The Ultimate Fighter 33 Cormier vs. Sonnen- Roster Breakdown and Predictions

Here is everything you need to know about The Ultimate Fighter 33. The Ultimate Fighter debuted in 2005 and is credited with bringing the UFC to the mainstream and saving it from financial troubles. The historic finale between Forrest Griffen and Stephan Bonner is etched in many fans’ memories. The Ultimate Fighter is now one of the longest-running reality TV shows on live television. 32 seasons later and 20 years later, TUF 33 is right around the corner and the coaching staffs and rosters have been made public.

It will air on the platform ESPN + starting Tuesday, May 27th, 2025.

Coaches for this season are Daniel Cormier and Chael Sonnen. They have already spoken big words at the pre-show press conference, proposing that their assistant coaches, Michael Chisea and Colby Covington fight after the season.

The Ultimate Fighter 33

They and their coaching staff want to help develop the 16 fighters chosen for this season. Each team is loaded with the who’s who of coaching in the corners. Between highly established grapplers, UFC contenders, and the Coaches’ personal mentors and head coaches, the contestants have a wealth of knowledge to learn from. Before we dive into all the fun stuff, here is the list of the coaches for each team on The Ultimate Fighter 33.

Team Cormier

Daniel Cormier, Bob Cook, John Wood, Rosendo Sanchez, Tiago Beowulf, Jacob “Julius Reed” Kasper*, Michael Chisea

Team Sonnen

Chael Sonnen, Clayton Hires, Stephen Smith, Vinny Magalhaes, Colby Covington

*WWE Superstar and highly accredited wrestler

These coaching staffs are certainly loaded and both head coaches wrestling first style will be intriguing as most of this year’s cast are notoriously finishers. Many of The Ultimate Fighter 33 fighters come from different backgrounds but they are the highest-level prospects at these two divisions on the regional scene. With 10 countries represented among the 16 contestants, this year’s house is extremely intriguing.

In The Ultimate Fighter 33 season, there are no contestants with more than 4 losses. No contestants are over the age of 31 either, proving this is another showcase of the next generation of talent. That is important as well, as the two weight classes being featured are Flyweight and Welterweight. These two weight classes could use an infusion of fresh talent and TUF is the ultimate pipeline.

Over the last few seasons, we have seen numerous contenders, ranked opposition and high-level talent emerge. Even the fighters who couldn’t stick with the UFC have gone on to have great success in other promotions. This year’s crop of talent is set to do much of the same. With many of the competitors already holding title belts in other promotions, the competition may be one of the toughest yet.

Cast of The Ultimate Fighter 33

Here are the competitors as well as a few fun facts:

Flyweight

Alibi Idris (10-0):

Country: Kazakhstan | Age: 30

• He is a three-time pankration champion in Kazakhstan
• Only having trained MMA for 5 years, he has shown a well-rounded game
• Naiza FC Flyweight Champion and has defended the belt multiple times

Arshiyan Memon (7-0):

Country: India | Age: 29

• He is looking to become the 4th Indian fighter to make it to the UFC
• All 7 wins come via finish (5 KOs, 2 Subs)
• Debuting in 2016, his last 6 fights have come since 2020

Eduardo “Chapolin” Henrique (13-2):

Country: Brazil | Age: 29

• Currently the LFA flyweight Champion
• Coming in on a 3 fight winning streak against high-level competition.
• His only losses come from former DWCS contestant Davi Bittencourt and UFC fighter Kleydson Rodrigues

Furkatbek Yokubov (15-4):

Country: Uzbekistan | Age: 30

• A former competitor in Karate Combat
• Has fought all across the world, starting in China and fighting MMA in promotions like UAE Warriors, LFA, and Hexagone
• Enters on a 4-fight winning streak with 4 finishes (3 KOs, 1 Sub), his last 14 combat matches have ended via finish

Imanol Rodriguez (5-0):

Country: Mexico | Age: 25

• The least experienced member of the cast, holding a black belt in Judo
• A main training partner of the likes of Diego Lopes and Brandon Moreno
• All 5 wins by finish (4 KOs, 1 Sub)

Joesph Morales (12-2):

Country: USA | Age: 30

• The only cast member who has previous experience in the UFC going 1-2
• He is the lead instructor of Team Alpha Male’s Elk Grove Location
• Since leaving the UFC he has two wins in Cage Warriors and won Uriah Faber’s A1 Combat inaugural Flyweight Championship

Roybert Echeverria (10-2)

Country: Venezuela | Age: 29

• “The Unbroken” trains out of the Goat Shed stateside but is a native of Venezuela
• He enters TUF 3-2 in his last 5 dating back to his DWCS opportunity vs. Jafel Filho
• Current Anthony Petits FC Flyweight Champion

Tumelo Manyamala (6-1):

Country: South Africa | Age: 26

• “Bones of Steel” is an intriguing action fighter, with 6 finishes (5 KOs, 1 Sub)
• His only loss is a split decision to Road to the UFC alum Mark Climaco
• All finishes have come outside of round 1

Welterweight

Alex Sanchez (15-3):

Country: Mexico | Age: 31

• The “Hulk” was a member of the first UFC PI Mexico “graduation class”
• He enters TUF on a 7 fight-winning streak with 3 KO finishes
• Sanchez once before won a 1-night tournament at Combate Global in 2021 fighting 8 rounds in 1 night

Andreeas Binder (10-2)

Country: Ireland/Romania | Age: 28

• His record features a win over Ian Machado Garry as an amateur MMA fighter in 2018
• He enters TUF on a 5-fight winning streak, including the LFL Flyweight Championship
• In 12 fights, only 2 have gone the distance where he is 2-0

Daniil Donchenko (11-2)

Country: Ukraine | Age: 23

• A natural Lightweight, he is large for the weight class and may eventually move to 170 full time
• Both of his losses come by decision where he is 2-2 in fights that go the distance
• He is currently the NAIZA Lightweight champion where he has defended the title once

Diego Bianchini (9-1)

Country: Brazil | Age: 28

• Bianchini is a member of the hottest gym in MMA, the Fighting Nerds
• The Brazilian started his career 8-0 before taking a split decision loss
• He is a primary grappler while training with very high level striking

Jeff Creighton (11-2-1)

Country: USA | Age: 29

• Entering TUF on an 8-fight unbeaten streak, “Jazzy” has overcome a few tough losses early in his career
• A wrestler, Creighton has won 5 fights in a row by decision
• One of the most experienced fighters in the house with a 10-fight amateur career

Matt Dixon (11-1)

Country: USA | Age: 29

• A notable boxer, he may be recognized from his DWCS season 4 loss in round 3 versus Orion Cosce
• After 3 years off since that fight, Dixon got 2 first round KOs in his return to MMA
• He was supposed to return to DWCS this season versus Daniel Frunza, an injury pushed him to TUF

Richard Martins (9-1)

Country: Brazil | Age: 26

• A Muay Thai practitioner, Martins enters as he is on an 8-fight winning streak with 7 finishes
• His last 4 fights have come with the LFA facing some of the highest levels of competition available
• His only loss comes from PFL/Bellator fighter Manoel Souse who also beat him as an amateur

Rodrigo Sezinando (8-1)

Country: Canada/Brazil | Age: 27

• A native of Brazil, now residing in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, is on a 4-fight winning streak(3 KOs, 1 Sub)
• In Brazil, Sezinando went 4-1 between Shooto Brasil and Favela Combat, since moving to Canada his opponents hold a combined record of 28-5-1
• He holds titles at both 165 and 175 pounds

Predictions

With loaded rosters like these on The Ultimate Fighter 33, the excitement is easy to fantasize about. Many of these fighters enter either undefeated or with a clean-looking record and this could cause chaos in the house. The diversity of the class is also something to be lauded. The UFC matchmakers are looking across the globe to gather talent. Although drama in the house has been limited in recent seasons, the amount of high-end talent here may lead to some disagreements in the house.

Furthermore, in most seasons of TUF, we see not just the winners enter the UFC due to their performance. This class may be no different, having multiple future UFC competitors. With that said, let’s make some predictions. We will identify one sleeper pick and well as predicting the finale for each weight class. The winner of The Ultimate Fighter 33 finale is guaranteed a six-figure UFC contract.

Flyweight Predictions:

Finale: Eduardo Chapolin vs. Alibi Idris

Sleeper Pick: Imanol Rodriguez

Welterweight Predictions:

Finale: Daniil Donchenko vs. Rodrigo Sezinando

Sleeper Pick: Matt Dixon