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ULTIMATE FIGHTING CHAMPIONSHIP® AND SPIKE TV ANNOUNCE COACHES FOR THE ULTIMATE FIGHTER® SEASON 6

posted by Kathleen Holland on April 21, 2007, in MMA Press Release, , in Mixed Martial Arts

Manchester, England – Now in its fifth hard-hitting season, Spike TV’s hit reality series, The Ultimate Fighter®, has launched the UFC® careers of some of mixed martial arts’ brightest young stars. But for season six, not only will the series find the sport’s top young welterweight fighter, it will also settle a score between a charismatic new champion and a legend looking to wear the crown once again, as UFC Welterweight Champion Matt Serra and former champion Matt Hughes coach 16 fighters hoping to be crowned the The Ultimate Fighter..

Production on The Ultimate Fighter 6 begins this spring and continues in Las Vegas for about the next 6 weeks. The Ultimate Fighter 6 premieres this fall. The series is hosted by Dana White, UFC President.

“We’re raising the stakes for season six of The Ultimate Fighter,” said White. “Matt Serra, UFC Welterweight Champion, and Matt Hughes, the former welterweight champion, do not like each other at all. It should be a wild ride."

“In the tradition of great conflicts on The Ultimate Fighter, we’re excited about having these two veterans of the series, squaring off in a battle of wits before they take each other on in the Octagon,” said Brian Diamond, Co-Executive Producer and Senior Vice President, Sports & Specials, Spike TV. “Expect pyrotechnics!”

During the thirty-eight day competition, the 16 men will endure a grueling regimen of jiu-jitsu, judo, Muay Thai, karate, boxing and wrestling. The intense competition between the fighters will continue after they leave the gym -- at the Ultimate Fighter House. These warriors will be forced to live with each other, knowing that any day they could be forced to fight each other in the UFC Octagon™.

Opponents from each team will be selected to square off in battle, officially weighed in and then, in front of their teammates, coaches, and the sanctioning Nevada Athletic Commission, the two combatants face off in two five-minute rounds. If a draw verdict is rendered, a third ‘sudden victory’ round will determine who wins the fight and continues on in the competition.

In the series finale, the two finalists will fight in a LIVE television broadcast with a location to be determined. In the end, one welterweight will be crowned the new Ultimate Fighter. As a special bonus for fight fans, The Ultimate Fighter 6’s two coaches, Serra and Hughes, will square off for the UFC Welterweight Championship in a pay-per-view bout on a date and site to be determined.

Matt Serra and Matt Hughes have come from opposite ends of the mixed martial arts spectrum, but in 2007, they meet at the top of the welterweight division, and with more than a little heat between them.

Long Island, New York’s Matt ‘The Terror’ Serra, a Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu Black Belt known for his ground game, nonetheless shocked the mixed martial arts world at UFC 69 on April 7 with a stirring first round TKO of a man many thought was unbeatable, Georges St-Pierre. It was the pinnacle of an over seven year career that saw Serra face a Who’s Who of the sport, including BJ Penn, Din Thomas, Karo Parisyan, and Chris Lytle. It wasn’t until his stint on The Ultimate Fighter’s fourth season though, that Serra earned his title shot with a win over Chris Lytle in the series finale. Now he expects to guard his title jealously from all comers, but first, he will impart the wisdom he has given to his students - such as Luke Cummo and Pete Sell – for years on season six of The Ultimate Fighter.

“It’s no secret that Matt Hughes and I don’t like each other, and getting the chance to beat him as a coach before I beat him in the Octagon is a great opportunity and one I’m really looking forward to,” said Serra. “On season six of The Ultimate Fighter, I will show the bully how it’s done as I coach the future of the welterweight division.”

Ask any mixed martial arts fans about Hillsboro, Illinois’ Matt Hughes, and the words most likely to follow are ‘greatest welterweight ever.’ A two-time champion with seven combined defenses to his name, Hughes’ ground and pound attack has led him to wins over St-Pierre, Penn, Lytle, Royce Gracie, and Frank Trigg. He has also translated his success into the coaching realm, as three of his four team members during season two of The Ultimate Fighter (Joe Stevenson, Brad Imes, Luke Cummo) made it to the series finale, with the third semi-finalist, Rashad Evans, also benefiting from Hughes’ experience as a coach.

“I’m honored to be called back to coach season six of The Ultimate Fighter, and I look forward to coaching against Matt Serra before we fight for real later this year,” said Hughes. “Working with these up and coming fighters give me even more motivation to succeed and win back my title, and the fighters who work with me will know from my track record in the show that I’ve produced winners in the past, and I will do so again.”

Craig Piligian of Pilgrim Films and Television, Frank Fertitta III, Lorenzo Fertitta, Dana White of Zuffa, LLC, and Kevin Kay of Spike TV are the show's executive producers. Brian J. Diamond is Senior Vice President, Sports & Specials, Spike TV and Co-Executive Producer.

Spike TV is available in 91.6 million homes and is a division of MTV Networks. A unit of VIACOM (NYSE: VIA, VIA.B), MTV Networks is one of the world's leading creators of programming and content across all media platforms.

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