The UFC introduces “TUF Tournament” Fantasy Game

Tonight the UFC will premiere the 17^th edition of The Ultimate Fighter but they will also debut a Fantasy game that will focus on the tournament format of the reality series. Fantasy sports is big business, especially for Football and has helped reshaped the landscape of the sporting world. The introduction of the TUF Tournament fantasy game by the largest Mixed Martial Arts promotion in the world should certainly change the way fans watch The Ultimate Fighter.

The fantasy game is now open for registration at http://fantasy.ultimatefighter.com but the game does not actually begin until after tonight’s episode which features the 14 elimination bouts concludes. TUF 17 will feature middleweight fighters looking for that six-figure UFC contract along with light heavyweight champion Jon Jones and Chael Sonnen as their coaches.

This isn’t your typical bracket style fantasy game though. You can enter the game at any time but you’ll want to start from the beginning if you want to score the big points. Here is how the UFC explains the TUF Tournament:

“The first picks will be available after the debut episode airs on January 22, following the Pacific Time airing of the episode. At that time, you first have the chance to pick the fighter you believe will go through the entire season and win the tournament.

If you’re correct at the end of the season, you’ll receive a 300 point bonus, and the only way to get that bonus is to pick the fighter before the second episode airs the following week.

At the end of the first episode of the new season of the Ultimate Fighter, the first fight for the following week will be announced and you can immediately go into your selections for who you believe will win the match-up.

Now the difference between this tournament and let’s say the NCAA tournament is that you can get bonus points in the second round and beyond if you’ve picked a fighter correct from round to round. If you pick a fighter to win an opening round match-up, he then becomes a “bonus fighter” for you in subsequent rounds, and if you pick him correctly again and he wins, you will receive a bonus. The bonus will only count if you pick that fighter correctly in round one, so get those picks in early because after that just getting the fight picks correct in round two won’t earn any additional bonus points.

From that point on, each round breaks down like this for scoring:
Correct picks in Round 1: 100 points
Correct picks in Quarterfinal round: 100 points or 200 points with a bonus
Correct picks in Semifinal round: 200 points or 400 points with bonus
Correct picks in the Final Round: 400 points or 800 points with bonus

For the finale fight that will air live on FX, you can then pick the fight, but you will also be asked an additional three questions at that time to gain bonus points to help separate the field from potential ties at the end. There will be a skill-based tiebreaker question as well that you will select and can be used to help choose a final winner based on who answers the closest to the actual answer.

For instance, the question may be to predict the time on the finish for the final fight and if you pick 13 minutes and the fight ends at 13:01, you’ll probably have a great chance at winning the tiebreaker.”

Following this season of The Ultimate Fighter will be easy and funnier as well as fans pick who they think will win each week throughout the 13 week schedule. Make sure to sign up and check back later tonight to begin playing the TUF Tournament fantasy game for The Ultimate Fighter 17.

Tags: Chael Sonnen, Jon Jones, MMA, The Ultimate Fighter, TUF 17, TUF Tournament, UFC

Category: MMA, UFC, Ultimate Fighter