to the cameraman about how much he misses his family, how this competition has to be worth it so he can take a big step forward to support them. As Cody chokes up beyond words and continues to let the tears fall, we hear the sounds of the house going on around him as the segment ends.

The next morning, Roxy Modafferi and Louis Fisette are somewhat busting Josh Hill’s balls about his nickname. Hill burns Fisette back though, noting his earing and well-maintained coiffure. “Gentleman” Josh explains his nickname to them, revealing that his great uncle was none other than former WWF Tag Team Champion “Gentleman” Jerry Valiant, a member of the Valiant brothers. Roxy gives her assent to the nickname then, noting that Hill really is a Gentleman. Hill says that while he has modeled on the side in the past, is a fighter first and foremost. We transition to Team Tate making their way to their training session for the day, with the focus on Josh, keeping the model theme going with a rather stylish hat. He talks about his roots, getting into MMA at the age of 21 after growing too old for the level of competitive hockey he was at. The physical nature of the contact sport kept him interested after he was first exposed to it after trying a grappling class at a local gym in Hamilton, Ontario. The Canadian fell in love with the sport, as fighters, do, and jumped into it head-first, starting off as a professional instead of going through the amateur ranks. As we see the undefeated bantamweight working his striking in the cage with Master Thong, Coach Tate discusses Hill’s abilities, noting that his strongest asset is his ground game, and detailing her gameplan for his fight. The hard-working Steeltown resident is out to make people know his name, and feels this is his chance to do it.

It’s time for shenanigans, it seems, as blurred out pictures labelled “Edmond Rousey” are being mounted all over the UFC Training Center – revealed later to be of Dodgeball: A True Underdog Story character Fran Stalinovskovichdavidovitchsky – by Miesha Tate and her coaches. This includes up on rigging and inside the training octagon, all in an effort to make Coach Ronda “sour.” The producers pass word of this to Dana White, who comes to the Training Center himself to try and take down all of the offending images in between training sessions. He was not thrilled to have to do that, as he did not want the coaches focusing on anything other than their fighters during the show. He admitted that this was Tate trying to goad Team Rousey into losing their cool and brawling during the show, and was unsure as to whether or not he was going to need to have a conversation with Tate.

It’s time for training with Team Armbar, as we see footage of Ronda working with her fighters. The scene cuts to Anthony Guttierez, narrating over footage of how he found a picture that Dana had missed in the sauna. He describes how the image was of someone that appeared to be “half-man, half-woman, with a unibrow,” with the label “Edmond Rousey.” He then takes it over and shows it to Edmond Taverdyan, the target of the image, and after he’s finished, that fiery Armenian goes to the sauna to see for himself. Shayna Baszler recaps the situation, and narrates as we see Taverdyan leave abruptly. When looking at the image after practice, Ronda gets fired up, even going so far as to call the Armenian-unibrow linkage racist, and goes on to equate it with someone putting up pictures of Chris Beal looking like the character “Ashy Larry.” Her rant culminates in a wish that Team Tate would stop being passive-aggressive and just say their insults to their faces instead of being nice when in view, and then playing pranks and talking smack behind their backs like “pussy-ass 5 year olds.” Ronda gets an aside, talking about how she gave and kept her word that she and her team wouldn’t escalate the situation further, but that Miesha and company have not done the same. Back in the locker room, when assistant coach Marina Shafir tries to pitch retaliation, Rousey shuts her down immediately, saying, “when we give our word, it means something.”

We jump to the next Team Rousey training session, which features Ronda teaching the crew the art of core shrimping, using only ones torso to move around the mat when on your back. Michael “Wootang” Wooten finally gets to speak, and talks about how pleased he is with the training he is receiving. When doing the forwards and backwards versions of this scooting technique, we hear “Wootang” commenting on the difficulty level. As a novice grappler, I can vouch for him and tell you that yes, that kind of thing is very hard to do, and very hard to sustain. We get Coach Rousey talking about Wooten, how he is a good kid and how she wants nothing but good things for him. She also remarks how he can flip a switch and go from a goofy, fun-loving guy and change into a serious fighter in an instant. Finally, Michael Wooten gets to tell us about himself. The young man from the UK says that his background wasn’t anything special, coming from an honest family that’s supported his dreams. A Japanese jiu jitsu practitioner until the age of 16, Wooten got into mixed martial arts by choice, and then it all all spiralled out of control until he ended up on The Ultimate Fighter. As we watch Michael work with his coaches, we hear him give his assessment of Hill: One-sided wrestler who takes people down and holds them there, and he’s beat that kind of fighter before. He intends to stay mobile, circle, and try and keep the fight on the feet as best he can in order to take the win.

We return to the house on weight cut day eve, and see “Wootang” suffering his way through his 15 lbs. cut. The Brit takes epsom salt baths, alternated with wrapping himself up in blankets and towels, with countryman David Grant supporting him the whole way. It turns out to be successful, as both Wooten and his opponent, Josh Hill, make weight. The Team Rousey representative had to have the white towel broken out for him as he needed to strip down in order to make weight. After officially coming in at 136 lbs., Wooten stepped off the scale, only to have one end of the towel fall, exposing him to the entire cast and crew. Ronda laughs and covers her eyes, and then we jump to the staredown as Dana talks about his displeasure with Josh Hill’s fighting style, and his hopes that Wooten will punish him for being one dimensional. The segment ends as we hear “Wootang” tell his team, in a bizarre non-sequiter of a quote that must be preserved for posterity, “Ronda Rousey just saw my weight cut penis. Not cool.”

It’s fight day, and both men are ready to go. Hill gets talked up by his fellow Canadian, Louis Fisette and does wrestling warms ups with Team Tate assistant Ricky Lundell. Intersperesed with that, we see Wooten hitting pads. Before walking out, Ronda gives her charge some final advice, telling him to land first, keep moving, and be explosive. The Brit knows what’s at stake, and is looking forward to the most important fight of his career to date. After some final pumping up from Ricky Lundell, Josh Hill makes his way out to the cage, talking about how everybody loses at some point, but today his “0” will not go.

Michael Wooten (Team Rousey) vs. Josh Hill (Team Tate)

Michael Wooten probes with a couple of jabs at the start of the first round, only for Josh Hill to respond by rushing at the Brit with wild hooks in an effort to clinch up and get the takedown. This actually looked quite similar to when his coach was beaten by Wooten’s coach, but was not nearly as successful. “Gentleman” Josh had to settle for pushing his opponent up against the cage, despite ending up having Wooten’s back. “Wootang” was able to reverse position and stave off a takedown until about 0:46 into the round, when he leaned forward to grab a guillotine on Hill, only to be lifted up and slammed down to the mat. Wooten is somewhat active off his back, stymieing rare attempts at ground’n’pound from within his guard while trying to land shots of his own and get to his feet. Hill mostly tried to keep Wooten down. The Canadian takes the back at 1:23, but doesn’t do much with it. He throws the occassional shot, and threatens with a rear naked choke, but is fended off by Team Rousey’s last pick. The former rugby player gets back to a vertical base with 2:13 left in the round, but is still pinned against the cage. Wooten is landing the occassional knee strike, responds to a hook from the former model by impacting his patella against the Hamilton native’s cranium so hard we see his mouthguard hit the canvas. Hill hits a questionable knee at 3:19 while trying to change levels for a takedown against the cage, but Wooten shrugs it off and continues defending before catching a double collar tie and using it to try and create some separation while landing knee strikes. Hill responds with a pair of elbows before pushing his foe back up against the cage. Josh now works for a single leg, eating short elbows from Wooten before finally succeeding in returning the fight to the mat with 1:11 left in the round. “Wootang” pops back up, but has a Canadian on his back. After turning around and preventing Hill from continuing to try and press his face into the cage, Wooten finds the action halted as Herb Dean calls for a pause in order to return Hill’s mouthguard to him. The Canadian grappler continues to try for the takedown, nearly getting caught in a power guillotine attempt from Wooten with 0:49 left to go. Wooten gives it up after Hill didn’t tap, but continues to defend the takedown before forcing a brief striking exchange with 30 seconds left. The English Team Rousey rep is landing body shots while defending the Steeltown boy’s takedown attempt, and is able to land some good knees in an exchange to end the round. 10-9 round for Hill, though.

Round 2 sees “Wootang” strike back with a vengeance, leading with a jab and following up with a knee that rocks Hill against the cage. Hill survives by clinging to Wooten’s leg like a tree in a tornado and is eventually able to force the fight back up against the cage. It doesn’t last long, though, as Michael reverses position and takes Team Tate’s top grappler down to the canvas, in spite of him grabbing the cage. Wooten lands in half-guard, with “Gentleman” Josh attempting a kimura. The Brit defends and lands some hammerfists, eventually escaping only for Hill to re-guard. It doesn’t stop him though, as Wooten lands some hard ground’n’pound and works to pass guard. Michael goes for a guillotine, but that just allows Hill to get the fight to his feet and push the fight against the cage with 3:22 left in the round. Josh with some short punches from the cage-clinch, but still eating knees from Wooten. The pair finally break off from the cage at the 2:20 mark, and Wooten starts to land more shots, including a beautiful theep to the face. Wooten shoots again, with Josh Hill grabbing his neck, and gets the takedown and escape from the guillotine choke. Wooten starts up with the ground’n’pound again, landing hard strikes. Hill is rolling, trying to escape somehow and ends up with Wooten on his back. With 1:28 left, “Wootang” goes for a rear naked choke of his own, but gives it up in an effort to retain back control. Hill reverses and ends up in Wooten’s guard, trying to land punches. This continues for over a minute until the end of the round. Still, great control by Wooten for the majority of the round, 10-9 for him. All even, so let’s bring on Sudden Victory.

Round 3 starts off with Josh Hill channeling his inner Chael by attempting a sloppy spinning backfist and then defending a takedown from Michael Wooten with a great sprawl. Hill stands up with Wooten, holding onto a front headlock, and fires off a knee before the Brit escapes, lands an elbow, an sprawls out on a takedown attempt from the Team Tate fighter. Wooten brings the action back up to the feet, pushing Hill against the cage and trades knees with his Canadian foe. “Gentleman Joe” manages to pommel under and get a body lock, but “Wootang” whizzers out and avoids the takedown before getting pressed back up against the cage wall with a single leg attempt from Hill. Team Rousey’s last pick defends well, even landing short elbows to the head of Hill before reversing position. Both men now are trading knees and jockeying for position against the cage wall. Wooten, with the collar tie, exchanges patellas to the cranium with Hill before changing levels and hitting a double leg takedown against the cage. After attempting a guillotine choke, Josh is able to works his way back up the feet, and elicits a warning from referee Herb Dean as he clings to the fence in order to avoid being taken down again. At the 2:14 in the round, Hill reverses position and goes for yet another single leg attempt, eating elbows as he goes. More clinch knees from Wooten as he and “Gentleman” hand fight against the cage until Hill fires off some punches, only to have the strikes returned in kind. Both men separate with just under two minutes left, and Wooten starts pumping the jab. He lands a theep, which causes Hill to try a second spinning backfist, to far more disastrous results. Wooten takes him down as he misses, and lands some nasty ground’n’pound for the remaining 1:39. With the fight over, both men return to their corners, with the Brit earning praise for his listening skills and coachability, as well as a kiss on the cheek from Coach Rousey. Round 3 is easily Wooten’s, which I say gives him the victory 29-28. The judges agree, and “Wootang” gets his hand raised over the “one-dimensional” – as Dana White calls him – Josh Hill.

Michael Wooten def. Josh Hill via Unanimous Decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)

With the fight over, Coach Tate goes through the standard, almost robotic “good job” receiving line, not only gets a bird flipped in her face from Ronda Rousey, but also a double whammy from assistant coach Marina Shafir. As we see her congratulating Josh Hill for his effort in the fight, we hear Rousey talking about how she doesn’t know how to play the rules of “The Fake Bitch Game,” and doesn’t do it. She feels that every time the coaching staff of Team Tate smile and shake hands to her face, but talk trash and insult them behind their backs is a reflection of their poor character. She compliments Tate’s athletic abilities, but says she is a terrible person who surrounds herself with similar people, and in the end, she says, ” It’s Team Fake Nice vs. Team Real Mean. I’d rather be real.”

As Josh Hill walks away from the cage, countryman Louis Fisette is with him, consoling him. We cut to Josh, who tries to keep his composure despite suffering his first loss, and promises to be back. In the Team Rousey locker room, it’s a celebration. Wooten is happy to be able to win the fight and bring control back to his team. He says there’s no better feeling than that.

It’s time for the final quarterfinal fight picks, and Ronda makes the last preliminary matches. Peggy Morgan and Sarah Moras will do battle, and Cody Bollinger will take on Anthony Gutierrez. About the Morgan-Moras fight, Tate notes that despite Peggy’s height advantage, the two women should come in around the same weight on fight day. On the Gutierrez-Bollinger fight, Ronda feels that her last male fighter has the last amount of pressure on him, due to the high expectations on Bollinger. She says that “Sharkbait” will have to fight like he has nothing to lose, but that nobody has the right to beat him.

Well, that’s in the books. I predicted it would not be an exciting fight, and – sadly – I was right. Still, Wooten did his best to bring the fire, and that stamped his ticket to the semi-finals. Peggy Morgan versus Sarah Moras has the potential to be very interesting, because I have a feeling that Morgan doesn’t use her length to her advantage in the grappling department. Given that, I suspect that Sarah Moras – who is now my pick to win the show – will be able to bully her way in close and take the victory. One of my other finalist picks, Cody Bollinger, taking on Anthony Gutierrez should also be very interesting. “Sharkbait” is a finisher, but his professional and amateur bouts combined give him just under half the number of fights that Bollinger has. Both fights should be very exciting. There will be no TUF Report for this next episode, as it’s a recap, but we will return when the proper Episode 9 airs. Now, for the standings.

Team Tate (3-3)