Quarry made his professional mixed martial arts debut in 2001, in a match against Drew McFedries, which he won with a TKO in the second round. After compiling a 5–1 record, Quarry was invited by the UFC to participate in "The Ultimate Fighter", a reality television show and mixed martial arts competition featuring up-and-coming MMA talent living and training in seclusion with the UFC. On the show however, Quarry had to drop out of the competition when he suffered an ankle injury during practice, which would have required six weeks to heal. He was asked to stay on as an assistant coach. When he was no longer officially allowed to compete, he allowed Team Quest teammate, Chris Leben (who was already eliminated by Josh Koscheck) to take his place. During his time on the show, he was seen as the role model for Team Couture and would also stand up for Team Liddell member Sam Hoger when others would make fun of him, but confronted him when he was accused of stealing UFC merchandise from the gym.