There is something about a good fight that draws a big attraction even from someone as tranquil as me.

I don’t know what is so appealing about two people punching each other in the face and wrestling on the ground, but somehow it had me glued to the television throughout the day on Saturday.

While waiting for the Cubs game to come on, I came across “Ultimate Fighter”, a reality show featuring 16 people with a goal to earn a contract to fight for the Ultimate Fighting Championship.

I shamefully admit I was hooked. Yes, a combination of reality TV and fighting had me wondering what was going to happen next.

I began to pick favorites and make predictions on how long a fight would last and who would win. Once again, I am ashamed.

The thing that amazed me, though, was how these men would step into an eight-sided ring and take punches, kicks, elbows and knees to every body part imaginable, and then want to get back up and do it again.

I saw faces get bloodied and men who could barely open their eyes because they were swollen shut. Who would want to do that for a living?

I have never been in a fight, and I can’t imagine what it would be like to be punched in the face once, let alone getting hit repeatedly.

Most people would think it would take an incredibly stupid person to step into that ring time after time and take brutal blows to their body and face – a type of person who has nothing else to lose.

But it was the smarter fighters who I saw lasting into the later rounds of the tournament and not the fiercest competitors.

It took more than a hard right hook to win a match. Fighters needed a strong mind and an understanding of an opponent to survive. A good fighter showed not only how to hurt his opponent, but he showed how not to get himself hurt.

One fighter, who specialized in wrestling, changed his style to better match his opponent; an opponent who had ended both of his previous matches with quick submissions.

Another fighter carried his emotions in the ring and was sent home because of it. He was more experienced, but was emotionally unstable against another fighter he had a grudge against.

These fighters also had to live inside a house with each other without TV, magazines or newspapers for entertainment. They had to talk to the people they were going to be facing inside the “octagon.”

They essentially had to have the mentality of wanting to tear apart someone they had trained with and made friendships with while living in such close quarters.

Imagine having to live with your current roommates, knowing you may have to knock them out at any given time.

I can’t believe I fell into a reality TV hole, but it was definitely more than just a couple of guys trying to destroy each other. It was more than just two sets of fists, and I look at fighting in a whole new perspective.

I see myself as a pretty smart guy who can keep his cool so maybe I should sign up for the next season of “Ultimate Fighter.” But then again, I’m not that stupid.