Last week, The Ultimate Fighter 20 cast was revealed at the UFC Expo in Las Vegas. Although we already knew the first eight participants, we were shown the other eight ladies set to join the cast on one of the most anticipated seasons of the show ever….
Last week, The Ultimate Fighter 20cast was revealed at the UFC Expo in Las Vegas. Although we already knew the first eight participants, we were shown the other eight ladies set to join the cast on one of the most anticipated seasons of the show ever.
Coached by Anthony Pettis and Gilbert Melendez, the show will crown the first 115-pound women’s champion. Of the 16 ladies on the cast, six are in Bleacher Report’s top-15 rankings.
Not familiar with all the ladies on the cast? Here is an early scouting report on all 16 competitors.
The Ultimate Fighter 20, the show’s first all-female incarnation, is not even a week into filming, and there’s already tension on set.
According to UFC President Dana White (via MMA Fighting), a fight broke out on Day 1 of filming, establish…
The Ultimate Fighter 20, the show’s first all-female incarnation, is not even a week into filming, and there’s already tension on set.
According to UFC President Dana White (via MMA Fighting), a fight broke out on Day 1 of filming, establishing a high baseline level of drama before the action reaches full swing.
“The women go after it,” White said. “The first day when they get in there, there’s already been stuff. Half of them don’t like each other. It’s going to be a very interesting season.”
When pressed to respond to rumors that strawweight Felice Herrig was nearly kicked off the show because of this scuffle, White said, “Well, I wouldn’t say she almost got thrown off, but a fight broke out the first day.”
From White’s statement, it certainly seems that Herrig was involved in the skirmish, and there’s a high possibility that it also involved cast member Heather Clark.
Herrig and Clark have a lengthy history of ill will, as the two shoved and jawed before, during and after their Bellator 94 showdown, where Herrig took home a split-decision victory.
In addition, Clark previously tweeted some less-than-flattering NSFW statements about Herrig, upping the severity of their grudge in the process.
While The Ultimate Fighter 20 was already hotly anticipated due to the fact that it will crown the promotion’s first ever female 115-pound champion at the show’s conclusion, the news of this brawl adds a little more intrigue, giving fans yet another reason to tune in and watch the ladies throw down.
The Ultimate Fighter’s 20th season will feature an all-female strawweight cast. The UFC made that announcement in early December after acquiring several of Invicta FC’s strawweight roster. From that time going forward, there were questions about the ca…
The Ultimate Fighter‘s 20th season will feature an all-female strawweight cast. The UFC made that announcement in early December after acquiring several of Invicta FC’s strawweight roster. From that time going forward, there were questions about the cast.
Carla Esparza, Alex Chambers, Claudia Gadelha, Felice Herrig, BecRawlings, Emily Kagan, Juliana Lima, Rose Namajunas, Tecia Torres, Paige VanZant and Joanne Calderwood were the first names to be announced, but Gadelha, VanZant and Lima were forced off the show.
This left eight more spots to be filled via the open workouts. On Thursday, the UFC announced the complete cast before having the fighters and coaches speak at the Ultimate Media Day.
The most notable addition is former Invicta FC atomweight champion Jessica Penne. Other names fans may recognize are Aisling Daly, Lisa Ellis and Heather Jo Clark.
Coaching the upcoming season will be lightweights Anthony Pettis and Gilbert Melendez.
The 20th season of the show is not only historic because of the all-female cast and the new division in the UFC, but also because the two finalists of the season will compete in a five-round bout for the inaugural UFC strawweight championship.
During the Ultimate Media Day broadcast on UFC Fight Pass, Felice Herring noted the difference between the two coaching staffs during the first day of filming. Herring mentioned that Team Melendez was more laid back, while Team Pettis had a more intense approach to the evaluations.
The upcoming strawweight season will begin airing on Fox Sports 1 in September.
Those of us who have been unfortunate enough to tune in every Wednesday for the past few weeks can all agree that The Ultimate Fighter 19 has been one of the most unwatchable shows in the history of cable TV.
When the president of the company says it’s…
Those of us who have been unfortunate enough to tune in every Wednesday for the past few weeks can all agree that The Ultimate Fighter 19 has been one of the most unwatchable shows in the history of cable TV.
When the president of the company says it’s the worst ever, you know things have been bad. Although Frankie Edgar and BJ Penn have a history, they haven’t made an attempt to take verbal jabs at each other, which has led to some bland coaching interactions.
People look forward to the fights during the season, but they’ve been mildly entertaining or downright awful. A number of fights were won thanks to a single takedown or punch because nothing else happened.
But as bad as TUF 19 has been, there’s hope for fans who are looking forward to the next season of The Ultimate Fighter.
The talk of Twitter Monday morning and afternoon was definitely the tryouts for The Ultimate Fighter 20. That is because it is the first season that features all women and will crown a champion at the end of the season.
From the tryouts, MMA Junki…
The talk of Twitter Monday morning and afternoon was definitely the tryouts for The Ultimate Fighter 20. That is because it is the first season that features all women and will crown a champion at the end of the season.
From the tryouts, MMA Junkie confirmed that there were 36 women who showed up to the open tryouts in an attempt to make the cast of the show.
There are eight spots available on the show since Paige VanZant, Claudia Gadelha and Juliana Lima were all pulled from the program. The eight women were all brought over from Invicta, though there were Invicta fighters at the tryouts.
Here are the eight women on the cast now.
Confirmed Cast
Name
Record
Gym
Joanne Calderwood (UK)
8-0
Dinky Ninjas
Alex Chambers (AUS)
4-1
VT-1 Gym
Carla Esparza (USA)
9-2
Team Oyama
Felice Herrig (USA)
9-5
Team Curran
Emily Kagan (USA)
3-1
Jackson-Winkeljohn MMA
Rose Namajunas (USA)
2-1
The Academy
Bec Rawlings (AUS)
5-3
Gamebred Combat Club
Tecia Torres (USA)
4-0
American Top Team
Those eight women are all impressive, but since hearing the names of the women at the tryouts, all I can think about is who will make the show. Given the list of 36 women that were at the tryouts, let’s take a look at the eight women who should snag the final spots in the hopes of making this the most competitive season possible.
Riley’s Picks for Final 8 Spots
Name
Record
Gym
Nina Ansaroff (USA)
6-3
MMA Masters
Heather Clark (USA)
6-4
Xtreme Couture
Aisling Daly (IRE)
14-5
SBG Ireland
Lisa Ellis (USA)
15-8
United Training Center
Justine Kish (USA)
4-0
Blackhouse
Angela Magana (USA)
11-6
Team Four Corners
Michelle Ould (USA)
7-3
Team Quest
Jessica Penne (USA)
11-2
Reign MMA/Kings MMA
The UFC can have a tendency to pick looks over talent when looking at past signing decisions, but this show should literally be the cream of the crop. That being said, of the eight I chose, that doesn’t mean they aren’t good-looking women who can be marketable to the average caveman fan.
Three of the women who should be given a serious look are true veterans of the sport that have been doing this for a long time. Those three are Aisling Daly, Lisa Ellis and Angela Magana.
Daly is an obvious choice, not only because of her experience and skill, but because she is from Ireland. The UFC is making an obvious power play in the country thanks to Conor McGregor and as evidenced by Cathal Pendred and Chris Fields’ inclusion in TUF 19.
Ellis and Magana are experienced against high-level women due to their longevity in the sport. Ellis would complete the first-ever couple to be featured on TUF, as her husband Eddy was on the 16th season of the show. Magana is a crafty vet who has the personality to stir the pot in the house, as she has done in the past through social media and the MMA media.
Speaking of stirring the pot, that’s where Heather Clark comes in, as she has a beef with Felice Herrig. That is not the only reason she should be in, though, as she is tough as nails and has a well-rounded skill set. She would likely want a rematch with Herrig, as she lost a split decision despite a broken arm suffered in the first round.
Then there are a pair of current flyweights that are among the best in that division that would really add to this cast in Nina Ansaroff and Michelle Ould. They would be definite threats to make a serious run on the show.
Ould, who hasn’t competed in almost two years, is still known for knocking off some of the best at 125. If she can keep her weight down on the show, she has the well-rounded tool set to go far in the tournament. The same can be said for Ansaroff, though she has stayed much more busy in recent times than Ould.
The dark horse is Justine Kish. Assuming she had a tryout that matches her recent performances in the cage, she could be a lock for the cast. She is a muay thai champion with underrated grappling skills, and she could make a name for herself on this stage.
The woman who most fans are expecting to make the cast is Jessica Penne. The former Invicta Atomweight champion is a large 105-pounder and would not be at too big of a size disadvantage in the house. Not only that, but she would also be one of the most skilled women of the cast.
Those eight women are the most qualified and have the most intangibles to make this season’s cast. Of course, there were other talented ladies at the tryouts who could find their way into the cast.
Sound off in the comments section on who you think should grab the eight spots open to the cast or if you agree with my picks!
Paige VanZant looked to be poised as a breakout star for the upcoming 20th season of The Ultimate Fighter, but that will not happen.
The 20-year-old fighter will not be allowed on the show due to her young age. She turned 20 in March, and one must…
Paige VanZant looked to be poised as a breakout star for the upcoming 20th season of The Ultimate Fighter, but that will not happen.
The 20-year-old fighter will not be allowed on the show due to her young age. She turned 20 in March, and one must be 21 before they can enter the TUF house to compete on the show. It was unfortunate news for VanZant and fans alike.
While she would not have been a favorite on the show, VanZant had a title opportunity ripped away from her. The TUF finalists will battle for the inaugural UFC Strawweight Championship on the finale.
Instead, the UFC signed her straight to the roster. She will have the luxury of training at home until the strawweights make their official debut later in 2014.
Looking forward to her debut, this is what you need to know about VanZant.
Camp
VanZant would have benefited a lot from being on the show. The Ultimate Fighter’s pressure cooker environment has routinely advanced the careers of its fighters throughout the years. VanZant would have been trained by one of two extraordinary coaches—Gilbert Melendez or Anthony Pettis and their assistants.
Instead, she stays at home. Which, thankfully, is not a step backward.
VanZant is a member of Team Alpha Male.
Team Alpha Male is still searching for a head coach after losing Duane Ludwig, but the crop of fighters training in that gym are among the best in the world. Especially at the lighter weights.
Urijah Faber, Chad Mendes and Joseph Benavidez are just three of the names that come to mind. All three are former title challengers, and all three are still in position to challenge once more. Team Alpha Male bantamweight T.J. Dillashaw will get a crack at championship gold soon himself.
The TUF house and training schedule would have been very beneficial for VanZant, but the good news is she still trains at one of the top camps in the world.
She will not be able to scout her opponents like the cast members of TUF. They will see their fellow fighters grow and develop firsthand. VanZant will miss that opportunity. On the flip side, the TUF cast will not be able to gauge how fast she has developed while they have been away.
Professional Record
The newly minted 20-year-old has had four professional bouts. She has only dropped one of those, and that was to the now No. 6-ranked Tecia Torres.
She made her professional debut in June of 2012 with a split decision win over Jordan Nicole Gaza. VanZant would follow that up with a unanimous decision win three months later against Amber Stautzenberger.
Then she got the call to compete in the premier women’s organization—Invicta FC.
VanZant would be taking on the 1-0 Torres. The two strawweight prospects battled for 15 minutes, but Torres showed she was simply too far technically advanced at this stage in her career.
If nothing else, it was a good learning experience for VanZant. She got to compete against someone who would soon shoot up the rankings into the top 10. She has experience against a top-tier fighter, and she knows what she needs to work on before making her UFC debut.
Three months following her first loss, she took to the cage again against Courtney Himes. In just 2:21 she secured a rear-naked choke for the win.
Since that day in early April, VanZant has not been in the cage again. She was tapped as one of the initial strawweights for the UFC. There is little doubt she will be a much more technically skilled fighter come late 2014.
Expectations
VanZant‘s TUF expectations were low. It was not a knock on her personally, but it was telling of how talented the house will be for the upcoming season.
Five of the top 10, and several other talented veterans will be in the house. The expectations for VanZant would have been to drop a bout to one of those women and spend the rest of her time developing her skills in the house.
Now, the expectations shift a tiny bit.
We do not know when she will debut or against whom. Will the UFC throw the youngster in against one of the top strawweights that did not make the finale, or will she take on someone outside of the top 10 in an effort to slowly bring her along?
As a Team Alpha Male fighter, VanZant‘s expectations for her Octagon debut is to look polished—plain and simple.
She has a solid core of skills that have been sharpened for over at year, at this point, and will be for more than six more months by the time she makes her debut.
The Team Alpha Male fighter should be a much more skilled fighter the next time we see her step through the cage door. Regardless, we need to remember she is only 20 years of age and still has a lot more time to develop into a potential star in the new strawweight division.
Everyone should expect to see significant growth as a fighter at the highest levels.
The Ultimate Fighter‘s 20th season will feature an all-female