We move right into the weigh-ins for Tavares vs. Baczynski
OFFICIAL WEIGH-INS
Brad Tavares (185.5) vs. Seth Baczynski (no weight announced)
Dana says that Seth is motivated, wants to win the whole thing and believes he has a shot at doing so.
Back at the house, Chuck is asked what’s up between he and Tito. Is he going to fight? Chuck says he better fight and launches into an expletive-filled tirade centering on what he plans to do to Tito. I think I caught roughly ten complete words that weren’t bleeped during the entire speech. Chuck tells the camera that if he has to put up with Tito for six weeks, he better get to fight him at the end. Nick’s Hogan mustache is also nowhere to be seen in this segment, but reappears during the next fight.
Tavares says the only thing he’s worried about is the fact that he likes Seth. He says he’s the youngest guy in the house and probably the least experienced, but he likes fighting all the old men. Seth says it doesn’t matter what your record is or how long you’ve been fighting — a fight is a fight.
BRAD TAVARES VS. SETH BACZYNSKI
Round 1: Seth opens up with a leg kick, then moves in with a jab into a single-leg but can’t get the takedown. They grapple back and forth for a bit before Seth gets a trip into a takedown, ending up in Brad’s guard. Tavares appears to go for a gogoplata, but Seth sweeps him aside and ends up on Brad’s back. He locks in a body triangle and hits Brad with punches from the back. Seth attempts a rear-naked but doesn’t get it, so he goes back to punching. Brad gets to his feet and tries to shake Seth off and get out the back door, but Seth stops it. Seth tries another rear-naked but it’s partially on the chin and Brad escapes. Seth continues to work for position while mixing in punches. Seth goes for an armbar and misses horribly, allowing Brad to escape and stand up. Brad drops some bombs while standing but barely avoids getting killed by axe kicks from the bottom. Brad gets on top but Seth goes for a triangle. Brad powerbombs him, but Seth keeps the triangle secured, so Brad powerbombs him again, this time causing Seth to release the hold. Shades of Rampage there. Seth tries an americana but misses. Brad stands up and drills Seth with big shots on the ground. Seth gets up and Brad quickly tries a knee but appears to get dropped during the transition. Seth then drills Brad with a nasty soccer kick while Brad is on the ground, causing Brad to go lights-out and fall face-first into the canvas as the round ends.
Seth apologizes for the knee, but Brad is so out of it that he asks why he’s apologizing before stumbling back to his corner and falling to the ground. He’s clearly out of sorts.
Team Liddell and the doctor check out Tavares. The doc points to Hackleman and asks Brad who he’s pointing at, to which Brad replies “coach.” The doctor asks Brad for his name, and Brad looks at Hackleman with a confused stare before finally producing “coach John.” Herb Dean pulls the doc aside and asks how Tavares is doing. The doc says Brad doesn’t know what he got hit with. Doc wants to give him a minute but says they have to decide pretty quickly. He asks Tavares if he wants to continue and Tavares can’t process the question quickly enough for his liking, so he tells Herb to call the fight. Seth drops to the mat in anguish.
One of the doctors tells Tito that the kick landed on Tavares’ chest and not his head. Saul Soliz is beside himself while pointing out this information. He says Team Liddell received one gift and they don’t need two. Rich Attonito takes great exception to this comment, saying that he got kneed in the head twice before calling Soliz a few choice names. Teammates try to calm Rich down but he says that Soliz disrespected him first. Soliz tells him to let it go.
Official decision: Brad Tavares d. Seth Baczynski by disqualification
The Ultimate Fighter 11: Episode 9 Recap