Music: {allcanada} Canadian's quest cut short

Thursday, November 3, 2011

{allcanada} Canadian's quest cut short

Winnipeg bantamweight Roland Delorme goes down to defeat on the latest episode of Season 14 of "The Ultimate Fighter."

His preparation hampered by an infected foot, Delorme is stopped by T.J. Dillashaw in the last preliminary-round fight on the reality TV MMA show.

Dillashaw, who trains with former WEC champion Urijah Faber as a member of Team Alpha in Sacramento, uses his wrestling and ground game to control the Canadian in the first round.

Dillashaw floors Delorme with a right to open the second round, punishing him on the ground and then forcing him to tap to a rear-naked choke.

"I wanted it. I didn't get it," says an emotional Delorme, the right side of his face showing an ugly swelling.

The result narrows coach Jason (Mayhem) Miller's lead to 5-3 over rival coach Mike Bisping.

The discrepancy means two Miller fighters have to meet in the semifinals. Bantamweight Johny Bedford solves that problem by volunteering to meet fellow Team Miller member John Dodson, who has drawn criticism for being too close to Team Bisping.

In the other 135-pound bout, Dillashaw is drawn against Miller's Dustin Pague.

In the featherweight division, Bryan Caraway (Team Miller) looks none to happy to have drawn Brazilian dynamo Diego Brandao (Bisping) in the semifinals. Akira Corassani (Bisping) faces Dennis Bermudez (Miller) in the other 145-pound matchup.

The winners will meet in the live finale in Las Vegas on Dec. 3.

Dillashaw takes his lumps in training for the Delorme fight from Bisping teammates Corassani and Brandao for choosing what he saw as an easier route through the field.

"T.J's a draft dodger and a coward in my eyes now because he wanted the coaches to push him to the finals," says Corassani.

Dillashaw objects to the rough treatment, but Bisping just sees it as good sparring -- until he hears that the plan was to knock Dillashaw out in training.

"That is wrong, it is so wrong," the coach says. "I wasn't happy about that."

Both teams get guest instructors for the episode in noted trainer and former Muay Thai champion Rafael Cordeiro (for the Miller team) and former UFC light-heavyweight title-holder Tito (The Huntington Beach Bad Boy) Ortiz (Team Bisping).

Miller and Bisping are also slated to square off on the live finale.