The Ultimate Fighter Runner-Ups: Where Are They Now?

We have seen multiple winners of The Ultimate Fighter go on to become Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) champions, but what has become of the fighters who came within one victory of  winning the reality series? Several have proceeded as perennial contenders, while others are no longer fighting for the UFC.

Eighteen fighters have finished in second place over the 12 completed seasons of The Ultimate Fighter. These are their stories.

Michael Johnson

The most recent runner-up from The Ultimate Fighter, Michael Johnson, has yet to fight since his disappointing loss to Jonathan Brookins at The Ultimate Fighter 12 finale. Johnson will be getting another shot with the UFC, though, as his next fight will come against Edward Faaloloto at UFC Live on Versus 4.

After dominating Brookins in the first round of their fight, Johnson looked to be on his way to winning the lightweight tournament for Season 12 of The Ultimate Fighter but was unable to keep the pressure going through the second and third rounds, which resulted in a unanimous decision loss.

Johnson now trains at Jackson's MMA, which is widely considered the best gym in the sport. Following his loss to Brookins, Johnson had scheduled a fight against Jim Bleau outside of the UFC but withdrew from that bout when he was offered the fight against Faaloloto.

Kris McCray

After losing to Josh Bryant, Kris McCray fought his way back into the competition through the wild card spot on Season 11 of The Ultimate Fighter. McCray avenged his loss to Bryant en route to meeting Court McGee in the finals.

Following a submission loss to McGee, McCray decided to drop from middleweight to welterweight for his next UFC fight. In his first fight at welterweight, McCray was defeated by Carlos Eduardo Rocha in another submission loss.

In his most recent fight, McCray fought John Hathaway in a back-and-forth match that saw The Ultimate Fighter runner-up come out on the wrong side of a split decision. After the loss, McCray was released from the UFC. McCray's next move in his career has not yet been determined.

Brendan Schaub

Brendan Schaub has won four consecutive fights since being knocked out by Roy Nelson in the finals of Season 10 of The Ultimate Fighter. With wins over Gabriel Gonzaga and Mirko Filipovic, Schaub could be on his way to becoming the best runner-up in The Ultimate Fighter history.

After defeating one of the legends of the sport in Filipovic, Schaub has marked himself as a legitimate contender in the heavyweight division. Schaub's next opponent has not been named yet, though.

DaMarques Johnson

As the lone representative of the United States in the two finals of The Ultimate Fighter: United States vs. United Kingdom, DaMarques Johnson lost to James Wilks by submission in the first round. Since the loss, Johnson has gone a respectable 3-2 in the UFC.

With losses to Matt Riddle and Amir Sadollah, Johnson has been unable to get that all-important win to give him a step up in competition, though. However, it could be argued that Johnson has found more success after The Ultimate Fighter than Wilks, who is 1-2 since his win over Johnson.

Johnson remains with the UFC, but his next opponent remains unknown after losing to Sadollah in his last fight.

Andre Winner

Andre Winner joined DaMarques Johnson as the second runner-up in Season 9 of The Ultimate Fighter with his loss to Ross Pearson in the finals. Since the loss to Pearson, Winner has gone 2-2 under the UFC banner.

Winner looked to be on his way to solidifying a spot on the UFC roster with back-to-back wins against Rolando Delgado and Rafaello Oliveira following The Ultimate Fighter, but that position may now be in jeopardy after he has lost to Nik Lentz and Dennis Siver is most recent fights.

Winner's next opponent will be Anthony Njokuani, who is also coming off a loss in his last fight against Edson Barboza. The loser of that UFC 132 fight could very well be released from the UFC's talent-rich lightweight division.

Vinny Magalhaes

Possibly the best pure Brazilian jiu-jitsu practitioner in the history of The Ultimate Fighter, Vinny Magalhaes was unable to use his grappling in the finals against Ryan Bader, as he was finished by technical knockout in the first round.

Magalhaes was then released from the UFC after dropping a decision in his next fight against Eliot Marshall. Since his release, Magalhaes has found success in various promotions but seems to have found a home with M-1 Global.

Magalhaes' 5-1 record in his last six fights has earned him the opportunity to capture the vacant M-1 Global Light Heavyweight Championship if he is able to defeat Viktor Nemkov.

Phillipe Nover

Once referred to as the next Georges St-Pierre by Dana White, Phillipe Nover never lived up to those lofty expectations. In fact, Nover never even won an official UFC fight.

After losing to Efrain Escudero in the finals of Season 8 of The Ultimate Fighter, Nover was defeated by Kyle Bradley and Rob Emerson. Those first three losses of his career in consecutive fights led to Nover's release from the organization.

Nover is now working as a nurse in New York, which leads one to wonder what his thoughts were on Josh Koscheck's insults toward Brad Tate on Season 12 of The Ultimate Fighter. Nover hopes to fight again, but has no bouts scheduled.

C.B. Dollaway

Several runner-ups from The Ultimate Fighter have had trouble establishing themselves as long-term UFC fighters, but C.B. Dollaway appears to have accomplished just that with his 5-2 UFC record since losing to Amir Sadollah in the finals of Season 7 of the series.

In his most recent fight, though, Dollaway had an opportunity to become a middleweight contender with a win over Mark Munoz but was knocked out early in the fight.

Although his spot in the organization seems secure for now, Dollaway will now have to work his way back up the rankings in order to get another shot at an opponent like Munoz.

Tommy Speer

After knocking out George Sotiropoulos in the semifinals of Season 6 of The Ultimate Fighter, Tommy Speer went on to lose to Mac Danzig by submissions in the finals. Speer was released from the UFC after losing to Anthony Johnson in his next fight.

Since being cut, Speer has won seven of nine fights and last appeared at Extreme Challenge 170, where he defeated Ryan Williams under the promotion of the mid-western organization. More than four months later, Speer does not have another fight scheduled.

Manny Gamburyan

After defeating Matt Wiman and Joe Lauzon on his way to the finals of the Season 5 lightweight tournament on The Ultimate Fighter, Manny Gamburyan suffered an unfortunate shoulder injury in the second round of his fight against Nate Diaz.

After the loss to Diaz, Gamburyan returned to the UFC, where he went 2-2 at lightweight before dropping to featherweight and joining the WEC. Gamburyan found immediate success at featherweight by winning three fights in a row before losing to Jose Aldo in a championship bout.

Due to the merging of the WEC, Gamburyan will once again be fighting for the UFC. His next opponent will be Tyson Griffin, who recently decided to join Gamburyan in cutting from lightweight to featherweight.

Patick Cote

Patrick Cote missed out on an opportunity to earn a middleweight title shot by losing to Travis Lutter in the finals of Season 4 of the The Ultimate Fighter. However, Cote won five straight fights after the loss to Lutter and earned himself a shot at Anderson Silva the hard way.

Cote suffered a devastating knee injury in the third round of his fight against Silva, however, and didn't return to the Octagon for more than a year afterward. Upon his return, Cote lost his next two fights to Alan Belcher and Tom Lawler, which prompted his release from the UFC.

Cote then signed with Canadian-based Ringside MMA, where he won his first fight outside of the UFC in more than five years against Kalib Starnes. Cote's next opponent on his quest to return to the UFC is not yet known.

Chris Lytle

Alongside Patrick Cote, Chris Lytle also missed out on a title shot with his loss in the Season 4 finals of The Ultimate Fighter. Lytle's loss came in a much more heartbreaking split decision to Matt Serra, though.

Since the loss to Serra, Lytle has become a staple in the welterweight division by going 8-5. During those 13 fights, Lytle has avenged his loss to Matt Serra and become an excellent gatekeeper for testing rising welterweights.

In his last fight, though, Lytle suffered an upset loss to Brian Ebersole at UFC 127. Ebersole was a late replacement for Carlos Condit, who was forced to withdraw from the fight with Lytle due to an injury.

Josh Haynes

Josh Haynes' chance at winning The Ultimate Fighter came in Season 3 against Michael Bisping. After a second-round technical knockout loss to Bisping, Haynes lost his next two fights against Rory Singer and fellow The Ultimate Fighter runner-up Luke Cummo.

Haynes was released from the UFC after his knockout loss to Cummo. Haynes' unimpressive 5-3 record since his release suggests that it is unlikely that we will ever see the 33-year-old fighter in the Octagon again.

In his last fight, Haynes lost to Eliot Marshall at Ring of Fire 39. Haynes does not have another fight scheduled as of yet.

Ed Herman

Joining Josh Haynes as a runner-up for Season 3 of The Ultimate Fighter was Ed Herman. In the finals of that season's middleweight tournament, Herman lost in a unanimous decision to Kendall Grove.

Since The Ultimate Fighter, Herman has become a middle-of-the-road middleweight by going 4-4 in the Octagon. In his last fight, Herman suffered a serious knee injury that ended the bout with Aaron Simpson and has disabled Herman from fighting since August 2009.

Herman has finally recovered from the injury and is expected to meet Tim Credeur at The Ultimate Fighter 13 Finale. Creduer has also been out of action since late-2009, so the loser of this fight might receive their walking papers if they don't put on a good performance.

Brad Imes

Brad Imes earned his place in the finals on Season 2 of The Ultimate Fighter, where he met Rashad Evans. Imes lost to Evans in a split decision, and the two fighters have gone in completely opposite directions ever since.

Imes was released from the UFC after losing to Dan Christison in his next fight, while Evans went on to become UFC Light Heavyweight Champion. Imes went 2-0 after his release and was invited back to the UFC but was let go once again after losing to Heath Herring.

Imes went 7-4 after his loss to Herring. After a loss to Josh Queen in September 2009, Imes retired from MMA. The 34-year-old Imes is now a full-time firefighter in Jefferson City, Missouri.

Luke Cummo

Luke Cummo was also a runner-up on Season 2 of The Ultimate Fighter after losing to Joe Stevenson in the finals. Haynes went 3-3 in the Octagon after the loss to Stevenson.

After back-to-back losses in 2008, Cummo was not heard from again for quite some time. In a recent interview with Cage Potato, Cummo finally revealed that he had retired and said he had plans to start a mixed martial arts clothing line.

Stephan Bonnar

In what still stands as the most memorable fight in the history of The Ultimate Fighter, Stephan Bonnar lost to Forrest Griffin in the finals of Season 1. Despite the loss, Bonnar has had quite a successful career with the UFC.

Bonnar's UFC record of 7-6 might not seem all that impressive, but it becomes more respectable when you consider that all but one of his losses have come against former or eventual UFC champions.

Bonnar is currently on a two-fight winning streak after defeating Igor Pokrajac in his last fight. Bonnar's next opponent has not been named.

Kenny Florian

Having fought for the UFC Lightweight Championship twice in his career, Kenny Florian is probably the most successful runner-up The Ultimate Fighter has ever seen. However, Florian has never been able to capture a UFC belt.

Since becoming the first ever runner-up with a loss to Diego Sanchez, Florian has gone an outstanding 11-3 in the UFC. In his most recent fight, though, Florian missed out on a chance to become the top lightweight contender for a third time by losing to Gray Maynard.

After the loss to Maynard, Florian has decided to make a run at the newly adopted UFC Featherweight Championship, which is held by Jose Aldo. Florian's first fight at featherweight will come against Diego Nunes at UFC 131.

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Sean Smith is a Featured Columnist for Bleacher Report MMA. For the latest insight and updates on everything MMA, you can follow Sean on Twitter @BR_Sean_Smith.