Here we go again. The Ultimate Fighter is back and its 20th season looks to breath new life into the long-running MMA reality series.
TUF 20, which debuted Wednesday night on Sportsnet 360, features Gilbert Melendez and UFC lightweight champion Anthony Pettis coaching a cast of 16 fighters from the women’s strawweight (115-pound) division and it was a Canadian underdog that stole the show in episode one.
Windsor, Ont.’s Randa Markos is the lone Canadian on the show and she took on Tecia Torres in an exciting three-round tilt to open the season.
This is the first time in the show’s history where the cast is comprised completely of women–TUF 18 featured eight men and eight women that fought in two separate tournaments.
Unlike previous seasons that typically feature up-and-coming mixed martial artists, TUF 20 features 16 of the top-ranked strawweights in the sport. To assemble the cast, the UFC recruited eight women under contract with Invicta FC–an all-women’s MMA organization–and eight women through an audition process.
Watch The Ultimate Fighter 20: Team Pettis vs. Team Melendez every Wednesday at 10 p.m. EST on Sportsnet 360
Usually on TUF, coaches take turns selecting fighters onto their team and they can choose the matchups, but because the contestants on TUF 20 are already established fighters, UFC officials took a different route.
Before the teams were selected, the fighters were ranked from No. 1 to No. 16 and the opening-round bouts were set up based on those rankings.
First-round matchups:
— Carla Esparza (1) vs. Angela Hill (16)
— Joanne Calderwood (2) vs. Emily Kagan (15)
— Tecia Torres (3) vs. Randa Markos (14)
— Jessica Penne (4) vs. Lisa Ellis (13)
— Aisling Daly (5) vs. Angela Magana (12)
— Felice Herrig (6) vs. Heather Jo Clark (11)
— Rose Namajunas (7) vs. Alex Chambers (10)
— Bec Rawlings (8) vs. Justine Kish (9)
TEAM SELECTION
Melendez and Pettis didn’t know where the fighters were ranked when they chose their squads. Pettis won a coin toss and selected outgoing Invicta FC champion and tournament favourite Carla Esparza with the first selection.
Here’s what the teams ended up looking like:
Team Melendez – Tecia Torres (3), Rose Namajunas (7), Bec Rawlings (8), Heather Jo Clark (11), Angela Magana (12), Lisa Ellis (13), Emily Kagan (15), Angela Hill (16)
Team Pettis – Carla Esparza (1), Joanne Calderwood (2), Jessica Penne (4), Aisling Daly (5), Felice Herrig (6), Justine Kish (9), Alex Chambers (10), Randa Markos (14)
Team Melendez had control of fight selection and they chose for their top pick, Tecia Torres to battle her predetermined foe Markos.
THE FIGHT
Markos didn’t take her underdog status to heart as she was aggressive from the onset. The Canadian landed some strong knees and meticulously pursued the takedown. She was able to land a trip takedown with double underhooks with two minutes remaining in the opening round, but Torres cleverly locked in an inverted triangle from the bottom. While defending the triangle, Markos landed several hard knees to the body, while Torres fired away with punches and elbows as the competitive round came to a close.
Early in the second, Markos landed another trip takedown and worked into side control. Torres regained full guard and locked in an armbar, but Markos was able to defend, scramble and regain top position before passing to full mount and landing strong ground-and-pound.
The final round was fast paced, as the two women left everything in the Octagon. After even exchanges on the feet, Markos was able to take the fight to the ground again, this time with a great throw and finished in a dominant position.
All three judges gave the final round and the fight to Markos.
“I feel awesome, I feel amazing. This is what I came here for. I told you guys I’m here to win and I showed it out there,” Markos said after her win. “Tecia’s a tough chick, but I showed my ground game is way better than her’s and all I had to do was take her to the ground.
“I’m not here to be on TV or to make friends. I’m here to win and I’m going to [expletive] win the whole thing. That’s why I’m here.”
Torres was one of the favourites to win the tournament and thought she had done enough to advance to the quarterfinals.
“It’s tough. I really thought I was coming in to be the champion, you know? It hurts really bad, but I know I’m a great fighter,” Torres said. “I said I’d fight deadly, I fight with no regrets. I felt like I fought deadly, I felt like I left everything in the ring. In the judges’ eyes she was the better fighter. I really felt like I did more. The only time I felt like I was in danger was in the second round when she was elbowing me. Besides that nothing hurt, I mean even those elbows didn’t hurt. I came to be the champ; I might not leave the champ this time, but I’ll definitely work my way up again.”
On the next episode… Scotland’s Joanne Calderwood takes on Team Melendez’s Emily Kagan.
