Last week, we tracked the progress of the heavyweight class of The Ultimate Fighter Season 2 contestants. Now let’s take a look at the other half of the equation: Season 2 welterweights.
While none of the welterweights have reached the truly elite level yet, Season 2 featured a diverse cast of memorable and entertaining fighters – from the eventual winner Joe ‘Daddy’ Stevenson and the unlikely runner-up Luke Cummo, to the alternate Jason Von Flue who, despite a spotty record, will be remembered for popularizing the arm triangle variant now know as the ‘Von Flue’ choke, to Marcus Davis who made one of the most amazing career turnarounds ever seen in the sport.
Fighters are listed in order of their current Fightmatrix.com ranking, regardless of the weight class. Fights that took place in the live finale are counted in the ‘After’ column.
[#15 LW] Joe Stevenson
| Current Record: 29-8 | Before: 23-6 | On the show: 2-0 | After: 6-2 UFC |
The most experienced fighter of his group and Matt Hughes’ first pick, Stevenson didn’t dissappoint his coach when he stopped Marcus Davis and Jason Von Flue in the first round. Stevenson defeated Luke Cummo by unanimous decision in the finale, then dropped down to 155 lbs after an upset loss to Josh Neer. After winning his next four bouts, Stevenson faced BJ Penn for the vacant lightweight title after the champion Sean Sherk was stripped due to testing positive for an anabolic agent. Stevenson lost a bloody and one-side bout to Penn, but impressed the fans showing a lot of heart in the loss. He got back on the winning track recently, defeating Gleison Tibau with his trademark guillotine at UFC 86.
[#24 WW] Marcus Davis
| Current Record: 14-4 | Before: 3-2 | On the show: 0-1 | After: 11-2 (6-2 UFC) |
A former professional boxer, Davis’ apparent lack of grappling skills cost him a first round loss to Stevenson on the show. After another loss in the finale to Melvin Guillard, Davis contemplated retirement, but instead rounded out his skill set and made a huge comeback, winning his next 11 bouts – including six straight victories in the UFC. Davis lost a unanimous decision to Mike Swick in his most recent bout.
[#33 WW] Josh Burkman
| Current Record: 9-6 | Before: 4-2 | On the show: 1-0 | After: 5-4 UFC |
Though Burkman defeated Melvin Guillard in a hard-fought decision, he suffered a broken arm in the fight and was forced to leave the competition. Burkman redeemed himself in the finale, knocking out Sam Morgan with a slam in only 21 seconds, then followed up with a quick submission win over Drew Fickett. He has had a rough time since then, going 3-4 in the Octagon with all wins coming by the way of decision, and back-to-back losses in his last two fights may put Burkman’s UFC career in jeopardy.
[#73 LW] Melvin Guillard
| Current Record: 22-7-2 | Before: 17-4-2 | On the show: 0-1 | After: 5-3 (4-3 UFC) |
Guillard showed great heart in his decision loss to Burkman, in a bout where both contestants suffered broken bones yet went on to finish the fight. He defeated Marcus Davis in the finale, and holds a winning record in the UFC, though the three losses coming by the way of submission indicate a gap in his ground game. Guillard’s last several bouts took place at 155 lbs, and he looked great in his most recent bout, earning a quick knockout over Denis Siver. He will have to demonstrate an improved submission defense before he can raise to the elite level of MMA competition.
[#88 WW] Luke Cummo
| Current Record: 6-5 | Before: 3-2 | On the show: 2-0 | After: 3-3 UFC |
An unassuming vegan who did not look anything like a typical fighter, Luke Cummo surprised everyone when he made it to the finals of the competition after winning a decision over Antony Torres and a brutal knee knockout of Sam Morgan. Cummo was overpowered by Joe Stevenson in the finale, losing a decision, then went 3-2 in his next five UFC bouts. He dropped a decision to Luigi Fioravanti in his most recent fight, and is scheduled to take on Tamden McCrory on the undercard bout at UFC 87. Interesting tidbit: Luke Cummo is known to drink his own urine for therapeutic reasons. No kidding.
| Current Record: 12-4 | Before: 9-1 | On the show: 0-1 | After: 3-3 UFC |
As Rich Franklin’s long time training partner and jiu-jitsu coach, Gurgel had somewhat of an advantage going into the show, and was an early favorite until losing a decision to Jason Von Flue. Gurgel has struggled to translate his BJJ credentials to MMA, preferring to play the striking game with most opponents and not being able to put together a solid game plan. This has netted him a .500 winning percentage in the Octagon, with five out of six fights going the distance. In his most recent bout Gurgel fell victim to a triangle choke courtesy of Cole Miller, once again bringing questions about Jorge’s continued career in the UFC. Like Stevenson and Guillard, Gurgel as well now competes in the lightweight division.
| Current Record: 12-10-1 | Before: 10-4-1 | On the show: 1-1 | After: 2-6 (1-2 UFC) |
Von Flue was an alternate contender, brought in after Burkman’s injury. He defeated Gurgel in an upset decision, but was quickly submitted by Stevenson in the next round. After defeating Season 1 contestant Alex Caralexis with his patented arm triangle choke that is ofter referred to as the ‘Von Flue’, Jason then dropped a decision to Luke Cummo and was out of the UFC after a submission loss to Joe Riggs. His career has hit a skid, and he is currently riding a four-loss streak.
| Current Record: 19-10 | Before: 16-6 | On the show: 0-1 | After: 3-4 (0-2 UFC) |
A veteran with a solid record going into the show – including a knockout win over Duane ‘Bang’ Ludwig – Sam Morgan’s hopes were dashed when he was knocked out by a knee in his elimination bout with Luke Cummo. Morgan was stopped again by Josh Burkman in the finale, and after gathering two submission wins in smaller leagues, dropped a decision to Forrest Petz in his final UFC bout. Morgan was TKO’d in his last two fights, by British kickboxer Paul Daley and the San-Shou legend Cung Le.
| Current Record: 5-2 | Before: 3-0 | On the show: 0-1 | After: 2-2 (1-1 UFC) |
Undefeated going into the show, Torres lost an uneventful decision to Luke Cummo in his only TUF bout. He has only fought four times since then, going 1-1 in the UFC and losing his latest outing to Michael Brightmon in X-1 (Hawaii).
| Current Record: 9-7 | Before: 7-3 | On the show: 0-0 | After: 2-4 |
Kenny Stevens was picked to fight in the very first welterweight elimination bout, and was not able to make weight on short notice, being forced to forfeit and leave the competition. He was never invited back to the UFC, then lost his next four fights after his brief appearance on TUF and took some time off from fighting. Stevens resumed his carreer in 2008, winning two fights in Alabama’s Xtreme Total Combat promotion.