The Ultimate Fighter has produced multiple world champions and Hall of Famers, plus dozens of mixed martial arts stars and memorable moments, over the years.
Now, Season 33 will crown two new winners.
The latest instalment of the UFC’s longstanding reality competition series debuts Tuesday with Daniel Cormier and Chael Sonnen serving as head coaches and mentors to the young crop of fighters who’ll be competing.
TUF 33 will feature two eight-man tournaments — one in the welterweight division (170 pounds) and one in the flyweight division (125 pounds).
Ten different countries will be represented with experience ranging from fighters with as few as five pro bouts to as many as 19.
THE FLYWEIGHTS
— Alibi Idiris (10-0) from Kazakhstan
— Arshiyan Memon (7-0) from India
— Eduardo Chapolin (13-2) from Brazil
— Furkatbek Yokubov (15-4) from Uzbekistan
— Imanol Rodriguez (5-0) from Mexico
— Joseph Morales (12-2) from the United States
— Roybert Echeverria (10-2) from Venezuela
— Tumelo Manyamala (6-1) from South Africa
THE WELTERWEIGHTS
— Alex Sanchez (15-3) from Mexico
— Andreeas Binder (10-2) from Ireland
— Daniel Donchenko (11-2) from Ukraine
— Diego Bianchini (9-1) from Brazil
— Jeff Creighton (11-2) from the United States
— Richard Martins (9-1) from Brazil
— Rodrigo Sezinando (8-1) from Brazil
— Matt Dixon (11-1) from the United States
Neither coach is new to the show. Cormier previously coached opposite Stipe Miocic on Season 27 of TUF, while Sonnen is returning for his third time after coaching opposite Jon Jones on TUF 17 and Wanderlei Silva on TUF: Brazil 3.
Each coach has a couple notable assistants they’ll utilize among their respective coaching staffs.
Longtime UFC fighter and past TUF champion Michael Chiesa will be helping Team Cormier. So will WWE superstar Julius Creed (whose real name is Jacob Kasper), who was a two-time All-American wrestler out of Duke.
Sonnen has enlisted the help of world champion jiu-jitsu artist Mason Fowler as well as former interim UFC welterweight champion Colby Covington.
Cormier and Sonnen are both retired fighters, so they will not compete against each other after the season, which has typically been a tradition on the show in the past.
Season 32 last year was coached by women’s flyweight champions Valentina Shevchenko and Alexa Grasso, who completed their trilogy after TUF 32 concluded.