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By Loretta Hunt After three and a half years of planning, pitching, and praying, the UFC television show has finally become a reality in more ways than one. Male-centric cable network Spike TV has ordered 13 episodes of The Ultimate Fighter, a reality series that will provide a behind-the-scenes look at the development and training of the next wave of Ultimate Fighters, which will culminate with a live final episode featuring single mixed martial arts bouts in four different weight classes. The series is scheduled to premiere in January 2005. "I hate calling it a reality show," commented UFC president Dana White while on route to the show's first official casting session today in Los Angeles, "because reality shows, to me, are goofy. This is going to be much, much better than a reality show." The concept of the series, according to White, will focus around twenty finalists, to be determined in the next month from the stacks of videotapes received from hundreds of aspiring fighters in the last month. On these tapes, interested candidates were asked to provide a sample of their fights, a few minutes demonstrating their personality, and a brief bio. Those to make the cut will represent either the welterweight, middleweight, light-heavyweight, or heavyweight divisions. It remains to be determined how the twenty will be distributed between the four weight classes. The twenty potentials will be designated onto two separate teams, each lead by a professional mixed martial artist who will serve as head coach. The dual groups will train and live together for the three month duration, periodically squaring off against one another in a weekly elimination process. White confirms that two Las Vegas residences have already been procured for the two teams. In addition, Zuffa Sports Entertainment has constructed the UFC Training Center, a 10,000 square foot facility fully equipped to train today's mixed martial artist. Housing the authentic UFC Octagon in its down time, the gym also features a matted grappling area, a boxing ring, weight machines, as well as locker rooms. It is in these settings that the cameras will roll and hopefully capture future stars in the making to grace the sport. With the stage set, White and the UFC are now seeking their cast of characters, and the chosen ones may hardly be of the novice variety. "We're looking for the top guys in the country now," White explains. "These are the best of the best that never made it to the big show." Of those being considered: Denis Kang, a Canadian middleweight 12-7-2 in professional action; Josh Koscheck, a Division I wrestler and recent AKA recruit who sports a 4-0 pro record, and Nate Quarry, a Team Quest protégé currently at 5-1 professionally. These three were among a small group of fighters flown into Las Vegas the week of UFC 48, after White and his team had previewed their appetizing application tapes. While there, these leadiing candidates filmed a promotional "sales tape" for advertisers and took in the various activities leading up to fight night, while camera crews recorded their every move. As for the two head trainers, White would not reveal names at this time, but says contracts are in the process of being finalized. "We're counting on two of the top light-heavyweights in the world to be the main trainers," he would reveal, feeding further speculation as to just who will gain these coveted roles. To join these golden two, White confirmed that three others will round out the training staff, consisting of a boxing, Muay Thai, and an all-round MMA expert. This trio, as well as White, will serve as the judges for the future eliminations to follow. However, the two main trainers will not be privy to this process. Competing for a yet-to-be-determined incentive of their own, the head coaches will lead their final four athletes into the concluding showdown on live TV, garnering their own prize if their team can come out with the most victories. But, with only four fights (representing the four weight classes) up for grabs, what if the tally rings 2-2? "I don't know," White honestly answers. "When we went through the structure of this thing, there are so many things that can go wrong and so many things that can happen. We have to have answers and rules for these things. We're working on it." Although certain specifics have yet to be ironed out, White anticipates scenarios arising throughout the season. "There's gonna be back-up guys," he says. "Guys are gonna get hurt. Some guys will quit." To prepare for these unavoidable details, White predicts another ten fighters will be selected and waiting in the wings if the situation should present itself. And true to any good reality show, there will inevitably be some created obstacles to overcome. For instance, if one side dwindles too low in the elimination process in any weight division, the opposing team captain will have the option to release his weakest competitor to his rivals. "Then it's up to the head coach and his assistant coaches to fix whatever the holes are in that guy's game," White explains. This added element could also open the doors to former teammates eventually fighting one another to stay alive. If they can survive the drama, in the end it will be four against four, with the victors receiving a UFC contract and a birth onto the pay-per-view broadcasts. The New York Post has already reported each of these contracts in the six-figure region. "I don't know where that came from," White clarifies, but points out the very possible ramifications for the final eight and the potential 90 million viewers watching them. "There's no way that anybody can deny that these kids that come out of this show are gonna be bigger stars than the stars we have right now. It's unfortunate, but it's true." Serving as both the series creator and executive producer for the show, Craig Piligian brings over fifteen years of television experience to the table, from his work on the first three installments of Survivor to his more recent successes with American Chopper, American Hot Rod, and the critically-acclaimed American Casino, starring UFC owners Lorenzo and Frank Fertitta. A follower and fan of the sport for the last four years, Piligian's son is a Brazilian jiu-jitsu student as well. Along with Zuffa, Piligian has been working on a UFC television deal for the last three years, but says the project really hit its stride in the last six months when Spike became interested. "Everybody's zigging with boxing," the veteran producer observes, "but, the UFC is young, it's hip, it's now, it's what people want to see. If you're going after the 18 to 34 year old market, this is it." But, among a saturated sea of reality shows to choose from, what does Piligian predict will keep the UFC boat afloat? "Our characters," he answers. "Our storylines, and the fact that this is new. No one's ever seen this before." White is also counting on palpable audience investment in these exposed athletes. "You're gonna watch how these guys train, live, everything. You're gonna learn a lot about these guys in 13 weeks. It will get into their personal lives. People are gonna pick sides. People are gonna pick the fighters that they want to win and the guys that they want to see lose. This is some serious stuff. I want this to be educational, exciting, interesting. I want this to be real. We're looking for real fighters." With shooting to commence September 1st, the search is well underway. To find out more about The Ultimate Fighter series, check out the next issue of Full Contact Fighter. |
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