Channel Ten Is Set To Broadcast Two Major UFC Events Live On Free-To-Air TV

In a major coup for Australian sports broadcasting that also serves as somewhat of an experiment, Channel Ten will broadcast two major UFC events live and free on digital channel One HD between now and the end of the year.

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Ten Sport officials earlier today confirmed that the new season of The Ultimate Fighter would air on One starting tomorrow night at 9:30pm. The 28th season of the hit reality/MMA tournament series – The Ultimate Fighter: Heavy Hitters – features Australia’s own UFC Middleweight Champion Robert Whittaker as one of the team coaches, putting him up against a side guided by fellow middleweight Kelvin Gastelum, who won the 17th season of the show.

Not only will One air every episode of the season, but it’s confirmed it will culminate in the live broadcast of two major UFC events taking place on consecutive days in December.

Firstly, One will air the live finale of The Ultimate Fighter, with the winners of the men’s heavyweight and women’s flyweight tournaments crowned on December 1st (Australian time) at the Palms Casino in Las Vegas.

The following day, December 2nd, One will broadcast Fight Night 142 live from the Adelaide Entertainment Centre.

The deal, which was signed off between Ten and the UFC earlier this week, is a landmark deal for MMA in Australia, marking the first time the UFC has aired on free-to-air TV locally.

The broadcast deal also includes the rights to air five episodes of preview show Countdown, which tracks the lead-up to major fights taking place on UFC’s main pay-per-view cards.

The Ultimate Fighter‘s newest season kicks off tomorrow night exclusively on One.

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