Injured on both ankles, Strong fights through pain to reach TUF 34 semifinals

Christian Strong advanced to the bantamweight semifinals of The Ultimate Fighter 34 with a dominant decision win over Marlon Jones, but the fight itself was only half the battle — Strong had entered the house nursing injuries to both ankles that never made it to air.

Speaking to MMA Fighting after the second episode, Strong revealed the extent of his physical problems at the start of the season and the impact they had on his weight cut. “I also got injured right before the show as well and they didn’t show that in the beginning — I kind of wish they would have — which kind of affected me trying to get my weight down going into the show,” Strong said. “I’m a bigger ‘35er for sure, so the weight was definitely still kind of hard to make, especially in the beginning, and then making it twice, man, it’s a daunting task in the house.”

The injuries were serious enough that production staff pulled Strong aside to ask whether he could continue. His answer left little room for doubt. “They were not necessarily threatening to pull me off the show, but they seemed really concerned and they were kind of like, ‘We need to know right now whether you’re able to perform or not,’” Strong recalled. “I told them, ‘If I have to, I’ll hobble in there with one f*cking leg.’ So I was going to make it happen regardless.”

Once cleared to compete, Strong faced another unexpected hurdle: the cast discovered that only 16 of the 20 invited fighters would actually make the show, with coaches Daniel Cormier and Michael Bisping selecting their rosters in a live tryout format that sent four fighters home before a single fight was booked.

Strong was the last athlete chosen, eventually landing on Team Cormier — an outcome he had quietly anticipated given his wrestling credentials. “As the picks were going along, I’m like, it’s getting more and more hairy, the numbers are dwindling down,” he said. “I had an inkling in the back of my mind, me being from my wrestling background, I feel like at least I’m going to get picked by ‘DC.’ I’d be very surprised if I didn’t, and it just so happened I did.”

That wrestling background proved decisive against the striking-focused Jones in the quarterfinal, with Team Cormier’s coaching staff instructing Strong to reset and shoot takedowns throughout the bout. The strategy worked, and Strong now moves into the semifinals with the physical hurdles of the opening weeks — if not entirely behind him — at least no longer standing between him and a shot at the TUF 34 title.