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TUF 7 Participants Revealed!
Luke Zachrich (7-1) and Mike Marrello (6-1-1) are the first two fighters confirmed by mmajunkie.com and fiveouncesofpain.com, respectively. Reading their brief bios on those sites, they both appear to be strong fighters, especially Zachrich. I'm already getting excited for this season.
From mmajunkie.com:
Quote:
Cincinnati-based fighter Luke Zachrich (7-1 MMA, 0-0 UFC) has been chosen as a cast member for “The Ultimate Fighter,” a source close to the fighter recently told MMAjunkie.com (www.mmajunkie.com).
He will be one of 16 middleweights to take part in the upcoming season of the UFC’s reality show. He’s the first cast member MMAjunkie.com has confirmed.
“The Ultimate Fighter 7” begins taping this weekend in Las Vegas and debuts on Spike TV on April 2. UFC Fight Night 12 will serve as a lead-in for the season debut of the show, which features UFC light heavyweight champion Quinton Jackson and “The Ultimate Fighter 1” winner Forrest Griffin as coaches.
Zachrich, a 6-foot-2 fighter who turned pro nearly two years ago, has fought throughout the Midwest in organizations such as King of the Cage, Fightfest, and most recently, the Illinois-based Xtreme Fighting Organization. The Team Jorge Gurgel fighter has earned five of his seven victories via submission.
He most recently defeated William Hill — an experienced fighter who’s fought everyone from Stephan Bonnar to Terry Martin to Jeremy Horn to John Kolosci — at a Dec. 1 XFO event. The victory, which came via first-round KO, earned Zachrich the XFO middleweight championship.
His only career loss was to undefeated Danny Ruiz (5-0).
Zachrich, who attended Bowling Green State University and played football his freshman year, is an accomplished grappler and a 2006 Gracie national champion. He formerly trained with MMA veteran Dan Severn.
From fiveouncesofpain.com:
Quote:
Chicago-area middleweight Mike Marrello has been selected for the seventh season of “The Ultimate Fighter” on Spike TV, sources have revealed exclusively to FiveOuncesOfPain.com (www.FiveOuncesOfPain.com).
Marrello has compiled a 6-1-1 record in eight pro fights and was undefeated an amateur, going 4-0. He trains out of Jeff Curran’s camp in Illinois.
The 29-year old has competed for both the Xtreme Fighting Organization and King of the Cage fight promotions. His last bout was on December 1 at XFO 21, where he recorded a submission victory over Ron Fields at 2:48 of round 1.
His lone pro loss occurred this past June, when he was defeated by Terry Davinney via TKO as a result of a referee’s stoppage.
Marrello served in the Marines from 1996-2000 and was stationed in San Diego, Okinawa, South Korea, and Quantico, VA, according to his official web site.
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Two more fighters for the show have been announced:
Steve Byrnes:
Quote:
Steve Byrnes (6-1 MMA, 0-1 UFC), a Hawaiian fighter who dropped a unanimous decision to Logan Clark in his only career UFC fight, is coming back to the organization. This time it’ll be as a cast member of “The Ultimate Fighter 7.“
“The Ultimate Fighter 7,” which debuts April 2 on Spike TV, features UFC light heavyweight champion Quinton Jackson and season-one winner Forrest Griffin as coaches. Sixteen middleweight fighters vie for a UFC contract in a tournament-style competition.
After posting a 6-0 record (with six submission victories) fighting for some of Hawaii’s top fight organization, Byrnes earned a slot on the card for UFC Fight Night 7. The event took place at the Marine Corps Air Station Miramar in San Diego, Calif.
Byrnes, a 28-year-old former Marine, dropped a unanimous decision to Clark in the night’s opening bout, though the fight was much closer than the scorecards indicated.
Byrnes hasn’t fought professionally since that December 2006 loss. In fact, he was chosen to be a competitor on the sixth season of BodogFIGHT this past summer but was forced off the show with a knee injury, which kept him sidelined throughout 2007.
Prior to his UFC debut, Byrnes was studying Brazilian jitsu-jitsu, winning a state tournament in 2006. He also captured the Full Contact Showdown middleweight belt while going 3-0 in the organization.
C.B. Dollaway:
Quote:
Amateur wrestling standout C.B. Dollaway (6-0 MMA, 0-0 UFC) will be a cast member on the “The Ultimate Fighter 7,” the latest installment of the UFC and Spike TV’s reality series.
“The Ultimate Fighter 7,” which debuts April 2 on Spike TV, features UFC light heavyweight champion Quinton Jackson and season-one winner Forrest Griffin as coaches. Sixteen middleweight fighters vie for a UFC contract in a tournament-style competition.
Dollaway is a former high school state champion, a junior college national champion, and a 2005 collegiate All-American while at ASU. His transition into MMA has been a smooth one. Despite his wrestling background, he’s posted five stoppages — four by way of knockout.
During a 13-month career, Dollaway, an Arizona Combat Sports team member, has faced some solid competition in some top organizations. Victories over Hans Marrero (11-5), Joe Bunch (7-1) and George Hartman (3-2) have come in fight promotions such as HDNet Fights, the IFO, and Rage in the Cage. He made his MMA debut at a November 2006 Cage Fighing Federation show and earned a 17-second victory with a knockout via slam (watch it on YouTube).
As we previously reported, the 24-year-old middleweight was supposed to face Freddie Espiricueta last month at HDNet Fights II, but it was announced Dollaway had to pull out of the fight with a rib injury.
__________________ UFC 86 Picks: Forrest Griffin vs. Quinton Jackson
Josh Koscheck vs. Chris Lytle Tyson Griffin vs. Marcus Aurelio
Ricardo Almeida vs. Patrick Cote Joe Stevenson vs. Gleison Tibau Corey Hill vs. Justin Bucholz
Dennis Siver vs. Melvin Guillard Cole Miller vs. Jorge Gurgel Gabriel Gonzaga vs. Justin McCully
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I'm starting to get excited as all of these fighters appear to be the real deal (on paper), especially Dolloway and Zachrich. I think we'll know the other twelve within the next week or two.
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Found one more fighter...
This is from Fiveouncesofpain.com.
Quote:
Aaron Meisner (3-0 MMA, 0-0 UFC)
The 29-year old has a professional record of 3-0 with all three victories ending in the first round due to knockout or technical knockout. Meisner made his pro MMA debut last March during Extreme Challenge 75 in Trenton, N.J., where he knocked out Garrett Carmoody at 3:21 of round 1
He followed up his successful debut by recording another knockout, this time against Pat Russo, at 1:03 into round one at Extreme Challenge 78. Meisner then returned to the cage in October and TKO’d Chris Reedy at 1:25 of round one.
The combined total of Meisner’s first three pro fights is just 5:29 in duration.
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Quote:
Originally Posted by daval
When does the show start?
Right after the UFN in April... not sure what exact date it is, but i think mid april.
__________________ UFC 86 Picks: Forrest Griffin vs. Quinton Jackson
Josh Koscheck vs. Chris Lytle Tyson Griffin vs. Marcus Aurelio
Ricardo Almeida vs. Patrick Cote Joe Stevenson vs. Gleison Tibau Corey Hill vs. Justin Bucholz
Dennis Siver vs. Melvin Guillard Cole Miller vs. Jorge Gurgel Gabriel Gonzaga vs. Justin McCully
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Luke Zachrich
C B Dolloway
Aaron Meisner
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I can envision a scenario where Rampage, Forrest, and their students all go out drinkin on the strip in Vegas and get into some trouble and Dana rounding them all up giving this
"Do You wanna be a ****in fighter or a gigolo??" speech.
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Quote:
Originally Posted by MTKrav911
I can envision a scenario where Rampage, Forrest, and their students all go out drinkin on the strip in Vegas and get into some trouble and Dana rounding them all up giving this
"Do You wanna be a ****in fighter or a gigolo??" speech.
That is funny.
I just have this scene in mind where one of the guys on Rampage's team asks, "Hey, coach, where's the BJJ trainer?" And, Rampage replies, "I got Jiu-Jitsu!" LOL. Seriously, I expect Rampage to give us a bunch of new Rampage-isms to laugh about from this next season of TUF. And, Forrest can sometimes say funny stuff as well.
Bonus: Funny Forrest Griffin picture from his MySpace. I think the picture label said, "Does this shirt make me look gay? Or is it my finger in my mouth?" (Something like that.)
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This is the list so far....
Matt Brown (7-6 MMA, 0-0 UFC)
Steve Byrnes (6-1 MMA, 0-1 UFC)
C.B. Dollaway (6-0 MMA, 0-0 UFC)
Prince Mclean (4-5 MMA, 0-0 UFC)
Jeremiah Riggs (1-0 MMA, 0-0 UFC)
Amir Sadollah (0-0 MMA, 0-0 UFC)
Luke Zachrich (7-1 MMA, 0-0 UFC)
__________________ UFC 86 Picks: Forrest Griffin vs. Quinton Jackson
Josh Koscheck vs. Chris Lytle Tyson Griffin vs. Marcus Aurelio
Ricardo Almeida vs. Patrick Cote Joe Stevenson vs. Gleison Tibau Corey Hill vs. Justin Bucholz
Dennis Siver vs. Melvin Guillard Cole Miller vs. Jorge Gurgel Gabriel Gonzaga vs. Justin McCully
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This is a video of Jeremiah Riggs I found: He's the guy in the darker shorts.
__________________ UFC 86 Picks: Forrest Griffin vs. Quinton Jackson
Josh Koscheck vs. Chris Lytle Tyson Griffin vs. Marcus Aurelio
Ricardo Almeida vs. Patrick Cote Joe Stevenson vs. Gleison Tibau Corey Hill vs. Justin Bucholz
Dennis Siver vs. Melvin Guillard Cole Miller vs. Jorge Gurgel Gabriel Gonzaga vs. Justin McCully
About Brandon Sene:
The upcoming seventh season of “TUF” will be no different, as sources have revealed exclusively to ProElite.com (SamCaplan.ProElite.com) that Gracie Tampa fighter Brandon”Sweet Dreams” Sene has been cast for the Spike TV reality show.
Sene joins Alan “Monsta Lobsta” Berube and Matt Arroyo as students of Kahn’s that have been selected for the show.
He has a 2-0 pro record, according to Sherdog.com’s fight finder, with wins listed over Jesse Barlong and Ozzy Villanvera.
Sene defeated Barlong at World Fighting Championships 4 via first round submission this past July. He returned to action at WCF 5 this past October when he recorded a first round TKO over Villanvera.
Quote:
About Dante Rivera:
FiveOuncesOfPain.com (Five Ounces of Pain | Your Destination for Insider MMA News and Opinion) has learned through several sources close to Dante Rivera that the New Jersey middleweight is involved with the current taping in Las Vegas for the seventh season of “The Ultimate Fighter.”
The 33-year old has a pro record of 10-3 and a documented amateur record of 1-1.
The Team Renzo Gracie representative broke onto the national scene in 2007, competing twice for the International Fight League. He lost his IFL debut last February in Atlanta when he submitted in the second round to strikes from Tim Kennedy.
Rivera rebounded with a victory for Felix Martinez’s Cage Fury Fighting Championships in June when submitted Alex Aquino with a heel hook at 2:41 of round 2. He then recorded his first-ever victory in the IFL this past August in East Rutherford, N.J. during the undercard of the promotion’s team semifinals. Rivera notched the win when he TKO’d Nissim Levy of Team Tiger Schulman at 1:15 of round 3.
Contrary to rumor, it looks like Matt Major (of the TAPOUT reality series fame) will not be apart of the cast.
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Two more fighters announced today.
Paul Bradley
Quote:
Two-time All-American wrestler Paul Bradley is currently involved with filming for the seventh season of “The Ultimate Fighter,” multiple sources have revealed exclusively to FiveOuncesOfPain.com (www.FiveOuncesOfPain.com).
Bradley is 5-0 as a professional mixed martial artist and has never competed for the UFC.
Known as being an “old school wrestler,” the former Iowa Hawkeye wrestled at the collegiate level between 184 pounds and heavyweight. Bradley earned All-American honors competing at 184 pounds as a sophomore and a junior. He was also a three-time NCAA tournament qualifier between 2003-2006.
As a sophomore during the 2003-2004 campaign, Bradley not only earned All-American honors but finished second in the Big Ten after going 26-14. He ended the season finishing fourth in the NCAA tournament. As a team, Iowa won the Big Ten championship and finished second in the NCAA tournament. Bradley was a key contributor in the program’s success that year, winning five major decisions and recording six pins.
During his junior season in 2004-2005, Bradley went 24-9, earning his All-American honors for a second consecutive season. He finished fourth in the Big Ten Championships that season.
In his final season of eligibility in 2005-2006, the senior compiled a 16-10 record. Bradley failed to earn All-American honors but placed in both the Big Ten and NCAA tournaments for a third consecutive season.
After graduating college, Bradley went right into coaching and has served as a coach for both the University of Indiana (Bloomington) and University of Buffalo.
He made his MMA debut in October of 2006, submitting James Powell via guillotine in the first round. Bradley most recently competed for the Masters of the Cage promotion this past September, where he was victorious after TKO’ing Mike Van Neer in the third round. Fellow former college wrestling standouts Johny Hendricks, Shane Roller, Eric Bradley, and Jake Rosholt all appeared on the same card.
Bradley has trained in the past at Miletich Fighting Systems in Iowa.
Buddy Dave Roberts
Quote:
Nearly nine years after he first debuted with the UFC, David Roberts (5-7 MMA, 0-1 UFC) will make a return to the organization — this time as a cast member for “The Ultimate Fighter 7.“
A source close to the fighter told MMAjunkie.com (
TUF 7 Participants Revealed!
Seriously, I expect Rampage to give us a bunch of new Rampage-isms to laugh about from this next season of TUF. And, Forrest can sometimes say funny stuff as well.