TUF 14 Finale: Power Ranking the Winners from Every Season

The finale of the 14th season of The Ultimate Fighter is going down Dec. 3 in Las Vegas. For the 20th and 21st times, Dana White will dole out the glass plaque and the vaunted "six-figure contract." The evening's headline fight features coaches Michael Bisping and Jason "Mayhem" Miller in a middleweight bout.

Now allow me to switch to the wider lens for a moment. This season will be the show's last on Spike TV, as it will reportedly move to FX as part of the UFC's blockbuster deal with Fox. Though you have to say that any show lasting 14 seasons is a major success, TUF's ratings have been uneven through the years. FX will apparently spice up the show by adding more live fights and other bells and whistles, the eyeball-drawing power of which remains to be seen.

What is certain—and what I believe will always keep TUF relevant on some level—is the show's ability to find and groom fighters who are actually viable at the UFC level.

Like reality juggernaut American Idol, TUF is only as legitimate as the winners it produces. If every TUF champ went down the tubes as quickly as he came up, it wouldn't be compelling television. The stakes wouldn't be "real." Luckily for the show, then, plenty of TUF competitors have made their mark in the Octagon, and continue to do so to this day.

With that in mind, here's a ranking of every TUF champ.

19. Travis Lutter

UFC record: 2-4 (1-2 after appearing on TUF)
Resume wins: Patrick Cote

Lutter was a winner on season four, which was dedicated to giving two journeymen one more chance at the big time—a title shot against the current beltholder.

Fellow winner Matt Serra took advantage of his opportunity by knocking out Georges St-Pierre in one of the biggest upsets in UFC history.

Lutter did not do the same. In fact, he did the opposite. But it wasn't all charming and unexpectedly successful for him like it was when George Costanza tried it. 

In his bout with middleweight champ Anderson Silva, Lutter failed to make weight, and went on to tap to strikes in the second round. One more loss, to Rich Franklin, and Lutter was out of the UFC.

18. James Wilks

UFC record: 2-2
Resume wins: DeMarques Johnson

Despite watching all of season nine, I have very little memory of this guy. Interestingly, Johnson, the man he bested in the finale, has thus far enjoyed a far more fruitful career.

Repeated injuries and old-fashioned underperformance have combined to keep Wilks off the main cards. His last bout, a loss to Claude Patrick, came in October 2010.

17. Efrain Escudero

UFC record: 3-2
Resume wins: Cole Miller

Looking back, the lightweight contestants from season eight are probably best remembered for the losses they suffered inside the Octagon.

In the finale, Escudero bested Phillipe Nover, who briefly rose to prominence after Dana White likened him to a young Georges St-Pierre. (Nover never won in three tries in the UFC.)

Escudero's most visible UFC moment came when he refused to tap to a very nasty Evan Dunham armbar in January 2010. He eventually submitted, but not until after the arm bent in that oh-so-special, it's-not-supposed-to-bend-that-way kind of way. Despite the loss, Escudero earned accolades for his toughness.

In his final UFC bout—a loss to Charles OliveiraEscudero again found himself on the wrong side of the story when he failed to make weight. He was subsequently released from the promotion, and is currently fighting in Bellator.

16. Jonathan Brookins

UFC record: 1-1
Resume wins: Michael Johnson?

Give Brookins a grade of "Incomplete" for now. 

The season 12 winner has competed only once since capturing the contract, and it was a hard-fought loss to featherweight phenom Eric Koch. Injuries have slowed him, but a healthy Brookins could one day be a load at the 145-pound level.

15. Mac Danzig

UFC record: 4-5
Resume wins: Mark Bocek, Joe Stevenson

Danzig, a natural lightweight, competed and won at welterweight on the show's sixth season. 

After promptly returning to 155 following his win, Danzig hovered on the outskirts of Contender-town for a hot second or two before losing several key contests. He lost a rematch with "Handsome" Matt Wiman in October.

14. Kendall Grove

UFC record: 7-6
Resume wins: Alan Belcher, Ed Herman

The ultra-rangy Grove came close, but never quite made the big time. The wave crested when Jorge Rivera knocked him out at UFC 80; it was Grove's second KO loss in a row.

After losing to Tim Boetsch at UFC 130, Grove was bounced from the promotion.

13. Amir Sadollah

UFC record: 5-3
Resume wins: C.B. Dollaway, Phil Baroni

Sadollah's career is tough to figure out. A gutty competitor with an engaging personality, Sadollah is a clear fan favorite. But injuries and underperformance have always undermined him right when he seems to be gaining traction.

He remains the only fighter to win TUF with no previous professional fights.

12. Tony Ferguson

UFC record: 2-0
Resume wins: Aaron Riley?

As the season 13 champ, Ferguson is the baby of the TUF winner family. As such, there is not a great deal of film on him yet, but what he has shown thus far has been impressive.

Ferguson has shown a well-rounded skillset, a dangerous standup game and what appears to be a genuine desire to get better. After Riley was unable to answer the bell following the first round of their fight at UFC 135, Joe Silva and company paired Ferguson with highly respected veteran Yves Edwards at the TUF 14 finale.

If Ferguson can defeat Edwards, we'll know we've got a prospect on our hands.

11. Court McGee

UFC record: 3-0
Resume wins: Dongi Yang

Because of injury, McGee has only fought twice since prevailing on season 11 in Submission of the Night-winning fashion.

But he has looked pretty darn good every time he has stepped in the cage. The well-rounded 26-year-old from Utah hopefully still stands at the beginning of a promising career.


(Photo credit: The Ultimate Fighter)

10. Joe Stevenson

UFC record:  8-8
Resume wins: Melvin Guillard, Nate Diaz, Gleison Tibau, Yves Edwards

You can divide Joe Daddy's career along a very simple fault line: BBJ and ABJ.

Stevenson started his career 5-1 to earn a shot at lightweight champion B.J. Penn.

After that bloodbath for the ages, Stevenson was never the same. 

He did have some nice wins later on, but they were too few and far between. He went 3-6 after the Penn loss, culminating in a four-fight losing streak that earned him his UFC walking papers. He is one of four TUF winners to be released by the promotion.

9. Ross Pearson

UFC record: 4-2
Resume wins: Dennis Siver, Spencer Fisher

Two years after winning season nine, the British fire hydrant is still only 27 years old and seemingly destined for a good career in the UFC.

He has garnered Fight of the Night honors twice, most recently in a well-contested loss to Edson Barboza at UFC 134 in Brazil. He'll try to get back in the winner's circle against Junior Assuncao at UFC 141 this December.

8. Nate Diaz

UFC record: 9-5
Resume wins: Melvin Guillard, Takanori Gomi, Marcus Davis

The TUF season 5 winner might always be overshadowed by his prodigiously talented and generally odd-duck brother Nick. But Nate Diaz--as he showed most recently against Gomi--is a force to be reckoned with in his own right.

7. Matt Serra

UFC record: 7-7 (3-3 after appearing on TUF)
Resume wins: Georges St-Pierre, Georges St-Pierre, Georges St-Pierre

Serra will live forever in UFC lore for only one fight. But when it's arguably the biggest upset in MMA history and resulted in consummate underdog Serra strapping the welterweight gold around his waist, it's a pretty understandable thing.

6. Roy Nelson

UFC record: 3-2
Resume wins: Mirko Cro Cop, Brendan Schaub

Despite what on the surface is a lackluster record, Nelson has enjoyed a pretty good run so far in the UFC.

In his only losses, the fun-loving heavyweight, a champion from the defunct International Fight League, went the distance with champion Junior dos Santos and top contender Frank Mir.

(Photo credit: UFC.TV)

5. Ryan Bader

UFC record: 6-2
Resume wins: Keith Jardine, Antonio Rogerio Nogueira

Not too long ago, the season eight light-heavyweight winner was on the cusp of contention. Consecutive losses to Jon Jones and Tito Ortiz threw cold water on that parade, but a monstrous knockout of Jason Brilz at UFC 139 put Darth back on track. It will be interesting to see what kind of fight the UFC makes next for the former Pac-10 wrestling champ.

4. Michael Bisping

UFC record: 11-3
Resume wins: Chris Leben, Denis Kang

I say, if the lightning-rod Brit and season three TUF winner can get past Miller on Dec. 3, give him Anderson Silva next. Go ahead, do it. I would pay to watch that. 

3. Diego Sanchez

UFC Record: 12-4
Resume wins:  Clay Guida, Nick Diaz, Kenny Florian, Martin Kampmann

Sanchez has shuttled back and forth between weight classes, but seems to have settled very nicely into his second term as a welterweight.

Consecutive victories--both Fight of the Night bonus winners--over contenders Paulo Thiago and Martin Kampmann have placed Sanchez firmly in the contender ranks. He recently resumed training after sustaining an injury, and could return to action in early 2012.

2. Forrest Griffin

UFC Record: 9-5
Resume wins: Quinton "Rampage" Jackson, Mauricio "Shogun" Rua, Stephan Bonnar (2x), Rich Franklin, Tito Ortiz  

Griffin has fallen on hard times lately, at least inside the cage. A loser in three of his last five, Griffin was manhandled at UFC 134 in a rematch with Rua.

No matter what happens from here on out, though, Griffin's place in UFC history is secure. Not only did he hold the light heavyweight belt for a time, he also helped bring the UFC into its current era following the epic and still-much-discussed TUF 1 finale with Stephan Bonnar back in 2005.

1. Rashad Evans

UFC record: 11-1-1
Resume wins: Quinton "Rampage" Jackson, Chuck Liddell, Forrest Griffin, Michael Bisping

The season two winner and former light heavyweight champ is on a collision course with current beltholder and super-phenom Jon Jones. In fact, many believe Evans has the best chance of anyone to dethrone his former friend and training partner.

A hand injury forced Evans out of a title shot with Jones at UFC 140. But it will happen. In the meantime, Evans remains head and shoulders above the rest of his TUF competition.