| The Ultimate Fighter: The Smashes | |
|---|---|
| Genre | Reality, Sports |
| Created by | Frank Fertitta III, Lorenzo Fertitta, Dana White |
| Starring | Dana White, Ross Pearson, and George Sotiropoulos |
| Country of origin | Australia |
| Production | |
| Running time | 60 minutes |
| Original release | |
| Network | FX Australia ESPN UK |
| Release | 19 September 2012 |
The Ultimate Fighter: The Smashes is the second foreign version of the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC)-produced reality television series The Ultimate Fighter . Like The Ultimate Fighter: Brazil, this version was filmed, in its entirety, outside Las Vegas, Nevada and consisted of 13 episodes with a live finale in Australia. [1] The season tournament finale, along with the coaches fight, took place on 14 December 2012 at UFC on FX: Sotiropoulos vs. Pearson. [2]
The series was officially announced by the UFC in May 2012. [3] The name The Smashes is a play on the 130-year-old cricket rivalry between England and Australia called "The Ashes." [1] The UFC held open tryouts during June 2012. The casting call was for Lightweight and Welterweight fighters who are at least 21 years old and have a minimum of two wins in three professional fights. [4]
On 12 July 2012, Dana White announced that the coaches for the season would be Ross Pearson and George Sotiropoulos to represent the UK and Australia respectively. [5]
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Team Australia
Team UKEpisode 1: National Pride
Episode 2: Freak or Unique
Episode 3: Wasabi
Episode 4: Pick Me!
Episode 5: Fight for Your Family
Episode 6: True Warrior
Episode 7: Unwise Words
Episode 8: Phone Home
Episode 9: Easy Route
Episode 10: Smash it UP
Episode 11: Friendly Fire
Episode 12: Little and Large
| Quarter-finals | Semi-finals | Finale | ||||||||
| Robert Whittaker | KO | |||||||||
| Luke Newman | 1 | |||||||||
| Robert Whittaker | TKO | |||||||||
| Xavier Lucas** | 1 | |||||||||
| Manny Rodriguez* | SUB | |||||||||
| Bola Omoyele | 1 | |||||||||
| Robert Whittaker | UD | |||||||||
| Brad Scott | 3 | |||||||||
| Xavier Lucas | 2 | |||||||||
| Brad Scott | UD | |||||||||
| Brad Scott | SD | |||||||||
| Benny Alloway | 3 | |||||||||
| Benny Alloway | TKO | |||||||||
| Valentino Petrescu | 2 | |||||||||
*James Vainikolo was due to fight Xavier Lucas for a spot in the next round to replace the injured Manny Rodriguez. Vainikolo did not make the weight therefore Lucas advanced to the semi-finals.
| Quarter-finals | Semi-finals | Finale | ||||||||
| Richie Vaculik | 2 | |||||||||
| Norman Parke | UD | |||||||||
| Norman Parke | UD | |||||||||
| Brendan Loughnane | 3 | |||||||||
| Patrick Iodice | 2 | |||||||||
| Brendan Loughnane | UD | |||||||||
| Norman Parke | UD | |||||||||
| Colin Fletcher | 3 | |||||||||
| Ben Wall | 2 | |||||||||
| Colin Fletcher | UD | |||||||||
| Colin Fletcher | SUB | |||||||||
| Richie Vaculik | 2 | |||||||||
| Grant Blackler | 1 | |||||||||
| Mike Wilkinson* | SUB | |||||||||
*Mike Wilkinson was injured in training and was replaced by Australian Richie Vaculik.
| | Team Australia | |
| | Team UK | |
UD | Unanimous Decision | |
SD | Split Decision | |
SUB | Submission | |
(T)KO | (Technical)KO | |
The following $25,000 bonus were awarded to fights that took place during the TUF Smashes season: [6]
| UFC on FX: Sotiropoulos vs. Pearson | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 The poster for UFC on FX: Sotiropoulos vs. Pearson | ||||
| Promotion | Ultimate Fighting Championship | |||
| Date | 15 December 2012 | |||
| Venue | Gold Coast Convention and Exhibition Centre | |||
| City | Gold Coast, Australia | |||
| Attendance | 5,133 [7] | |||
| Total gate | $900,000 [7] | |||
| Event chronology | ||||
| ||||
UFC on FX: Sotiropoulos vs. Pearson (also known as UFC on FX 6) was a mixed martial arts event held by the Ultimate Fighting Championship on 15 December 2012, at the Gold Coast Convention and Exhibition Centre in Gold Coast, Australia. [8] [9] Due to the time zone difference it aired live on 14 December in North America. [10]
The event featured the final bouts of The Ultimate Fighter: The Smashes. [11] [12] This was the first UFC event held in Queensland, and the first event in Australia to be held outside New South Wales. [13]
Joe Martinez was the ring announcer in what would be his UFC octagon debut. [14]
Australia's George Sotiropoulos and Britain's Ross Pearson headlined the card in a five-round main event. The pair had been coaching opposite one another on the hit reality TV series The Ultimate Fighter: The Smashes. [9] [15]
Kyle Noke was expected to face Seth Baczynski at the event. However, Noke was forced out of the bout with an injury and was replaced by Mike Pierce. [16]
Anthony Perosh was expected to face Joey Beltran at the event. However, Perosh was forced from the bout with a toe injury and replaced by Igor Pokrajac. [17]
A bout between Ednaldo Oliveira and Krzysztof Soszynski was originally scheduled for this event. [18] However, Oliveira was forced out of the bout with an injury and Sosynski was pulled from the event as well. [19]
Eddie Mendez was expected to make his promotional debut at the event against Nick Penner. However, Mendez pulled out of the bout citing a shoulder injury and was replaced by fellow newcomer Cody Donovan. [20]
Hacran Dias was expected to face Chad Mendes at the event. However just days before the event, Dias pulled out of the bout citing a shoulder injury and was replaced by promotional newcomer Yaotzin Meza. [21]
| Main Card (FX) | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Weight class | Method | Round | Time | Notes | |||
| Lightweight | Ross Pearson | def. | George Sotiropoulos | TKO (punches) | 3 | 0:41 | |
| Welterweight | Robert Whittaker | def. | Brad Scott | Decision (unanimous) (29–28, 29–28, 29–28) | 3 | 5:00 | [lower-alpha 1] |
| Lightweight | Norman Parke | def. | Colin Fletcher | Decision (unanimous) (30–27, 30–27, 29–28) | 3 | 5:00 | [lower-alpha 2] |
| Middleweight | Héctor Lombard | def. | Rousimar Palhares | KO (punches) | 1 | 3:38 | |
| Preliminary Card (Fuel TV) | |||||||
| Featherweight | Chad Mendes | def. | Yaotzin Meza | KO (punches) | 1 | 1:55 | |
| Light Heavyweight | Joey Beltran | vs. | Igor Pokrajac | No Contest | 3 | 5:00 | [lower-alpha 3] |
| Welterweight | Mike Pierce | def. | Seth Baczynski | Decision (unanimous) (30–27, 29–28, 29–28) | 3 | 5:00 | |
| Welterweight | Ben Alloway | def. | Manuel Rodriguez | KO (front kick and punches) | 1 | 4:57 | |
| Lightweight | Mike Wilkinson | def. | Brendan Loughnane | Decision (unanimous) (29–28, 29–28, 29–28) | 3 | 5:00 | |
| Light Heavyweight | Cody Donovan | def. | Nick Penner | TKO (punches) | 1 | 4:35 | |
Fighters were awarded $40,000 bonuses. [22]
The Ultimate Fighter is an American reality television series and mixed martial arts (MMA) competition produced by the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) and Pilgrim Media Group currently airing on ESPN+. It previously aired for fourteen seasons on Spike TV. The show features professional MMA fighters living together in Las Vegas, Nevada, and follows them as they train and compete against each other for a prized six-figure contract with the UFC. The series debuted on January 17, 2005, with its first episode, "The Quest Begins". To date, there have been thirty one seasons of the show, two per calendar year, some years having only one season. Each season features either one or two weight classes in the tournament.
Joseph Christopher Stevenson is a retired American mixed martial artist fighting out of Hesperia, California. Coached by Matt Hughes, Stevenson rose to prominence by becoming The Ultimate Fighter 2 Welterweight Tournament Winner. Following a drop in weight class and two-year undefeated streak, he was ranked among the top UFC Lightweight competitors, culminating into a title shot for the vacant UFC Lightweight Championship against B.J. Penn at UFC 80: Rapid Fire. Stevenson fought most of his career as a Lightweight and made his Featherweight debut at UFC Live: Kongo vs. Barry. He is the former King of the Cage Lightweight Champion.
George Sotiropoulos is an Australian former professional mixed martial artist who most notably fought in the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) in their Lightweight division. He is well known for appearing as a fighter on the TV show The Ultimate Fighter: Team Hughes vs. Team Serra, fighting on Team Serra and as the coach for Team Australia on The Ultimate Fighter: The Smashes.
George H. Roop is a retired mixed martial artist. He was a cast member of Spike TV's The Ultimate Fighter: Team Nogueira vs. Team Mir, winning his preliminary and first round fights. He fought as a bantamweight in the UFC and most recently fought under the Road FC banner. He holds notable victories over former WEC Bantamweight champion Brian Bowles and UFC featherweight contender Chan Sung Jung.
Evan Dunham is an American professional mixed martial artist competing in the lightweight division. He is perhaps best known for 21-fight tenure in the Ultimate Fighting Championship which spanned over a decade.
Kyle Noke is an Australian retired mixed martial artist who competed as a Welterweight in the Ultimate Fighting Championship. A professional competitor since 2002, Noke has also fought for EliteXC.
Ross Pearson is a retired English mixed martial artist and professional boxer. A 26-fight veteran of the UFC, he was a three-time "Fight of the Night" winner and was the lightweight winner of The Ultimate Fighter 9.
Jonathan Brookins is an American former mixed martial artist who competed as a featherweight for the Ultimate Fighting Championship. A professional MMA competitor since 2006, Brookins has mostly fought in Florida, as well as competing in The Ultimate Fighter: Team GSP vs. Team Koscheck. On December 4, 2010, Brookins defeated Michael Johnson to become the Ultimate Fighter and earn a contract with the UFC. During his time at Lindenwood University, he was also the college roommate of former fellow UFC fighter Mike Rio.
Zacharry "Zak" Michael Cummings is an American former professional mixed martial artist, who competed in the Middleweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship. A professional competitor since 2007, he has also formerly competed for Strikeforce, MFC, Titan FC, and Bellator.
Cezar Jesus Ferreira, better known in his home country Brazil as Cezar Mutante, is a mixed martial artist currently competing in the light heavyweight division. A professional MMA competitor since 2007, he has competed for the Ultimate Fighting Championship and Professional Fighters League. He was also the inaugural winner of Globo's The Ultimate Fighter: Brazil
Robert John Whittaker is an Australian professional mixed martial artist. He currently competes in the Middleweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC), where he is a former UFC Middleweight Champion and the first Australian to win a UFC championship. As of 29 October 2024, he is #4 in the UFC middleweight rankings.
Norman Parke is a mixed martial artist from Northern Ireland. A professional MMA competitor since 2006, Parke has fought for the UFC, Absolute Championship Berkut, KSW, and BAMMA. He was also a competitor for Team UK on The Ultimate Fighter: The Smashes in late 2012 and won the Lightweight Tournament.
Bradley Scott is a professional bare knuckle fighter and a retired English mixed martial artist who competed in the Welterweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship. He currently competes in BYB Bare Knuckle after having formerly fought in BKB where he was their British Cruiserweight champion before the company’s acquisition by BYB. A professional competitor since 2009, he has also competed for Cage Warriors and was a contestant The Ultimate Fighter: The Smashes.
Mike Ricci is a Canadian former mixed martial artist who competed for the Ultimate Fighting Championship and has also fought in Bellator MMA.
Ben Alloway is an Australian mixed martial artist. A professional MMA competitor since 2010, he was a competitor on The Ultimate Fighter: The Smashes. Ben formerly fought for the UFC in the welterweight division.
The Ultimate Fighter Nations: Canada vs. Australia is an installment of the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC)-produced reality television series The Ultimate Fighter. It is the fifth series produced outside the United States and the first filmed in Canada.
Mixed martial arts (MMA) has developed in Australia from a wide cross-section of sporting and martial arts disciplines to become the most popular combat sport in the country.
UFC Fight Night: Rockhold vs. Bisping was a mixed martial arts event held at the Allphones Arena in Sydney, Australia on November 8, 2014.
Richie Vaculik is a mixed martial artist and big wave surfer from Maroubra, Australia. Richie competed in the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) Flyweight division.
Mike Wilkinson is an English mixed martial artist who most recently competed in the Lightweight division. A professional competitor since 2009, he has competed for the UFC, Absolute Championship Berkut, and was a competitor on The Ultimate Fighter: The Smashes.
