By TXMMA Staff | Photo: Mike Roach / Zuffa LLC via Getty Images
Upcoming ‘The Ultimate Fighter’ Season 18 the first to feature male and female fighters on the same show
The Ultimate Fighter – Season 18 debuts on Wednesday, September 4th on the 10pm EST time slot on the new Fox Sports 1.
This season will make history as The Ultimate Fighter – Season 18 (TUF 18) will be the first to feature women fighters along with the men as cast members and coaches on the show.
UFC women’s bantamweight champ Ronda Rousey will be pitted against past opponent Miesha Tate in preparation for their upcoming rematch. Rousey was initially set to coach against Colorado native Cat Zingano before in injury knocked her out of the TUF coaching spot. The season should be interesting nonetheless as they is no love lost between Rousey and new coach Tate.
As for the competitors vying for a chance to be crowned The Ultimate Fighter, the season will be split between men and women with 32 fighters vying for a shot to get into the house. Of that number only sixteen of the bantamweight (135 lbs) fighters coming in from all over the world will make it into the TUF House where they will compete all season long for a guaranteed UFC contract and all the perks that come with becoming the TUF 18 champion.
“I think it’s an amazing opportunity to be able to coach both (men and women),” TUF 18 Coach Ronda Rousey recently mentioned. “It’s going to be something amazing, and I can’t wait.”
Meet The Ultimate Fighter Season 18 Cast
The TUF 18 cast list below comes by way of industry insider Dave Meltzer. It should be noted that this has NOT been confirmed by UFC officials but should be a reliable indicator of who has made it onto the show.
Women’s Bantamweight Fighters
Shayna Baszler (15-8), 33, Sioux Fall, S.D.
Revelina Berto (3-1), 24, Winter Haven, Fla.
Jessamyn Duke (2-1), 27, Richmond, Ky.
Tonya Evinger (11-6), 32, Lake St. Louis, Mo.
Laura Howarth (4-0), 26, Hove, East Essex, ENG
Tara LaRosa (21-3), 35, Albuquerque, N.M.
Valerie Letourneau (4-3), 30, La Prairie, CAN
Bethany Marshall (4-1), 25, Newport News, Va.
Sarah Moras (3-1), 25, Kelowna, CAN
Margaret “Penny” Morgan (2-0), 33, Nashua, N.H.
Gina Mazany (3-0), 25, Seattle, Wash.
Roxanna Modafferi (15-10), 30, Pittsfield, Mass.
Julianna Pena (4-2), 24, Spokane, Wash.
Raquel Pennington (3-3), 24, Colorado Springs, Colo.
Jessica Rakoczy (1-3), 36, Las Vegas, Nev.
Colleen Schneider (4-3), 31, Las Vegas, Nev.
Male Bantamweight Fighters
Christopher Beal (7-0), 28, Somis, Calif.
Cody Bollinger (14-3), 22, Rancho Cucamonga, Calif.
Louis Fisette (6-1), 23, Winnipeg, CAN
Rafael Freitas (6-0-1), 29, Albuquerque, N.M.
David Grant (8-1), 27, Bishop Auckland, ENG
Tim Gorman (9-2), 30, West Des Moines, Iowa
Anthony Gutierrez (4-0), 22, Lee’s Summit, Mo.
Emil Hartsner (4-0), 23, Luberod, SWE
Joshua Hill (9-0), 26, Binbrook, CAN
Chris Holdsworth (4-0), 25, Woodland Hills, Calif.
Patrick Holohan (9-0-1), 25, Dublin, IRL
Sirwan Kakai (9-1), 23, Coconut Creek, Fla.
Daniel Martinez (18-4), 28, San Diego, Calif.
Matthew Munsey (4-1), 26, Hollywood, Fla.
Lee Sandmeier (9-0), 30, Knoxville, Iowa
Michael Wootten (6-0), 24, Liverpool, ENG
TUF 18 – Video Preview