TUFinale

So the finals for TUF3 have been set. I know I haven't written much on TUF3, and certainly not as much as I had hoped to. I'll blame it on being distracted. You know, schoolwork, conference presentation, something shiny. But with the finals set, and the next season set to start in August, I thought I should at least mention it.

• I was disappointed that Matt wasn't able to go further. Hopefully Tito meant it when he said he was going to take Matt under his wing. The look on Matt's face when they told him he wouldn't be fighting tells me that he really wants to do this. Judging from his fight, I don't think he's ready for the UFC, but I do think he has what it takes to eventually make it.
• I hate Ed Herman. I mean, I hated Taint Fletcher, but Ed Herman is just obnoxious. Hate to the point where I will have to seriously think about whether or not I want to order a PPV where he is fighting. Not only is he immature, obnoxious and arrogant, but he has a serious Tito complex. I can understand being disappointed that Tito didn't pick you, but Ed's determination to prove Tito wrong borders on obsession. There's hero worship, and then there's stalking. Ed needs to seriously think about what is motivating him, because getting Tito's attention and affection is probably not the best reason to fight.
• That being said, I also hate Kendall Grove. I hate 'Team Dagger', I hate his spiderwebbed head, and I hate the fact that he's a narcissistic, self-involved little child. I think the Kendalls and Eds are the reason that I didn't enjoy this season as much as the previous ones. If I want to watch children drink, throw hissy fits and act like drunken monkeys, I can watch The Real World. This is supposed to be a show about guys training to become professional fighters, but instead they choose to act like morons. Some of it is funny, but when it degrades into homophobia and headgear pissing, then the show has lost its focus. I mean, Dana won't give them televisions, but he will give them alcohol? And I'm not expecting the fighters to be teetotallers. But I don't expect them to be stumbling drunks either. They need to lay down some ground rules for the participants, because they aren't making UFC look good with their antics.
• Of all the fighters who will succeed in the UFC, my money is on Ross Pointon. That's right, Ross. I think Bisping has the chance to make it eventually (that was a great knee), but right now the man for the UFC is Ross. Why? Because he's their new Tank Abbott. Somebody drops out of a fight? Call Ross. Need some filler on an Ultimate Fight Night? Call Ross. Need to feed a guy to a new up and comer? Call Ross. I don't think Ross is going to be a UFC champ, but I think he has the potential to achieve cult fan favorite status. They just have to make sure they give him plenty of interview time. Even better would be an interview session with GSP and Ross. I smell money.
• My predictions for the finale? Unfortunately, I have to go with Ed. I think he's just a better fighter than Kendall. More importantly, I don't think the fight is going to get out of the first round. I've also got to go with Bisping. He won his fight handily, whereas Josh was on the defensive in the first round, and got the standing guillotine on a stupid mistake by Jesse.
• My biggest concern about the TUF3 Finale? That their is going to be an overabundance of filler like there was for TUF2. This is an area where Dana and UFC need to do some work. There is no reason that, on a show that features three fights that they should feature over an hour of interviews, recaps and other nonsense. If the fights aren't as long as expected, they should fill that time with dark matches. I shouldn't be able to go outside for a cigarette, go to the washroom, grab a snack and change my laundry between matches.
• As for Tito and Ken, I think the 3-1 ratio speaks for itself. Especially when you consider that Matt was also Team Punishment. Ken really didn't seem to care about anyone but himself and his fight with Tito. For me, the most telling moment was when Ken spent a training session watching 'fight tapes'. What this really meant was Ken watching his glory days in the octagon, and expecting his fighters to do the same. Tito actually seemed to care whether his fighters succeeded, and more importantly, improved.
• Of course, that final pull-apart couldn't have been more staged. But at least it made Ken out to be the asshole in this whole thing.