The Ultimate Fighter: American Top Team vs. Blackzilians

The Ultimate Fighter: American Top Team vs. Blackzilians
GenreReality, Sports
Created byFrank Fertitta III, Lorenzo Fertitta, Dana White
StarringDana White, American Top Team, Blackzilians
Country of originUnited States
Production
Running time60 minutes
Original release
NetworkFox Sports 1
ReleaseApril 22 (2015-04-22) –
July 8, 2015 (2015-07-08)
Infobox instructions (only shown in preview)

The Ultimate Fighter: American Top Team vs. Blackzilians (also known as The Ultimate Fighter 21) was the twenty-first installment of the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC)-produced reality television series The Ultimate Fighter. This season was the first to feature a gym vs. gym theme.[1]

The series was officially announced by the UFC on February 28, 2015. For the first time ever, the UFC reality series featured a format pitting two of the sport's top gyms – American Top Team and the Blackzilians – against one another. The season was filmed in South Florida, where the two camps sit just miles apart, and the competitors were welterweights from each facility. An amount of $500,000 was earned throughout the season based on wins and losses for the winning gym.[2]

Dan Lambert heads the ATT team, and rival Glenn Robinson heads the Blackzilians club. The series prominently features the rivalry between the two camps, which developed in 2011 after a band of ATT fighters defected and started their own camp with Robinson, who is the gym's owner but not their head coach. The two gyms are located just 20 minutes apart.[1] The teams were made up of eight up-and-coming welterweights from each gym. The 16 men shared a house in the Miami/Fort Lauderdale area but instead of training amongst each other, the athletes still worked with their coaches at their respective gyms.[2] The actual fights took place at American Top Team in Coconut Creek and the Blackzilians' Jaco Hybrid Training Center in Boca Raton. The winning fighter earned home gym control for his team for the next bout. Opponents were not revealed until weigh-ins for the first time.[3]

  1. ^ a b Staff (February 28, 2015). "'TUF 21' features ATT vs. Blackzilians, $500K grand prize, 16 welterweight cast members". mmajunkie.com. Retrieved February 28, 2015.
  2. ^ a b Marc Raimondi (February 28, 2015). "TUF 21 features American Top Team vs. Blackzilians with $500K on the line". mmafighting.com. Retrieved February 28, 2015.
  3. ^ Damon Martin (February 28, 2015). "'The Ultimate Fighter: American Top Team vs. Blackzilians' debuts April 22". foxsports.com. Retrieved February 28, 2015.