UFC announce new Ultimate Fighter format; American Top Team vs Blackzilians

Coming off a historic season that saw the crowning of the UFC’s first-ever women’s strawweight champion, the next installment of The Ultimate Fighter looks to raise the stakes once again.

For the first time in the show’s 10-year history, a gym versus gym format will be introduced pitting fighters from the famed American Top Team against those from Blackzilians, all while living together under one roof in South Florida.

It will be a monumental season, as $500,000, the first-ever The Ultimate Fighter Team Trophy and most importantly, ultimate bragging rights, are all up for grabs. The decisions and strategy determined by each team have never impacted the show as much as they will this season.

This season of The Ultimate Fighter: American Top Team vs. Blackzilians premieres with a two-hour episode Wednesday, April 22, at 10 p.m. ET on FOX Sports 1 and will continue with 11 more one-hour shows Wednesdays at 10 p.m. ET.

This is the fifth season of The Ultimate Fighter to air on FOX Sports 1. The series is the network’s highest rated and most watched original program since the network’s inception in August 2013.

AMERICAN TOP TEAM                                          BLACKZILIANS

Marcelo Alfaya (16-7, 1NC) Porto Alegre, Brazil       Valdir Araujo (14-5), Gama, Federal District, Brazil

Steve Carl (21-4), Belle Plain, Iowa                            Carrington Banks (3-0), Peoria, Ill.

Nathan Coy (14-5), Vallejo, Calif.                              Luiz Buscape (16-5), Joao Pessoa, Paraiba, Brazil

Michael Graves (4-0), Toledo, Ohio                           Jason Jackson (4-2), Kingston, Jamaica

Hayder Hassan (6-1), Fort Lauderdale, Fla.               Vicente Luque (7-4-1), Westwood, N.J.

Sabah Homasi (8-4), New Brunswick, N.J.                 Andrews Nakahara (4-2-2), Mogi das Cruzes, Sao Paulo, Brazil

Uros Jurisic (5-0), Ljubljana, Slovenia                       Felipe Portela (8-2), Brasilia, Brazil

Steve Montgomery (8-2), Florence, S.C.                    Kamarudeen Usman (5-1) Auchi, Nigeria