The Ultimate Fighter: Power Ranking Each Field of Fighters

The Ultimate Fighter returns this Friday, with coaches Urijah Faber and Dominick Cruz guiding a new batch of young fighters. The great thing about this season is that all of the fights are live, making for more excitement.

This season features a new class of lightweights. The premiere is also guaranteed to packed with excitement, as all 16 opening-round fights will be aired in one night.

Let's take a look at the past seasons' field of fighters and rank them according to talent and success.

Unranked

As of right now, the featherweights and bantamweights of Season 14 (coached by Michael Bisping and Jason Miller) cannot be ranked, as it is too early to tell. It does look as of right now that they are going to be among the better half.

Obviously, this season's cast cannot be ranked yet, as they have not fully embarked on their respective journeys with the UFC.

No. 19: Season 9 Lightweights

Participants

Team USA: Santino DeFranco, Jason Dent, Cameron Dollar, Richie Whitson

Team UK: Jeff Lawson, Ross Pearson, Martin Stapleton, Andre Winner

Notably Eliminated Before the Show

Waylon Lowe (USA) and Rob Browning (USA, brother of noted psycho Junie Browning)

Season nine was branded "USA vs. UK," but really, it failed to bring us many guys worthy of fighting for such a cause.

None of Team USA's lightweights were successful in the UFC. Although Cameron Dollar has seen some success since dropping to featherweight outside the UFC, this class was a total scrap.

Ross Pearson is really the only shining star out of the group. He is currently 1-0 at featherweight after a solid run at lightweight. Andre Winner saw his share of fights in the UFC, but faltered against mid-level opponents.

No. 18: Season 13 Welterweights

Participants 

Team dos Santos: Shamar Bailey, Ryan McGillivray, Javier Torres, Ramsey Nijem, Zach Davis, Mick Bowman, Justin Edwards

Team Lesnar: Len Bentley, Charlie Rader, Tony Ferguson, Clay Harvison, Nordin Asrih, Chuck O'Neil

Notably Eliminated Before the Show

N/A

One of the most recent seasons, season 13 failed to contribute much to the UFC.

Justin Edwards and Ramsey Nijem have shown some skill so far in the Octagon, but have not fought even mid-tier fighters. Shamar Bailey fizzled out with consecutive losses after winning at the finale.

Tony Ferguson is the only fighter to have created a real buzz from this season, and he was the winner. Ferguson is 3-0 so far in his UFC tenure.

No. 17: Season 8 Lightweights

Participants

Team Mir: Junie Browning, Dave Kaplan, Shane Nelson, George Roop

Team Nogueira: Rolando Delgado, Efrain Escudero, Phillipe Nover, John Polakowski

Notably Eliminated Before the Show

Joe Duarte

Season eight's lightweight field looked to be quite competitive at the start of things, but quickly showed its true colors.

From Team Mir, the most successful fighter has been George Roop, who only has found recent success at featherweight. Browning was a loose cannon, Nelson has just recently started getting back on track and Kaplan did not do much with solid opportunities.

Team Nogueira had arguably the two best lightweights in Nover and Escudero. Nover drew high praise going into the finale, but proved to be a fluke. Escudero found early success in the UFC, was expelled and recently returned.

No. 16: Season 9 Welterweights

Participants

Team USA: DaMarques Johnson, Frank Lester, Mark Miller, Jason Pierce

Team UK: Dean Amasinger, David Faulkner, Nick Osipczak, James Wilks

Notably Eliminated Before the Show

Che Mills

As you can see through the far worse field of fighters, two have come from the same season. Yes, season nine really did not offer much.

Team USA, with the exception of DaMarques Johnson, wasn't good. Johnson has found mild success in the middle level of the welterweight division in his career.

Team UK was not much better, with Osipczak and Wilks both spending time in the UFC. Osipczak is gone by now, and Wilks has yet to fight since October of 2010. The thing that may have pushed this season further than it should have been is the fact that Che Mills made an appearance in the preliminary round.

No. 15: Season 12 Lightweights

Participants

Team GSP: Michael Johnson, Johnathan Brookins, Spencer Paige, Alex Caceres, Kyle Watson, Cody McKenzie, Dane Sayers

Team Koscheck: Marc Stevens, Sevak Magakian, Sako Chivitchian, Andy Main, Nam Phan, Aaron Wilkinson, Jeff Lentz

Notably Eliminated Before the Show

JJ Ambrose, Pablo Garza and TJ O'Brien

Season 12 can most be remembered as a season where most of the guys still with the UFC have dropped to the newer, lower weight classes than actually stayed at lightweight.

Team GSP had more of the notable fighters. Michael Johnson and Cody McKenzie have been inconsistent, but hard working thus far in the UFC. Brookins dropped to his natural weight class of 145 pounds and has looked solid so far. Alex Caceres dropped to 135 pounds and has looked great after a bad stint at featherweight.

Nam Phan was the only notable fighter from Team Koscheck and has had a bumpy road thus far. Between questionable decision losses and a one-sided beating at the hands of Jim Hettes, Phan has been just OK so far.

No. 14: Season 4 Middleweights

Participants

Team Mojo: Pete Sell, Scott Smith, Patrick Cote, Edwin DeWees

Team No Love: Travis Lutter, Charles McCarthy, Gideon Ray, Jorge Rivera

Notably Eliminated Before the Show

N/A

Season four was dubbed "the comeback season," but for most of these competitors, it was either short-lived or never again to be.

Team Mojo definitely saw more success. Pete Sell fought a handful of exciting fights in the UFC before being cut. Scott Smith did the same as Sell before moving on to Strikeforce, where he is now. Cote eventually challenged for the title, but the exciting fighter would eventually get the ax from the company as well.

Team No Love had the season winner, Travis Lutter, who, after winning the show, was cut two fights later. Jorge Rivera was really the best fighter off their team, recently retiring on a victory in January after many UFC fights.

No. 13: Season 6 Welterweights

Participants:

Team Hughes: Dan Barrera, Blake Bowman, Mac Danzig, Paul Georgieff, Billy Miles, Dorian Price, Jared Rollins, Tommy Speer

Team Serra: Matt Arroyo, Richie Hightower, John Kolosci, Troy Mandaloniz, War Machine, Ben Saunders, Joe Scarola, George Sotiropolous

Notably Eliminated Before the Show

N/A

Season six had a ton of no-names and clunkers, but eventually would provide some solid fighters from the show.

Mac Danzig has seen an up-and-down career since winning the show, but has shown spots of talent. He proved to be the only real solid fighter to come from his team.

Team Serra was fortunate enough to spit out three solid competitors in War Machine, Ben Saunders and George Sotiropolous. War Machine has been somewhat successful, but cannot stay out of trouble with the law. Saunders showed spots of potential in the UFC, but since being cut, has began to tear it up in Bellator. Sotiropolous was one of the hottest lightweights in the UFC until his current two-fight losing streak came upon him.

No. 12: Season 11 Middleweights

Participants

Team Liddell: Kyle Noke, Rich Attonito, Charles Blanchard, Josh Bryant, Brad Tavares, Court McGee, Joseph Henle

Team Ortiz/Franklin: Nick Ring, Kyacey Uscola, Kris McCray, Jamie Yager, James Hammortree, Clayton McKinney, Seth Baczynski

Notably Eliminated Before the Show

Chris Camozzi (injury) and Constantinos Philippou

In a season where fans may have wanted to see the coaches fight more than the contestants, there have actually been some solid prospects to come off the show.

Team Liddell was a gold mine for talent. Noke and Attonito have shown inconsistency, but are full of potential thus far. Brad Tavares also looks like a solid work in progress at this point. The winner of the season, Court McGee, has looked good so far, minus the loss he had this past weekend to show reject/hot prospect Constantinos Philippou.

Nick Ring and Seth Baczynski are the best two to come off the other team. Ring is 2-1 so far in his octagon outings, while Baczynski has looked sharp lately as well.

Camozzi and Philippou may not have been on the show long, but they are currently in the UFC and doing just fine.

No. 11: Season 3 Middleweights

Participants

Team Ortiz: Mike Stine, Kendall Grove, Rory Singer, Danny Abbadi

Team Shamrock: Kalib Starnes, Solomon Hutcherson, Ed Herman, Ross Pointon

Notably Eliminated Before the Show

N/A

Season 3's middleweight class did not have much talent in it, but it is redeemed due to the work put in by Kendall Grove and Ed Herman.

Kendall Grove was really the only talent that Team Ortiz had. He had an up-and-down career in the UFC, earning some big wins and grabbing a few bad losses. He is no longer with the UFC, but is carrying his weight in the regional scene.

Ed Herman was the best man from Team Shamrock, as he is currently enjoying a career resurgence since a devastating knee injury. He has posted three straight wins from his long hiatus and looked good in all of them. Notably, Kalib "The Running Man" Starnes is the black eye of the group.

No. 10: Season 3 Light Heavyweights

Participants

Team Ortiz: Michael Bisping, Noah Inhofer, Josh Haynes, Matt Hamill

Team Shamrock: Jesse Forbes, Kristian Rothaermel, Tait Fletcher, Mike Nickels

Notably Eliminated Before the Show

N/A

The other half of participants from season three are again saved by the work put in by Michael Bisping and Matt Hamill.

Team Ortiz had the best two fighters on their team in Bisping and Hamill. Bisping has had a fantastic career and could be on the verge of a title shot in the middleweight division. Hamill has always been a tough customer and just recently retired last year.

The best fighter to come off Team Shamrock was Jesse Forbes, who spent a short time in the UFC before being sent to the regional scene.

No. 9: Season 7 Middleweights

Participants

Team Forrest: Tim Creduer, Amir Sadollah, Jesse Taylor, Matt Brown, Cale Yarbrough, Dante Rivera, Nick Klein, Luke Zachrich

Team Rampage: CB Dollaway, Matt Riddle, Patrick Schultz, Dan Cramer, Gerald Harris, Mike Dolce, Jeremy May, Brandon Sene

Notably Eliminated Before the Show

Paul Bradley and Nick Rossborough 

Season 7 may not have produced its share of contenders, but if you look at that list of fighters, there are a ton of those names still currently in the UFC.

Team Forrest gave us current UFC veterans Tim Creduer, Amir Sadollah and Matt Brown, all of whom are solid competitors in their respective divisions. Jesse Taylor is a mainstay in numerous other top organizations, but blew his chance in the UFC with his self-destructive behavior.

Dollaway and Riddle are the other two UFC mainstays coming from Team Rampage. Gerald Harris was 3-1 in the UFC when he was unjustly cut. Dolce is not fighting anymore, but offers his health services to fighters like Thiago Alves.

No. 8: Season 2 Heavyweights

Participants

Team Hughes: Mike Whitehead, Dan Christison, Rob MacDonald, Tom Murphy

Team Franklin: Keith Jardine, Seth Petruzelli, Rashad Evans, Brad Imes

Notably Eliminated Before the Show

N/A

Season 2's heavyweight division was not stellar, but it provided a couple of excellent light heavyweights.

Team Hughes did not provide much. Christison is a well-traveled veteran, but never did much in the UFC. Whitehead did nothing in the UFC, but has beaten a who's who of fighters in organizations such as the IFL and Strikeforce.

Team Franklin had a three fighters that had over four fights in the UFC. Petruzelli had his share of fights, but could not win a single one. Evans eventually became the champion as a light heavyweight (and the current top contender). Jardine has had an inconsistent career, beating top-level fighters while losing to lower-level fighters.

No. 7: Season 4 Welterweights

Participants

Team Mojo: Shonie Carter, Chris Lytle, Matt Serra, Din Thomas

Team No Love: Rich Clementi, Mikey Burnett, Jeremy Jackson, Pete Spratt

Notably Eliminated Before the Show

N/A

Season 4's comeback series saw a number of solid welterweights make their triumphant return to the UFC.

Team Mojo had the better of the fighters, as Thomas and Lytle would go on to have solid careers with the UFC (Lytle just recently retired with the UFC). Serra went on to win the welterweight title against Georges St. Pierre, which is a huge accomplishment.

Clementi was the only real notable Team No Love member. He would win his share of UFC fights before his exit from the company. Jackson is currently in jail, which is a black eye on the season.

No. 6: Season 6 Light Heavyweights

Participants

Team Mir: Tom Lawlor, Vinny Magalhaes, Eliot Marshall, Krzysztof Soszynski

Team Nogueira: Ryan Bader, Jules Bruchez, Kyle Kingsbury, Shane Primm

Notably Eliminated Before the Show

Antwain Britt, Ryan Jimmo and Jason Guida

Season 8's light heavyweight class started off slow, but eventually picked up as of late.

Lawlor and Soszynski are still currently employed in the UFC, enjoying multiple victories in the organization. Marshall has had two stints, though they have been mostly unsuccessful. Magalhaes has most recently found great success in M-1, earning the championship belt there.

Kingsbury and Bader are the only two Team Nogueira guys making waves in MMA. Bader is a top contender in the light heavyweight division, while Kingsbury is still developing and earning wins along the way.

No. 5: Season 10 Heavyweights

Participants

Team Evans: James McSweeney, Brendan Schaub, Justin Wren, Jon Madsen, Roy Nelson, Darrill Schoonover, Matt Mitrione, Mike Wessel

Team Rampage: Kimbo Slice, Abe Wagner, Demico Rogers, Wes Sims, Scott Junk, Wes Shivers, Marcus Jones, Zak Jensen

Notably Eliminated Before the Show

N/A

Season 10 is high on this list because of the life it injected into the heavyweight division.

McSweeney was the only guy who got a UFC chance that failed for Team Evans. Schaub and Mitrione are hot prospects who have earned some solid wins. Madsen won his share of fights before being released. Roy Nelson has squared off with some of the UFC's best heavyweights, successful only a couple times.

Team Rampage has less notable fighters. Kimbo Slice is more known for his street fights than MMA. Wagner and Jensen have seen mixed results in the regional promotions.

No. 4: Season 1 Light Heavyweights

Participants 

Team Couture: Stephan Bonnar, Mike Swick, Lodune Sincaid, Jason Thacker

Team Liddell: Bobby Southworth, Sam Hoger, Forrest Griffin, Alex Schoenauer

Notably Eliminated Before the Show

N/A

Season 1 has given us some of the most storied fighters in the UFC. The light heavyweights prove this.

Bonnar and Swick were the only two fighters from Team Couture to do anything for the UFC. Swick, before his medical problems, was very close to a welterweight title shot. Bonnar is a fan favorite, often times engaging in crazy battles. He is responsible for the most historic battle in UFC history against Forrest Griffin.

Hoger was briefly in the UFC, but did not last. Griffin eventually won the light heavyweight championship in a career full of upsets and exciting battles. Southworth had tons of potential, but never panned out.

No. 3: Season 2 Welterweights

Participants

Team Hughes: Joe Stevenson, Luke Cummo, Jason Von Flue (replaced Josh Burkman), Sammy Morgan 

Team Franklin: Marcus Davis, Jorge Gurgel, Anthony Torres, Melvin Guillard

Notably Eliminated Before the Show

Kerry Schall

Season 2 had a number of great fighters, as showcased by the welterweights.

Burkman and Cummo had a handful of fights before exiting the UFC. Stevenson won enough fights to warrant a title shot, where he was defeated by BJ Penn. After that loss, he was never the same and was released last year.

Davis and Gurgel both had their share of fights in the UFC with mixed results. But, both always came to fight. Guillard is still a top lightweight in the UFC today, as he was within arms reach of a title shot before his losing streak recently.

No. 2: Season 5 Lightweights

Participants

Team Penn: Gray Maynard, Matt Wiman, Gabe Ruediger, Joe Lauzon, Rob Emerson, Andy Wang, Allen Berube, Noah Thomas

Team Pulver: Corey Hill, Nate Diaz, Brandon Melendez, Marlon Sims, Manny Gamburyan, Cole Miller, Brian Geraghty, Wayne Weems

Notably Eliminated Before the Show

N/A

Season 5 was filled with top-notch fights, as well as crazy antics in the house. It is probably my personal favorite season.

Maynard is a former title challenger, having an epic set of fights with Frankie Edgar. Wiman and Lauzon have been quite successful in their respective careers with the UFC. Ruediger and Emerson had a couple fights, but were eventually released.

Miller and Diaz have been mainstays with the UFC, with Diaz currently on the cusp of a title shot. Gamburyan has been a UFC/WEC veteran for quite some time as well. Corey Hill had a couple fights, but a brutal injury had him out for a long time before returning in the regional circuit.

No. 1: Season 1 Middleweights

Participants

Team Couture: Nate Quarry, Chris Leben, Alex Karalexis, Chris Sanford

Team Liddell: Josh Koscheck, Diego Sanchez, Kenny Florian, Josh Rafferty

Notably Eliminated Before the Show

N/A

Season 1's middleweight field has a number of the best UFC fighters to come out of the show.

Quarry and Leben, from Team Couture, each have had success in the UFC. Quarry got a title shot, but failed to win. He no longer fights anymore due to mounted injuries. Leben is a fan favorite and has headlined several cards during his time with the UFC.

Koshcheck, Sanchez and Florian are all former title challengers. Koscheck challenged for a title just over a year ago, unsuccessfully. Florian earned title shots in multiple weight classes, but never took home gold. Sanchez earned a title shot against BJ Penn, but eas brutally defeated. No gold among these men, but great success among them all.