Filed under: UFC
All eyes were on Matt Mitrione.
The former NFL and all-Big Ten Conference lineman at Purdue had already been labeled a rat by his “Ultimate Fighter” housemates for spilling his team’s planned matchups to the opposition. He had been called out by his coach, Rashad Evans, for being merely sore and not injured. And then there were the voices in his head (which he has said after the fact was just an act to alleviate boredom).
Against Scott Junk in a preliminary fight on TUF 10, Mitrione threw kicks and punches with wild abandon. Near the end of the first round, it was clear he had already used up most of his energy. He won a majority decision in a fight that was a mashup of ugly and fun.
A year later, Mitrione is 2-0 in the UFC with a knockout win over Marcus Jones on the TUF 10 live finale last December and a TKO of Kimbo Slice at UFC 113 in May. But it was the fight with Junk that helped make a different voice go off in his head. It was a voice that told him to slow up a little, and Mitrione said that’s the most important thing he’s learned since leaving the TUF house.