The Ultimate Fighter Live field announced
A talented field of 32 confident, dedicated and determined fighters has been set for THE ULTIMATE FIGHTER® LIVE on FX that begins on Friday, March 9, with a special two-and-a-half-hour LIVE premiere airing at 9 PM ET/8 PM CT, and tape-delayed on the Pacific and Mountain time zones at 9 PM PT/10 PM MT.
This season’s fighters have been drawn from the lightweight (155 pounds) division and hail from all across the United States, England, Northern Ireland and Brazil.
The previously announced coaches for the two teams will be current UFC bantamweight champion Dominick Cruz and former WEC featherweight champion and current top contender, Urijah Faber. Cruz and Faber are no strangers to each other. The popular UFC superstars and rivals have split two previous fights and will clash for a third time at UFC 148 on July 7 in Las Vegas.
There will be 16 live fights on the March 9 season premiere. Following the “Fight In,” the 16 survivors will then be broken up into two teams of eight. Each team will train with each other and reside in a house together in Las Vegas for the duration of the season. One fighter from each team will be selected by their coach to fight at the end of each weekly installment on FX for the right to advance in the competition and, ultimately, perhaps, be crowned THE ULTIMATE FIGHTER LIVE Champion and earn the life-changing contract with the UFC.
THE ULTIMATE FIGHTER LINEUP
| Akbarh Arreloa, Chula Vista, Calif. | Al Iaquinta, Wantagh, N.Y. |
| Ali Maclean, Belfast, North Ireland | Andy Ogle, Tynemouth, England |
| Austin Lyons, Cordova, Tenn. | Brendan Weafer, New York, N.Y. |
| Chris Tickle, Bloomington, Ill. | Cody Pfister, Amarillo, Texas |
| Cristiano Marcello, Curitiba, Brazil | Chase Hackett, Littleton, Colo. |
| Chris Saunders, Long Beach, Calif. | Dakota Cochrane, Omaha, Neb. |
| Daron Cruickshank, Wayne, Mich. | Drew Dober, Omaha, Neb. |
| Erin Beach, San Diego, Calif. | James Krause, Blue Springs, Mich. |
| James Vick, Fort Worth, Texas | Jared Carlsten, Los Angeles, Calif. |
| Jeff Smith, Mechanicsburg, Penn. | Jeremy Larsen, Phoenix, Ariz. |
| Joe Proctor, Pembroke, Mass. | John Cofer, Hull, Ga. |
| Johnavan Vistante, Pearl City, Hawaii | Jon Tuck, Hagtna, Guam |
| Jordan Rinaldi, Matthews, N.C. | Justin Lawrence, Villa Ridge, Mo. |
| Mark Glover, Liverpool, England | Michael Chiesa, Spokane Valley, Wash. |
| Myles Jury, San Diego, Calif. | Mike Rio, Miami, Fla. |
| Sam Sicilia, Spokane Valley, Wash. | Vinc Pichel, Sherman Oaks, Calif. |
The inaugural season of THE ULTIMATE FIGHTER LIVE on FX will run for 13 consecutive weeks, featuring live fights every episode, and culminate with a championship fight on June 1, in a three-hour finale.
FX will also televise a second 13-week season of THE ULTIMATE FIGHTER LIVE this summer. There will be two 13-week seasons of THE ULTIMATE FIGHTER LIVE on FX annually for the next seven years with the eventual winner of each season receiving a six-figure contract from the UFC.
