After a sixth season of excessive property damage, petty bickering and less than UFC-caliber fights, Mac Danzig (Pictures) (16-4-1) and Tommy "The Farmboy" Speer (9-1) have successfully salvaged coach Matt Hughes (Pictures)' ego and stand but one win away from having Mike Goldberg proclaim them the future of MMA.
As is so often the case with "The Ultimate Fighter," Speer emerged as the dark horse thanks not only to his wrestling ability but also to his surprising knack for escaping submissions -- a skill that was on full display in the show's quarterfinals. Ben Saunders seemingly had Speer dead to rights with a fully extended armbar only to have the stout Minnesotan escape and grind out a decision win.
Despite making it further than anyone imagined, Speer's run was expected to meet a dead-end in the form of semifinal opponent George Sotiropolous. A rising star on the Australian MMA scene, Sotiropolous was penciled in by many to face Danzig in the finals.
What followed was one of the biggest upsets in "Ultimate Fighter" history. Speer sent Sotiropolous crashing to the canvas with a pair of crushing right hands before knocking him out with a flurry of punches on the ground.
A bit of controversy surrounded the KO as Speer did accidentally poke Sotiropolous in the eye, but it was Sotiropolous who fell victim to his own hubris by ignoring his corner's advice and taking a brief rest before declaring himself fit to continue.
Much like Sotiropolous, Danzig made no secret of his belief that he was a cut above his cast mates, but it's hard to argue that point considering his performance on the show. None of Danzig's opponents made it past the first round. Matt Serra (Pictures)'s pupil Joe Scarola was given something new to whine about courtesy of a Danzig triangle choke, and John Kolosci (Pictures) was submitted twice over by everyone's favorite vegan hummingbird enthusiast.
Given Danzig's solid run as KOTC lightweight champion and years of experience, such performances were all but expected of the 27-year-old Cleveland, Ohio native. Having joined the never-ending stream of fighters training under the Xtreme Couture banner, Danzig is poised to make his long overdue UFC debut a successful one.
Against Speer, Danzig's primary concern will be his opponent's size and strength advantage as a natural welterweight and also his wrestling ability. Neither of those advantages is likely to put off Danzig, however. His grappling and striking acumen far exceed Speer's, and the experience edge that Danzig holds cannot be underestimated.
Anyone looking for a recreation of Griffin-Bonnar I will be sorely disappointed as Danzig scores an uneventful first-round submission win. As is the norm with "Ultimate Fighter" champions, expect Danzig to announce his intentions to move down to his normal weight of 155 pounds, at which time Mike Goldberg will move to have Danzig declared champion of the universe.
After all, winning fights doesn't make you a good fighter; winning fights on reality TV makes you a good fighter.