It was a total knockout for Chuck Liddell in the Celebrity Big Brother house.
The UFC fighter became the first houseguest to be evicted on Friday night after the majority of the alliance formed in the house used their votes to takedown him instead of former Big Time Rush singer James Maslow.
At first it seemed that Maslow was the target of the alliance formed by the women in the house and Ross Mathews, but Shannon Elizabeth flipped the vote when she explained to the other members of the alliance that she thought Omarosa Manigault Newman (who was reportedly hospitalized recently following a competition) and Keshia Knight Pulliam made a side deal to keep Liddell.
Following his eviction, Liddell gave a behind-the-scenes look at his eviction to PEOPLE and chatted about his predictions for the show.
PEOPLE: Were you shocked to be the first one evicted from the house?
Liddell: Yes, I was very sad. I had been waiting to get to that point where things were going fast, and I really wanted America to be able to see me do these competitions. I think they’re missing out.
Why do you think the house ultimately voted for you to be evicted over James?
I think because I was one of the strongest players. They were worried about me. James was able to convince them that I was more of a threat than he was.
Do you regret making the move to open up your gift bag (which provided an opportunity to reverse the Head of Household)? It arguably prompted your nomination for eviction.
I think it was a play that needed to be made. If I could have gotten that recast, I could have flipped everything. It might have been a better idea to just slip by for a little bit but that’s not my style. I’m aggressive.
When you were saying goodbye to the housemates, Omarosa slipped you a piece of paper. What was that?
Oh, she gave me a phone number to call her mom.
What did you make of Omarosa in the competition? Did you know a lot about her going in?
I didn’t know too much going in. I met her before a fight, and I liked her. I heard a lot of people in there that she’s a lot of different things, but I thought she was great. She used to be a volleyball player, I think she’ll go far in this competition. I hope she does.
Who were you most surprised to see when you first walked in the house?
I was most surprised to see Metta . I wasn’t expecting to see Metta in there. I met him a few times and I always liked watching him play basketball.
What won’t you miss about being in the house?
It was kind of nice to be out and back home, but I miss being in the game. I was just learning the game, just getting it down, and I wanted to show everyone what I could do and show them the wild, goofy guy that the more pent up I get, the more funny I get.
Any predictions for who might win?
I would say Omarosa is going to be tough in there. I think she’s got a shot. Shannon —I think she’s got a big target and people are coming after her. Maybe Marissa . She might slip in and knows the game. She might be able to slip by everybody, and don’t sleep on her. She might be able to pull it off.
You now get to be on the jury to pick the winner. How are you going to make your decision?
I need to watch the rest of the season and see what happens before I decide who I would pick. I mean, there’s a few people I won’t pick but it depends on who gets there.
While talking with host Julie Chen after your eviction, you said you want to be on Amazing Race next with your wife. What’re the chances that’ll happen?
I don’t know, we’ll see! I’ll keep plugging it.
Celebrity Big Brother airs Sundays, Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays at 8 p.m. ET on CBS.