The Smashes cast (photo via UFC.com)

By FCF Staff

The Ultimate Fighting Championship has announced the cast that will be competing on the promotion’s latest international version of “The Ultimate Fighter” program. “The Smashes” will feature teams from the United Kingdom and Australia, and UFC vets Ross Pearson and George Sotiropoulus will be the respective coaches.

The show begins September 19th on AEST on FX in Australia, and viewers outside the country will be able to stream the program at TUF.tv.

Australia’s head coach Sotiropoulos was quoted saying in a press release from the promotion: “It’s a really diverse group of guys on the team, but the thing that’s uniting them is that everyone’s motivated and focused. There’s a lot of personal and national pride at stake but they’re going into the competition with a positive attitude and are really pulling together as a team. I’m very impressed by their maturity.”

While British coach Ross Pearson stated: “Having been where they are, I know exactly what the guys are facing. They’re taking it all in their stride and, despite being so far from home, they’re eager to prove themselves, so morale is high. They each bring unique strengths to the team so the sparks are really going to fly when they meet the Aussies in the Octagon.”

Team Australia comprises of:

Lightweights:

Grant Blackler, 23, Sunshine Coast

Patrick Iodice, 19, GoldCoast

Richie Vaculik, 29, Sydney

Ben Wall, 23, Brisbane

Welterweights:

Ben Alloway, 31, GoldCoast

Xavier Lucas, 31, Perth

Manuel Rodriguez, 27, Sydney

Robert Whitaker, 21, Sydney

Team UK includes:

Lightweights:

Colin Fletcher, 29, Sunderland

Norman Parke, 25, Bushmills, Nth Ireland Michael Pastou, 30, Essex

Mike Wilkinson, 24, Leigh

Welterweights:

Luke Newman, 22, London

Bola Omoyele, 30, London

Valentino Petrescu, 30, Essex

Brad Scott, 23, Melksham