Ranking every Ultimate Fighter winner

18. Roy Nelson

The Ultimate Fighter 10: Heavyweights, coached by Quinton "Rampage" Jackson and Rashad Evans, featured the arrival of Kimbo Slice in the UFC, but also the arrival of one of the UFC's most exciting heavyweights, Roy Nelson. Fighting for Team Rashad, Nelson was 13-4 before joining TUF and beat Kimbo Slice, Justin Wren, and James McSweeney on his way to knocking out Brendan Schaub in the finale.

Nelson went 9-10 with eight knockouts over eight years with the UFC and fought a plethora of former and future world champions in Junior dos Santos, Frank Mir, Mirko Cro Cop, Fabricio Werdum, Stipe Miocic, Daniel Cormier, Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira, and Josh Barnett. After his last fight, a loss against Alexander Volkov in 2017, Nelson opted to sign with Bellator where he retired in 2020.

17. Michael Chiesa

Michael Chiesa competed in and won Ultimate Fighter 15: Live, coached by Dominick Cruz and Urijah Faber. Chiesa was undefeated at 7-0 before joining the show and beat Johnavan Vistante, Jeremy Larson, Justin Lawrence, and James Vick, finishing Al Iaquinta in the lightweight final for Team Faber.

Chiesa has had a successful career with the UFC, though he is currently on a two-fight losing streak. Chiesa is 11-6, with all his six finishes coming by way of submission. Chiesa was scheduled to make his return after nearly two years away at UFC 287, but an injury to his opponent has scrapped the bout.