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Episode No. 6 recap: 'The Ultimate Fighter 25: Redemption'

Episode No. 6 of “The Ultimate Fighter 25: Redemption” opens with focus on Team Garbrandt’s Julian Lane, who fights Team Dillashaw’s Ramsey Nijem later in the episode.

Lane is one of the more polarizing personalities throughout the history of the reality series. He was on Season 16 of “TUF,” but more than his in-fight contributions, Lane became famous for his drunken “Let me bang, bro” rant, which still exists as a meme within the MMA world years later.

“There were a couple incidents where I blew up in the house. I’m sure everyone knows about it,” Lane says. “I kind of felt like I let everybody down back home. I let my daughter down, let my girl down, my mom and dad. … It all got to me. Instead of staying humble, I was a little sore crybaby.”

Coach Cody Garbrandt has a personal connection to Lane because they are both from Ohio. The current UFC champ says he actually competed on the same cards as Lane while coming up through the amateur circuit.

Although Lane is famous for his tirade, coach Garbrandt explains he’s much more than that and views his No. 6 pick as a real threat in the competition. Moreover, coach Garbrandt believes Lane will get the first victory for his team after Team Dillashaw has taken the first five fights.

Team Dillashaw’s No. 6 pick Nijem, meanwhile, had a very different “TUF” experience the first time around. He competed on Season 13 of the show and although he had some strange moments with his “Stripper Ramsey” routine, he was all business inside the octagon and managed to reach the tournament final.

The finals did not go Ramsey’s way, though, because he succumbed to a first-round knockout loss against current top UFC lightweight contender Tony Ferguson. It was a forgettable debut, but it kicked off what turned into a 10-fight stint under the UFC banner for Nijem.

Over the course of his run, Nijem fought several notable names. His defining victory came in the form of a first-round TKO of Beneil Dariush at UFC Fight Night 39 in April 2014, but it all came to a bitter end when Nijem left the promotion after back-to-back losses.

Nijem’s split-decision loss to Andrew Holbrook at UFC on FOX 16 in July 2015 was a fight he and many others believe he should have clearly won. The judges felt differently, though, and Nijem closed his UFC contract on a disappointing low. He hasn’t fought since, but at 29, “TUF 26” is an opportunity to get back where he belongs.

“It’s been about 18 months, 19 months since I’ve fought,” Nijem says. “I was broke, pissed off, having to find new work, having to steal food and (expletive), having to live a very crazy life. The only thing that kept me sane was training. … I thought I was going to be done with this. I was kind of burnt out of this, and it was really just a big, pivotal moment of my life.”

Weigh-ins for the fight take place, and both Nijem and Lane come in under the required 171-pound welterweight limit, making the sixth tournament fight official. Nijem gets in Lane’s face during the staredown, and Lane presses his forehead against the face of his upcoming opponent and screams, “What?!” multiple times.

At the conclusion of weigh-ins, the Team Garbrandt coaching staff begins to harass Team Dillashaw assistant coach Duane Ludwig. They question where Ludwig has been throughout the duration of the season and mock him for not spending enough of the time with his team.

Ludwig gets up and approaches Team Garbrandt’s Justin Buchholz and two begin to exchange words. Coach T.J. Dillashaw inserts himself into the conversation and says Team Garbrandt is “embarrassing themselves.” The conversation between Ludwig and Buchholz starts to flare up, and that’s when both Garbrandt and Dillashaw exchange words.

Buchholz tells Ludwig that they should organize a fight for the preliminary card of the Garbrandt vs. Dillashaw bantamweight championship fight (which has since been scrapped due to a Garbrandt back injury), but Ludwig laughs off the notion.

Just as it appears cooler heads are going to prevail, Garbrandt lunges at Ludwig with a punch. It misses, and the surrounding people jump in before anything serious occurs. Eventually Garbrandt is escorted out of the gym area, but the drama isn’t over yet.

Buchholz and Ludwig refuse to back down from each other and trade heated comments about Dillashaw’s rise in the sport and who should get the most credit for helping him succeed. Buchholz says it’s all on Team Alpha Male and that Ludwig “stole” the fighter away. More words are exchanged, and the two begin pushing.

Coach Garbrandt immediately rushes out from the back and charges at Ludwig. He’s restrained before anything can happen, though, and finally everyone separates and moves on.

“My take on Cody and why his emotions just go through the roof is that he’s not very smart and can’t put things to words,” Dillashaw says. “It’s instantly just anger. He wants to fight every battle with just toughness and trying to look cool in that situation. It’s comical and embarrassing.”

Fight day arrives, and the athletes are ready for the sixth tournament bout. Nijem and Lane finalize preparation with their coaches backstage at the “TUF” gym, and the competition continues.

Team Dillashaw’s Ramsey Nijem (9-6) vs. Team Garbrandt’s Julian Lane (11-6)

Round 1 – Nijem moves toward Lane and throws a jab that misses. He follows up with a front kick to the midsection, and Lane throws back with some power shots. Both men are looking to find their range with the jab, and Nijem is already faking level changes for takedowns. He waits for Lane to over-commit with a punch, then ducks under for the takedown. He gets in on the legs and pushes Lane against the fence, but Lane grabs the neck and applies a guillotine choke. It looks tight, and Lane drops down to his back. They flip positions as Lane looks to finish the choke, but Nijem remains calm and refuses to tap out. Nijem slowly escapes and works his way back to his feet. He controls Lane against the fence and is working to slow him down. He throws some inside knees and is looking to drag the fight to the floor but can’t. Nijem lands an inadvertent strike to the groin, which causes a break by the referee. The action resumes in open space, and Nijem lands a pair of crisp jabs. Lane is swinging with wild shots but is falling just short. Nijem shoots in for another takedown, but it’s somewhat sloppy and Lane grabs his neck again. He uses Nijem’s momentum to roll into mount and is in a very good position to finish the choke. With blood pouring from his face, Nijem somehow survives the guillotine and escapes out the back door and up to his feet. Nijem finally gets a takedown and is on top of Lane. He quickly passes to mount and batters Lane with a hard onslaught of punches. Just as Nijem is about to switch to a rear-naked choke, the referee steps in and stops the fight.

Ramsey Nijem def. Julian Lane via TKO (strikes) – Round 1

As soon as the referee stops the fight, Lane protests and tells him, “I’m here.” Coach Garbrandt is livid, as well, and tells the referee, “You got to let them fight. It’s a redemption season. They’re fighters.”

Despite the protests, the fight is over with Team Dillashaw earning its sixth consecutive victory against Team Garbrandt.

“I’m happy I won and glad I got through the first round,” Nijem says after his victory. “I made a lot of mistakes, but you got to be happy with getting the win and getting the finish and getting the $5,000 (stoppage bonus). I have nothing but respect for Julian. He was a very respectful opponent after the fight.”

Despite a lopsided 6-0 lead in the competition for Team Dillashaw, control of fight selection moves back over to Team Garbrandt. Coach Garbrandt selects his No. 7 pick, Justin Edwards, to fight Team Dillashaw’s No. 5 pick, Joe Stevenson, in the seventh tournament bout.

Also see:

Catch new episodes of “The Ultimate Fighter 25: Redemption” every Wednesday at 10 p.m. ET (7 p.m. PT) on FS1. MMAjunkie recaps each episode of the reality series.

Be sure to visit the MMA Junkie Instagram page and YouTube channel to discuss this and more content with fans of mixed martial arts.

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