TUF 14 Finale Review: "The Count" beats down "Mayhem"

Capping off one of the best seasons of The Ultimate Fighter in terms of fights, The Ultimate Fighter 14 Finale took place in Las Vegas and two new TUF Champions were crowned and for the first time in nine seasons the coaches fought on the live broadcast.

Coaches Michael Bisping and Jason “Mayhem” Miller had a grudge heading into their matchup, but it was Bisping who dominated the fight and won in one sided fashion.

Bisping used his crisp, technical standup to pick apart “Mayhem” on the feet, hitting him with solid jabs and brutal body shots. The punches battered and tired “Mayhem” who showed a lot of heart, but it was evident that “Mayhem” is not on the Brit's level. Bisping picked his shots and the fight was mercifully stopped at 3:34 of the third round, giving Bisping a TKO victory.

With the victory, Bisping now has four straight wins and is making a case for a Middleweight Championship fight. With only three loses in his career to highly ranked and legendary fighters Rashad Evans, Dan Henderson, and Wanderlei Silva, Bisping continues to prove he is the real deal and should no longer be underrated.

Opponent's can no longer underestimate Bisping and try to use him as a stepping stone, because he has proven time and time again that he is the complete package. While he may not have one punch knockout power, Bisping has top-level technical standup and is able to pick apart and score points on the feet. His cardio is outstanding and I believe he deserves a top ranked Middleweight contender in his next fight to see how close he truly is for a shot against Anderson Silva.

For Jason “Mayhem” Miller, this was not a good performance, what so ever. After a good first round, “Mayhem” fought the rest of the fight utterly exhausted. Most likely the reason for his poor performance was the combination of ring rust, from not competing in MMA for over a year, plus the fact that it was his first time fighting in the UFC since 2005.

We have seen it millions of times, that fighters no matter how talented and skilled they are, usually fall flat in their UFC debut. “Mayhem” only fought in the UFC once before in 2005 when he was a young fighter and never again, so I'm confident this played a role in how he fought, because “Mayhem” is a much better fighter than what he showed in the fight tonight.

For the contestants on the show, Diego Brandao became the first ever TUF Featherweight champion submitting Dennis Bermudez at 4:51 of the first round via armbar submission.

This fight was possibly the best round of MMA of the year, as it was back and forth. Diego came out in his typical headhunter fashion, looking to knock Bermudez out with one of his powerful haymakers, and actually caught and dropped Bermudez in the first couple minutes. However, Bermudez recovered nicely and towards the end of the round, turned the tides and dropped Diego, landing some vicious ground and pound. Diego looked to be in bad shape, but Bermudez got careless and cocky and left his arm free, and Diego snatched it, flipped over, rolled his hips and yanked on the arm, until Bermudez tapped. The finish was quick and out of no where, proving that a beautiful well-timed submission can be just as magical as a one punch knockout.

In the Bantamweight devision, John Dodson made quick work of T.J. Dillashaw defeating him at 1:54 of the first round via TKO. With the victory, Dodson became the first ever TUF Bantamweight champion.

Dodson was not only the smallest man in the house, but is also a fighter who throughout his career, competed at Flyweight (125 lbs.). However, Dodson proved throughout the season, that he is quick and powerful and used his speed to his advantage, with two first round finishes. Dynamic, quick, and exciting, Dodson who has trained at Jackson's MMA for 10 years, has a bright future and is a fighter I look forward to seeing compete, heading forward.

This season of The Ultimate Fighter was one of the best in the show's history. The UFC gained a lot of exposure for their newest weight classes and showcased a lot of talent who will stock those devisions up in the future. Fighters such as Johnny Bedford and Bryan Caraway are talented competitors and will be mainstay's in the UFC for years to come.