As a reminder Team Sonnen scored the first victory on the last episode and they picked Uriah Hall to fight Adam Cella next.
The episode opens with Cella and Hall talking and Cella says to Hall they may end up having the most exciting fight of the season because they both like to stand.
Team Jones is shown standing around questioning the match-up of why Team Sonnen chose Hall to fight Cella.
Team Sonnen is seen driving in the van discussing Bubba McDaniel (Team Jones) calling out Kevin Casey (Team Sonnen) in the last episode. They realize it was Team Sonnen’s way of trying to regain some control after losing the first fight.
The next scene shows Casey talking to McDaniel about him calling him out. Casey says the fight will eventually happen but it’s not the best move for his first fight. McDaniel doesn’t like this and thinks Casey is ducking him.
Josh Samman of Team Jones got under the skin of Uriah Hall while the guys were sitting outside talking. He made a comment that Hall didn’t like and Hall says he thinks he will call him out after his fight with Cella.
Coach Sonnen said it’s no secret Hall is the best athlete on the team and he outworks everyone. He also said that Hall can sometimes be his own worst enemy because of the “heat” he puts on himself.
The next scene shows Hall getting pissed off after getting caught in an armbar by Kevin Casey while sparring. He seemed to take it personal and he wanted to keep rolling, while Casey said he was done and thought it’d be better if he let the situation cool down.
This episode contained one of the most touching moments I remember seeing in the 17 seasons of The Ultimate Fighter and it was a conversation between Uriah Hall and his coach Chael Sonnen.
Hall asked Sonnen his advice on how to deal with those moments when self-doubt and negative self-talk creep in, and to hear Sonnen’s advice to Hall and his ability to relate to him and explain how he dealt with the same thing in his own career was quite poignant.
UFC President Dana White said if there’s one guy he would pick to go all the way this season it would be Hall. He also said, “Where the hell has this guy been and why haven’t we heard of him?”
After the weigh-ins and the night before the fight Coach Jon Jones came by the house and had a team cookout. Jones sat around with his team outside and asked each of them what being in the UFC would mean to them.
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Uriah Hall (Team Sonnen) vs. Adam Cella (Team Jones)
Round 1 – Touch gloves. Leg kick Hall. Jab from Cella, he shoots. Stuffed. Thai plum from Hall, lands a couple knees. One two Cella. They trade punches. Hall catches a kick and puts Cella on his back. Inside his full guard Hall works a little ground and pound before standing up. Cella gets up and they square up. Left hand, front kick knocks Cella down. He gets up. Sonnen wants the jab. Hall slips a big punch. One two Cella. Hall catches a body kick and dumps him. Cella gets up. Leg kick from Hall. Jab. Body kick Cella. Hall gives a double kick, low then high. He knocks Cella down with a front kick. Cella gets up, brief clinch. Nice body shot from Cella, left hook. Leg kick Hall. Front kick Cella. Hall with a couple leg kicks. Jab from Hall. Jab Cella. Jab from Hall. Spinning back kick to the face from Hall connects perfectly and Cella goes down and is out cold. There’s a lot of concern from Hall and his coaches as well as the other fighters as Cella is tended to and is not waking up. After the commercial Cella wakes up but doesn’t remember a thing, which is what happens when you get KO’d if you didn’t know.
OFFICIAL RESULT: Uriah Hall def. Adam Cella by knockout (spinning back kick) Rd 1
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White says after the fight it was one of the nastiest knockouts he’s ever seen in the fight business, much less on The Ultimate Fighter. Hall’s teammates congratulate him and concede that he almost certainly will win the $25,000 knockout of the season.
Referee Steve Mazzagatti comes into the dressing room and tells the guys not to worry about Adam that he will be okay, his memory will come back in the next hour or so and he’s headed to the hospital for a CAT-scan.
Jones is with Cella at the hospital and Coach Sonnen announces the next fight. Kevin Casey of Team Sonnen will fight Collin Hart of Team Jones. Bubba McDaniel was pissed. Sonnen said he believes Casey and McDaniel will eventually fight but for strategic reasons they picked Hart.