Ranking every Ultimate Fighter winner

44. Colton Smith

Colton Smith, an active member of the U.S. Army, competed in and won Ultimate Fighter 16: Team Carwin vs. Team Nelson, fighting for Team Nelson. Smith is a wrestler who came into the house with a 2-1 record and beat Jesse Barrett, Eddy Ellis, Igor Araujo, and Jon Manley on his way to winning the welterweight final against Mike Ricci.

That would be all the success Smith had in the UFC, losing three straight against a young Robert Whittaker, Michael Chiesa, and Diego Ferreira before being released, ending his UFC tenure with a 1-3 record. Smith last fought in 2018 against current UFC welterweight Sean Brady.

43. Jesse Taylor

Jesse Taylor was originally part of the Ultimate Fighter 7: Team Rampage vs. Team Forrest, but was removed from the finale after a security video showed him damaging a limo and acting recklessly when the TUF house visited Las Vegas during the season. Taylor was offered a fight but lost to CB Dollaway, and the UFC released him after that.

The Ultimate Fighter 25: Redemption, flipped the script and brought back former TUF contestants coached by Cody Garbrandt and TJ Dillashaw. Taylor would beat Mehdi Baghdad, Hayder Hassan, and James Krause on his way to finishing Dhiego Lima in the welterweight final for Team Dillashaw. Unfortunately, after his win, Taylor was flagged by USADA for an out-of-competition test and was subsequently released again, ending his UFC career with a 1-1 record. Taylor is still active and last fought in March.