TUF Finale Team Noguiera vs Team Mir Recap

Include Ryan Bader (light heavyweight) and Efrain Escudero (lightweight) to the list that features Forrest Griffin, Diego Sanchez, Joe Stevenson, Rashad Evans, Kendall Grove, Michael Bisping, Nate Diaz, Mac Danzig and Amir Sadollah, as The Ultimate Fighter champions to have most recently earned six figure UFC contracts.

The Season 8 final winners were impressive in the biggest bouts of their career on Saturday evening at The Palms in Las Vegas. Following six weeks of grueling training and combat on Spike’s TUF that began with 32 competitors among Team Noguiera and Team Mir, it came down to one light heavyweight and lightweight fight. With so much on the line, the UFC betting action instantly became immeasurable.

Bader was the first TUF finalists to land a UFC contract as the underdog priced at +150 via knockout of Vinicius Magalhaes (-200) coming at 2:18 of Round 1, improving his MMA record to 9-0. The 205-pounder showed awesome punching power, dropping Team Mir’s Brazilian jiu-jitsu ace Magalhaes with a right hand bomb. As the Brazilian fell awkwardly, Bader pounced with a fierce assault before referee Herb Dean called a halt to the fight. Magalhaes falls to 3-3 with 1 NC on his record.

Bader, who's an All-American wrestler, didn't get to showcase his skills on the mat. But the MMA wagering world saw his heavy hands and ability to bang. Combine his already proven fantastic wrestling talents, with what was witnessed Saturday evening, and you have a fighter that has a real shot at making his presence felt in the light heavyweight class for a long time to come.

TUF's lightweight final featured two unbeatens in the likes of BetUS UFC odds heavily favored Phillipe Nover (-400) and Escudero (+250). Nover strikes well but possesses better submissions, and as most online UFC betting fans correctly figured, Escudero's strong submissions and wrestling skills had much of this fight taking place on the ground where Escudero claimed an unanimous decision in a tactical bout.

The underdog didn't overwhelming dominate the fight, by any means, but clearly controlled the fight. Scores were 29-28 across the board for Escudero, who was the aggressor and had little problems throughout the contest taking Nover back down when the favorite needed to find his feet to escape several near fight-ending holds. The win kept Escudero’s record perfect at 12-0, meanwhile, Nover's first defeat blemished his record to be 6-1-1.

Interim UFC heavyweight champion Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira's fighters swept TUF finals. Team Nogueira's Bader and Escudero both kept their records perfect while making oddsmakers look foolish, cashing as underdogs in both. But prior to UFC contract stakes being laid on the MMA betting table, the Season’s 8 most controversial contestant, Junie Browning (-400), earned a victory as hefty chalk over cast-mate and nemesis Dave Kaplan (+250). Browning improved to 3-1 by way of submission (arm bar) at 1:32 in the 2nd round, as Kaplan drops to 3-2.