TUF Times – Ep. 4 with Justin Wren, Zak Jensen and Darrill Schoonover (and a special guest!)

The fourth episode of TUF 10 is in the books and it was easily the best fight of the season so far, with (spoiler alert) Brendan Schaub taking out Demico Rogers in the first round by a sweet anaconda choke. This was also the first episode that was not Kimbocentric and finally showed us some more about the other fighters in the house. To talk about this weeks episode with The Fight Nerd is Team Rashad’s Justin Wren and Darrill Schoonover and from Team Rampage Zak Jensen, plus a special guest near the end!

Q: Despite Kimbos loss, the first six minutes of the show were devoted to hugging Kimbos nuts even more and burying Nelsons win, what do you think of this attention just for a loss?

Zak Jensen: I could not put it better myself. It is ridiculous that they keep stroking Kimbo. That is the first and only encouragement Rampage has given any of the 4 eliminated fighters. It proved to me it was all about Kimbo and no one else from our team.

Justin Wren: Kimbo is a huge draw and the first six minutes was all about him and there was some nut hugging, but he is the reason alot of viewers are watching. I think he has alot to learn and he may come back and fight in later episodes.

Darrill Schoonover: I was pretty mad. I don’t understand why they would keep insisting on talking about the fight over and over again. The last few episodes have been all about Kimbo so its kind of getting on my nerves. I would like for them to start talking about the other guys.

Q: Justin, what was it like to belly bump with Big Country?

JW: That was the biggest belly bump I have ever done! He does have a huge belly and he can use that in his fights like when he smothered Kimbo. It was a great experience!

Q: Team Rampage coach Tiki Ghosen said Roy was scared to stand with Kimbo, do you think Roy was scared or just playing it smart?

ZJ: Roy was smart, he stood with Arlovski and was not scared, why would he be scared of Kimbo. Tiki saying he took a desperation shot was bullshit also, it was a good take down of a Kimbo mistake.

DS: I don’t think Roy was scared to fight Kimbo at all. At first he didn’t want to fight Kimbo because he wanted to fight outside of the house to get a good payday. But he stepped up and took the fight and won.

JW: I don’t think he was scared to stand, he was just being smart. We had three fights in the house, so he has to win and fight the smartest fight, get in and out in those first two fights. If Roy had stood up with Kimbo, that’s his best option to win so he played it smart and did what he needed to do.

Q: When Marcus first began to appear under the weather, what did you think was happening?

JW: I didn’t think much of Marcus and his sweat attack or whatever it was. Brendan Schaub is right next to me (traveling to LA) and we both thought it was a pretty funny part where he goes, “Whats wrong with you?” Brendan thinks he was exhausted and I know he was worried about fighting and not used to it. I did not think it would keep him from fighting though.

ZJ: I figured he was just dehydrated, he would have a hydration kit at practice which consisted of 2 32oz Pedialytes and also 6 20oz bottles of water and he would still lose between 5-8 pounds of water a practice. Marcus sweats a lot more than anyone I know.

DS: I don’t even know what happened to him. I know he was feeling pretty sick one day because Team Rampage goes running every morning and they left him in the sauna on the bike because Marcus can’t run because of his knees, so he was in there for an hour. I didn’t think anything was wrong because the dude sweats all the time.

Q: Was Kimbo trying to manipulate Marcus to make him quit the competition or do you believe he was genuinely concerned?

DS: I think he was concerned. They got along pretty well but at the same time Kimbo was eager. We all knew that if anything happened to any one of us, Kimbo would take our spot and it was pretty shrewd. A few of us had a couple of injuries and did not want to get it checked by medical because we did not want to lose our spot.

ZJ: Kimbo was concerned but he wanted back in also.

JW: I think Kimbo is competitive and wants back in but Marcus is one of his friends and he did not want to push him out. But Kimbo did want back in the competition no matter what.

Q: Justin, during the Team Rashad war room, you were concerned about fighting Scott Junk since you were both roomies, tell us about that situation.

JW: I guess my main concern was that he was a friend before the house and in the house he was my best friend there. He was a great guy and we were both talking before the show about how we both wanted to be on the same team so we did not have to fight first. Then they had us on separate teams and wanted us to match him first. I may have had to fight him first round but i did not want to, it would be like one of us ending each others dreams. We were roommates and it was awkward. Second fight or third fight it would have been easier but first would have been very hard to do.

Q: How did you feel about Matt Mitrione telling the other team the match picks? Did Matt have a big mouth in general?Do you think he was trying to dodge marcus?

JW: Matt’s a rat. He’s a snitch, i don’t know what he was thinking. The funniest part is Brendan saying “I don’t mean to beat a dead horse but what were you thinking?” and really thats all we thought, our coaches too. It was not a good reason to tell the other team our attack. He’s a little bit of a bonehead, he’s a cool guy and I like him alot, but maybe he was playing a game or trying to get the fights switched, I don’t know.

DS: I think Matt might have been worried about fighting Marcus at that time, but its my understanding that him and Scott Junk had come to terms before they went to the house and were gonna be allies. So he gave Scott the match picks not realizing he would tell the other team.

Q: How bad was Matt getting it from the house as a whole for running his mouth?

DS: They ragged on him for about 2 or 3 days, after that they laid off.

ZJ: Team Rampage did not care, we just thought he was an idiot.

Q: Zak, How serious were the training sessions with Team Rampage and how much time was spent goofing around?

ZJ: Rampage was always goofing around, but we worked hard every training session.

Q: When it was time for the fight, were you surprised the coaches were late? How long did it take before Rampage arrived?

ZJ: They went to lunch after our training session. I understand getting a quick bite at a fast food restaurant but not going to a sit down place to eat. They got there around a half hour or 20 minutes before the fight. We all could hear Brendon getting warmed up. It just showed where Rampage’s head was at during fight day.

Q: Talk about the fight and give us a play by play of what happened in your eyes.

DS: First off, I think the coaching staff of Rampage was very immature. If you have a guy that is fighting, you don’t leave and go get something to eat while he is sitting there cold and wondering where his coaches are because it will ruin your mental game. Especially a guy like Demico, he is kind of green and he had zero pro fights so he had alot of nerves. I thought Demico did alright, he just got caught and kind of tapped too soon, he did not try to get out of it. At the same time, Rampage was all pissed off, I think he should have been more pissed at himself.

ZJ: Demico took a bad shot which Brendon stuffed and went for an Anaconda but did not get it and then brought it up to the feet. Demico finally got a double and looked like he did not know what to do from guard. He got side mount and throw some elbows and when he went for full mount Brendon swept him and when Demico bellied out he locked up the Anaconda choke and that was that.

JW: Brendan went out there and did what he had to do. I know Brendan was not pleased with his performance. Brendan came out with a shot and he missed it, Demico stuffed it. Demico got back from it and hit that sweet anaconda choke and that was definitely the best fight of the season so far.

It was at this point that Justin handed the phone over to the man of the hour, Brendan Schaub, and we got to hear it straight from the horses mouth!

Brendan Schaub: Basically the rumor around the house was that Demico was going to stand and bang with me, and to me that’s an easy win for me and to get the 5K win bonus for knocking him out. He is a smart guy and he came out and shot a takedown on me which I countered and from there, he got me down and I knew he was known for his ground and pound. i took a few hits, nothing major, and reversed him. Once he was reversed, Demico has never been on the other end of the stick when things are going bad for him so his will was broken. He was in the turtle and I have a number of submissions I like from there, so I went for the anaconda and I got out injury free so it was good for me.

Q: Are you happy with your performance at that fight?

BS: No, definitely not. I am my worst critic and hard on myself. I wanted to make a statement. I think its a better fight than the others so far but at the same time, I was hoping for a highlight knockout or defend the takedown then choke him out. Whenever I get taken down it drives me crazy!

Q: What was the biggest mistake that Demico made in this fight?

BS: He was doing all the right stuff, controlling my posture. He just created room and gave me enough space to escape. I think Demico would have beaten the majority of Team Rashad, besides myself, Justin Wren and Roy Nelson who are probably the only other guys who can beat him. I think it was a bad draw for Demico and he is the future of the sport.

ZJ: He went for full mount when he had a dominant position with side mount. He also bellied out and did not go for hand control when Brendon went for the front head before he locked up the Anaconda choke.

DS: I think his biggest mistake was going for mount. As soon as he went to mount Brendan timed it and popped right back up.

Q: What do you think of Rampage not coming to his teammate Rogers until the very end of the fight?

ZJ: It was bullshit and showed what kind of coach he was.

JW: I think it’s terrible. It’s horrible to not have your coaches there to support you. For Rampage to be upset with Demico after the fight and not even go in there and check on him was bogus. I think Rampage is a cool dude some of the time but if i was in that position and left me to do nothing in the ring I would be pretty upset.

DS: Rampage does that alot. I think it is pretty messed up. If I was in there and something happened to me, my coaches would be there in a heartbeat to see if I was okay. It was messed up that the other coaches had to go in there instead.

Q: Zak, What do you think about Rampage calling your team green?

ZJ: Well Demico only had 4 ammy fights he never fought pro before so he was I have only been fighting for 2 in half years and Marcus I think even less. Kimbo is a street fighter so I think we all a little green but not to the extent that Rampage made it seem.

Q: How exciting is it to finally see yourself on camera for more than 10 seconds and not be talking about Kimbo when you are on camera?

ZJ: It was great, lol. The trailer made next week look very interesting and I cant wait to see it.

BS: It’s awesome! Before it was Ultimate Fighter 10: The Kimbo Show and now it’s just Ultimate Fighter 10! I think they should have kicked off the season like this to introduce the whole cast. Shoot, i met guys who are like, ” Man, that TUF show is great with Kimbo!” and I’m like “Yeah I’m on it!” “Really?” “Yeah, maybe you’ll see me on it next week.” So yeah, it’s just been the Kimbo show but its nice to see the faces of everyone finally.There are alot of characters in the house and this is what the show needed.

JW: It’s cool that we are getting more air time. It’s not the Kimbo show completely anymore. It’s surreal! From the first three episodes I got a couple of new friends on facebook. Last night because my face was on there more, I got like a hundred friend requests!

DS: Its pretty exciting, I am hoping there will be more in the next episode. Hopefully I won’t be on camera talking about Kimbo. All of the questions are always about Kimbo. If the media was there they were always asking about Kimbo, Kimbo, Kimbo, so I am pretty sure I will have more camera time to talk about other things now.

Zak would like to thank Gorilla Combat Clothing. Darrill would like to thanks Three Legged Monkey restaurant in El Paso, Texas. Justin would like to thank World Fight Shop, Texas MMA shop, and Rockwelltime.com for his sweet new watch and Buffalo Wild Wings. Brendan would like to thank Rockwelltime.com for his sweet watch too and Max Muscle.

Thanks for reading this weeks TUF Times, next week should be even crazier as we look ahead to what should be better fights and less focus on the bearded one!