Last night’s episode of The Ultimate Fighter reality show on Spike once again brought to light an unfathomable mystery: how can a professional fighter who exercises several hours a day be as fat as Roy “Big Country” Nelson?

Nelson took on fellow Team Rashad member Justin Wren in the first quarterfinal match. Wren is no Skinny Minnie at six foot three and 250 pounds, but he was dwarfed by Nelson’s belly. Nelson weighed in at 264 and only stands six feet tall.

The weight limit for the heavyweight division is 265, and Nelson may have actually had to lose weight to get down to his weigh-in weight of one pound less than the limit. The show didn’t mention a weight cut, but he was awfully close for it to be purely a function of mother nature.

The fight itself was mildly interesting. Wren came out swinging hard, and he was clearly the aggressor during the first half of the first round. Nelson was pushed back on his heels by Wren’s onslaught and found himself pummeled against the cage. He saved himself by a clinch that may have saved him from getting knocked down.

Once they were separated, Wren was never able to regain the energy or aggression with which he started. He still put together some good combinations, but Nelson stayed elusive and counterpunched well. Nelson also managed to land some solid leg kicks before the round ended.

In the second round, Wren was visibly more tired than Nelson. He was periodically able to go on the offensive and push the pace, but only in short spurts. For his part, Nelson continued to back away and counterpunch, landing a number of jabs. Both fighters traded some leg kicks during the round, but neither the kicks nor the punches seemed to do any real damage.

Everyone on the show thought the fight was even and should have gone to a third round. I agree. The fight was very even, and an argument could be made for either fighter winning it. I actually would have given it to Wren, if I had to pick a winner. The judges, however, gave it to Nelson. Obviously, they thought Big Country’s elusiveness, counterpunches and jabs outweighed Wren’s aggression. I’m okay with the decision, but I would have liked to have seen it go to a third round.

I had sort of been rooting for Nelson for two reasons: his prodigious belly and my desire to see veterans of other fight leagues do well in the UFC. I also think Dana White’s criticism of his win over Kimbo Slice was unfair. Nelson played that fight smart, and he did what he had to do to win without getting hurt.

Based on his past experience fighting tough competition, I actually thought Nelson had a good shot at winning the show and becoming this season’s ultimate fighter. Now I’m not so sure. He didn’t look that great against Wren.

I would have expected a fighter with Nelson’s credentials to show me more than he showed during this fight. He didn’t punch hard enough to do any damage. He also wasn’t very aggressive and definitely seemed to be fighting not to lose, rather than fighting to win. It’ll be interesting to see how he fares against fighters with more stamina than Wren.

Nelson’s stamina is actually the most impressive thing about his performance during the fight. He’s much fatter than Wren, yet he managed to stay stronger during the two rounds, while Wren ran out of gas halfway through the first.

I’ve said this before, but it bears repeating: Nelson should lose 60 pounds and fight at light heavyweight. At that weight, he’d be a force to be reckoned with. He’s a fairly skilled fighter, and he has a lot of experience, but he’ll never be able to hang with the true heavyweights in the UFC.

An interesting side-plot of this episode is Matt Mitrione thinking he may have had a concussion and going in to the doctor to be evaluated. Immediately the buzz was that if Mitrione were eliminated, Kimbo may have a chance to be back on the show. Personally, I think Mitrione is an attention-seeking, immature sissy. I’m tired of his shenaningans, and hope to never see him again after the show ends.

As for Kimbo, I’m also tired of the way he’s being hyped and marketed. Yeah, he’s very cute and charming and earnest. Yeah, I like him, and so does everybody else. But he had his shot on the show, and he lost. I don’t think he deserves all the extra attention. There were other guys who lost, who had put up a much better fight than he did. If anyone gets to come back, they should get to come back because they’re good fighters, not because they’re famous YouTube personalities.

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• Not The Safest Sport: The Ultimate Fighter 10 Finale Results In Medical Suspensions
• Rampage Defeats Door, Fighters Gas Out Comically on The Ultimate Fighter
• Kimbo Slice Squashed by Big Country in Ultimate Fighter 10 Bout
• The Ultimate Fighter 10 Finale: Free Event on Spike Features Some Strange Fights
• Big Baby Brings the Jiu Jitsu on The Ultimate Fighter, Scoring First Team Rampage Victory