Episode 2 begins with the teams finally getting into the house after highlights of the season premiere from last week. Per the norm, the fighters are awestruck and excited as they race around, checking out the environment, picking rooms and beds. Some of the fighters gawk at the enormity of the “TUF” palace, citing their humble beginnings, but it doesn’t take long before some minor drama unfolds.
The next morning, Hendricks is at a bone and joint specialist because of a contusion on his left foot from his elimination fight. His hoof looks nasty and after Dr. Steven Sanders shows him X-rays, thankfully there aren’t acute fractures. Stevens wants him to not strike with that foot for a few days but Cory tells him that he has to fight in six days, which elicits a sigh of despair from the good doctor. Because of this, there is concern and worry because Hendricks tells the camera that he mostly likes to kick.
Once the scene is over, the gears shift to the first day of training. Team Claudia is the first to get into the gym to train and after the Brazilian informs her new pupils that her coaches will split up to teach the girls and guys separately, it’s petal to the metal. Claudia Gadelha explains to the TV audience that there are going to be two teams in one, basically, because of the sheer size difference between the guys and girls and that it’s dangerous for them to train hard together. After a few shots of the teams working hard, Gadelha is super excited and instantly falls in love with everybody.
Team Joanna is next up in the gym, but before the first squad of combatants can leave, the two rival coaches are face to face against the door, squawking about respect. Joanna Jedrzejczyk appears to have instigated the verbal scrum and she tells her nemesis to, “Go back to the jungle because that’s your place. I’m the boss.” After that insult and more words, the Pole asks Claudia, “Do you want me to spit in your face?”
Claudia gently pushes her away and Joanna is instantly pissed. Finally, Khalil Rountree steps in and pulls Joanna away to lessen the heat. Claudia is disgusted by the reigning UFC strawweight champ because she says Joanna does that every single time they are in the same room together.
“I’m not here to bully anybody,” Claudia tells the camera. “I’m here to work. I am to fight her on July 8. I’m not here to fight right now.”
Training session for Team Joanna promptly beings and Jedrzejczyk is pumped up and eager to see her new team in action. Like her hated enemy earlier, Joanna quickly admits that the size difference is massive and it might be a problem, but since she is a champion she will figure it out.
At night inside the house, the main narrative of the episode is given more life: two fighters who are friends and train together are on opposing teams. Naturally, they must be the first guys to fight and it’s awkward. In an unprecedented turn of events, a total of three fighters from local fighting powerhouse Syndicate MMA have made it onto the show. Cory and Khalil are the ones who have to get the season under way by fighting at the end of the episode and it’s made abundantly clear that the two light heavyweights are more than just training comrades; they are buddies. Jamie Moyle is the third rep of Syndicate and she is upset with the fight announcement, though she is able to refrain from turning into a bag of tears.
Cory remains worried about his foot but is confident he can still get the job done. Meanwhile, Rountree reveals that he used to weigh 300 pounds and was always picked on as a black kid who loved punk and metal music. After his dad died, he and his brother had nobody to look up to but when his brother stumbled upon a local MMA gym, he followed him and quickly became obsessed with the sport.
Before Khalil fights Cory, though, he is in the gym with Elen Harper, who is crying because she’s sick. She contracted bronchitis at some point and she looks and sounds awful. She’s worried about not being able to train and she sounds like a cat hacking up a hairball.
The scene quickly shifts to back to the gym where Joanna walks in with her championship belt on and is strutting around, flaunting it in Claudia’s face. After Claudia doesn’t take the bait, Joanna begins bothering Gadelha’s boxing coach, who doesn’t even speak English, so, naturally Claudia starts defending him. Because of this and everything else that has already happened this early on the show, Joanna looks like a total jackass who is instigating everything. While it could be shrewd editing by the UFC, Jedrzejczyk becomes more and more unlikeable every time she’s on camera near the Brazilian. While the women jaw at each other about who won their first fight, all the fighters are stuck in the hallway and look uncomfortable.
The night before the fight while Khalil is preparing his pre-fight meal, Harper kind of collapses in the pantry. She’s dizzy and quivering and eventually taken to the hospital but she returns to the house the following morning still sounding like a toad, but at least she looks a little better.
Finally, it’s fight day and the two men are as ready as ever. Dana White explains that in this season they are giving out $100,000 in bonus money: Two “performance” bonuses of $25,000 each, and two fighters will split $50,000 for “Fight of the Season.” He wants to add incentive for the fighters to really perform.
The fight begins and Hendricks digs a nice right kick to his opponent’s body. Khalil counters with a solid left to the head but he’s taken down. Rountree wall walks back up to safety and they trade some decent strikes. After a few punches to the face bloody Hendricks’ nose, Cory misses a takedown but in the ensuing scramble, he is able to cling to Rountree’s back. From there, he eventually slides his arm under Khalil’s chin and forces a tapout thanks to a textbook rear-naked choke.
Dana is impressed with the win. Rountree takes his first loss like a champion and is happy that Cory was the guy to beat him.
After another verbal sparring match between the two coaches, Claudia sets up the next fight. She says she was going to go with Team Joanna’s Harper but since she’s sick, she doesn’t choose her because she doesn’t want to, “Play dirty.” Instead, she goes with Tatiana Suarez to fight J.J. Aldrich.
Coming attractions show Harper having another meltdown, still sounding like crap and frustrated because she can’t “get any of these techniques.” Also, Joanna is threatening Claudia again in the hallway, but then another scene sees the Brazilian purposely bumping into the Pole whilst walking through the gym.