The second leg of a UFC triathlon of MMA fighting excellence went down Friday night from the Fight Capital of the World, fabulous Las Vegas.
Tonight, it was the finale of The Ultimate Fighter's 23rd season. And let me tell you, the two coaches this season? They don't like each other very much. Strawweight Joanna Jedrzejczyk has earned a large following for an extremely high-level muay thai game, which she pairs with swaggering gamesmanship. She's undefeated at 10-0, but her stiffest challenge to date was Claudia Gadelha. And you want to know something? Gadelha was the other TUF coach!
Jedrzejczyk escaped that fight, back in 2014, with a split decision. But she was taken down often in that fight, and it seems that experience still lingers. Gadelha has been equal and then some to the champion's intimidation tactics throughout the show, and the sparks have been flying and tantalizing all season.
Speaking of the season, the undefeated Khalil Rountree got an injury substitution and a technical knockout to make his way through the light heavyweight side of the bracket, and he'll face a tough opponent in Andrew Sanchez. On the women's strawweight side, Amanda Cooper takes on Tatiana Suarez.
There were nine other fights on the card as well, and as always, the final stat lines only reveal so much. These are the real winners and losers of the TUF 23 Finale.
For reference, full card results appear on the final slide.
