Team Forrest jumped into the lead with a victory by Jesse Taylor on episode three. Will Team Rampage bounce back this week on The Ultimate Fighter: Team Rampage vs Team Forrest?
Taylor, fresh off his submission win over Mike Dolce, is ecstatic about the victory, and predicting that his success will continue, saying, “I’m here for the long run.”
Back in the house, Matt Riddle and Dante Rivera are getting into it verbally with good-natured ribbing and taunts that many in the house believe are going to escalate into full-scale warfare after a while.
Team Rampage, looking to get on the board, works hard in practice, with their coach, UFC light heavyweight boss Quinton Jackson giving just as much of himself to them.
“I’m learning a lot,” said the first-time coach. “I believe in these guys.”
With fight selection looming, returning Team Rampage member Patrick Schultz believes he will be chosen to fight Rivera. But instead, Team Forrest decides to send MMA veteran Tim Credeur into battle against the relatively inexperienced, but talented, Riddle.
Rivera wastes no time trying to get into Riddle’s head.
“I’ll bet you $500 you don’t make it out of the first round,” said Rivera. Riddle laughs off the barbs and prepares for the fight.
Credeur, 10-2 as a pro, is focused for this pivotal bout and doesn’t have any intention of going home yet.
“I’m not here for the experience, for friends, or for a fun time,” he said. “I’m here for the job.”
At the pre-fight weigh-in Credeur tries to work a little psychological warfare into the fight, but Riddle continues to smile and laugh off any attempts by his opponent to break him mentally.
And once the fight starts, there is no blowout for the veteran, as Riddle gives as good as he gets on the ground, which is seen as Credeur’s domain. It’s a fast paced bout throughout with plenty of ebb and flow to the action, but it seems like Riddle is about to pull ahead in the final round when the two exchange on the feet. Surprisingly though,Riddle doesn’t keep the fight standing; instead, he takes Credeur down, a strategy that baffles Coach Jackson, who yells for his fighter to get back up. Riddle stays on the mat though, and Credeur capitalizes, locking in an armbar that forces Riddle to tap out, leading to a great deal of disappointment from Jackson.
With the win, Team Forrest jumps ahead 2-0. Here’s how the teams now look:
TEAM RAMPAGE
Mike Dolce – Eliminated in week three by Jesse Taylor
Daniel Cramer
CB Dollaway
Paul Bradley – Eliminated due to medical issues
Matthew Riddle – Eliminated in week four by Tim Credeur
Gerald Harris
Jeremy May
Brandon Sene
Pat Schultz
TEAM FORREST
Tim Credeur 1-0
Amir Sadollah
Jesse Taylor 1-0
Matt Brown
Cale Yarbrough
Dante Rivera
Nick Klein
Luke Zachrich
