Ultimate Fighter 7 Format Change Revealed - Fight Forum - MMA - UFC - Boxing - K1

Rumbin · 01-30-2008, 11:43 AM

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UFC President Dana White has promised a big surprise for the upcoming seventh season of “The Ultimate Fighter” — a major format change for the groundbreaking reality show — and MMAjunkie.com (UFC News & Rumors - MMA News - UFC Fighters - UFC Event Recaps and Previews - MMAjunkie.com) has learned what it likely is.

Although we will not release any fight results from the show (we never post fight spoilers), we will reveal a fairly significant change in the way this season works.

According to a source close to the show, “The Ultimate Fighter 7” will start with 32 cast members — not the usual 16 — and every one of them will have to fight as soon as the show begins. The 16 winners earn a spot in the house, and the 16 losers are sent packing for home.

Those fights will likely be televised at a breakneck speed, meaning the season’s first couple episodes should include 16 fights in total. That’s a far cry from past seasons of the reality series, when the first fight of the season sometimes didn’t take place until a second or even third episode.

“The Ultimate Fighter 7” features UFC light heavyweight champion Quinton Jackson and season-one winner Forrest Griffin as coaches. The season features only middleweight (185-lb.) fighters and debuts April 2 on Spike TV. A stacked UFC Fight Night 13 event precedes the season premier of the show.

The likely format change should be warmly received by critics of the show who complain that the series focuses more on the drama and in-house antics than it does training and the actual fights. Additionally, many of the show’s weaker cast members will likely be eliminated before they’re even technically a part of the cast, assuring that only the cream of the crop are in the house for the duration of the show.

Unfortunately, we have no information on how the initial match-ups might be determined.

To date, MMAjunkie.com has already revealed more than a dozen cast members. However, there will be more than a dozen more to come because of the show’s new format.

For the latest news about “The Ultimate Fighter 7,” including a list of all the latest cast members confirmed by MMAjunkie.com, check out the UFC Rumors (UFC Rumors -- MMAjunkie.com) section of the site.

UFC News & Rumors - MMA News - UFC Fighters - UFC Event Recaps and Previews - MMAjunkie.com

T-Bone · 01-30-2008, 11:55 AM

Thanks Rumbin. That would be great news - more fights/fighters with less big brother and drama crap.

We've been hearing so many names released already - but apparently so many more to come.

Mulla · 01-30-2008, 12:01 PM

Sounds good, at least this way the guys who cant fight to save their life will be gone by the first episode and we'll be left with the fighters with potential!

Will also be pretty crazy if they cram 16 fights into the first 2 episodes!

subgenius · 01-30-2008, 12:47 PM

I hope they do a two-hour premier episode for TUF-7. That way they can show the best of the fights and highlight the rest. Anyway, these do seem like promisingly good changes. I hope that it works out well. I like the idea of 32 fighters that fight to earn a spot on the show.

stillstanding · 01-30-2008, 03:19 PM

Could this season beat season 1? I don't know, it is gonna have both Forrest and Rampage, plus 16 more fights. I'm stoked!

Rush · 01-30-2008, 03:22 PM

Thanks for the news. Definitely sounds like a good change.

The-Iceman-Chuck-Liddell · 01-30-2008, 05:16 PM

This is a better format. I hate the drama. I usually only like the fights, fighting in the house, crap talking between coaches, and the training. I hate when it shows them partying. The worst thing the UFC could do.

Rumbin · 01-30-2008, 05:51 PM

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Originally Posted by The-Iceman-Chuck-Liddell

This is a better format. I hate the drama. I usually only like the fights, fighting in the house, crap talking between coaches, and the training. I hate when it shows them partying. The worst thing the UFC could do.

Uhhhh what are you talking about? This means the first 2-3 episodes will be nothing but fights, not that you wont see them "partying" in the house.

Heatwaves · 01-30-2008, 09:10 PM

WOW! This is an awesome way to kick off the show! Very creative.

But... does this mean that the 15 revealed names are the winners of the first fights or that there are a whopping 17 more fighters to be revealed?

And thinking about this logistically, wouldn't they have to keep the losing 16 fighters in Vegas for the next 6 weeks? Otherwise, people would know who lost long before the season ever begins.

HaVoK · 02-05-2008, 02:01 AM

Season 7 just keeps sounding better and better the more I read on it. They are definitely making up for The Mac Danzig Invitational (TUF 6).

T-Bone · 02-05-2008, 09:30 AM

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Originally Posted by HaVoK

Season 7 just keeps sounding better and better the more I read on it. They are definitely making up for The Mac Danzig Invitational (TUF 6).

It does sound better. I still wonder if there will be a ringer (or two) involved though.

FrankenJim · 02-05-2008, 03:45 PM

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Originally Posted by HaVoK

Season 7 just keeps sounding better and better the more I read on it. They are definitely making up for The Mac Danzig Invitational (TUF 6).

LOL that made me laugh good commnet

Yep sounding Very good i cannot wait!

Toshinden · 02-06-2008, 08:52 PM

This is gonna be awesome - I hope I can force myself to make time for T.V. again. With that many fighters, I hope we can weed out enough that the remainders (even the ones who don't succeed in the finals) will add a great boost to the MW division - that division has received some life recently in the form of Horn, Bisping (*cough*), Henderson, Martin, Eastman, Tanner and Gono, but I still feel like there's big gaps in between the top guys and the lower guys of that division.