Fuel TV Goes International With The Ultimate Fighter Brazil
Series Premieres on Sunday, June 10 at 10:00 PM ET
LOS ANGELES, CA - FUEL TV (www.fuel.tv) presents the U.S. television debut of The Ultimate Fighter Brazil®, as the 13-episode series officially premieres on FUEL TV on Sunday, June 10 (10:00 PM ET).
The first international edition of the long-running Ultimate Fighting Championship® (UFC®) reality TV series features UFC veterans Vitor "The Phenom" Belfort and Wanderlei "The Axe Murderer" Silva, coaching 16 of the best up-and-coming featherweight (145 lbs) and middleweight (185 lbs) fighters from Brazil, with two lucrative UFC contracts on the line.
“I am pumped that FUEL TV is going to air season 1 of TUF Brazil! The fights are awesome and it shows how deep the talent pool is in Brazil,” says UFC President Dana White. “As we continue to grow globally, not just the UFC but The Ultimate Fighter too, we will have so much more content that I know U.S. fans will love to get their hands on.”
“We’re excited to bring the first international edition of the very popular TUF series to U.S. television audiences,” says George Greenberg, Executive Vice President and General Manager, FUEL TV. "While the series has been available to fans domestically online, the reach television provides will help broaden the audience and strengthen the franchise. Our sneak peak last Saturday posted a strong rating and helped push FUEL TV to its third most-watched day ever.”
The premiere episode of The Ultimate Fighter Brazil showcases the elimination bouts, narrowing down the initial group of 32 hopefuls to the final 16 who will move into the TUF house. From there, they will be split between “Team Vitor” and “Team Wanderlei” and face weekly elimination fights until the finale, where a winner from both weight classes will be declared The Ultimate Fighter® and win an international UFC contract.
Coaches Belfort and Silva have a long-standing rivalry - they fought more than 13 years ago at UFC Brazil on October 16, 1998. Belfort won that night via first round TKO, and the two have since gone on to greatness, with Belfort winning the UFC Light Heavyweight title and Silva reigning as the PRIDE Middleweight champion for five years in Japan.
Throughout the season, there are special appearances by UFC Middleweight Champion Anderson Silva, UFC Heavyweight Champion Junior dos Santos, UFC Featherweight Champion Jose Aldo, and former UFC Light Heavyweight Champions Lyoto Machida and Mauricio “Shogun” Rua.
TUF series is the longest running unscripted competition series on cable, and launched the careers of UFC standouts like Kenny Florian, Diego Sanchez, Forrest Griffin, Josh Koscheck, Rashad Evans and Nate Diaz.
Last season’s featherweight winner, Diego Brandão, was the first Brazilian to win the show. Other Brazilian fighters have appeared on previous editions, including heavyweight icons Rodrigo “Minotauro” and dos Santos, who have both served as coaches on the show.
TUF Brazil premiered in Brazil on March 25 on Globo TV, and makes its U.S. television premiere on FUEL TV Sunday, June 10 (10:00 PM ET).
In 2012, FUEL TV offers more UFC programming than any network has ever offered, including more than 100 hours of live fights, weigh-ins, preliminary bouts, and pre- and postfight shows.
For a complete listing of FUEL TV shows, go to: http://www.fuel.tv/schedule/. For more information, go to www.fuel.tv/ufc and on Facebook at: www.facebook.com/fueltv Follow @FUELTV on Twitter for all things#UFConFUELTV.
To get FUEL TV on your television, go to www.fuel.tv/getfueltv, or call 877-4 FUEL-TV.
FUEL TV
FUEL TV is the only cable and satellite television network that features the exciting world of adrenaline and thrill-seeking sports including UFC, motocross, surfing and more. This new generation of sports provides a rich landscape of some of the most vibrant and action-packed television entertainment in the world. With more hours of UFC coverage than any other network, FUEL TV is the place to be for live fights, weigh-ins, prelims, pre- and postfight coverage, results and more. See why adrenaline sports fans call FUEL TV the channel they never turn off. FUEL TV, part of FOX Sports Media Group, was launched July 1, 2003 and is seen in more than 36 million U.S. homes and can be accessed by broadband, mobile devices and other digital platforms such as iTunes®. FUEL TV programming is available in more than 50 countries around the world with 24/7 channels operating in Australia and Europe. To subscribe to FUEL TV, call 877-4 FUEL-TV. For program times and other information, visit www.fuel.tv.
About FOX Sports Media Group
FOX Sports Media Group (FSMG) is the umbrella entity representing News Corporation’s wide array of multi-platform US-based sports assets under Chairman & CEO David Hill. Built with brands capable of reaching more than 100 million viewers in a single weekend, FSMG includes ownership and interests in linear television networks, digital and mobile programming, broadband platforms, multiple web sites, joint-venture businesses and several licensing partnerships. FSMG includes FOX Sports, the sports television arm of the FOX Broadcasting Company; Fox’s 20 regional sports networks, their affiliated regional web sites and FSN national programming; SPEED and SPEED2; FOX Soccer, FOX Soccer Plus and FOX Soccer 2Go ; FUEL TV; FOX Deportes and FOX College Sports. In addition, FSMG also includes FOX Sports Interactive Media, which includes FOXSports.com on MSN, whatifsports.com Scout.com and Yardbarker.com. Also included in the Group are Fox’s interests in joint-venture businesses Big Ten Network, BTN 2Go and STATS, LLC, as well as licensing agreements that establish the FOX Sports Radio Network and FOX Sports Skybox restaurants.
