‘Ultimate Fighter’ Moves to Wednesday, Season 18 Headed to Fox Sports 1 in September

UFC President Dana White confirmed the rumored switch on Saturday night during the live broadcast of the “TUF 17” finale on FX. Season 18 of the UFC’s long-running reality show will feature both male and female 135-pound fighters coached by UFC bantamweight queen Ronda Rousey and new No. 1 contender Cat Zingano. The show premiers on Fox’s new cable sports network on Wednesday, Sept. 4.

Zingano earned her crack at Rousey’s belt during Saturday night’s main card broadcast, as “Alpha” put forth a dominant third round and stopped former Strikeforce ruler Miesha Tate with a flurry of strikes against the cage.

Rousey, meanwhile, successfully defended her UFC belt in the first women’s bout in promotional history on Feb. 23, when the judoka submitted onetime Strikeforce title challenger Liz Carmouche with her patented armbar in the main event of UFC 157.

Fox executives previously announced plans to revamp the network’s programming, renaming Speed Channel and Fuel TV to Fox Sports 1 and 2, respectively. Available in roughly 90 million homes, FS1 debuts on Aug. 17 with a to-be-named live UFC event at the TD Garden in Boston.