
Season 18 of The Ultimate Fighter hasn’t even started, but that doesn’t mean we can’t look ahead to TUF 19. The UFC announced today that tryouts for the early 2014 edition of the long-running reality competition will take place in Indianapolis on August 27th, one day before UFC Fight Night: Condit vs. Kampmann 2.
Middleweights and light heavyweights will be part of TUF 19, but no coaches have been named yet. With tryouts set for next month it would be logical to think that the announcement will be made within 1-2 weeks. This is the first time LHWs have been on TUF since season 8, when Ryan Bader won the tournament by KOing Vinny Magalhaes. Middleweight was the only weight class on season 17, with Kelvin Gastelum knocking off the favored Uriah Hall in the final.
Starting this fall with TUF 18, all US-based versions of the show will air on Fox Sports 1.
Here are the tryout details via UFC.com:
THE ULTIMATE FIGHTER® 19 TRYOUTS
The Ultimate Fighter® season 19 is open to MEN in the Middleweight (185lbs) and Light Heavyweight (205lbs) divisions.
Fighters who have previously competed in the UFC are not eligible to tryout.
REQUIREMENTS:
1. All applicants must between 21 and 34 years of age.
2. All applicants MUST have a WINNING RECORD of at least 3 PROFESSIONAL MMA fights. All records will be verified on sherdog.com and mixedmartialarts.com. If we cannot verify your record on either of these sites you will NOT be considered.
3. All applicants must have the legal ability to live and work in the United States
4. All applicants must complete and sign the application and bring the completed and signed forms to the tryouts. All applicants must attend the tryouts on Tuesday, August 27th 2013 in Indianapolis, Indiana.
Let the speculation begin! Who do you think will be coaching TUF 19? I’m thinking this is the perfect time for Nick Diaz and Chael Sonnen, with the winner getting an unlimited amount of title shots in their weight class of choice.
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