American Top Team wins TUF 21, donates $200K to charity
American Top Team wins TUF 21, donates $200K to charity
The 21st season of the Ultimate Fighter did not start off on the right foot for fans as the competition experienced a new format pitting gym vs. gym, rather than every fighter for himself which led to a massive one-sided landslide of the Blackzilians team racking up wins over the American Top Team.
It’s a rare feat in sports when a team goes down by a wide margin early in a series, but somehow finds a way to come back and walk away victorious. Somehow, Dan Lambert and his American Top Team defied the odds and came back to win the competition in the final fight when Hayder Hassan outpointed Vicente Luque on the judges’ scorecards.
The scores came back 29-28 on two cards for Hassan and 29-28 once for Luque, which meant American Top Team got the win while taking home the entire competition with a 400-300 point margin overall.
“That’s the fight we’ve been waiting for!”UFC President Dana White said after the decision was rendered.
With the win the American Top Team gym was awarded $200,000 for winning the season, HOWEVER, Lambert did something extremely honorable, turned around and donated the full purse right back to charity.
“The coaches and the guys got together and we decided that if we were lucky enough to win this thing we were going to donate the money to the Wounded Warriors Project. So I think everybody in this room would agree that those guys are the best fighters in the world and the UFC is a big supporter of the cause and we would just like to show our appreciation, and follow your lead and we think that’s a great place for the $200,000 to go,” Lambert said in speaking to White.
White said in response, “Dan, that’s awesome. You’ve been a pillar in this sport for a long time and one of the best guys I’ve ever met. That’s so stand up of you. Incredible. Thank you man. Thank you for participating in this
Watch Lamber make the announcement here: http://www.ufc.com/news/TUF-21-Episode-12-recap
This Sunday, July 12 the TUF 21 live finale will be held with $300,000 on the line as well as a Harley-Davidson motorcycle and The Ultimate Fighter team trophy.
Hassan was chosen to represent American Top Team in the finale while the Blackzilians chose Kamaru Usman. Tune in Sunday night to see who wins.
