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"&lt;p&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;As the ninth season of The Ultimate Fighter reality show starts to gain momentum, MMAWeekly.com has confirmed with sources close to the situation that the weight classes for this season's show will feature lightweights (155 pounds) and welterweights (170 pounds).&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;The original announcement had been middleweights and welterweights, but the promotion seems to have shifted gears just as tryouts have begun.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;The first run of tryouts in the United Kingdom garnered a great deal of attention as over 200 potential participants showed up with many UFC stars such as Paul Taylor, Terry Etim and new Ultimate Fighter 9 coach Michael Bisping there to show support.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;The show's format should be similar to the last two seasons of the popular reality show where a group of fighters selected for the initial run on the show will have to fight their way into the house, which will feature a United States vs. United Kingdom theme.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;While Bisping has been announced as the coach for the U.K. team, current rumors place the winner of the upcoming fight between Rich Franklin and Dan Henderson slated for January as the other coach.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;There has been no further word as to why the weight classes were changed, but as of now the welterweights and lightweights will fill the house of The Ultimate Fighter season 9.&lt;/p&gt;"^^<http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#string>
<http://www.si.com/mma/2008/10/21/tuf9-lightweights>