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The Ultimate Fighter (TUF) 29 will start premiering on June 1, 2021. The latest installment of the popular reality series will have UFC featherweight champion Alexander Volkanovski and No.2 contender Brian Ortega as coaches for the new season.
The two featherweights were expected to fight each other at UFC 260 PPV, which was headlined by Francis Ngannou and Stipe Miocic. However, Volkanovski was forced to pull out of the fight after he tested positive for COVID-19.
Earlier this month, the UFC announced Volkanovski and Ortega will instead be the coaches for The Ultimate Fighter 29, and later collide on a PPV card. According to ESPN, filming of the new season is expected to commence at the end of April.
TUF 29 will feature contestants in the bantamweight and middleweight divisions. The selected participants arrived in Vegas last week to clear the medical procedure, reported MMA Junkie's Nolan King.
The Ultimate Fighter is returning after more than two years
The Ultimate Fighter last took place in August of 2018. The UFC Vegas 24 headliners, Robert Whittaker and Kelvin Gastelum, were named coaches for season 28. Juan Espino and Macy Chiasson won the heavyweight and women's featherweight brackets, respectively.
However, the fight between Whittaker and Gastelum never transpired since the Australian fighter had to undergo dual surgery.
After the speculation regarding Kamaru Usman and Jorge Masivdal possibly coaching the upcoming TUF season skyrocketed, the UFC made it clear that it will be Alexander Volkanovski and Brian Ortega who will adapt to the role at The Ultimate Fighter 29.
Volkanovski is still undefeated in the UFC. He boasts a nine-fight win streak in the promotion, having outpointed Max Holloway in his last two fights. Ortega is coming off a dominant win over Chan Sung Jung. 'T-City' got the better of 'The Korean Zombie' in a five-round war at UFC Fight Island 6.
