TUF 13 · Brock Lesnar · Junior Dos Santos · welterweights · Nordin Asrih · Shamar Bailey · Len Bentley · Mick Bowman · Keon Caldwell · Chris Cope · Zachary Davis · Anthony Ferguson · Clay Harvison · Myles Jury · Ryan McGillivray · Ramsey Nijem · Charlie Rader · Javier Torres
"The Ultimate Fighter 13" cast unveiled with 14 welterweight fighters
Spike TV officials today unveiled the official 14-person welterweight cast for "The Ultimate Fighter 13."The long-running competition-reality series debuts March 30 on Spike TV with heavyweight contenders Brock Lesnar and Junior Dos Santos as coaches.
As MMAjunkie.com (www.mmajunkie.com) first reported earlier this month, UFC officials eliminated the "elimination round" from this season of the show, so the fighters won't have to win an opening-round matchup to secure their spot on the cast.
The cast includes notables such as Nordin Asrih, Shamar Bailey, Myles Jury and Charlie Rader, who all have at least nine professional fights. The fighters come from the U.S., England, Germany, Mexico and Canada. (See the full list and biographical information below.)
"TUF 13" production began this past month. The 14 fighters will be split into two teams and compete in a tournament format. Producers again will use "wild card" picks to give a pair of eliminated cast members a second shot in the quarterfinal round of the tournament.
The seventh, eighth and ninth seasons of the show saw the use of the elimination round, and "TUF 11" then saw the implementation of second-chance wild-card entries. Beginning with 32 fighters instead of 28, the show allowed two cast members who lost in the round of 16 to be handpicked by UFC president Dana White to fight for the final spot in the quarterfinals. The wild-card format, which eventually allowed Kris McCray to post a runner-up finish on "TUF 11," returns this season despite the loss of the elimination round.
Although initially expected to feature both welterweight and middleweight fighters, producers recently chose to go with a cast of all 170-pounders this season.
The cast includes:
Name: Nordin Asrih
Age: 32
Trains: Dusseldorf, Germany (Pride Gym)
MMA record: 16-5-1
Name: Shamar Bailey
Age: 28
Trains: Indianapolis, Ind. (Integrated Fighting Systems)
MMA record: 10-3
Name: Len Bentley
Age: 27
Trains: Olympia, Wash. (Victory Athletics)
MMA record: 9-4
Name: Michael "Mick" Bowman
Age: 26
Trains: Liverpool, England (Wolfslair)
MMA record: 7-2
Name: Keon Caldwell
Age: 26
Trains: Moultrie, Ga. (Team Reality)
MMA record: 8-1
Name: Chris Cope
Age: 28
Trains: San Diego, Calif. (Arena MMA)
MMA record: 4-1
Name: Zachary Davis
Age: 26
Trains: Rockville, Md. (Evolve/Team Lloyd Irvin)
MMA record: 4-1
Name: Anthony Ferguson
Age: 26
Trains: Ventura, Calif. (Knuckleheadz Boxing)
MMA record: 10-2
Name: Clay Harvison
Age: 30
Trains: Marietta, Ga. (X3 Sports)
MMA record: 6-1
Name: Myles Jury
Age: 22
Trains: San Diego, Calif. (Victory & Arena MMA's Wrestling Coach)
MMA record: 9-0
Name: Ryan McGillivray
Age: 24
Trains: Edmonton, Alberta, Canada (Legends Training Centre)
MMA record: 11-4-1
Name: Ramsey Nijem
Age: 22
Trains: Orem, Utah (River Academy/The Pit)
MMA record: 4-1
Name: Charlie Rader
Age: 29
Trains: New Orleans, La. (Power MMA)
MMA record: 16-5
Name: Javier Torres
Age: 25
Trains: Las Vegas, Nev. (Team Tompkins)
MMA record: 3-0
Watch Brock Lesnar's assistant coach Fred Roach from the elite gym Combat Submission Wrestling in Fullerton, CA explain Brock Lesnar's training.
We think Brock Lesnar should spar with big, tough heavyweights and spar consistently to improve his ability to handle strikes. Whom would you recommend he spar with to improve? Start with Josh Barnett who trains at CSW.
