Here we go again, one more week in the books. As we approach the end of the season I hope everyone has enjoyed my perspective of the episodes.

We got to see Chuck win the wild card fight last week and get yet another chance to prove himself. Even though he is on the other team I can’t help but cheer for the guy.

He comes in as an alternate, loses a tough first fight, wins the wild card and is back in the competition. I think he has arguably had the hardest road for many reasons and you have to respect him for that a lot.

The match-ups for this episode are Ramsey against Clay and Shamar against Cope. Both interesting match-ups and look to be good fights.

We start with a look at Ramsey facing off against Clay. After looking good in his win, Clay looks to push through his injured hand and secure a spot in the semi finals.

Ramsey was dominant in his first fight securing a rear naked choke. In an obvious contrast in styles it is going to come down to who can implement their game plan better.

Just before we get to that fight we were visited by former WEC Light Heavyweight Champ and current UFC middleweight Brian Stann.

I was honored to meet such an awesome fighter, and not to mention, man. What he has accomplished in his personal and professional career is something everyone should aspire to be like.

He gave us some very good advice on both a personal and a professional stand point. I was very happy and grateful to have him come in and spend some time with us.

In the first fight of the quarter finals, the result was much as I predicted. I felt that Ramsey’s wrestling was going to be the deciding factor in this one. Granted Clay has a good ground game, I saw the fight hitting the mat 9 times out of 10.

Once Ramsey got Clay down I felt that Clay made a choice that may have cost him the fight. In my opinion once they got down all Clay should have tried to do was to get back up and look for the knockout.

It looked to me that he was more trying to fight with Ramsey on the ground, and from rolling with him I know he is very good at controlling positions.

I may be completely wrong, I am not and expert or a coach in any way just a little of my opinion. So Ramsey takes the first fight by his second rear naked choke of the season and advances to the semi-finals.

Up next we have Shamar vs. Cope, the grudge match. It has been no secret how Shamar feels about Cope and his waking the house.

Luckily I was the first one up most mornings so never got woken up, however first thing in the morning Chris was still a lot to handle.

A back injury had been bothering Shamar for quite some time and was showcased a little on this episode. I felt like it was a pretty serious injury as Shamar is not one to complain.

He had trouble training a few days and was noticeably in pain from his back. I think it played a big factor in his inability to take the fight to the ground, but I am not dismissing how well Chris defended the takedowns.

It was a very close fight that was all stand up with some cage work as Shamar was looking for the takedowns. In the house I thought Chris had taken the first two rounds but after seeing it again I had a change of heart.

With Shamar always pressing and looking for points and not a lot of affective strikes landed I would have given the first round to Shamar. However in the second even with the pressure of Shamar I thought Chris landed much more affective striking.

I would have liked to a third round in hind sight. None the less my opinion doesn’t matter and Cope secured his place in the semi-finals with a two round decision over Shamar.

Well there you have it, the first two men through to the next round. Both entertaining fights in their own right, with one more standing and the other more of a ground battle.

Another good episode as the fights and show seem to be getting better as the show progresses. See you next week.

If you need to catch up on Ryan’s blog from previous episodes check out the archives here: Ryan McGillivray’s TUF 13  blog.

Ryan McGillivray’s TUF 13 blog will be posted on ProMMAnow.com following each Wednesday night episode of The Ultimate Fighter: Team Lesnar vs. Team dos Santos. Be sure to follow Ryan on Twitter @KidMcGillivray.

2 thoughts on “Ryan McGillivray’s TUF 13 blog – episode 8”
  1. Gotta be honest, Cope’s win was SHOCKING! Shamar’s injury must have been pretty bad cause I’ve seen that kid fight, he’s much better than that.

    looking forward to Ryan’s next fight too! I don’t care for that Tony kid.

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