The Ultimate Fighter: Team Rampage vs Team Forrest - Episode 11 Recap

By Thomas Gerbasi

CAUTION: SPOILERS INCLUDED – It’s semifinal time on The Ultimate Fighter: Team Rampage vs Team Forrest, and this week, one fighter will earn a spot in June 21st’s season finale at The Palms in Las Vegas. But who will it be, Tim Credeur or Jesse Taylor?

The situation in the first semifinal bout is an odd one, considering that not only are Credeur and Taylor good friends, but they are also teammates. And while no one can do anything about the friendship aspect, when it comes to the coaching staff, Team Forrest’s head coach, Forrest Griffin, has split his staff between the two fighters for fairness. The two combatants continue to work out together though, with Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu Black Belt Credeur even teaching Taylor how to avoid the triangle choke, an act of kindness that surprised many teammates.

But before the fight takes place, there is the little matter of the traditional coaches’ challenge. This season, UFC President Dana White has decided that a game of horse on the basketball court will determine whether Griffin or his opposing coach, Quinton ‘Rampage’ Jackson walks away with $10,000, as well as $1,000 for each fighter on the winning team. During warm-ups, it’s evident that Griffin is the favorite, yet when Rampage hits a three-pointer to double the winning team’s money to $2,000 per fighter, it appears that the gap may be closing.

Uh-uh.

Griffin goes on to rout Jackson in the challenge, finishing the game off with a slam dunk.

“End it with a knockout,” said Griffin, who was now $10,000 richer.

The fighters decided to celebrate their night out back at the house, and as Credeur put it, “it turned from the Ultimate Fighter house to Animal House in no time at all.” The craziest of the bunch was Taylor, despite the fact that he had to fight soon, yet when weigh-in time arrived, he and Credeur both made weight.

In the bout between Taylor - who was now dubbing himself “JT Money” and who even got dollar signs shaved on his head – and the more subdued Credeur, the fight was spent almost entirely on the mat, with Taylor working his ground and pound and Credeur waiting for the opening to spring one of his submissions. And though the Louisiana native had his moments, the fight belonged to Taylor, who pounded out a three round unanimous decision by scores of 30-27 and 30-26 twice and earned himself a spot in The Ultimate Fighter finale.

Next week, the second semifinal bout between Amir Sadollah and CB Dollaway takes place.

Below are the current standings…

TEAM RAMPAGE
Mike Dolce – Eliminated in week three by Jesse Taylor
Daniel Cramer 1-1 – Eliminated in the quarterfinals (week ten) by Tim Credeur
CB Dollaway 2-0
Paul Bradley – Eliminated due to medical issues
Matthew Riddle – Eliminated in week four by Tim Credeur
Gerald Harris – Eliminated in week seven by Amir Sadollah
Jeremy May – Eliminated in week six by Matt Brown
Brandon Sene – Eliminated in week five by Dante Rivera
Pat Schultz – Eliminated in week seven by Cale Yarbrough

TEAM FORREST
Tim Credeur 2-1 – Eliminated in the semifinals (week 11) by Jesse Taylor
Amir Sadollah 2-0
Jesse Taylor 3-0
Matt Brown 1-1 - Eliminated in the quarterfinals (week nine) by Amir Sadollah
Cale Yarbrough 1-1 – Eliminated in the quarterfinals (week ten) by CB Dollaway
Dante Rivera 1-1 – Eliminated in the quarterfinals (week nine) by Jesse Taylor
Nick Klein – Eliminated in week eight by CB Dollaway
Luke Zachrich – Eliminated in week six by Dan Cramer

For weekly recaps of The Ultimate Fighter, as well as fighter profiles, stay tuned to UFC.com.