There are a couple different views that someone can have based on those 6 weeks we were in that house. There is seeing everything that happened with Team Penn, everything that happened with Team Pulver, and then what the viewers see which is just a little bit of each side. I was fortunate enough to see everything that happened with Team Penn, and then now I am seeing some of the gaps filled in with Team Pulver. I don’t think anyone on Team Penn knew about the issues Brandon was going through. At the time, we didn’t know about his hand and we definitely didn’t know about the problems he was having with Jens. There were times when Brandon seemed really pissed off around the house, but I just always assumed it was from trying to keep his weight down.
One day in practice, BJ and Gray were sparring pretty hard. They are both out there trying to kill one another and really going back and forth. I think Gray got a scratch on his nose that was bleeding, and Rudy wanted to stop it but Gray is like "No no no… I am good keep going!" So they kept going back and forth. It was definitely getting more competitive between them and it was a little beyond the scope of where it started. It escalated, but it was a good escalation. I was a little taken back though…. because BJ is up on this level above and beyond anything I had ever experienced…. and then there is Gray giving him all kinds of trouble. I’m sure BJ could have really poured it on and taken control, but I was just like "Wow… Gray is an animal".
We had "Captain America" Randy Couture come in as a guest coach for the day. He showed us all kinds of great stuff, and it was amazing being able to work out with him. Until you lock up with Randy, you really have no idea how dense and skilled he is. I had a huge amount of respect for him, but it jumped up so much after working with him. I actually got to drill takedowns and throw Randy Couture. Did he let me? 100%. But I will leave that part out. "So uh… I threw Randy Couture from the clinch. No big deal." I’m going to start using that line. Regardless, who else can say they got to work Greco with Randy for a few hours? It was great for Gray too, because Randy is his normal trainer and coach. So seeing someone familiar when you are alone and cut off was great for his spirits, and in turn that raised all of ours. When Randy walked in, it was like seeing Gray on Christmas when he got his first pair of wrestling shoes.
Brandon had a tough time cutting weight, but Wang was there to help him through it all. I’m sure Andy has been catching a lot of aggravation about how his fight went down and being kicked off Team Penn, but you really get to see who Andy is in this episode. Here is a guy that was eliminated from the competition and he is doing everything in his power to help that same guy make weight for his next fight. Wang could have been bitter or upset about losing, but instead he is committed to helping Brandon. Thats the kind of team mate you want with you when you are cutting weight and it starts getting tough.
The fight between Brandon and Gray seemed a lot closer when it was happening. I still think the fight was very competitive, but I was in shock when Brandon was getting back to his feet over and over. I think everyone on Team Penn expected Gray to take him down and keep him there for the rest of the fight, but Brandon surprised us all. In the end though, Gray kept taking him down over and over and showed how much of a work horse he is the drive that carried him in wrestling. Brandon seemed to fatigue as the fight went out which I am sure had a lot to do with cutting so much weight. The pace of the fight was real fast too, but you can’t cut that much weight and expect to carry a pace like that for very long. While trying to get back to his feet Brandon left his neck exposed and Gray took advantage of it. As Manny said though, "That was a crazy ass fight, bro".