There wasn’t much going on in the way of fight announcements, but the UFC did release the full cast for the upcoming 28th season of The Ultimate Fighter, and that’s the basis for today’s MMA odds and ends.
TUF 28 Cast Revealed
The UFC has revealed the full cast list for the next — and quite possibly last — season of The Ultimate Fighter. The show is dubbed “Heavy Hitters” and features men’s heavyweights and women’s featherweights. Filming is imminent, with the coaches for this season of the show being UFC middleweight champon Robert Whittakr and No. 1 contender Kelvin Gastelum. The heavyweights don’t look like the best crop of fighters but I’m actually interested in seeing if any new female featherweight contenders emerge.
TUF 28 List of Heavyweights
Michel Batista (4-0): The Cuban is undefeated and recently picked up a win in Titan FC.
Anderson Da Silva (3-1): Not much is known about this guy. Don’t be surprised if it’s Anderson Silva with a disguise on (kidding).
Juan Francisco Espino Diepa (8-1): He’s won six straight fights and his only career defeat came against former Bellator heavyweight champion Vitaly Minakov.
Justin Frazier (10-2): He has won three straight fights by stoppage and has experience fighting in Bellator, as well as in RFA where he actually fought Derrick Lewis back in 2012, getting knocked out in that fight.
Maurice Greene (5-2): He recently lost a decision in LFA to snap a four fight win streak.
Przemyslaw Mysiala (22-9-1): The Bellator veteran is undefeated over his lat four fights and has plenty of experience fighting against high-level competition in some of the biggest regional shows out there.
Josh Parisian (7-2): He is coming off a huge KO win over Greg Rebello on Dana White’s Tuesday Night Contender Series.
Ben Sosoli (6-2): He’s won three straight fights by knockout on the Australian regional circuit.
TUF 28 List of Women’s Featherweights:
Marciea Allen (7-2): She’s won four straight fights including a TKO victory in Invicta FC her last time out.
Macy Chiasson (2-0): She’s coming off of a win in Invicta FC but overall doesn’t have much experience.
Pannie Kianzad (9-3): After a three-fight losing streak in Invicta FC she’s bounced back with two-straight wins.
Katharina Lehner (7-1): A recent loss to Sarah Kaufman in Invicta FC marked the end of her undefeated streak to begin her career.
Leah Letson (4-1): She’s won four straight fights and recently knocked out UFC veteran Elizabeth Phillips in Invicta FC.
Bea Malecki (2-0): This girl is going to be a star if she can fight because she absolutely has the looks part down. She is extremely green in MMA but this is a prospect I would keep my eye on as she trains at Sweden’s Allstars Gym.
Larissa Pacheco (11-2): She went 0-2 in the UFC as a bantamweight but after winning a featherweight bout on the Brazilian regional circuit will be making her return to the UFC organization at 145lbs. Only 23, she has a lot of untapped potential still.
Julija Stoliarenko (4-2-1): The Lithuanian is unbeaten over her last four MMA bouts and all of her pro wins are by submission.
