Over the weekend, the UFC announced that The Ultimate Fighter will be returning in March 2021. It will air exclusively on ESPN+.
The upcoming season will feature athletes from the men's bantamweight (135 lbs.) and middleweight (185 lbs.) divisions. The UFC currently accepting casting applications through November 13.
This will be the 29th season of The Ultimate Fighter, a series that has helped serve as the springboard for the career of numerous high-profile fighters including current welterweight champion Kamaru Usman, Tony Ferguson, T.J. Dillashaw, former women's strawweight champion Rose Namajunas, former middleweight champion Michael Bisping, Nate Diaz, Michael Chiesa, Al Iaquinta, Kelvin Gastelum, Forrest Griffin, Rashad Evans, Uriah Hall and former double champ Conor McGregor.
The Ultimate Fighter differs from Dana White's Contender Series in that it has more of a reality television approach. The series follows multiple professional MMA fighters living together as they train and compete against each other for a prized UFC contract. The series divides the fighters into two teams that are coached by current and former UFC stars. While the series does highlight upcoming talent, it also serves to hype an upcoming match between the two coaches as well.
The most recent season of The Ultimate Fighter featured coaches Robert Whittaker and Kelvin Gastelum. Whittaker was to defend the middleweight title against Gastelum at UFC 234 in February but pulled out of the event just hours beforehand as he was forced to undergo emergency surgery due to an abdominal hernia of the intestine and a twisted and collapsed bowel.
The coaches for The Ultimate Fighter 29 have not yet been announced. It was also announced that ESPN+ will be the host for all previous 28 seasons of the series.