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With the regular season of the most recent installment of “The Ultimate Fighter” now in the record books, the lineup is set for Friday’s TUF 23 Finale.
Following Wednesday’s final regular-season episode of the 23rd season of the show, three fights were made official for the card. In the co-main event slot, Khalil Rountree (4-0 MMA, 0-0 UFC) and Andrew Sanchez (7-2 MMA, 0-0 UFC) will fight in the final of the show’s light heavyweight tournament for the coveted “TUF” crown and a UFC contract. And right before that, Amanda Cooper (1-1 MMA, 0-0 UFC) takes on Tatiana Suarez (3-0 MMA, 0-0 UFC) in the show’s women’s strawweight tourney final.
Also set for the card is a fight between a pair of “TUF 23” contestants who fell short of the final. Cory Hendricks (3-0) MMA, 0-0 UFC) will take on semifinalist JOSH STANSBURY (7-2 MMA, 0-0 UFC), who lost to finalist Rountree, at light heavyweight on the preliminary card. Hendricks submitted Rountree in the tourney’s opening round, but couldn’t fight in the semifinals due to a shoulder injury. Now healed, he’ll get a shot at his first official UFC win at the event.
In the TUF 23 Finale’s main event, women’s strawweight champion Joanna Jedrzejczyk (11-0 MMA, 5-0 UFC) rematches challenger Claudia Gadelha (13-1 MMA, 2-1 UFC). The women coached opposite each other on the show and bring plenty of bad blood to the headliner.
Also on the main card, former Bellator lightweight champion Will Brooks (17-1 MMA, 0-0 UFC) makes his UFC debut against “TUF” winner Ross Pearson (19-10 MMA, 11-7 UFC); Doo Ho Choi (14-1 MMA, 2-0 UFC) meets Thiago Tavares (20-6-1 MMA, 10-6-1 UFC) in a featherweight bout; and to open the main card, Andrew Holbrook (11-0 MMA, 1-0 UFC) takes on Joaquim Silva (8-0 MMA, 1-0 UFC) at lightweight.
In the featured preliminary-card fight, former two-time lightweight title challenger Gray Maynard (11-5-1 MMA, 9-5-1 UFC) meets Fernando Bruno (15-3 MMA, 0-1 UFC) at featherweight. And in the featured bout on UFC Fight Pass, Kevin Lee (12-2 MMA, 5-2 UFC) fights Jake Matthews (10-1 MMA, 4-1 UFC) at lightweight.
The TUF 23 Finale takes place Friday at MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas. The main card airs on FOX Sports 1 following prelims on FOX Sports 1 and UFC Fight Pass.
The complete TUF 23 Finale lineup includes:
MAIN CARD (10 p.m. ET, FOX Sports 1)
- Champ Joanna Jedrzejczyk vs. Claudia Gadelha – for women’s strawweight title
- Khalil Rountree vs. Andrew Sanchez – for TUF 23 light heavyweight tournament title
- Amanda Bobby Cooper vs. Tatiana Suarez – for TUF 23 women’s strawweight tournament title
- Will Brooks vs. Ross Pearson
- Doo Ho Choi vs. Thiago Tavares
- Andrew Holbrook vs. Joaquim Silva
PRELIMINARY CARD (8 p.m. ET, FOX Sports 1)
- Fernando Bruno vs. Gray Maynard
- John Moraga vs. Matheus Nicolau
- Cory Hendricks vs. Josh Stansbury
- Cezar Ferreira vs. Anthony Smith
PRELIMINARY CARD (7 p.m. ET, UFC Fight Pass)
- Kevin Lee vs. Jake Matthews
- Li Jingliang vs. Anton Zafir
For more on The Ultimate Fighter 23 Finale, check out the UFC Rumors section of the site.
Filed under: News, UFC, Videos