Ryan Loder and Mairon Santos become newest winners of 'The Ultimate Fighter' at UFC Vegas 96

Mairon Santos knocks Kaan Ofli out cold

Despite being the second-to-last featherweight selected on "The Ultimate Fighter," Santos ended up being the most impressive fighter of the season. Following two decision wins on the show, Santos entered UFC Vegas 96 as the betting favorite against Kaan Ofli and showed out with the best knockout of the night.

From the opening, Santos expertly used his size and length advantage against Ofli, quickly proving to be the significantly better striker. Ofli failed to get close to completing any takedowns, leaving him as nearly a fish out of water on the feet and knocked out cold in the second round with a left hook.

Bantamweight is undeniably one of the best divisions in the UFC but Santos immediately inserts himself as a name to keep an eye on at 135 pounds. At 5-foot-9, he has the frame to match up with the biggest fighters of the division and trains at an elite gym in Xtreme Couture.

Ryan Loder upsets Robert Valentin with a ground-and-pound TKO

Once the final episode of "The Ultimate Fighter" Season 32 aired, no fighter had left a better impression from their time in the TUF house than Robert Valentin. That led to the Swiss juggernaut being a sizable betting favorite over Loder, but the American wrestler quickly proved the oddsmakers wrong.

Round 1 was mostly even in grappling exchanges with both threatening submission attempts, but the second round was fully in Loder's favor. After getting on top, Loder swiftly trapped Valentin in the crucifix position and elbowed his way to the finish line.

Though he was not taken as late in the TUF draft as Santos, Loder was selected in the second half while Valentin was the first middleweight chosen overall. Both fighters will likely remain on the UFC roster, but with the grappling prowess he showed at UFC Vegas 96, Loder could sneak his way into becoming a threat at middleweight.