Tito Ortiz had to back out of his fight with Chuck Liddell and leave as coach of “The Ultimate Fighter”. He needed surgery on his neck and got the procedure on video so we could all enjoy it! It almost looks as if these surgeons are working on a car. You think they’d be a little bit gentler in there!

h/t: Tito Ortiz and Punishment Films

And you thought Cung Le’s smashed nose was gruesome. Well take a look at season 11 TUF contestant Charley Lynch’s face after his bout on the first episode of the new season.

Spike and the UFC have revealed the cast for season 11 of “The Ultimate Fighter” with coaches Tito Ortiz and Chuck Liddell. They have released the names of 28 combatants, but they will still have a 32-man tournament. The new season begins Wednesday, March 31st.

Here is the complete list released by the UFC:

RICH ATTONITO
Fighting out of: Deerfield Beach, FL / American Top Team
Record: 7-3
Age: 32
A 2001 graduate of Hofstra University in Long Island, Rich Attonito wrestled several different weight classes as a member of the Pride wrestling team including the 167lb. and 197lb. divisions. Attonito has been training with American Top Team since he moved to Florida in 2006. He is the strength and conditioning coach for UFC veteran Luigi Fioravanti.

SETH BACZYNSKI
Fighting out of: Canyon, AZ / Apex MMA
Record: 11-5
Age: 28
Training partner to TUF alums Santino DeFranco (season 9) and Efrain Escudero (season 8 ) at Apex MMA in Arizona, Seth Baczynski is a full-time water inspector at Liberty Water.

CHARLES BLANCHARD
Fighting out of: Coconut Creek, FL / American Top Team
Record: 7-2
Age: 24
A 2-time All State wrester in high school, this single father is a jiu-jitsu brown belt and a published poet.

JOSH BRYANT
Fighting out of: Tulsa, OK / Absolute Combat Alliance
Record: 10-0
Age: 29
A member of the Absolute Combat Alliance camp in Tulsa, OK, Josh Bryant sports a perfect 10-0 professional mixed martial arts record. When not training, Bryant works as a manager for Mazzio’s Italian Eatery in Oklahoma.

CHRIS CAMOZZI
Fighting out of: Denver, CO / Gumm MMA
Record: 11-3
Age: 22
Camozzi is a freestyle fighter from Denver that works as a bouncer in his spare time. Two of his three losses are to TUF alums Jesse Forbes (season 3) and Jesse Taylor (season 7).

BRENT COOPER
Fighting out of: Long Beach, CA / Team Oyama
Record: 5-1
Age: 31
Of Sioux Indian descent, Cooper is a pipeliner by day for Shell Oil, and a devastating striker by night, with four of his five wins coming via TKO.

JACEN FLYNN
Fighting out of: Meridian, ID / No camp
Record: 8-2
Age: 31
Jacen Flynn possesses an 8-2 mixed martial arts record that includes wins over Dennis Kang and Dean Lister. Away from the Octagon™, he is a social worker.

JAMES HAMMORTREE
Fighting out of: Ocala, FL / USA Martial Arts
Record: 4-0
Age: 23
Following one season at Weber International, where he starred on the football team as a linebacker and on special teams, Hammortree left the program in order to become a full-time firefighter in Ocala, FL. The former high school wrestler owns a 4-0 professional record with all four of those bouts taking place in 2009.

JOSEPH HENLE
Fighting out of: Thousand Oaks, CA / Big John McCarthy’s MMA
Record: 3-0
Age: 26
Joseph Henle splits time training at Big John McCarthy’s MMA and working as a substitute teacher and wrestling coach in Thousand Oaks, CA. Henle earned his MBA in Financial Planning from California Lutheran University in ’06. He speaks fluent Japanese.

CHARLEY LYNCH
Fighting out of: Mound, MN / Northway MMA
Record: 6-0
Age: 25
The self-proclaimed baddest man in Minnesota, Charley Lynch owns a 6-0 professional record with zero of his bouts going to decision.

KRIS MCCRAY
Fighting out of: Dumfries, VA / Chute Boxe
Record: 5-0
Age: 28
Son of a military father, Kris McCray was raised in Germany, where he excelled on the soccer pitch and garnered All-Europe honors in high school. In 1999, McCray moved permanently to the United States, where he has served parts of 8 years (6 active, 2 inactive) as a member of the US Army Reserve, while also finding time to earn his Associates Degree in Social Studies from Northern Virginia Community College.

COURT MCGEE
Fighting out of: Orem, UT / Throwdown Elite Fight Team
Record: 9-1
Age: 24
A Brazilian jiu-jitsu artist out of Orem, UT, Court McGee beat “The Ultimate Fighter: United States vs. United Kingdom” runner-up DaMarques Johnson in 2007 by submission

CLAYTON MCKINNEY
Fighting out of: Orlando, FL / Jungle MMA
Record: 4-2
Age: 27
A teammate of TUF (season 8 ) alum Tom Lawlor at Jungle MMA, Clayton McKinney is a Brazilian jiu-jitsu blackbelt that supplements his training by working security at a local bar in Orlando.

KYLE NOKE
Fighting out of: Albuquerque, NM / Jackson’s MMA
Record: 16-4-1
Age: 29
Kyle Noke, from Mooloolaba, Australia, is the former bodyguard of “Crocodile Hunter” Steve Irwin. Currently training with Jackson’s MMA in New Mexico, Noke defeated TUF (season 6) alum George Sotiropoulos in June 2005 and current castmate Kyacey Uscola this past September.

VICTOR O’DONNELL
Fighting out of: Milford, OH / Vision MMA
Record: 8-1
Age: 27
Hailing from Milford, OH, O’Donnell suffered his first professional loss this past September against cast mate Costantinos Philippou. Before that, he had won eight contests, seven of which by submission.

NORMAN PARAISY
Fighting out of: Coconut Creek, FL / American Top Team
Record: 5-1
Age: 23
Norman Paraisy was born and raised Paris, France. The 5-1 Brazilian jiu-jitsu artist left France in order to pursue MMA in the states and is now a member of the American Top Team.

COSTANTINOS PHILIPPOU
Fighting out of: Merrick, NY / Serra-Longo
Record: 5-1
Age: 30
Costantinos Philippou is a former boxer with 3 professional and over 80 amateur fights on his record. The 30-year-old server from Merrick, NY was born and raised in Greece. He currently trains out of the Serra-Longo camp.

GREG REBELLO
Fighting out of: Buzzards Bay, MA / Sityodtong USA
Record: 9-2
Age: 27
Greg Rebello trains full-time at Sityodtong USA in Massachusetts under the watchful eye of Mark DellaGrotte. Currently in peak physical condition, Rebello at one time weighed in over 300lbs before dedicating himself to fitness at the age of 18.

NICK RING
Fighting out of: Calgary, Canada / B.D.P. Martial Arts
Record: 10-0
Age: 30
Nick Ring returned to MMA in May 2009 following a three year stint away from the sport after suffering a devastating knee injury. In that time, Ring boxed professionally to the tune of a 4-1 record with 3 knockouts.

JORDAN SMITH
Fighting out of: Clearfield, UT / Throwdown Elite Fight Team
Record: 10-0
Age: 24
A 7th grade teacher by day, Jordan Smith is a former professional boxer that trains with fellow cast member Court McGee at Throwdown Elite Fight Team.

BEN STARK
Fighting out of: Tamarac, FL / American Top Team
Record: 3-1
Age: 27
Born and raised a practitioner of the Orthodox Jewish religion until the age of 6, Ben Stark began training with American Top Team in Florida as a sophomore in college. When not at the gym, Stark picks up shifts at “The Original Fat Cats,” and also finds time to breed snakes.

LYLE STEFFENS
Fighting out of: Tucson, AZ / Apex MMA
Record: 5-2
Age: 26
Lyle Steffens is a firefighter and an EMT in Tucson, AZ. He trains with fellow cast member Seth Baczynski at Apex MMA.

BRAD TAVARES
Fighting out of: Las Vegas, NV / TapouT
Record: 4-0
Age: 21
At 21, Brad Tavares is the youngest of this season’s cast members. Originally from Hilo, HI, Tavares recently relocated to Las Vegas and trains full-time with TapouT

WARREN THOMPSON
Fighting out of: Marietta, GA / Team Khunpon / Roberto Traven BJJ
Record: 5-0
Age: 23
Warren Thompson, aka “The Kool-Aid Man,” is a muay-thai fighter from Marietta, GA. The volunteer firefighter splits his training in Atlanta between Team Khunpon and Roberto Traven BJJ.

KYACEY USCOLA
Fighting out of: Sacramento, CA / Team Alpha Male
Record: 18-15
Age: 28
Kyacey Uscola joins the cast with 33 professional MMA fights on his record. He trains with Team Alpha Male and Urijah Faber out of Sacramento.

CLEBURN WALKER
Fighting out of: Keller, TX / Team Lutter
Record: 9-3
Age: 26
Born and raised in Texas, Cleburn Walker is a full-time fighter and instructor at Team Lutter. He suffered a recent loss via submission to TUF (season 3) alum Jesse Forbes this past June.

WOODY WEATHERBY
Fighting out of: Hudson, NH / Renzo Gracie / Mickey Wards Boxing Gym & Xtreme MMA
Record: 7-3
Age: 27
The former US Navy officer currently works full-time as a corrections officer for the Hillsborough County jail in Manchester, NH. Weatherby rotates his training between 2 gyms: Renzo Gracie Academy in Derry, NH, and Mickey Wards Boxing Gym & Xtreme MMA.

JAMIE YAGER
Fighting out of: Los Angeles, CA / Kings MMA
Record: 2-1
Age: 25
A standout varsity letterman in baseball and football, Yager was the 2001 Athlete of the Year at South Pasadena High School in California. He picked up training MMA as a hobby, and went straight from training to the professional ranks in February 2008 as part of BET’s Iron Ring, where he defeated his opponent by TKO.

Mickey’s has been sponsoring “The Ultimate Fighter” for a while, and I give them props for that. I especially liked the one tagline for their sponsorship that ran right before each fight. It was “Keep a six-pack of Mickey’s close by…just in case.”

But this latest commercial gets under my skin. I want to punch these two dudes in the face, take them down and armbar them until I hear something pop or snap. It’s just so awful. Judge for yourself:

Am I right or am I right? Those guys wouldn’t know a takedown from a hoedown. And then there is the homo-erotic aspect of it, kind of weird for an MMA commercial.

Please Mickey’s. Get a new ad. Or just kill this one.

5 sets of 2 coaches for the next season of “The Ultimate Fighter”…

Phil Baroni and Matt Serra

New York vs. New Jersey. Big Mouth against Bigger Mouth. There wouldn’t be any title implications, but these are 2 characters that would surely entertain us.

Marcus Davis and Dan Hardy

No love lost here. These 2 had a war of words leading up to their war in the cage. You know Davis wants at Hardy again. Would they even make it to their scheduled fight before letting it fly?

Michael Bisping and Kendall Grove

These 2 were both members of “Team Ortiz” on Season 3 of TUF. Grove is vibrant and brash and certainly wouldn’t take any crap from Bisping. And after his devastating knockout by Dan Henderson, would we see a different, mellower Bisping?

Sean Sherk and Joe Stevenson

Two guys that each have 35 or more wins. Two guys that have fought most of the best fighters in their division. Except each other. I think Sherk vs. Stevenson would be an awesome fight. Kimbo can drop by and take notes on the wrestling clinic.

Brock Lesnar and Frank Mir

A season of TUF leading up to a fight between these two would be awesome. Maybe Lesnar loses to Carwin and these 2 get in line for a title shot. Whatever–the scenario is not important. I want to see them fight again.

The Big Black Buck — as Rashad Evans refers to Kimbo Slice — might want to re-watch his fight against Roy Nelson. Why? Because here is what Kimbo said before the show aired on Wednesday night:

“This fight is very exciting. This is probably, I would say, not hands down, but pound-for-pound a good fight, one of my best fights…I was impressed with my performance. I was impressed with everything. I’m not crying about nothing.”

Perhaps that was some salesmanship on his part. But if he truly believes that he might want to get a second opinion. Like mine. Before that though, you can check out the fight here if you want to watch it.

Slice was basically dominated by Roy Nelson. Slice moved well and had some decent takedown defense. But he was not the aggressor and certainly didn’t land anything devastating. At the end of the first round, Nelson took Kimbo down and trapped an arm to get him in the crucifix position with :32 left. He started punching Slice at around :27. Though the punches from Nelson were not punishing, they were landing and Kimbo was unable to defend himself. The fight should have been stopped before the end of the round.

In round 2 Nelson had his way again with Kimbo, this time sealing the deal. Not everyone was impressed with Nelson’s win or his methods. From Bloody Elbow:

Nelson knew that it was simply a matter of Kimbo intelligently defending himself, which was an impossibility with both hands locked down. I found it a bit disheartening to hear Nelson state that he would simply go for those unanswered shots while knowing that a lot of power wasn’t needed. I understand that it’s part of the rules, and perhaps Nelson was simply trying to be the “nice guy” in the entire situation by stopping Kimbo in the most non-damaging way possible.

Why is it disheartening? Because Nelson actually used the conventional game plan for Kimbo? He’s going for a six-figure deal with the UFC. Should he have stood and banged with Kimbo to appease the masses? Not at all. He wants to win, period. Nelson wasn’t trying to be the “nice guy” in anything. He’s trying to move his career forward. There’s nothing disheartening in that. Any other gameplan would have been foolish.

And as nice a guy as Kimbo seems, the truth remains that if he was not all over You Tube and and a headliner on the Elite XC bouts, he’s nowhere even close to sniffing a spot on TUF, let alone a UFC deal.

TapouT Kimbo Slice Red Evil T-Shirt