The Ultimate Fighter: American Top Team vs. Blackzilians

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The Ultimate Fighter: American Top Team vs. Blackzilians
Genre Reality, Sports
Created by Frank Fertitta III, Lorenzo Fertitta, Dana White
StarringDana White, American Top Team, Blackzilians
Country of originUnited States
Production
Running time60 minutes
Original release
Network Fox Sports 1
ReleaseApril 22 (2015-04-22) 
July 8, 2015 (2015-07-08)

The Ultimate Fighter: American Top Team vs. Blackzilians (also known as The Ultimate Fighter 21) was the twenty-first installment of the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC)-produced reality television series The Ultimate Fighter . This season was the first to feature a gym vs. gym theme. [1]

Contents

The series was officially announced by the UFC on February 28, 2015. For the first time ever, the UFC reality series featured a format pitting two of the sport's top gyms American Top Team and the Blackzilians  – against one another. The season was filmed in South Florida, where the two camps sit just miles apart, and the competitors were welterweights from each facility. An amount of $500,000 was earned throughout the season based on wins and losses for the winning gym. [2]

Dan Lambert heads the ATT team, and rival Glenn Robinson heads the Blackzilians club. The series prominently features the rivalry between the two camps, which developed in 2011 after a band of ATT fighters defected and started their own camp with Robinson, who is the gym's owner but not their head coach. The two gyms are located just 20 minutes apart. [1] The teams were made up of eight up-and-coming welterweights from each gym. The 16 men shared a house in the Miami/Fort Lauderdale area but instead of training amongst each other, the athletes still worked with their coaches at their respective gyms. [2] The actual fights took place at American Top Team in Coconut Creek and the Blackzilians' Jaco Hybrid Training Center in Boca Raton. The winning fighter earned home gym control for his team for the next bout. Opponents were not revealed until weigh-ins for the first time. [3]

Cast

Teams

Fighters

*Montgomery was removed from the competition on episode 4 due to medical reasons. He was replaced by Cristiano Souza on episode 7.

*Nakahara was forced out of the competition on episode 7 due to a medical suspension. He was replaced by Alexandre Pimentel.

Episodes

Episode 1: Rumble in South Florida (April 22, 2015)
Episode 2: Battle Lines Drawn (April 29, 2015)
Episode 3: Settling the Score (May 6, 2015)
Episode 4: Boiling Point (May 13, 2015)
Episode 5: Battle Wounds (May 20, 2015)
Episode 6: Fight Through the Pain (May 27, 2015)
Episode 7: Eyes on the Prize (June 3, 2015)
Episode 8: Lightning Strikes Twice (June 10, 2015)
Episode 9: No Guts, No Glory (June 17, 2015)
Episode 10: Do or Die (June 24, 2015)
Episode 11: Pushing the Limits (July 1, 2015)
Episode 12: Showdown (July 8, 2015)

Tournament

Results table

Home GymAway GymMethodRoundPoints
 Kamaru Usman  Michael GravesMD225
 Luiz Firmino  Uros JurisicUD225
 Valdir Araújo  Steve CarlSUB225
 Carrington Banks  Sabah HomasiUD325
  Andrews Nakahara Hayder HassanTKO150
  Marcelo Alfaya Jason JacksonMD250
 Vicente Luque  Nathan CoySUB350
  Felipe Portela Hayder HassanMD250
  Steve Carl Kamaru UsmanUD2100
  Valdir Araújo Nathan CoyUD2100
 Michael Graves  Jason JacksonSUB1100
 Hayder Hassan  Vicente LuqueSD3100
Legend
 American Top Team
 Blackzilians
UD
 Unanimous Decision
MD
 Majority Decision
SD
 Split Decision
SUB
 Submission
(T) KO
 (Technical) Knockout

Overall table

TeamsTotal pointsWins
 American Top Team4005
  Blackzilians3007

The Ultimate Fighter 21 Finale

The Ultimate Fighter: American Top Team vs. Blackzilians Finale
TUF 21 Finale pre sale.jpg
The poster for The Ultimate Fighter: American Top Team vs. Blackzilians Finale
Promotion Ultimate Fighting Championship
DateJuly 12, 2015 (2015-07-12)
Venue MGM Grand Garden Arena
City Las Vegas, Nevada
Attendance4,844 [4]
Total gate$291,000 [4]
Event chronology
UFC 189: Mendes vs. McGregor The Ultimate Fighter: American Top Team vs. Blackzilians Finale UFC Fight Night: Mir vs. Duffee

The Ultimate Fighter: American Top Team vs. Blackzilians Finale (also known as The Ultimate Fighter 21 Finale) was a mixed martial arts event held on July 12, 2015, at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada. [5]

Background

The event was originally expected to be held in South Florida. [6] However, on May 15, the event was moved to the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada. [5]

A lightweight bout between former WEC & UFC Lightweight champion Benson Henderson and Michael Johnson was initially linked as the event headliner. [6] However, on May 15, a welterweight bout between Jake Ellenberger and Stephen Thompson, originally booked for a day earlier at UFC 189, was announced as the main event. [5] Although never officially announced by the UFC, the bout between Henderson and Johnson did not take place at this event. [7]

The final of The Ultimate Fighter: American Top Team vs. Blackzilians took place at the event. [6]

Márcio Alexandre Jr. was scheduled to face George Sullivan at the event. However, Alexandre pulled out of the fight during the week leading up to the event citing a rib injury and was replaced by promotional newcomer Dominic Waters. [8]

Maximo Blanco missed weight on his first attempt at the weigh-ins, coming in at 148.5 lb. After having made no attempts to cut further, he was fined 20 percent of his fight purse, which went to Mike De La Torre. [9]

During the live broadcast, it was announced that the next season of The Ultimate Fighter would be coached by current interim UFC Featherweight Champion Conor McGregor, who will lead a team of 8 European lightweights and former WEC Featherweight Champion Urijah Faber will coach a team of 8 American lightweights. They did not fight each other at the end of the season. [10]

Results

Main Card (Fox Sports 1)
Weight classMethodRoundTimeNotes
Welterweight Stephen Thompson def. Jake Ellenberger KO (spinning hook kick)14:29
Welterweight Kamaru Usman def. Hayder Hassan Submission (arm-triangle choke)21:19 [a]
Welterweight Michael Graves def. Vicente Luque Decision (unanimous) (29–28, 29–28, 29–28)35:00
Welterweight Jorge Masvidal def. Cezar Ferreira KO (elbow and punches)14:22
Women's Strawweight Michelle Waterson def. Angela Magaña Submission (rear-naked choke)32:38
Catchweight (148.5 lb) Maximo Blanco def. Mike De La Torre TKO (punches)10:16
Preliminary Card (Fox Sports 1)
Middleweight Josh Samman def. Caio Magalhães Submission (rear-naked choke)12:52
Bantamweight Jerrod Sanders def. Russell Doane Decision (unanimous) (29–28, 30–27, 29–28)35:00
Middleweight Trevor Smith def. Dan Miller Decision (unanimous) (30–25, 30–25, 30–26)35:00
Welterweight George Sullivan def.Dominic WatersDecision (unanimous) (29–27, 30–25, 29–28)35:00
Preliminary Card (UFC Fight Pass)
Flyweight Willie Gates def. Darrell Montague TKO (knees to the body and elbows)11:36
  1. The Ultimate Fighter: American Top Team vs. Blackzilians Final.

[11]

Bonus awards

The following fighters were awarded $50,000 bonuses: [12]

Reported payout

The following is the reported payout to the fighters as reported to the Nevada State Athletic Commission. It does not include sponsor money and also does not include the UFC's traditional "fight night" bonuses. [13]

^ Maximo Blanco was fined 20 percent of his purse ($5,600) for failing to make the required weight for his fight with Mike De La Torre. That money was issued to De La Torre, an NSAC official confirmed. [13]

See also

References

  1. 1 2 Staff (February 28, 2015). "'TUF 21' features ATT vs. Blackzilians, $500K grand prize, 16 welterweight cast members". mmajunkie.com. Retrieved February 28, 2015.
  2. 1 2 Marc Raimondi (February 28, 2015). "TUF 21 features American Top Team vs. Blackzilians with $500K on the line". mmafighting.com. Retrieved February 28, 2015.
  3. Damon Martin (February 28, 2015). "'The Ultimate Fighter: American Top Team vs. Blackzilians' debuts April 22". foxsports.com. Retrieved February 28, 2015.
  4. 1 2 Staff (July 13, 2015). "TUF 21 Finale draws reported 4,844 attendance for $291,000 live gate". mmajunkie.com. Retrieved July 13, 2015.
  5. 1 2 3 Thomas Gerbasi (May 15, 2015). "Summer UFC Events Secured for Florida and Nevada". ufc.com. Retrieved May 15, 2015.
  6. 1 2 3 Ariel Helwani (April 15, 2015). "Benson Henderson vs. Michael Johnson targeted for TUF 21 Finale in Florida; venue to be determined". mmafighting.com. Retrieved April 16, 2015.
  7. Ariel Helwani (May 15, 2015). "Benson Henderson vs. Michael Johnson off TUF 21 Finale card". mmafighting.com. Retrieved May 15, 2015.
  8. Guilherme Cruz (July 5, 2015). "Marcio Alexandre Jr. out with rib injury, George Sullivan now meets Dominic Waters at TUF 21 Finale". mmafighting.com. Retrieved July 5, 2015.
  9. Staff (July 11, 2015). "TUF 21 Finale weigh-in results: Headliners, 'TUF' finalists hit their marks; two miss". mmajunkie.com. Retrieved July 11, 2015.
  10. Staff (July 12, 2015). "McGregor, Faber to coach TUF". ufc.com. Retrieved July 12, 2015.
  11. "TUF 21 Finale". Ultimate Fighting Championship. Retrieved May 15, 2015.
  12. Luke Thomas (July 13, 2015). "TUF 21 Finale bonuses: Stephen Thompson claims $50,000 with Jake Ellenberger stoppage". mmafighting.com. Retrieved August 5, 2018.
  13. 1 2 Staff (July 13, 2015). "TUF 21 Finale salaries: Jorge Masvidal earns event-high $102,000 payday". mmajunkie.com. Retrieved July 13, 2015.