Michael Chiesa is the newest Ultimate Fighter.
Despite being a huge underdog to Team Faber teammate Al Iaquinta, Chiesa came out and took care of business on Friday night, working Iaquinta down to the mat and eventually putting him away with a fight-ending rear-naked choke.
The win makes Chiesa the first-ever winner of the live version of The Ultimate Fighter show on FX, and he enters a prestigious group of fighters that have won the reality show, including former champions Forrest Griffin, Rashad Evans and Matt Serra.
What we’ll remember about this fight
The win over Iaquinta was extremely impressive, but the story behind this bout goes way beyond what happened in the cage.
Chiesa lost his father just days after he won his fight to get into the Ultimate Fighter house, and the loss of his dad helped him learn to overcome adversity and eventually win the TUF title.
The win over Iaquinta is the crowning achievement in what may have been the best story in the history of The Ultimate Fighter.
What we learned about Michael Chiesa
Don’t ever count this guy out.
After getting beat up on the feet for the first minute of the fight, Chiesa showed the gritty toughness that has become his trademark during this season of TUF and grabbed on to Iaquinta and didn’t let go.
What we learned about Al Iaquinta
Before he allowed Chiesa to get inside and grab a hold of him, Iaquinta was actually doing a very good job on the feet in this fight.
Anyone can get caught, and with one small mistake Iaquinta gave Chiesa the opening he needed to win the fight.
All Iaquinta needs to do is keep improving on the little things and he should have a decent UFC career ahead of him.
What’s next for Michael Chiesa
Besides a bit of a layoff after fighting four times in 13 weeks, Chiesa should get a decent veteran that will give him a test in his next bout.
A fight with Aaron Riley, a tough fighter in his own right, would be a fun matchup for the newest Ultimate Fighter.
What’s next for Al Iaquinta
Iaquinta is definitely going to stick around inside the Octagon, and I wouldn’t be surprised to see him fight another fighter from the TUF house in his next one.
A rematch of the fight of the season between Iaquinta and Myles Jury would make sense.
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