5 TUF washouts who did surprisingly well in the UFC

Thiago Santos failed to make a mark during his run on the Ultimate Fighter reality show

For years now, The Ultimate Fighter reality series has acted as a prime breeding ground for future UFC talent. The show has produced numerous champions over its various seasons.

While everyone is aware of champions produced by TUF like Michael Bisping and Kamaru Usman, the reality show has also seen fighters fail to make a mark there, only to succeed once arriving in the UFC proper.

From winning TUF to sitting atop the UFC welterweight throne 👑 @USMAN84kg https://t.co/4lkXobXlTM

Some of these fighters simply improved upon arriving in the octagon, usually because of being able to train full-time. Others, meanwhile, clearly weren’t suited to the reality show environment. Either way, it’s been fascinating to see them succeed.

Here are five TUF washouts who did surprisingly well in the UFC.

#5. Bryce Mitchell – UFC featherweight contender

Bryce Mitchell has developed into a featherweight title contender, something nobody really saw coming

This past weekend saw featherweight prospect Bryce Mitchell pick up the biggest win of his young career as he outpointed veteran Edson Barboza. The win will likely move him up into the top 10 of the division and he seems close to entering title contention in the near future.

All of this is hugely surprising when you consider that ‘Thug Nasty’ barely made a dent during his stint on TUF 27 back in 2018.

Mitchell entered the season, which saw a cast of undefeated fighters doing battle, with a record of 9-0. However, after edging out current bantamweight contender Kyler Phillips in his first bout, he was submitted by eventual winner Brad Katona in his second.

Given that Katona washed out of the promotion in late 2019 following two straight losses, it was probably fair to predict that Mitchell would be unlikely to find any real success in the octagon either.

However, the Arkansas native has instead managed to surprise everyone. After pulling off the UFC’s second-ever twister submission in late 2019, he’s continued to beat stronger competition, leading up to his big win last weekend.

UFC HISTORY 📝

🇺🇸 @ThugnastyMMA records the second twister EVER in the Octagon!

➡️ Action continues on @ESPN https://t.co/vN85j7AAxC

Whether Mitchell can make it into actual title contention is still up in the air, but the fact that he’s gotten this far is definitely impressive and shows that nobody should write a fighter off just because they failed to make an impact on TUF