Veteran-filled cast revealed for 'The Ultimate Fighter 25: Redemption'
The 25th season of "The Ultimate Fighter" has been dubbed "Redemption" and that's reflected in its cast of veterans competing for another shot at the big time.
According to MMAjunkie's John Morgan, UFC officials revealed the full cast list Wednesday. The 14 welterweights entering the TUF house are comprised of a mixture of former show winners, Octagon veterans, and also-rans from previous seasons. They will be divided into two teams coached by UFC bantamweight champion Cody Garbrandt and former champion TJ Dillashaw.
Garbrandt will defend his title against Dillashaw at a future date following the filming of the show.
Notable members of the cast include TUF 2 winner Joe Stevenson, TUF 19 winner Eddie Gordon, and James Krause, the latter of whom actually has a two-fight winning streak inside the Octagon and fought as recently as last February.
It's unclear whether the contestants are competing for the six-figure contract that has been a staple of TUF, or some other prize. The last time the UFC put together a season of former UFC fighters was TUF 4 over a decade ago, and the winners of that season were rewarded with a title shot.
See the full cast list below:
- Seth Baczynski (TUF 11, 5-6 UFC, 20-14)
- Mehdi Baghdad (TUF 22, 0-2 UFC, 11-5)
- Justin Edwards (TUF 13, 2-5 UFC, 9-5)
- Tom Gallicchio (TUF 22, 0-0 UFC, 19-9)
- Eddie Gordon (TUF 19, 1-3 UFC, 8-4)
- Hayder Hassan (TUF 21, 0-2 UFC, 6-3)
- James Krause (TUF 15, 4-3 UFC, 23-7)
- Julian Lane (TUF 16, 0-0 UFC, 11-6-1)
- Dhiego Lima (TUF 19, 1-3 UFC, 12-5)
- Ramsey Nijem (TUF 13, 5-4 UFC, 9-6)
- Gilbert Smith (TUF 17, 0-1 UFC, 12-6)
- Joe Stevenson (TUF 2, 8-8 UFC, 33-16)
- Jesse Taylor (TUF 7, 0-1 UFC, 30-15)
- Hector Urbina (TUF 19, 1-2 UFC, 17-10-1)