The great job by Al Iaquinta on this season of TUF can’t be talked about enough this week. It’s been awesome watching him every Friday this season . UFC photographers have been great in capturing all the action as it unfolded. Here’s a look at some pictures of Al’s hard work, determination, and some great moments from the past three months. All photos are property of the UFC.
Check out THIS interesting article about the scheduling of this year’s season of the Ultimate Fighter. For the first time in the show’s history each fight was live each week. Not only did this keep the fighters away for an extended period of time(fighters used to be required to be away for only 6 weeks) but made for an aggressive fight schedule down the stretch. Iaquinta for example had to fight three weeks in a row, a tough task to ask of any fighter. It will be interesting to see what changes Dana White will make to the format of the show come next season. Thank you to our friends over at Ring Fever for sending this article my way.
Photo by UFC
In life we all set goals for ourselves. We set them high, work hard, and do everything in our power to be successful. Sometimes that success comes with great sacrifice. It may mean a dramatic change in your life. It could mean taking time away from friends, family, and loved ones to work on accomplishing those goals. Unfortunately sometimes life can be tough and you can get thrown a curveball. Sometimes as hard as you work things just don’t always go according to plan. It’s frustrating, it’s unfair, and sometimes it’s heart breaking. What we all have to remember is achieving a goal isn’t always easy. We all get knocked down sometimes. The most important thing is getting back up, and continuing to embark on that journey, following your heart, and continuing to strive to accomplish all those goals. Yes, Friday night Al Iaquinta got knocked down, but believe me when I tell you he’ll be right back up, working even harder. Al Iaquinta isn’t going anywhere, he’s going to be in this business for a long time. Continue Reading
After a great run on this season of The Ultimate Fighter TUF Live, Al Iaquinta fell just short Friday night in the TUF Finale against Mike Chiesa. Iaquinta looked sharp early, but Chiesa was able to take his back and secure a rare naked choke with 2:37 left in the first round. Iaquinta never taped, forcing Herb Dean to stop the fight. Check back here for a season ending recap tomorrow. As far as Al goes just a minor bump in the road. This is only just the beginning of what will be a great career for him. Congratulations to Al on an incredible season. All his family, friends, and Iaquinta Nation couldn’t be prouder of him. We all look forward to seeing his next fight. Thank you to all of Iaquinta Nation for the support, and everyone back in NY who came to McCann’s Friday night to watch the fight. Much more to come tomorrow.
It’s (almost) fight Night with Al Iaquinta taking on Mike Chiesa in the TUF Finale. I know this post is a day early but I’m heading to Vegas today and wasn’t sure how much I’d be able to do from my iPhone. I’m excited to go to Vegas with about 15-20 of my friends to see Al in the TUF Finale. I’ll give as many updates as I can on here or on my TWITTER account. Look for full coverage and fight recap once I’m back home Monday. Continue Reading
It’s been three long months but this Friday Night will conclude this season of the Ultimate Fighter TUF Live. It will be Al Iaquinta against his former Team Faber teammate Mike Chiesa in what has the makings of a great final fight to cap off the show. Both fighters have worked hard and overcome different types of adversity to get to this point. It’s been great for all of Iaquinta Nation to come along for the ride, supporting Al every step of the way. We’ve all felt like we’ve been right in there with him every single fight.
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This is the 100th post on Iaquinta Nation. I know I’ve done this a lot this week but once again I want to thank everyone not only for their support for Al, but reading and supporting this blog every day. I also want to thank Al for giving me the opportunity to do this. It’s been my pleasure to work on his blog and cover everything that’s been going on with him throughout this season of TUF. It’s been a great way to keep everyone in the loop about everything that’s been going on over the past three months. It’s allowed me, as well as the rest of you to come along for the ride and be there every step of the way with Al throughout this journey. I’ve always enjoyed writing and this has been a great way for me to get back to doing that. It never felt like I was doing work. I was fortunate enough to be writing something about a sport I really enjoy as well as one of my best friends. Congratulations to Al on his success this season, and being one step closer to his goal of winning a UFC contract. As far as this blog, please continue reading because the best is yet to come.
-Matt Pellicane
Check out this ARTICLE featuring former UFC Welterweight Champion Matt Serra. Matt has been Al’s trainer along side Ray Longo and Eric Hyer for the past four years. All three trainers as well as everyone from the Serra Longo fight team has been a huge part of helping Al get to where he is at this point. Serra talks about Al and the success he’s had this season, as well as his thoughts on Al’s future in the UFC. If you have a few extra minutes watch the video with the article as well. Serra is always an entertaining guy to listen to during an interview.
Photo by UFC
Check out the final edition of “Anik Attack” featuring UFC’s Jon Anik. Watch the video HERE where Anik discusses both Chiesa and Iaquinta’s Semi Final Fights, and looks ahead to their match up against each other. As always some interesting insights from Jon about both Iaquinta and Chiesa. Enjoy!
Photo by UFC
Check out Al in the final edition of Newsday’s “TUF Talk” right HERE. Al talks about his upcoming fight with Mike Chiesa, Matt Serra and Ray Longo, as well as his plans once he returns back home. As always a big thank you to Mark La Monica for setting this up each week. All of Iaquinta Nation really appreciates it.
Iaquinta Nation 