Sherdog.com’s Guide to the “Ultimate Fighter”

It’s only been five days of filming for the cast of The Ultimate Fighter and already three competitors are gone from the initial 18. Medical reasons were the cause: one blown out knee and two pair of cold feet.

The replacement for heavyweight Kerry “Meat Truck” Schall is Dan Christison (Pictures), who is just a big, big boy — 270 pounds or so if you’re counting. He’s been brought in to keep things numerically even.

Welterweight Jorge Gurgel (Pictures) looks to be a spark plug on the show but he could be in trouble with a nagging knee injury. While sparring he cries out and falls down writhing in pain. Five days into the show and we’ve got another guy teetering on being medically unable to continue.

Jorge gets his knee drained at the doctor’s office and vows to not let any injury keep him from getting in there and competing.

The time has almost come for the TUF coaches to pick their teams. Matt Hughes (Pictures) and Rich Franklin (Pictures) head over to the TUF house to hang out with the fellas in an effort to get to know them as people and individuals. A competitive game of billiards broke out and then some of the guys had some Bible time.

I know it’s more fun to watch Chris Leben (Pictures) dust off a handle of rotgut whiskey and plow through a bedroom door but it makes better sense to lay off the booze. Plus, it never hurts to go ahead and get your afterlife plans in order before you enter the Octagon.

UFC president Dana White pulls all the guys together and the picking begins. Franklin goes first and takes heavyweight Keith Jardine (Pictures). Hughes takes small welterweight Joe Stevenson (Pictures). I’ve heard both of their names a few times before so it wasn’t that big of a surprise to see they were called first.

After the teams were chosen it was time for everyone’s favorite portion of The Ultimate Fighter: the physical challenge!! Time for the guys to don their team's jersey, be it Hughes's powder blue or Team Franklin's sea foam green. Slap on a little Right Guard Extreme and you’re ready to go.

If you’ve missed the show so far there have been plenty of product placements on this season of TUF. Last year it was UFC water bottles, this year it’s Right Guard and action movies. I don’t care, I know that sponsorship is imperative for MMA success but Coq Roq and Slim Jim ads are really starting to burn my chili.

I got up to heat up some leftover pizza and even that move was sponsored by Xyience.

Out on the field of battle, season one coach Randy Couture (Pictures) creeps up in a Hummer and explains this week’s challenge rules. Basically, the guys have to try and get a heavy bag back to their goal line. It’s like capture-the-flag but the flag weighs 100 pounds and you can’t stand up.

The last man taken in today’s fantasy fight draft was Luke Cummo and he would exact revenge on Franklin’s team for not choosing him. Luke ties up a couple of guys, allowing for his team to carry the bag back over to their side, thus winning the challenge. Team Hughes wins! Are you jumping up and down and pumping your fists? I bet you are. What self-respecting fight fan doesn’t love seeing a hotly contested egg toss or sack race?

Since Team Hughes has the choice, Josh Burkman (Pictures) steps up and calls out Team Franklin’s Melvin Guillard (Pictures).

It’s early in the season and we’re still establishing some things so we really haven’t gotten to know the contestants all that well just yet. Guillard has been the only fighters so far that has been claiming to be able to whoop the world.

Strut around a house full of professional fighters and claim to be the baddest man in town. It won’t take too long until you’ll have a target on your back so big that even Suge Knight won’t even kick it with you.

Burkman looks to make a statement by knocking off the one guy who keeps claiming to be the best. Both guys make weight easily and we are ready for season two’s first fight.

Or are we? After the weigh-ins, Melvin wants to talk to Dana White. He steps in the UFC president’s office and drops a bomb:

“I’ve been thinking about it and I think its best I leave the show.”

Dana looks like he just found out that Chuck Liddell (Pictures) and Randy C are in Taiwan getting sex changes. Melvin bursts out laughing and Dana gets clowned. If you ever have the chance to bust your new boss’s balls, take your shot when you can.

We waste no time getting down to the fight and this was a weird one.

It took about two seconds to spot that Melvin was an incredibly quick athlete. He threw Josh to the ground immediately but then Josh double-legs Melvin and puts him on his back. Melvin is mounted and then flips over and Josh takes his back. Melvin wiggles out and seconds later he has Josh in a major guillotine but Josh is able to stay patient and work his way out.

Throughout the round Melvin would be put on his back, give up his back and then use his athleticism to wiggle out and stand it back up. Josh was content to keep taking Melvin down and go for the ground and pound or rear naked choke.

They also had some odd exchanges. Melvin threw some karate kick and even did a front flip to get out of trouble at one time. When he wasn’t doing capoeira he looked like a deer staring at the lights of a Jeep — lost.

Melvin almost never engaged Josh while standing. The few times he did he caught Josh, once with a shin kick to the face but never finished the job. I had to wait until the commercial for Million Dollar Baby to see any punches.

After the fight it was revealed that Melvin had broken his hand earlier in the fight. He either didn’t know or was a little too inexperienced to make the adjustments needed to beat Burkman. Josh played it basic and despite being in trouble at times he was able to use better technique to keep the fight on the ground.

It was an interesting fight that ended with one of the stronger welterweights being called out then kicked out. Burkman sleeps well tonight.

Next week the heavyweights will be getting after it, which gets me excited for a possible TUF knockout. Stay tuned.