Tag: TUF coaches

Patrick Cote and Hector Lombard Chosen as Coaches for ‘TUF: Canada vs. Australia’…Sort Of

When word first broke that the infamous rivalry between Canada and Australia (?) would take center stage during the next non-Brazilian international season of The Ultimate Fighter, we reacted as we typically do, by turning underwhelming news into a farce. For why would the UFC even bother attempting to promote a rivalry between countries where none such rivalry exists? Not only does it dramatically narrow down their choices for potential participants, but it similarly limits the promotion’s ability to shoehorn in a rivalry between coaches (as they are wont to do) who are both hailing from the countries/nations being represented and are still relevant in today’s MMA landscape.

Look, we get that the point of an international TUF is to, you know, pit foreign nations against one another. But when you start booking coaches from entirely different weight classes, coaches who might not even be able to fight one another at the season’s close, no less, doesn’t that kind of eliminate the point? In any case, that’s what we’ll be privy to during TUF: Canada vs. Australia, which will feature Patrick Cote and Hector Lombard as coaches…sort of (Via FiveOuncesofPain):

According to the MMA Sun, Patrick Cote and Hector Lombard have been targeted as head coaches. An official announcement is expected by week’s end. It also appears the UFC has Kyle Noke lined up just in case Lombard ultimately decides he cannot accept the role based on the expectation of moving down from 185 pounds to compete against Cote as a welterweight. 

When word first broke that the infamous rivalry between Canada and Australia (?) would take center stage during the next non-Brazilian international season of The Ultimate Fighter, we reacted as we typically do, by turning underwhelming news into a farce. For why would the UFC even bother attempting to promote a rivalry between countries where none such rivalry exists? Not only does it dramatically narrow down their choices for potential participants, but it similarly limits the promotion’s ability to shoehorn in a rivalry between coaches (as they are wont to do) who are both hailing from the countries/nations being represented and are still relevant in today’s MMA landscape.

Look, we get that the point of an international TUF is to, you know, pit foreign nations against one another. But when you start booking coaches from entirely different weight classes, coaches who might not even be able to fight one another at the season’s close, no less, doesn’t that kind of eliminate the point? In any case, that’s what we’ll be privy to during TUF: Canada vs. Australia, which will feature Patrick Cote and Hector Lombard as coaches…sort of (Via FiveOuncesofPain):

According to the MMA Sun, Patrick Cote and Hector Lombard have been targeted as head coaches. An official announcement is expected by week’s end. It also appears the UFC has Kyle Noke lined up just in case Lombard ultimately decides he cannot accept the role based on the expectation of moving down from 185 pounds to compete against Cote as a welterweight. 

Let’s hope that Lombard, who walks around at upwards of 200 pounds, can make weight when all is said and done. Otherwise, the UFC is essentially saying that, rather than have a lesser known welterweight who is coming off a win coach opposite of Cote, the best option is to have a more recognizable middleweight that has suffered 2 tepid losses in 3 UFC fights coach, then pray to God he can actually make weight come fight night.

You could, of course, make the argument that “TUF is about the talent, not the coaches, so who cares?” Thankfully, War Machine has already offered a rebuttal to that cockamamie theory on our behalf, so let’s just end this debate with those enlightened words. And honestly, who are we kidding? These two will be lucky to make it to day one of shooting with both their legs intact.

One thing’s for sure, Team Canada is going to be in for some *epic* house parties this season. We just hope they can keep pace with their mentor, or they are going to be in for some even rougher mornings.

–J. Jones

Roy Nelson and Shane Carwin Announced as Coaches for ‘TUF 16: Fat David vs. Goliath’


(For his final masterpiece, Michelangelo decided to pay tribute to the Biblical hero’s fall from grace through the medium of hamstone. The results were shocking, yet delicious.)

As is likely the case for most of you, we here at CagePotato are more than willing to admit that we all but completely missed out on the failed experiment that was TUF Live. The placement of the show on Friday nights, the rehashed trash-talk and pranks between coaches; it just seemed all too played out and tired to really get us hooked. The fact that Dominick Cruz tore his ACL with only a couple episodes to go only furthered our belief that the season would have been a complete loss if not for the uplifting story of the season’s lightweight winner, Don Cheadle (or something like that).

So when Dana White informed USA TODAY Sports yesterday that the coaches for this season would be polar opposite heavyweights Roy Nelson and Shane Carwin, it more than piqued our interest. Aside from being the winner of the show’s tenth (and arguably least talent filled) season, TUF: Heavyweights, Nelson is by all accounts, one entertaining and funny sumbitch. Carwin, on the other hand, has shown before that he is up for a good joshing as long as it is not aimed at him. If you recall, the last time we got on Carwin’s bad side, Old Dad packed up his things, fled, faked his death, died his eyebrows, and attended his own funeral as a man named Phil Schiffley. The last we heard, he was still reporting on all things MMA from a one man vessel in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean out of fear that “The Engineer” was still looking for him. So clearly, the potential for hilarity between these two on the set is higher than Nelson’s cholesterol levels.


(For his final masterpiece, Michelangelo decided to pay tribute to the Biblical hero’s fall from grace through the medium of hamstone. The results were shocking, yet delicious.)

As is likely the case for most of you, we here at CagePotato are more than willing to admit that we all but completely missed out on the failed experiment that was TUF Live. The placement of the show on Friday nights, the rehashed trash-talk and pranks between coaches; it just seemed all too played out and tired to really get us hooked. The fact that Dominick Cruz tore his ACL with only a couple episodes to go only furthered our belief that the season would have been a complete loss if not for the uplifting story of the season’s lightweight winner, Don Cheadle (or something like that).

So when Dana White informed USA TODAY Sports yesterday that the coaches for this season would be polar opposite heavyweights Roy Nelson and Shane Carwin, it more than piqued our interest. Aside from being the winner of the show’s tenth (and arguably least talent filled) season, TUF: Heavyweights, Nelson is by all accounts, one entertaining and funny sumbitch. Carwin, on the other hand, has shown before that he is up for a good joshing as long as it is not aimed at him. If you recall, the last time we got on Carwin’s bad side, Old Dad packed up his things, fled, faked his death, died his eyebrows, and attended his own funeral as a man named Phil Schiffley. The last we heard, he was still reporting on all things MMA from a one man vessel in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean out of fear that “The Engineer” was still looking for him. So clearly, the potential for hilarity between these two on the set is higher than Nelson’s cholesterol levels.

And although Carwin did in fact take a year away from action following his UFC 131 loss to Junior Dos Santos to search the world over for Fowlkes, he also spent a good deal of time rehabilitating his back. Coincidentally, it was this very injury that forced him out of his original matchup with Nelson at UFC 125.

“Big Country” most recently found his way back to the win column with a first round knockout of Dave Herman at UFC 146. Just 2-3 in his past five, Nelson certainly won’t be looking at a title shot with a win over Carwin, but a victory would undoubtedly be one of the biggest, if not the biggest, of his Zuffa career.

And in other TUF coaching news…

For those of you who didn’t stick around to catch the post-fight show on FUEL TV last night, DW also announced that the coaches for the second international season of TUF, which will see fighters from the UK square off against Australia’s finest, will be TUF 9 winner Ross Pearson and TUF 6 standout George Sotiropoulus. Both men have fallen on hard times as of late, with G Sots dropping his past two to Dennis Siver (via decision) and Rafael Dos Anjos (via lawn chair KO). After dropping to featherweight following a 4-2 UFC stint at lightweight and scoring a unanimous decision victory over Junior Assuncao, Pearson most recently screwed our parlay over royally when he was knocked out by Cub Swanson in the second round of their tilt at UFC on FX 4.

So, Potato Nation, do these matchups do anything for you?

–J. Jones

Are Chael Sonnen and Wanderlei Silva the Coaches On the Next Season of TUF?

("There is only four things I not like in this world. One is Justin Bieber; the other three is Chael Sonnen.")At the tail end of Chael Sonnen’s exclusive post-CSAC hearing interview he did with Mike Straka last week, the former UFC number one…


("There is only four things I not like in this world. One is Justin Bieber; the other three is Chael Sonnen.")

At the tail end of Chael Sonnen’s exclusive post-CSAC hearing interview he did with Mike Straka last week, the former UFC number one middleweight contender told the HDNet reporter that he knew what was up next for him, he just couldn’t say because it was "a secret at this point."

Now I may be reading into that statement and the fact that Sonnen has been hellbent lately on calling out Wanderlei Silva at every turn, but if I had to wager a guess as to what the UFC had on tap for "The Most Interesting Man in the World" it would be a TUF coaching slot opposite "The Axe Murderer."

Sure the season would require subtitles pretty much every time Wand opens his mouth, but they had to do the same with the Brits on the USA vs. UK season, so it’s not like that will turn away viewers, especially when you have as polarizing of a persona as Sonnen opposite him.

I interviewed Chael prior to his fight with Nate Marquardt and he was unusually complimentary of his opponent. When I asked him why, he told me that he basically wasn’t in character yet that far out from the fight and that if I called him a few weeks before the fight he’d be on his game. He also said that it’s tough to smack talk a guy he likes like Marquardt.

To me, that says one of two things about the Wanderlei Twitter assault he launched the day after his CSAC meeting using his account which has been inactive since the news of his positive drug test hit and which he used to repeatedly roast Anderson Silva and his manager, Ed Soares leading up to his last fight: 

He must really want a fight with Wand.

or

He must already have a fight with, or a slot on TUF coaching opposite Silva lined up.

Here’s the backstory and the evidence that prompted my educated guess after the jump:

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