Episode No. 10 recap: 'The Ultimate Fighter 22: Team McGregor vs. Team Faber'

Urijah Faber and Conor McGregor

Episode 10 of “The Ultimate Fighter 22: Team McGregor vs. Team Faber” opens with the fighters reflecting and the quarterfinal matchup selections.

Team Faber’s Chris Gruetzemacher is particularly disappointed because he was eliminated from the competition despite winning his opening-round matchup. Gruetzemacher is very emotional and debates walking away from the show.

Team McGregor’s Martin Svensson, who earned a submission victory on Episode No. 7, complains about damage to his arm sustained in his bout with Team Faber’s Thanh Le. After visiting a doctor, Svensson learns his elbow is broken.

Due to the significance of the injury, Svensson is unable to continue in the competition. Gruetzemacher, who will now fight Team McGregor’s Artem Lobov in a quarterfinal matchup, replaces Svensson.

Back at the “TUF” house, UFC President Dana White rewards the athletes with a pool party because of the outstanding performances in the opening round of the season.

After blowing off some steam, focus shifts to the first quarterfinal affair between Lobov and Gruetzemacher. Both fighters successfully come in under the 156-pound lightweight limit and the bout is official.

Lobov and Gruetzemacher finalize their preparation and the first of four quarterfinals is underway.

Team McGregor’s Artem Lobov (11-10-1) vs. Team McGregor’s Chris Gruetzemacher (12-1)

Round 1 – Gruetzemacher opens with a pair of leg kicks. Lobov has his hands low and chin high as Gruetzemacher nails him with a body kick. Gruetzemacher continues to pepper the leg with kicks and Lobov counters with a tight right hand. He fires a left hook that lands on Gruetzemacher. Lobov is looking to counter every time Gruetzemacher moves in to attack with his hands. Lobov lands a body punch; body kick and right hook combination. Gruetzemacher presses forward but is eating hard shots on the counter attack. Gruetzemacher looks to close the distance and clinch but lands an accidental knee to the groin. The referee briefly stops the action but Lobov is able to fight on. Gruetzemacher lands a body kick out of the break. Lobov circles the cage with his counter attacks. Gruetzemacher tries to clinch against the fence but Lobov shakes him off. Gruetzemacher initiates again from inside but can’t control Lobov for any substantial amount of time. Gruetzemacher starts to land with some of his punches and Lobov’s hands are extremely low. Gruetzemacher attacks the legs with ferocity and Lobov is showing signs of fatigue. Gruetzemacher lands numerous punches toward the end of the round and both fighters are bleeding as the horn sounds.

Round 2 – They stand toe-to-toe to begin the round with big punches being thrown from both sides. Lobov’s right hook and left uppercut are his best attacks, but he hasn’t landed a clean one in a while. Gruetzemacher stays focused on his strategy of big kicks and work from the inside. Lobov lands some big knees from in the clinch but breaks free. Gruetzemacher lands a nice knee on a ducking Lobov and continues to pressure at all times. Lobov is tired but he’s still throwing hard, crisp counters that cause Gruetzemacher to take some steps back. Lobov lands a huge right hand that briefly knocks Gruetzemacher to the ground. Gruetzemacher somehow manages to find his way back to the feet but is in big trouble. Lobov connects with another flurry and plants a right hand on Gruetzemacher’s chin that knocks him down and out.

Artem Lobov def. Chris Gruetzemacher via knockout (punch) – Round 2

Coach Conor McGregor jumps into the octagon to celebrate with his good friend and SBG Ireland teammate. Lobov becomes the first fighter to advance to the semifinal round and is one step closer to claiming a tournament victory.

The focus of the episode shifts to the second quarterfinal matchup, which will see Team McGregor’s Saul Rogers take on Team Faber’s submission ace Ryan Hall.

Both fighters successfully come in under the 156-pound lightweight limit and the bout is official. Rogers and Hall finalize their preparation and the second of four quarterfinals is underway.

Team McGregor’s Saul Rogers (10-1) vs. Team Faber’s Ryan Hall (4-1)

Round 1 – Hall opens with a stepping sidekick to the body. Rogers steps in with a powerful overhand right that’s blocked. Hall throws a high kick that just grazes Rogers’ head. Rogers responds with a kick of his own but that’s blocked as well. Hall falls to the ground off a caught kick attempt but Rogers shows zero interest in following him to the mat. Hall keeps throwing out kicks but they have little effect other than keeping Rogers at bay. Rogers lands a hard straight right to the body and moments later goes high with a shot to the head. Rogers clinches and nearly attempts a slam but Hall prevents the takedown and Rogers immediately break free and goes back to the circling the cage. Hall dives for the legs to pull guard but Rogers is able to keep distance and land a big straight right to the chin. Hall throws more kicks to the keep Rogers at bay to conclude a rather uneventful opening round.

Round 2 – Rogers starts to let his hands go to start the second frame. He’s throwing offense at a much higher rate than Hall, and with far more intensity. Hall takes advantage of that aggressiveness and initiates a takedown, but Rogers manages to land on top. Hall immediately starts to work submissions from his back, but he allows Rogers a small gap to stand back up and back away. Hall returns to his feet and shoots in with a sloppy double leg takedown. Rogers easily stuffs the takedown and makes Hall pay with a big punch that briefly buckles his legs. Hall’s right back up, though, and he dives to pull guard. Rogers isn’t having any of it and breaks free. Hall finally gets ahold of Rogers on the ground and starts to attack on the mat. He rolls over into an armbar and looks to have Rogers in a dangerous position. Rogers stays weary of his position and avoids the attempt. Hall is beginning to show desperation in his offense as he’s diving for takedowns with no set up. He gets Rogers to the ground but is stuck on the bottom. Rogers smothers Hall from top position and prevents him from setting anything up. Hall throws up his legs for a triangle choke but Rogers avoids it just before the end of the round.

Saul Rogers def. Ryan Hall via majority decision (19-19, 20-18, 20-18)

Rogers becomes the second Team McGregor fighter to advance to the semifinal round, joining Lobov.

The next episode will see the final two quarterfinal matchups take place when Team McGregor’s Marcin Wrzosek meets Team McGregor’s David Teymur and Team McGregor’s Abner Lloveras faces Team Faber’s Julian Erosa.

Also see:

• Episode No. 1 recap: ‘The Ultimate Fighter 22: Team McGregor vs. Team Faber’
• Episode No. 2 recap: ‘The Ultimate Fighter 22: Team McGregor vs. Team Faber’
• Episode No. 3 recap: ‘The Ultimate Fighter 22: Team McGregor vs. Team Faber’
• Episode No. 4 recap: ‘The Ultimate Fighter 22: Team McGregor vs. Team Faber’
• Episode No. 5 recap: ‘The Ultimate Fighter 22: Team McGregor vs. Team Faber’
• Episode No. 6 recap: ‘The Ultimate Fighter 22: Team McGregor vs. Team Faber’
• Episode No. 7 recap: ‘The Ultimate Fighter 22: Team McGregor vs. Team Faber’
• Episode No. 8 recap: ‘The Ultimate Fighter 22: Team McGregor vs. Team Faber’
• Episode No. 9 recap: ‘The Ultimate Fighter 22: Team McGregor vs. Team Faber’

Catch new episodes of “The Ultimate Fighter 22: Team McGregor vs. Team Faber” every Wednesday at 10 p.m. ET on FOX Sports 1. MMAjunkie recaps each episode of the reality series.