Got this in the ol’ inbox today from the UFC:
UFC MIDDLEWEIGHT CHAMPION ROBERT WHITTAKER AND NO. 4 CONTENDER KELVIN GASTELUM TO COACH ‘THE ULTIMATE FIGHTER: HEAVY HITTERS’
PREMIERES AUGUST 29th ON FS1
Las Vegas – The highly anticipated 28th season of The Ultimate Fighter® will see UFC® middleweight champion Robert Whittaker coach opposite No. 4 ranked contender Kelvin Gastelum. Following the series, which debuts Wednesday, August 29 on FS1, the two will clash for the middleweight title at a date that will be determined in the near future.
The Ultimate Fighter: Heavy Hitters will also feature a dynamic cast of men’s heavyweights and women’s featherweights. Each tournament winner will receive a six-figure UFC contract. Following the series, the live finale will take place on Friday, November 30 at The Pearl at Palms Casino Resort in Las Vegas, NV.
Whittaker (21-4) won The Ultimate Fighter: The Smashes as a welterweight and has gone on to become one of the most successful TUF winners in the UFC. He is the reigning UFC middleweight champion and has claimed five post-fight bonus awards in his last four fights.
Gastelum (16-3, 1 NC) also won The Ultimate Fighter, claiming the middleweight trophy during the 17th season of the show. He has been dominant at 185 pounds, taking out former champions and superstars such as Michael Bisping, Jacare Souza and Tim Kennedy.
Below is a full list of competitors (name, age, professional record and fighting out of):
FEMALE FEATHERWEIGHTS
Leah Letson | 25 | 4-1 | Milwaukee, WI
Larissa Pacheco | 23 | 11-2 | Belem, Brazil
Marciea Allen | 36 | 7-2 | Wood Dale, IL
Pannie Kianzad | 26 | 9-3 | Copenhagen, Denmark
Bea Malecki | 26 | 2-0 | Stockholm, Sweden
Julija Stoliarenko | 25 | 4-2-1 | Kaunas, Lithuania
Katharina Lehner | 28 | 7-1 | Cologne, Germany
Macy Chiasson | 26 | 2-0 | New Orleans, LA
MALE HEAVYWEIGHTS
Ben Sosoli | 28 | 6-2 | Melbourne, Australia
Maurice Greene | 31 | 5-2 | St. Cloud, MN
Michel Batista | 34 | 4-0 | Miami, FL
Juan Francisco Espino Diepa | 37 | 8-1 | Las Palmas, Spain
Justin Frazier | 28 | 10-2 | Cave City, AR
Anderson Da Silva | 31 | 3-0-1 | Sao Paulo, Brazil
Przemyslaw Mysiala | 35 | 22-9-1 | Maidenhead, England
Josh Parisian | 28 | 7-2 | Brighton, MI
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