On May 3rd 2022, the latest season of The Ultimate Fighter will be aired on ESPN+ and will feature 3 fighters from the Elevation Fight Team roster: Claire Guthrie, Zac Pauga, and Mohammed Usman. They are currently locked inside of the TUF house with no contact from the outside world, under the coaching of UFC current champ Julianna Pena and UFC superstar, the former champ, Amanda Nunes. Each coach will have a team of fighters who will compete against each other to determine a winner for each weight class (men’s heavyweight and women’s flyweight) who will be awarded a “six-figure contract” with the UFC. While we do have two men in the same weight-class who could find themselves fighting against each other during the show, the UFC has offered contracts to TUF losers and runners up when they show potential. This means that it is not only possible but likely, given the incredible records of each of our fighters, that we may be adding 3 more fighters to the UFC roster from the Elevation Fight Team.
Claire “Grizzly” Guthrie
Claire Guthrie is a 26-year-old fighter born in St. Joseph, Michigan who said her fighting career started young as a means of standing up to bullies in school. She had participated in almost every sport available to her as a child but when she found MMA as a teen she never looked back. She worked as a corporate accountant in Michigan but soon decided to pursue her professional fight career in Denver with the Elevation Fight Team. She does maintain a day job as an accountant here in Denver, but this has clearly been no obstacle for her, as her 3-1 record demonstrates. Her only loss comes from a very close split decision loss back in 2020 but is coming off two unanimous decision wins in 2021 and has nothing but momentum as she makes her way into the TUF competition.
Zac “The Ripper” Pauga
Unlike Claire, Zac Pauga waited until a little later in life to find his way to the mats. He had a successful college football career at Colorado State University and was eventually signed as a free agent for the Houston Texans. He soon left the Texans to pursue a career in professional rugby which turned out not to be financially sustainable for him. Having lived his whole life as an athlete and in search of a more stable form of income for his family, he became a police officer in Wheat Ridge, CO, and began training. His size and sheer athletic ability quickly drew the eyes of Elevation Fight Team members Curtis Blaydes and Alistair Overeem, who recruited Pauga. With elite training from Elevation Fight Team, he has naturally progressed into one of the best light-heavy weights in the country. Zac is currently undefeated in his professional MMA career, including four wins in 2021 alone.
Mohammed Usman
As his last name and MMA dominance might suggest, Mohammed Usman is the younger brother of the undisputed welterweight champion and former TUF winner, Kamaru Usman. Similar to Zac Pauga, Mohammed began his athletic career as a Division 1 football player and shortly started training with Muay Thai. With his natural fighting ability and some encouragement from his older brother, he began his professional MMA career in 2017. His relation to Kamaru may make him a target in the TUF house but he doesn’t seem to be worried, saying “you can’t prank me in the cage” during his pre-show interview. Mohammed is one of the most seasoned male fighters with a record of 7-2 and is coming off of a very unlucky loss back in May of 2021, making TUF a perfect opportunity to win a UFC contract.
