The Ultimate Fighter 9 Episode 3

Believe it or not, both the USA and UK teams have something in common. They are both united by a common enemy: Rob Browning. From the beginning of the episode it is clear Rob Browning takes after his brother.

While most of the two teams try to relax or catch a game of basketball, Browning is on a mission to cause trouble. He quickly gets wasted and starts throwing eggs at the guys on the court. This certainly doesn’t win over any friends. Later we see him confronting several of the fighters, peeing in the shower, and trying to get people thrown out.

The most disturbing thing about this entire scene is that Rob Browning, along with three other fighters, is still officially not in the house. He has yet to fight his way into being officially a member of team USA, and is still making trouble. As a result, all of the fighters are counting on Jason Dent to rid them of the Rob Browning problem.

In their first training session, Dan Henderson makes it clear his focus will be on wrestling and ground-and-pound. He calls the UK wrestling “almost non-existent” and MMA in general in the UK “a couple years behind.” His game-plan is to get his guys to out-wrestle the UK team and overpower and overmatch them.

As team USA wraps up their session, Bisping plays his mind games, trying to get into the heads of the US fighters. Damarques Johnson especially takes offense to Bisping’s comments, constantly saying “don’t kick the dog, man.” Bisping uses the mental game as part of his strategy, and it’s proving effective.

In his training session, Bisping leads his team in a non-stop, high-octane day of training. The team works on everything, striking, wrestling, and some submission work. The team is extremely confident about their chances to win this season and to beat anyone they have to fight.

The fighters yet to make it into the house are restless. Each one is just waiting to prove they deserve to stay on the show, and that they are worthy of being in the house. Rob Browning is possibly the most confident of his skills as a fighter, even though he has never fought at 155 (135 being his normal fight weight).

Frank Lester vs. Kiel Reed

(Welterweight)

Both fighters stand and box for the first minute, but Kiel Reed soon takes Lester down. Lester tries several times to press his back against the wall so he can slowly crawl up it, but Reed pulls his legs out and forces his back to the mat.

Lester shows great poise from the bottom, wrapping his arms around Reed’s back, preventing him from posturing up. He is able to get to his feet and avoid getting caught in a guillotine. Reed continues to go for the takedown, but Lester takes control of Reed’s arm. As Reed takes Lester to the ground he knocks himself out on the mat. Lester, unaware Reed is already out, continues working for the Kimura from the bottom.

The way Reed’s arm is wrenched as Lester twists his arm is gruesome. Fortunately, the referee ends it before any permanent damage is done. He is obviously distressed about his loss, mainly because he feels that Lester didn’t beat him, but he beat himself. You can’t help but feel bad for Reed, knocking yourself out is a hard way to go.

Winner: Frank Lester (Referee Stoppage)

Rob Browning vs. Jason Dent

(Lightweight)

This long-awaited fight begins with the two fighters standing and striking. Browning’s boxing style closely resembles that of Chuck Liddell, throwing punches from odd angles in an unorthodox style. He often waives his right hand to set up the jab and then the overhand right. There’s no doubt Browning has some power, and his right hand certainly can knock out some of the featherweight fighters in the WEC.

Though Browning is confident in his takedown abilities, Dent also shows nice defense with a strong sprawl. Dent stays aggressive throughout the fight, and after stuffing a takedown attempt by Browning, he lays down the punishment. With several knees to the body and hammer-fists to Browning’s face, he quickly takes away Browning’s will to fight, forcing him to cover up.

After laying down a little more ground-and-pound, the fight is ended at 1:25 in the first round. Jason Dent calms everyone’s worries of having another Junie Browning in the house by eliminating his brother.

Winner: Jason Dent (Referee Stoppage)

Finally, with the conclusion of the show, Team USA wins the coin toss, giving them the privilege of choosing the next fight.