With word breaking this morning that Chuck Liddell will face Rich Franklin and not Tito Ortiz at UFC 115, the mma community is buzzing with speculation. Filming of The Ultimate Fighter 11 was supposed to begin on January 21st and typically the seasons run about six weeks. This would mean the season would end around March 4th.
If you have followed the story very closely you realize there was a series of very cryptic tweets from Tito Ortiz as the month of February was winding down. With news coming out about the opponent change we are left only to speculate on what may have went on during the production of this season.
*Possible Spoiler Alert*- Please do not continue reading as posted below is what some might construe as a spoiler even though it remains only a rumor at this time.
MMAJunkie.com stated in their article today that Tito Ortiz was unable to finish the filming of TUF Season 11 and Rich Franklin was brought in to replace him. While no one knows the details, it would certainly line up with the timing of the tweets. Reports from Fighters Only additionally say that Ortiz being removed from the fight is not health related, but could affect Tito's future as a fighter.
I don’t know about everyone else, but that is about as good of buildup for a season of The Ultimate Fighter. I hope word does not leak out about what happens on the show so that when it finally airs we can all sit back and watch it unfold. Does Tito do something that causes him to get kicked off of the show and possible out of the UFC? If so, what exactly could he have done? Is it something in his personal life (I really hope not for his sake)? The speculation is going to be insane over the next few months and based on the timing of the tweets, we may not find out till the second half of the season.
Often times mma fans talk about how we don’t really like the reality portion of the TUF shows, but most mma fans are actually suckers for drama. When Fedor was a free agent or when Pride was close to being sold, the speculations and rumors going around were absolutely insane and most of the online community bought into them. Now TUF Season 11 offers an intriguing coaching dynamic,
Noah Hubbs aka Buffaloblue
Like you, I'd prefer not to find out exactly what happened with Tito, but we both know that is almost next to impossible. Unless we never turn on a computer again until the episode that reveals what happened airs. This could also just be a creative ploy by Zuffa to get everyone excited about the season.
ReplyDeleteAs you said, the intrigue of a third fight between Tito and Chuck didn't blow people out of the water. At least with Ace in the mix, the prospect of much better coach's fight is there.
It will be interesting to see where this story goes!