When the going gets tough, the tough get going.
Replace “tough” with “TUF” and you’ve got the core of what makes the popular reality show The Ultimate Fighter so appealing.
Over the last seven years, The Ultimate Fighter — simply referred to as TUF — has produced some of the top mixed martial artists currently competing in the sport. TUF alumni like Rashad Evans and Forrest Griffin have gone on to become champion, while the likes of Josh Koscheck, Michael Bisping, Kenny Florian, Nate Diaz and Gray Maynard among many others have developed into world-renowned MMA stars.
Beside the fact that in order to make it through the show contestants must fight several times in a short period of time, they must run the risk of going stir crazy while living in the infamous TUF house.
Fighters aren’t allowed to leave the TUF house’s property other than to go to the TUF Gym to practice, they can’t listen to music, watch television, use the phone or computer. All communication with the outside world is shut off.
UFC president Dana White knows exactly what the competitors must endure during the daily grind of filming and believes the time spent in the TUF house develops both the physical tools and mental fortitude needed to become a true UFC professional.
“If you think about our business and what you need to be in this sport, they train with some of the best guys in the world that cycle through that gym, meaning their coaches and assistant coaches,” White said on a conference call with Canadian media Wednesday.
“The amount of pressure that they’re under, incredible amounts of pressure, how many times they have to fight while they live in that house and how comfortable they become around the camera in the time that they spend in that house … (Viewers) don’t see that, but in the house there’s cameras everywhere, there’s no hiding from these cameras, so they become incredibly, incredibly comfortable around cameras.”
On TUF Live, fighters are stuck in the house for 12 weeks. That’s twice as long as in previous seasons, when the show was pre-taped and aired at a later date. Despite this, White said there’s no reason to give the contestants any more accommodation than they already have because the positives far outweigh the negatives.
“One of the cool things about being in the show and being in the house is there’s a list. Basically you write down on this list what you need and they get whatever they need, whatever they want, whether it’s food, things for rituals that they have, whatever it is, everything is right at their fingertips,” White said.
“They live in this beautiful house, they train in this beautiful gym and they get the opportunity to fight in front of millions of people around the world every Friday night. I don’t know what else they need to be accommodated for other than they’re going to start losing their minds in another two weeks.”
Cabin fever has been prevalent on the show before and it’s one of the main things a fighter must overcome in order to advance through the tournament.
On episode four of TUF Live the fighters began to discuss the difficulties they’re having adjusting to life inside the TUF house.
“They’re not even halfway done and no music, no contact with the outside world, they can’t read anything, and more importantly — and I always say this should be number one — no girls. They’re going to start losing their minds.”
If and when fighters begin to lose their minds it will make for good television, which is good for busniess. But more importantly, White believes being in the house longer will result in more mentally strong TUF winners and he said it will be a good step towards becoming an established UFC professional.
The series has evolved drastically since its inception in 2005. It continues to grow in popularity, develop top talent and now has begun to expand internationally. TUF Brazil recently debuted and TUF Canada is currently being discussed. Asked Wednesday when he expects the Canadian edition to be launched, White didn’t give a date but was optimistic that it would be relatively soon.
“I’m going to go out on a limb and say we’ll have this deal done by the end of the year.”
The UFC boss related time spent on TUF to when young athletes go to a professional rookie camp or join a prestigious college program.
“Originally when this started it was a tool for us to get on television and people to learn more about the sport and get educated about it,” White said. “In a million years, I never realized what a huge (impact the show would have).”
TUF Live airs on Friday nights on FX Canada and can be seen later on Sportsnet. Check your local listings for air times.
