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By: Jamie Penick, MMATorch Editor-in-Chief
The UFC is getting rid of the elimination round for the upcoming season of The Ultimate Fighter, according to a report from MMAJunkie.com.
The 13th season, which began filming today in Las Vegas, was initially expected to feature 28 welterweight competitors, but that number has now been trimmed down to 14. With that, the "wild card" round will remain in play, and the first fights for the contestants will be to enter the quarterfinals.
This season will be coached by heavyweights Brock Lesnar and Junior Dos Santos, and the season begins airing on Spike TV on March 30.
Penick's Analysis: I'm not sure how I feel about the change. It's going back to what they had on the show for the first seven seasons, and it gives them a chance to highlight all of the fighters from the outset, but it takes away fighters earning a spot in the house as well as taking away those fights from the early broadcasts. Still, it may also be better for the fighters themselves, who have one less fight to deal with in the six weeks they're in the house, and there's a reduced chance of injury as well. It could make for better fights in the early rounds as well, as fighters don't need to pace themselves quite as much as if they would have needed to fight that extra time. They may not have had 28 welterweights they liked for the show when there was initially going to be welterweights and middleweights this season, so that cut it down, too. It will probably be for the best for this season though, and shouldn't hurt the fights themselves.
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Jamie Penick, editor-in-chief
(mmatorcheditor@gmail.com)
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