Another season of ‘The Ultimate Fighter’ reality series looms on the horizon. This will be season 24, not counting the various unnumbered international spin-offs like TUF: Brazil and TUF: Latin America. In my opinion, this show is long past its expiration date and I stopped watching many years ago. However, this season will be a little different than most: coached by top UFC flyweights Joe Benavidez and Henry Cejudo, the cast features 16 flyweights who hold a title in one of various minor MMA leagues throughout the world. The winner will get a shot at the dominant reigning champion Demetrious Johnson, who is currently not only #1 in the world in his weight class, but also #1 on our Division Point Dominance list, #2 Pound for Pound (likely soon to be promoted to #1 with the pending suspension of Jon Jones), as well as the #1 flyweight fighter of all time. The coaches, who both already had their chance at DJ’s gold, will also square off at the conclusion of the season and the winner could likely be the next in line for another go-round at the title. This will be the first season of TUF in many years that I will be watching, even though I still hope that the new UFC ownership axes the incredibly stale series.
So how do the TUF 24 flyweight contenders stack up in the FightMatrix rankings? Keep reading to find out.
[#14] Tim Elliott – Titan FC Flyweight Champion
Pro Record: 13-6-1, UFC Record: 2-4-0, ‘Big 20’ Record: 2-4-0.
Fighting out of: Lee’s Summit, Missouri, USA
In his first stint with UFC, Tim Elliot went 2-4 and was released from the promotion after losing three in a row. Despite not being able to maintain a winning record in the Octagon, Elliot showed himself to be one of the more exciting fighters in the division and a tough matchup for any contender. Elliot signed with Titan FC, where he went 3-0 and captured the flyweight title. He now gets a second chance to compete for the UFC gold, and as the highest ranked fighter on the TUF 24 cast, the odds of earning a shot at Demetrious Johnson are in his favor.
[#15] Hiromasa Ogikubo – Shooto Japan Flyweight Champion
Pro Record: 15-3-2, UFC Record: 0-0-0, ‘Big 20’ Record: 12-3-2.
Fighting out of: Matsudo, Chiba, Japan
[#28] Alexandre Pantoja – RFA Flyweight Champion
Pro Record: 16-2-0, UFC Record: 0-0-0, ‘Big 20’ Record: 6-1-0.
Fighting out of: Arraial Do Cabo, Rio De Janeiro, Brazil
[#48] Eric Shelton – Caged Aggression Flyweight Champion
Pro Record: 10-2-0, UFC Record: 0-0-0, ‘Big 20’ Record: 0-0-0.
Fighting out of: Galesburg, Illinois, USA
[#55] Kai Kara-France – Bragging Rights Flyweight Champion
Pro Record: 12-5-0, UFC Record: 0-0-0, ‘Big 20’ Record: 0-0-0.
Fighting out of: Auckland, New Zealand
[#60] Adam Antolin – Tachi Palace Fights Flyweight Champion
Pro Record: 11-3-0, UFC Record: 0-0-0, ‘Big 20’ Record: 2-1-0.
Fighting out of: San Jose, California, USA
[#65] Yoni Sherbatov – XFFC Flyweight Champion
Pro Record: 5-0-1, UFC Record: 0-0-0, ‘Big 20’ Record: 0-0-0.
Fighting out of: Laval, Quebec, Canada
[#66] Matt Schnell – Legacy FC Interim Flyweight Champion
Pro Record: 9-2-0, UFC Record: 0-0-0, ‘Big 20’ Record: 5-2-0.
Fighting out of: Shreveport, Louisiana, USA
[#79] Charlie Alaniz – Hex Fight Series Flyweight Champion
Pro Record: 8-1-0, UFC Record: 0-0-0, ‘Big 20’ Record: 0-0-0.
Fighting out of: Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
[#83] Matt Rizzo – Ring of Combat Flyweight Champion
Pro Record: 9-2-0 (1 NC), UFC Record: 0-0-0, ‘Big 20’ Record: 0-0-0.
Fighting out of: Levittown, Pennsylvania, USA
[#96] Brandon Moreno – World Fighting Federation Flyweight Champion
Pro Record: 11-3-0, UFC Record: 0-0-0, ‘Big 20’ Record: 0-0-0.
Fighting out of: Tijuana, Baja California, Mexico
[#106] Ronaldo Candido de Oliveira – Shooto South America Flyweight Champion
Pro Record: 6-0-0, UFC Record: 0-0-0, ‘Big 20’ Record: 5-0-0.
Fighting out of: Sao Jose Dos Campos, Sao Paulo, Brazil
[#121] Damacio Page – Legacy FC Flyweight Champion
Pro Record: 19-10-0, UFC Record: 0-3-0, ‘Big 20’ Record: 11-7-0.
Fighting out of: Albuquerque, New Mexico, USA
Though he is only 33 years old, Damacio Page has been a professional fighter for over a decade. A veteran of the now defunct WEC, Page fought there as a bantamweight and was always a fun action fighter to watch. ‘The Angel of Death’ went 3-2 in WEC, including a submission loss to the current UFC flyweight champion Demetrious Johnson. When WEC merged with UFC, Page did not fare as well in the Octagon, losing all three of his UFC fights by submission. After being released from UFC, he dropped down to flyweight and found more success in the lower weight class, going 4-2 and capturing the Legacy FC flyweight title in process. Damacio has always been a ‘kill or be killed’ fighter, with only 3 of his 29 career fights going the distance. Though he is ranked near the bottom of the TUF 24 talent pool, Page will get his chance at redemption in the UFC and an perhaps opportunity to avenge his 2010 loss to Johnson.
[#125] Nkazimulo Zulu – EFC Africa Flyweight Champion
Pro Record: 8-2-0, UFC Record: 0-0-0, ‘Big 20’ Record: 0-0-0.
Fighting out of: Johannesburg, Gauteng, South Africa
[#148] Terrence Mitchell – Alaska FC Flyweight Champion
Pro Record: 11-2-0, UFC Record: 0-0-0, ‘Big 20’ Record: 0-0-0.
Fighting out of: Anchorage, Alaska, USA
[NR] Jamie Alvarez – Absolute Fighting Championship Flyweight Champion
Pro Record: 6-1-0, UFC Record: 0-0-0, ‘Big 20’ Record: 0-0-0.
Fighting out of: Surfside, Florida, USA