The Ultimate Fighter: Brazil 3 is an installment of the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC)-produced reality television series The Ultimate Fighter. It is the sixth series to be produced outside the United States and the third to film in Brazil.
On October 22, 2013, Wanderlei Silva and Chael Sonnen were announced as coaches for the season. The UFC held open tryouts for the show on November 11, 2013. The casting call was for Middleweight, Light Heavyweight, Heavyweight fighters who are at least 21 years old and have a minimum of two wins in three professional fights. It was announced on January 7, 2014 that the show would feature middleweight and heavyweight fighters. The cast was revealed on February 26, 2014"Conheça os 32 participantes da terceira temporada do TUF Brasil". globoesporte.com. February 2014
That was the second time that Silva and Sonnen coached an Ultimate Fighter season. Silva previously coached The Ultimate Fighter: Brazil and Sonnen coached The Ultimate Fighter: Team Jones vs. Team Sonnen. It was also the first time that a non-Brazilian fighter coached a team in The Ultimate Fighter: Brazil series. A new twist presented two Brazilian former athletes who had huge experience in their sports. They were to provide counseling for their teams about their previous experiences in their own sports."TUF Brasil 3 terá Hortência e Isabel e concurso que elegerá a sua musa". globoesporte.com. 1996 Olympic Games silver medalist and 1994 FIBA Women's World Championship champion in basketball, Hortência Marcari was to be a part of Team Sonnen. Former 1980 and 1984 Olympic Games volleyball competitor and former beach volleyball world champion Isabel Salgado was to be a part of Team Wanderlei.
Cast
Coaches
Team Wanderlei Wanderlei Silva, head coach André Amado, Muay Thai coach Fábio Gurgel, jiu jitsu coach Daniel Acácio, wrestling coach Isabel Salgado, sports advisor
Team Sonnen Chael Sonnen, head coach Clayton Hires, boxing coach Vinny Magalhães, jiu jitsu Coach Scott McQuary Jamie Huey Hortência Marcari, sports advisor
Fighters Team Wanderlei Middleweights: Paulo Costa, Wagner Silva, Ricardo Abreu, and Ismael de Jesus. Heavyweights: Jollyson Francisco, Antônio Carlos Júnior, Richardson Moreira, and Antônio Branjão. Team Sonnen Middleweights: Joilton Santos, Guilherme Vasconcelos, Warlley Alves, and Márcio Alexandre Júnior. Heavyweights: Job Kleber Melo, Edgard Castaldelli Filho, Marcos Rogério de Lima, and Vitor Miranda. Fighters eliminated before entry round Middleweights: José Roberto, Douglas Moura, Cristiano Pontes, Willian Steindorf, Markus Perez Echeimberg, Pedro Paulino, Wendell Oliveira, Giuliano Arante. Heavyweights: Gonçalo Salgado, Everton Rocha, Felipe Dantas, Guilherme Viana, Alexandre Machado, Thiago Santos, Fernando Camoles, Bruno Silva.
Guests Gabi Garcia Maurício "Shogun" Rua Yushin Okami Luiz Carlos Dórea André Pederneiras Bruce Buffer Eric Albarracin
Episodes Episode 1: (March 9, 2014) Wanderlei Silva and Chael Sonnen reveal their thoughts about their presence on this season and their expectations for their rivalry. Isabel Salgado and Hortência Marcari also share their motivation as guest coaches. Later, all four coaches greet the contestants before the preliminary fights begin. The fights to get into the house were divided into two parts, half in this episode and half in the second episode. The 16 preliminary fights begin: Job Kleber Melo defeated Gonçalo Salgado via knockout (head kick) in the first round. Paulo Costa defeated José Roberto via submission (guillotine choke) in the second round. Jollyson Francisco defeated Everton Rocha via submission (arm-triangle choke) in the first round. Joilton Santos defeated Douglas Moura via split decision after three rounds. Edgard Castaldelli Filho defeated Felipe Dantas via TKO (punches) in the second round. Wagner Silva defeated Cristiano Pontes via submission (rear-naked choke) in the first round. Ricardo Abreu defeated Willian Steindorf via TKO (punches) in the second round. Antônio Carlos Júnior defeated Guilherme Viana via TKO (punches) in the first round.
Episode 2: (March 16, 2014) The 16 preliminary fights continue: Richardson Moreira defeated Alexandre Machado via knockout (punches) in the first round. Guilherme Vasconcelos defeated Markus Perez Echeimberg via submission (rear-naked choke) in the first round. Marcos Rogério de Lima defeated Thiago Santos via submission (guillotine choke) in the first round. Ismael de Jesus defeated Pedro Paulino via TKO (finger injury) in the first round. Antônio Branjão defeated Fernando Camoles via TKO (punches) in the second round. Warlley Alves defeated Wendell Oliveira via split decision after three rounds. Márcio Alexandre Júnior defeated Giuliano Arante via submission (guillotine choke) in the first round. Vitor Miranda defeated Bruno Silva via knockout (head kick) in the second round. Silva and Sonnen welcome the winning fighters to the season. But before they pick the teams, Silva demands that Sonnen apologize to the cameras for something he said about Brazil during a press conference in Rio de Janeiro for his UFC 148 title fight against Anderson Silva. Sonnen refuses to make an apology and Silva announces that he will not come back until he sees him apologize. After some private discussion between the two, Silva decides to leave. Later, a day before the Ultimate Fighter Brazil 3 Finale, Sonnen revealed in a scrum session that after Silva had left the premises he called Vitor Belfort asserting that Silva fears Belfort more than Sonnen himself. Before the call, Sonnen instructed the crew of the show to tell Silva that Belfort was replacing him if he leaves. However, at that time Belfort was concentrating on a middleweight title match against Chris Weidman and could not replace Silva.
Episode 3: (March 23, 2014) Silva returns to the training center despite no apology from Sonnen. He then flips a coin (yellow for Wanderlei, green for Sonnen) to decide who the first pick (either first fight or first fighter). Silva wins the toss and opts to choose the first fight. Sonnen chooses the first middleweight and Silva the first heavyweight. Middleweights selection: Coach1st Pick2nd Pick3rd Pick4th PickSonnenMárcio Alexandre JúniorJoilton SantosWarlley AlvesGuilherme VasconcelosWanderleiRicardo AbreuPaulo CostaWagner SilvaIsmael de Jesus
Heavyweights selection: Coach1st Pick2nd Pick3rd Pick4th PickWanderleiAntônio Carlos JúniorJollyson FranciscoRichardson MoreiraAntônio BranjãoSonnenMarcos Rogério de LimaVitor MirandaEdgard Castaldelli FilhoJob Kleber Melo
Sonnen tells Silva to call the program "Wanderlei's show" instead of Ultimate Fighter and Silva gets angry to the point of pushing and threatening him. A contest to decide a new Brazilian ring girl is announced by Marcari and Salgado, with the fighters as the judges. Silva announces the first fight and matches Wagner Silva against Santos. Wagner Silva defeated Joilton Santos via split decision in three rounds.
Episode 4: (March 30, 2014) Silva announces the first heavyweight fight and puts Carlos Júnior against Filho. Both fighters share some of their personal life experiences, including Filho's newborn son and Carlos Júnior's experience with his father leaving him. Salgado and Marcari create experiences with their respective teams that remind their previous sports and both get approval from their main coaches. Some of Team Sonnen's fighters discuss their opinions of their head coach. They mention that their impression of Sonnen has changed, but they will cheer for Silva when the two coaches fight, due to being long time fans of their countryman. Antônio Carlos Júnior defeated Edgard Castaldelli Filho via KO (punch) in the first round. One fighter from each team is chosen to take part in a special challenge. They must to push a large ball across a muddy field into their opponent's goal to determine the next fight pick and Jollyson Francisco wins for his team.
Episode 5: (April 6, 2014) Silva announces the next middleweight fight: Abreu against Vasconcelos, both men are Brazilian jiu jitsu world champions. The teams participate in a challenge to each build a raft and race each other with them. Team Wanderlei manages to finish first and they get a special dinner served by the losing team. Ricardo Abreu defeated Guilherme Vasconcelos via unanimous decision in two rounds.
Episode 6: (April 13, 2014) The next heavyweight fight is supposed to be announced by Silva, but he is nowhere to be found. He eventually arrives and the fight is revealed as Moreira against Kleber. Sonnen complains about Silva's excuses for being late and even mentions that he smells alcohol from his opponent. During a training session, Moreira accidentally hits his knee on Jollyson Francisco's eyebrow. Francisco gets stitches to heal the wound and he is afraid that accidents like that could put him out of the competition. Both teams participate in a challenge to write TUF: Brasil using a strings-based device that requires them to work together so the words are correctly written and approved by a professor. Team Sonnen finally ends their overall losing streak and Marcari announces that their team will participate in a pajamas party at the house while their opponents will be locked in a room as the party goes on. Antônio Carlos Júnior confronts Paulo Costa about statements Costa made about defeating him several times during a training camp as preparation for this season. Carlos Júnior says that somebody told him so and Costa reveals that he had only mentioned training with him and that they had both defeated each other but it was "no big deal." Carlos Júnior leaves the room upset and he continues to argue with Costa. Gabrielle Garcia, a multi-time BJJ world champion, participates as a guest coach in Team Wanderlei's training session. Before the weigh-ins, Silva confronts Sonnen about their future fight. He is aggressive towards Sonnen, offends him and even threatens to slap his face. Sonnen pushes Silva, leading to the Brazilian attempting to punch Sonnen, who ducks and takes down Silva. After they reach the floor, the whole coaching staff and fighters from both teams try to separate them. Instead of trying to keep the peace like the rest, André Amade punches Sonnen in the back of the head and later brags about punching him and ripping his shirt off. Vinny Magalhães tells Sonnen that Amade was punching him, something that he did not notice during the altercation. The entire team is perplexed with Amade's attitude. Richardson Moreira defeated Job Kleber Melo via submission (armbar) in the first round. Kleber breaks his finger during the fight.
Episode 7: (April 20, 2014) Silva is at the doctor's office and states that his hand has been bothering him since the scuffle. The doctor puts it in a cast. Dana White later appears via video conference and expels André Amade from the show for punching Sonnen in the brawl. He calls him a disgrace and says that he should be arrested. White then scolds Silva and Sonnen for being thuggish and poor mentors for the fighters. Sonnen then blames Silva, who praises Amade's actions and even gives a team huddle for the coach leaving. Mauricio "Shogun" Rua, former UFC light heavyweight champion, makes a guest appearance and lends support to Team Wanderlei. Márcio Alexandre Júnior defeated Paulo Costa via split decision after three rounds. The episode closes with a "wrapped up" challenge in which four fighters from each team are covered in plastic wrap. They have to scramble to get on their feet and ring a bell. First team to get all four fighters to ring the bell wins and gets to choose the next fight. The yellow team wins the challenge and gets all fighters to ring the bell before Team Sonnen even has one, earning control of the next fight matchup.
Episode 8: (April 27, 2014)