The Ultimate Fighter: US vs UK - Episode Six Recap

By Thomas Gerbasi

CAUTION: SPOILERS INCLUDED – Team UK’s lead on The Ultimate Fighter: US vs UK has been trimmed to one after Dean Amasinger’s loss to Damarques Johnson, a defeat that saw Team UK coach Michael Bisping go M.I.A. Has “The Count” returned to lead his squad back to victory?

This week’s episode opens with some more bickering among members of Team US, as it’s now Jason Pierce and Cameron Dollar not getting along

“This house does so many weird things to you,” said Dollar, who feels that he’s going to get to picked to fight next. He’s right, as Bisping chooses Martin Stapleton to fight Dollar.

Before practice, Bisping talks to Amasinger and apologizes for missing his fight. As he explains, he was bothered by jet lag, and after taking a couple of sleeping pills, he overslept, missing the fight. Amasinger accepts the apology and the team gets back to business, which is preparing Stapleton for his fight.

Meanwhile, Dollar is focusing on his ground game for the bout, and admits that his standup is “terrible”. Assistant US coach Cyrille Diabate is looking to change that, and US head coach Dan Henderson is confident that his charge will get the victory, assuming he sticks to the gameplan.

Dollar admits that he’s nervous whenever he fights, but he doesn’t show it in the fight, as he fights off Stapleton’s takedown attempt, gets a takedown of his own, and then after getting his foe’s back, he sinks in a fight-ending rear naked choke at 1:38 of the first round.

“The look of shock on Bisping’s face was as nice as I expected it to be,” said Henderson.

“I was devastated for Stapes, I really was,” said Bisping. “To say I was upset would be a massive understatement.”

The US team has now evened the score, giving Henderson and the squad a bit of a confidence boost heading into the next fight. Henderson’s choice for the tie-breaking fifth bout? Team US’ Frank Lester vs Team UK’s James Wilks.

Lester is talking plenty of trash before the fight, especially attacking Wilks for being a UK native who now makes his home in California. Lester is so amped up that Henderson and Diabate have to reel him in and keep him focused for the fight.

Wilks is calm as the bout begins, and Lester bounces around the Octagon, looking to potshot. With 3:30 left, Lester hurts Wilks with a punch and looks to finish the fight on the mat, but Wilks quickly recovers and goes to work on Lester, trying to secure a submission. With two minutes left, Lester escapes and stands and the two trade power shots on the feet. The two then lock up against the fence for a spell before going back to the canvas until the bell sounds to end the round.

There’s a delay to the second round as four of Lester’s teeth got knocked out and stuck in the mouthpiece. Once the teeth are removed, the round begins, and Wilks moves in for the finish. He takes control along the fence, and after a brief flurry by Lester, Wilks gets the takedown and moves into the mount position. As Lester tries to escape, Wilks sinks in an armbar and forces Lester to tap out.

After the teams deadlocked in this week’s two bouts, the score still sees Team UK up by one, 3-2. Here’s how the teams look…

TEAM USA
WELTERWEIGHTS
Mark Miller – eliminated on episode four by Nick Osipczak
Jason Pierce
Damarques Johnson 1-0
Frank Lester – eliminated on episode six by James Wilks

LIGHTWEIGHTS
Richie Whitson
Santino DeFranco– eliminated on episode five by Andre Winner
Cameron Dollar 1-0
Jason Dent

TEAM UK
WELTERWEIGHTS
David Faulkner
Dean Amasinger – eliminated on episode five by Damarques Johnson
Nick Osipczak 1-0
James Wilks 1-0

LIGHTWEIGHTS
Ross Pearson
Martin Stapleton – eliminated on episode six by Cameron Dollar
Jeff Lawson
Andre Winner 1-0

For weekly recaps of The Ultimate Fighter, as well as fighter profiles and a blog from UK coach Michael Bisping, stay tuned to UFC.com.