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CAST REVEALED FORTHE ULTIMATE FIGHTER®: TEAM JOANNA vs.TEAM CLAUDIA

 

Light heavyweight men and strawweight women compete for a UFC contract

 

Season premieres Wednesday, April 20 at 10 p.m. ET on FS1

 

Las Vegas – The upcoming season of The Ultimate Fighter® will once again showcase mixed martial arts’ global expansion, as Polish strawweight champion Joanna Jedrzejczyk and No. 1 contender Claudia Gadelha of Brazil lead a group of light heavyweight and strawweight hopefuls. Thirty-two Athletes from countries such as the Netherlands, Algeria, France, Norway, Spain, Canada, Brazil, England and the United States fight for one of 16 spots available in the premiere episode Wednesday, April 20 at 10 p.m. ET on FS1.

 

There will be no shortage of intensity and drama with Jedrzejczyk (11-0, fighting out of Olsztyn, Poland) and Gadelha (13-1, fighting out of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil) as one of the most intense rivalries in all of mixed martial arts plays out on screen. The two fought in December 2014 with Jedrzejczyk narrowly edging out Gadelha before eventually going on to win the strawweight world title. There will be no love lost between the two as their epic feud plays out every Wednesday night leading up to their highly anticipated rematch.

 

Since making her UFC debut in 2014, Jedrzejczyk has gone on to become one of the most dominant champions in the UFC and is widely regarded as one of the best strikers in the sport. With pinpoint accuracy and lightning quick speed, she has the ability to keep the belt in Poland for the foreseeable future.

 

Submission ace Gadelha will have revenge on her mind throughout the season and in their rematch, looking to prove that her slick submission game is exactly what it will take to counter Jedrzejczyk’s world class striking. As the only athlete to put the champion in danger of defeat, she looks to join Fabricio Werdum and Rafael Dos Anjos as the third Brazilian UFC champion at the culmination of the season.

 

The show will feature 12 episodes airing Wednesdays on FS1. Each episode’s winner will advance in the single-elimination tournament, leading to the season finale on July 8 in Las Vegas as part of International Fight Week. The finale will be headlined by this season’s coaches in a world title bout as Jedrzejczyk collides Gadelha.

 

Below is a full list of competitors by weight class and in alphabetical order (name, professional record, age and hometown):

 

Strawweight

 

Light Heavyweight

Alyssa Krahn, 3-1, 28, Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Canada Abdel Medjedoub, 3-0, 30, Mila, Algeria
Amanda Cooper, 1-1, 24, Bath, Mich. Andrew Sanchez, 7-2, 27, Shiloh, Ill.
Amy Montenegro, 7-2, 32, Forks, Wash. Cory Hendricks, 3-0, 27, Lynden, Wash.
Ashley Cummins, 3-3, 28, St. Louis, Mo. Elias Urbina, 3-0, 22, Weslaco, Texas
Ashley Yoder, 4-1, 28, Indianapolis, Ind. Eric Spicely, 8-0, 29, Stoughton, Mass.
Chelsea Bailey, 2-0, 23, Chewelah, Wash. Jamelle Jones, 6-2, 28, Atlantic City, N.J.
Helen Harper, 4-1, 28, Farnborough, England John Paul Elias, 3-0, 27, Fresno, Calif.
Irene Rivera, 6-2, 22, Barcelona, Spain Joshua Stansbury, 7-2, 31, East Liverpool, Ohio
Jamie Moyle, 3-1, 27, Las Vegas, Nev. Kenneth Bergh, 3-0, 26, Oslo, Norway
JJ Aldrich, 2-1, 23, Aurora, Colo. Khalil Rountree, 4-0, 26, Las Vegas, Nev.
Jodie Esquibel, 5-1, 29, Albuquerque, N.M. Marcel Fortuna, 8-1, 30, Tubarao, Brazil
Kate Jackson, 7-2-1, 29, Lostwithiel, England Muhammed DeReese, 5-0, 27, Titusville, Fla.
Kristi Lopez, 2-0, 33, Quartz Hill, Calif. Myron Dennis, 12-4, 27, Oklahoma City, Okla.
Lanchana Green, 2-1, 26, Darlington, England Norman Paraisy, 15-4-2, 1 NC, 30, Paris, France
Mellony Geugjes, 0-1, 23, Amsterdam, Netherlands Phil Hawes, 3-0, 27, Little Ferry, N.J.
Tatiana Suarez, 3-0, 25, Fontana, Calif. Trevor Carlson, 10-2, 27, Spring Creek, Nev.

 

For more show information, bios, videos and photos, visit ultimatefighter.com and follow us on Twitter @UltimateFighter and Facebook.

 

About UFC®

UFC® is a premium global sports brand and the largest pay-per-view event provider in the world. Headquartered in Las Vegas with offices in London, Toronto, Sao Paulo and Singapore, UFC produces more than 40 live events annually that consistently sell out some of the most prestigious arenas around the globe. UFC programming is broadcast in over 150 countries and territories to more than one billion TV households worldwide in 21 different languages. UFC FIGHT PASS®, a digital subscription service, delivers exclusive live events, thousands of fights on-demand and original content to fans around the world. For more information, visit UFC.com and follow UFC at Facebook.com/UFCTwitter and Instagram: @UFC.

 

About FOX Sports

FOX Sports is the umbrella entity representing 21st Century FOX’s wide array of multi-platform US-based sports assets. Built with brands capable of reaching more than 100 million viewers in a single weekend, FOX Sports includes ownership and interests in linear television networks, digital and mobile programming, broadband platforms, multiple web sites, joint-venture businesses and several licensing partnerships.  FOX Sports includes the sports television arm of the FOX Broadcasting Company; FS1, FS2; FOX Sports Regional Networks, their affiliated regional web sites and national programming; FOX Soccer Plus; FOX Deportes and FOX College Sports. In addition, FOX Sports also encompasses FOX Sports Digital, which includes FOXSports.com, FOX Sports GO, Whatifsports.com and Yardbarker.com. Also included in the Group are FOX’s interests in joint-venture businesses Big Ten Network and BTN 2Go, as well as a licensing agreement that establish the FOX Sports Radio Network.

 

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