Michael Chiesa pulled off one of the most memorable runs in Ultimate Fighter history, culminating in a first round rear naked choke win in the TUF finale last night. On the season, Chiesa battled through one of the worst distractions imaginable as his father passed away very shortly after Michael moved into the house. Never truly a favorite to win the competition, Chiesa just kept on winning before putting the very tough Al Iaquinta to sleep to take the championship.
I thought he showed a lot of talent in his fight to get into the house, but so did a lot of guys. I had Lawrence or Iaquinta to beat him and eventually win the show, but I was very glad to be wrong.