Canadians Mike Ricci and Michael Hill have been added to the 32-man cast for the premiere episode of The Ultimate Fighter 16, which debuts Sept. 14 on Sportsnet.
Ricci of Montreal is 7-2 in MMA and his only losses have been to TUF Live veteran Daron Cruickshank and Bellator featherweight champion Pat Curran. The 26-year-old has notable wins over Strikeforce contender Jorndan Mein and rising Canadian lightweight Jesse Ronson.
Hill of Kelowna, B.C. is 4-0 in MMA and has competed in Canadian promotions Aggression MMA and Battlefield Fight League.
The two Canucks join one Brazilian and 29 American welterweights who will vie for a roster spot in the Ultimate Fighting Championship.
The two-hour premiere episode will feature 16 fights with the winners earning a spot in the infamous TUF house.
Just like last season, TUF 16 will run for 13 consecutive weeks on Friday nights with the winner being crowned at the live finale on Dec. 15. The winner earns a six-figure contract with the UFC.
The two coaches, UFC heavyweight contenders Shane Carwin and Roy Nelson, will fight in the main event of the finale, which takes place in Las Vegas.
According to UFC president Dana White this season could be an interesting season because of the coaches. “Carwin and Nelson are two guys who just can’t stand each other and Roy and I haven’t exactly seen eye to eye either — he’s been a nightmare for me to work with on this show with all his stupid BS,” said White.
Here is a list of all 32 TUF 16 contestants:
— Bristol Marunde, 30, Las Vegas, Nev.
— Cameron Diffley, 27, Las Vegas, Nev.
— Colton Smith, 25, Fort Hood, Texas via Ankeny, Iowa
— Cortez Coleman, 30, Hugo, Okla.
— David Michaud, 23, Pine Ridge, S.D.
— Diego Bautista, 26, Lakewood, Calif.
— Dom Waters, 23, Santa Rosa, Calif.
— Eddy Ellis, 29, Olympia, Wash.,
— Frank Camacho, 23, Camp Springs, Md.,
— George Lockhart, 29, Atlanta, Ga.
— Igor Araujo, 31, Albuquerque, N.M. via Patos De Minas, Brazil
— James Chaney, 25, Klamath Falls, Ore.
— Jason South, 34, West Jordan, Utah
— Jerel Clark, 23, Reno, Nev.
— Jesse Barrett, 26, Tempe, Ariz.
— Joey Rivera, 32, Tucson, Ariz.
— Jon Manley, 26, Ludlow, Mass.
— Julian Lane, 25, Mansfield, Ohio
— Kevin Nowaczyk, 23, Chicago, Ill.
— Leo Kuntz, 28, Bismarck, N.D.
— Lev Magen, 25, Las Vegas, Nev.
— Matt Secor, 25, South Glens Falls, N.Y.
— Max Griffin, 26, Sacramento, Calif.
— Michael Hill, 25, Kelowna, British Columbia, Canada
— Mike Ricci, 26, Montreal, Quebec, Canada
— Neil Magny, 24, Chicago, Ill.
— Nic Herron-Webb, 22, Anchorage, Alaska
— Ricky Legere Jr., 26, Corona, Calif.
— Saad Awad, 23, San Bernardino, Calif.
— Sam Alvey, 26, Murrieta, Calif.
— Tim Ruberg, 30, Harrison, Ohio
— Zane Kamaka, 23, Klaianae, Hawaii
