Over the years, The Ultimate Fighter has offered an opportunity for new and up and coming talent to fight their way on to the sports biggest stage, the UFC. Some have seized the opportunity and gone on to find fame and fortune as a result, with their careers playing out in front of millions of MMA fans around the world.
They are not the focus of this article, however. Instead, we will look to find out what happened to some of the memorable characters from past seasons who didn’t obtain the same level of success in the octagon, and found themselves cut from the roster as a result. Did they continue to pursue their dreams, did they find success elsewhere, or did they just fade into obscurity? Read on to find out…
7. JOSH BURKMAN
After making a promising start to TUF 2 by beating Melvin Guilard, Josh Burkman was then forced to leave the show due to a broken arm sustained during the fight. It was a tough pill to swallow, but after returning to full fitness Burkman was determined to prove his worth in the season finale, and stopped Sammy Morgan in just 21 seconds.
Burkman would go on to fight for a further three years in the UFC, picking wins up over the likes of Josh Neer and Drew Fickett along the way, but struggling against the division’s top contenders like Karo Parisyan and Jon Fitch. After losing three fights in a row to Mike Swick, Dustin Hazelett and Pete Sell, taking his octagon record to 5-5, Burkman was finally cut from the UFC roster in the latter months of 2008.
After that Burkman spent over a year on the sidelines healing up from serious back problems. Now 29, Burkman returned to action in November, picking up a win over another former TUF competitor Brandon Melendez at Throwdown Showdown 5. Burkman’s first fight of 2010 is not confirmed yet, but he plans to avenge a previous defeat to Jeremy Horn in March if the veteran fighter agrees.
