‘The Ultimate Fighter: Team Lesnar vs. Team Dos Santos series - fast-tracked from the US - premieres on GO! this Thursday, March 31, at 11:30pm
Sydney, Australia – The Ultimate Fighting Championship(R) organisation is excited to announce the brand new series of long-running sports reality TV show ‘The Ultimate Fighter’ will air on free-to-air multi-channel GO!.
In a huge win for Aussie fans, each episode of this latest season of ‘TUF’ will be broadcast on the GO! network within hours of the worldwide premiere in the United States. The first episode airs this Thursday, March 31 at 11:30pm.
Now in its thirteenth season, the new series of TUF sees the ‘Baddest Man on the Planet’ and most compelling figure in all of combat sports - Brock Lesnar - lead a team of talented newcomers against a team lead by the sledgehammer-fisted Brazilian Junior Dos Santos.
The Ultimate Fighter: Team Lesnar Vs. Team Dos Santos documents the journey of these talented unsigned mixed martial artists, who will live and train together as they compete for a six-figure contract with the world’s leading combat sports organisation.
Former UFC Heavyweight Champion Lesnar and current No1 contender Dos Santos will then face off inside the world famous Octagon(TM) at a later date in their final eliminator to face reigning UFC Champion Cain Velazquez.
Marshall Zelaznik, UFC Managing Director of International Development said: “We’re delighted to partner with GO! and to be able to air The Ultimate Fighter on free-to-air television in Australia literally hours after it airs in the US.
“UFC is just exploding in popularity in Australia. Our second live event in Sydney last month was the fastest sell-out in the Acer Arena’s history, with all 18,000 seats going in less than 22 minutes. Our Australian fans are amongst our most loyal worldwide and with our partnership with GO! more Aussie fans than ever will be able to watch what’s predicted to be one of the most exciting seasons of The Ultimate Fighter to date.”
About Brock Lesnar
The successor to Mike Tyson’s moniker of being ‘the Baddest Man on the Planet’ 6ft 3inch, 130KG Brock Lesnar was a highly decorated freestyle wrestler at the University of Minnesota. After graduating in 2000, Lesnar joined the professional wrestling circuit and quickly became one of the most popular names in sports entertainment before then confounding the critics by trying out for the Minnesota Vikings’ NFL squad.
But legitimate combat sports was always Lesnar’s true calling, and he entered the UFC in 2008, stunning the sport by stopping UFC Heavyweight Champion Randy Couture in two rounds in only his fourth professional fight.
After successful defenses against Frank Mir and Shane Carwin, Lesnar lost his belt to Velasquez at UFC 121 last October. Determined to get his championship back, Lesnar knows the quickest way to do so is through dos Santos.
About Junior Dos Santos
Brazilian heavyweight contender Junior dos Santos honed his skills as a mixed martial arts under the guidance of UFC superstars Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira and pound-for-pound champion Anderson Silva.
One of the sport’s rising stars and the current No1 contender in the division, Dos Santos made his UFC debut with a stunning 80-second knockout of elite heavyweight Fabricio Werdum at UFC 90 in October 2008.
Proving the crushing victory was no fluke, Dos Santos then went on a tear through the division, finishing, in succession, top contenders in Stefan Struve, Mirko Cro Cop, Gilbert Yvel and Gabe Gonzaga before crushing Roy Nelson to become the top contender.
A brown belt in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu as well as perhaps the hardest one-hit puncher in UFC history, Dos Santos has vowed to win the TUF series before crushing Lesnar en route to a title fight.