• TUF

Barnatt feared TUF fighter was dead

ESPN staff
February 5, 2013
Luke Barnatt on the KO

TUF contestant Luke Barnatt has told ESPN about the moment one of his fellow contestants was put in hospital following a brutal knockout.

The Team Sonnen fighter won the first preliminary fight in the house last week, beating Team Jones' Gilbert Smith by knockout.

This week's fight sees Uriah Hall taking on Adam Cella with a finish described by UFC president Dana White as "one of the nastiest moments I've seen in the fight business, let alone on The Ultimate Fighter."

This is something British middleweight Barnatt has backed up when speaking to the ESPN UFC Podcast. He said: "This is the most shocking knockout I've seen in my life. It's unbelievable what happens. A lot of people will say it is just Dana White just trying to hype it up, but honestly if it conveys on TV like it felt in the room; we were all cheering, all feeling fine and then 'boom', split second, scariest thing I've seen in my life.

"We thought the guy who got knocked out, we honestly thought he was dead. It was a very devastating knockout."

One fighter is pictured being put in an ambulance at the end of last week's episode, leading to this fight being one of the most anticipated in the programme's 19 series history.

© ESPN Sports Media Ltd.
Close