In January 2013, it was announced that McDaniel was selected for. To get into the TUF house, McDaniel defeated Ryan Bigler by TKO. During the choosing of teams, he was the third pick of Jon Jones for Team Jones and sixth overall. McDaniel faced eventual winner Kelvin Gastelum in the preliminary round. Despite being favored to win, McDaniel was submitted in the second round via rear-naked choke. McDaniel was chosen by Jones for the wildcard spot and faced Kevin Casey. Bubba won via corner stoppage after Casey didn't answer the bell for the third round. McDaniel lost via early KO to Uriah Hall in the quarterfinals.
Ultimate Fighting Championship
McDaniel made his UFC debut against castmate Gilbert Smith on April 13, 2013 at. He won the fight via submission in the third round. McDaniel faced Brad Tavares on August 28, 2013 at UFC Fight Night 27. He lost the fight via unanimous decision. McDaniel was expected to face castmate Tor Troéng on March 15, 2014 at UFC 171. However, Troéng was forced to pull out of the bout citing an injury. McDaniel instead faced UFC newcomer Sean Strickland. He failed again and lost the bout via submission in the first round and was subsequently released from the promotion.
Previous to fighting in the UFC, McDaniel appeared on an early Bellator MMA fight card in 2009. He faced William Chris Spicer at Bellator 6 and won the fight via rear-naked choke submission in the first round. In May 2014, McDaniel signed with Bellator MMA. He made his return on June 6, 2014, facing Matt Jones at Bellator 121. He won the fight by unanimous decision. McDaniel faced Emiliano Sordi on October 10, 2014 at Bellator 128. He lost via guillotine choke submission in the first round. In his second fight for the promotion, McDaniel faced Kenyon Jackson at Bellator 146 on November 20, 2015. He won the fight via TKO in the second round. After nearly two years away from Bellator, McDaniel will compete at Light Heavyweight when he replaces Muhammed Lawal against Liam McGeary at Bellator 185 on October 20, 2017. The following week, McGeary pulled out of the fight due to an injury.
Personal life
McDaniel's son, Wilder, passed awayOctober 11, 2018 at two years old. Late October 2018, McDaniel was arrested for allegedly making terroristic threats against a man he believed killed his son.
