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‘The Ultimate Fighter 29’ rosters announced, season premiere date revealed

“The Ultimate Fighter” is officially back.

After years of UFC president Dana White repeatedly stating the reality series would eventually relaunch, the wheels are fully in motion. The 16 selected bantamweights and middleweights have made their way to Las Vegas for pre-season medicals.

With taping set to begin soon, the promotion announced the season’s full roster during the UFC on ESPN 22 broadcast Saturday. The first episode is set to stream June 1 on ESPN+.

TUF 29 will be coached by UFC featherweight champion Alexander Volkanovski (22-1 MMA, 9-0 UFC) and his next title challenger, Brian Ortega (15-1 MMA, 7-1 UFC). The two will square off following the conclusion of the season, in a rebooking of their canceled UFC 260 matchup.

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Scroll below for the full TUF 29 bantamweight and middleweight rosters:

Bantamweights

Daniel Arugeta

Image via LFA

Age: 27 Record: 5-0 Birthplace: Chicago, Ill. Fighting out of: Albuquerque, N.M. Team: Jackson Wink MMA A protege of Cub Swanson, [autotag]Daniel Argueta[/autotag] trains at Jackson Wink MMA among some of the world's top fighters. In five pro fights, Argueta has four finishes. He picked up his most high-profile victory to date in his most recent outing, when he defeated Jackson Filho at LFA 90 in September.

Brady Hiestand

Age: 21 Record: 5-1 Birthplace: Spokane, Wash. Fighting out of: Spokane, Wash. Team: Sik-Jitsu With four finishes to his name, [autotag]Brady Hiestand[/autotag] trains under Rick Little, alongside UFC notables Michael Chiesa, Julianna Pena, and others. A brown belt in Brazilian jiu-jitsu, Hiestand works as a firefighter and EMT when he's not fighting. At 21 years old, Hiestand is the youngest competitor on the "TUF 29" roster.

Dustin Lampros

Age: 26 Record: 5-0 Birthplace: Freeburg, Ill. Fighting out of: Boca Raton, Fla. Team: Sanford MMA A Shamrock FC standout, [autotag]Dustin Lampros[/autotag] has run through all five of his opponents. Only one of his fights has made it to the second round.

Vince Murdock

Photo via Vince Murdock

Age: 30 Record: 12-4 Birthplace: Oakland County, Mich. Fighting out of: Sacramento, Calif. Team: Team Alpha Male A beloved member of Team Alpha Male, [autotag]Vince Murdock[/autotag] made it to the UFC in 2019, only to be faced with life-threatening adversity. Diagnosed with moyamoya, Murdock underwent a rare brain procedure to fix potential blood clotting issues. Recovered from a successful surgery, Murdock competed on "Dana White's Contender Series" in 2020 and was defeated by Luis Saldana.

Mitch Raposo

Image via Cage Titans (MRG Photography)

Age: 22 Record: 5-0 Birthplace: Fall River, Mass. Fighting out of: Fall River, Mass. Team: Regiment Training Center [autotag]Mitch Raposo[/autotag] enters "TUF 29" with the label of New England MMA's next big thing. Struggling to find willing opponents, Raposo has made the best of each fight opportunity. He has four finishes in five fights for the Cage Titans and CES MMA promotions.

Joshua Rettinghouse

Age: 31 Record: 16-5 Birthplace: Spokane, Wash. Fighting out of: Spokane, Wash. Team: Warrior Camp MMA [autotag]Joshua Rettinghouse[/autotag] is the most seasoned veteran on the "TUF 29" roster. En route to the UFC's reality series, Rettinghouse competed for numerous promotions including World Series of Fighting, King of the Cage and M-1 Global. He has competed against current UFC fighters Marlon Moraes and Sergey Morozov.

Liudvik Sholinian

Age: 30 Record: 9-1-1 Birthplace: Alaverdi, Armenia Fighting out of: Kiev, Ukraine Teams: Aurum, KDMMA Fighting out of Ukraine, [autotag]Liudvik Sholinian[/autotag] is one of two non-American-born contestants on TUF 29. En route to the UFC reality series, Sholinian made stops in LFA, M-1 Global and Bellator. Sholinian holds a win over former UFC fighter Vince Cachero, but hasn't competed since November 2019.

Ricky Turcios

Age: 27 Record: 10-2 Birthplace: Houston, Texas Fighting out of: Houston, Texas Teams: Gracie Barra The Woodlands, Team Alpha Male A competitor on the inaugural season of "Dana White's Contender Series," [autotag]Ricky Turcios[/autotag] has gone 2-1 since his loss to Boston Salmon. In 10 victories, Turcios, a Fury FC standout, has accumulated four finishes. He holds a win over UFC featherweight Steve Garcia.

Bryan Battle

Age: 26 Record: 5-1 Birthplace: Springfield, Md. Fighting out of: Charlotte, N.C. Teams: Hayastan MMA [autotag]Bryan Battle[/autotag] has only been a professional since July 2019, yet he finds himself on the doorstep of a UFC contract. He enters the reality series on a four-fight winning streak – all finishes in the stretch. A graduate of Central Piedmont Community College, Battle works as a carpenter when he's not fighting.

Tresean Gore

Age: 26 Record: 3-0 Birthplace: Myrtle Beach, S.C. Fighting out of: Coconut Creek, Fla. Teams: American Top Team With only three professional fights, [autotag]Tresean Gore[/autotag] enters the reality series as the least experienced of the contestants. His entry marks a drop in weight, as Gore most recently competed at light heavyweight. Two of his three fights he's ended inside the distance.

Miles Hunsinger

Miles Hunsinger

Age: 30 Record: 7-0 Birthplace: Nampa, Idaho Fighting out of: Las Vegas, Nev. Teams: Xtreme Couture Though he's one of the elder fighters in the house, [autotag]Miles Hunsinger[/autotag] enters the competition with one of the most impressive records. A standout Idaho high school wrestler, Hunsinger competed for PFL, LFA, RFA and more en route to the house. Hunsinger has only fought twice since 2019.

Kemran Lachinov

Age: 30 Record: 10-3 Birthplace: Uzbekistan Fighting out of: West Springfield, Mass. Teams: Team Link Proudly representing Turkey on the international stage, [autotag]Kemran Lachinov[/autotag] made his presence known competing for Bellator in recent years. Though he never was a rostered fighter, he went 5-1 for the promotion by frequenting the preliminary cards when Bellator would stop in Uncasville, Conn. His back-and-forth war with Shimal Nikaev was one of Bellator's best fights of 2020. Lachinov holds a win over Kyle Crutchmer from a fight in which he went viral for letting the AKA wrestler punch him in the face.

Ryder Newman

Age: 26 Record: 3-1 Birthplace: Las Vegas, Nev. Fighting out of: Las Vegas, Nev. Teams: Xtreme Couture Since he lost his professional debut in March 2019, [autotag]Ryder Newman[/autotag] has surged back. Riding a three-fight winning streak, Newman is the second fighter to represent Xtreme Couture on "TUF 29." He's coming off back-to-back unanimous decision wins over previously undefeated fighters.

Andre Petroski

Image via Cage Fury Fighting Championship (CFFC)

Age: 29 Record: 5-1 Birthplace: Chester, Penn. Fighting out of: Glendora, N.J. Teams: Renzo Gracie Philly [autotag]Andre Petroski[/autotag] will look to bounce back from his first professional loss, suffered to Aaron Jeffery at LFA 93 in October. Prior to that defeat, Petroski, a former University of North Carolina wrestler, had won all five of his MMA fights, including victories over Andre Hall and Shedrick Goodridge.

Aaron Phillips

Age: 30 Record: 5-2 Birthplace: Kotzebue, Alaska Fighting out of: N/A Teams: N/A Not to be confused with the currently rostered UFC fighter who fighter who bears the same name, [autotag]Aaron Phillips[/autotag] enters "TUF 29" off a loss to Collin Huckbody in December. Prior to that, however, Phillips had racked up five finishes in six fights for Alaska FC.

Gilbert Urbina

Age: 24 Record: 6-1 Birthplace: Archbold, Ohio Fighting out of: Weslaco, Texas Teams: BMF Ranch [autotag]Gilbert Urbina[/autotag] will follow in the footsteps of his brothers Hector and Elias as the third member of their family to partake in a season of "TUF." A member of Donald Cerrone's BMFC ranch, Urbina has only lost once in his career: a unanimous decision to current UFC welterweight standout Sean Brady.

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