TUF 17 Coaches Jon Jones and Chael Sonnen

The UFC today revealed the 28 fighters who will be competing in the 17th season of ‘The Ultimate Fighter’ (TUF), which debuts January 22, 2013 on FX at 8 p.m. ET.

Related to the announcement, Dana White has been hyping up one of the fighters in the house big time:

“The whole house is terrified of this guy, everybody. I picked this fight, and this guy is lined up with the guy I’m telling you about, and the guy has a nervous breakdown in the house over the weekend. This guy scared the living shit out of everyone. It’s awesome!”

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Ildemar Alcantara

Roger Hollett (13-4) has suffered a torn bicep injury while training and has withdrawn from his fight against Wagner Prado (8-1) at ‘UFC on FX 7: Belfort vs Bisping’, which takes place January 19, 2013 in Sao Paolo, Brazil. Replacing him will be UFC newcomer Ildemar Alcantara (17-5).

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Buddy Roberts

A bad case of the flu and an injury sustained in training have forced Buddy Roberts (12-3) to withdraw from his fight against Michael Kuiper (12-1) at ‘UFC on FOX 6: Johnson vs Dodson’, which takes place January 26, 2013 in Chicago, Illinois.

No word on when he will return but the UFC is seeking a replacement for him against Kuiper. Anderson?

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Sean Pierson vs. Rick Story

Welterweights Sean Pierson (13-6) and Rick Story (14-6) have been matched up and added to the ‘UFC 158: St-Pierre vs Diaz’ card which takes place March 16, 2013 in Montreal, Quebec, Canada.

Sean “The Punisher” Pierson fights for the fourth time now on his home country turf. He’s won his last two fights but had a close call at the end of his last fight against Lance Benoist. He was clearly winning that fight but was rocked late in the third by Benoist. Pierson managed to survive though and at 36 years of age, needs to keep surviving if he’s going to get the top contender bouts once again.

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Alistair Overeem

“The Reem” is back! The Nevada State Athletic Commission (NSAC) has cleared Alistair Overeem (36-11-0-1) to fight Antonio “Bigfoot” Silva at ‘UFC 156: Aldo vs Edgar’, which takes place February 2, 2013 in Las Vegas.

Alistair Overeem information: NEXT FIGHT and all Alistair Overeem-related News

It’s been quite the ordeal I’m sure for Alistair Overeem over the past year. If you recall, Overeem received a nine-month suspension from the NSAC after testing positive for elevated levels of testosterone prior to his UFC 146 bout with then-champ Junior dos Santos. Overeem has been on the defensive throughout his career because of how chiseled his frame is, but this time he was busted on a much bigger stage and with a championship fight on the line. The only thing he could do is deal with the press, wait it out, and test clean, which it looks like he has finally done.

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Dustin Kimura vs. Chico Camus

Bantamweights Dustin Kimura (9-0) and Chico Camus (12-3) have been matched up and added to the ‘UFC 156: Aldo vs Edgar’ card which takes place February 2, 2013 in Las Vegas.

Undefeated Hawaiian Dustin Kimura will be fighting in the UFC for the first time against Camus. Kimura is known as a submission specialist but actually won his last two fights by knockout. His trend towards a more well-rounded fighter will certainly be needed as he enters a division full of incredibly tough fighters that can do it all. His buddy Max Holloway tweeted some words of encouragement over the matchup (@BlessedMMA):

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Yushin Okami vs. Hector Lombard

Top middleweight contenders Yushin Okami (28-7) and Hector Lombard (32-3-1-1) have been matched up and added to the ‘UFC on FUEL TV 8: Silva vs Stann’ card which takes place March 2, 2013 in Saitama, Japan. An epic matchup for sure which was announced over Twitter today by the UFC (@ufc):

“@YushinOkamiMMA vs. @HectorLombard on tap for Japan”

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Yves Edwards vs. Isaac Vallie-Flagg

Lightweight veterans Yves Edwards (42-18-1) and Isaac Vallie-Flagg (13-3-1) have been matched up and added to the ‘UFC 156: Aldo vs Edgar’ card which takes place February 2, 2013 in Las Vegas. The UFC tweeted the announcement earlier (@ufc):

“Yves Edwards @ThugJitsuMaster to welcome @ikevallieflagg to the UFC February in Vegas”

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Yves Jabouin vs. Johnny Eduardo

Bantamweight veterans Yves Jabouin (18-8) and Johnny Eduardo (26-9) have been matched up and added to the ‘UFC 158: St-Pierre vs Diaz’ card which takes place March 16, 2013 in Montreal, Quebec, Canada.

Yves Jabouin has been involved with some very exciting finishes over the past few years. Unfortunately for him though, he’s been on the wrong side of the highlight. He won “Fight of the Night” with Mark Hominick at WEC 49 in 2010, but was TKO’d in the second round of that fight. At UFC 129, he lost to Pablo Garza by a stunning flying triangle choke. Finally, his last time out he was on the other end of a “Knockout of the Night” as Brad Pickett turned his lights out in the first at UFC in Nottingham. Prior to the Pickett fight, Jabouin was on a 3-fight winning streak and looking very tough so perhaps the Tristar Gym product can get back on track against Eduardo.

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Pedro Nobre

George Roop (12-9-1) has withdrawn from his fight against Yuri Alcantara (27-4) at ‘UFC on FX 7: Belfort vs Bisping’ in Sao Paolo, Brazil. Replacing him will be fellow bantamweight Pedro Nobre (14-1-2) who will be making his UFC debut.

Yuri Alcantara was on a 13-fight winning streak before losing by unanimous decision to Hacran Dias his last time out at UFC 147. He’s now 2-1 with the UFC and was 1-0 while with the WEC where he recorded a first round KO of top contender Ricardo Lamas at WEC 53. At 32 and coming off a loss, a win over a UFC vet like George Roop would have certainly kept his title hopes alive. Facing a newcomer like Nobre though has less of an upside and would be a disaster if he were to lose.

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