Efrain was the winner of season eight of Spike TV's reality show The Ultimate Fighter.

He won his first fight against Ido Pariente with a rear naked choke in the first round to make it into the house.

He then beat Shane Nelson in the second round with a mounted triangle to earn a spot in the semi-finals.

In the show's finale, shown on Spike TV, Escudero earned a six-figure UFC contract by defeating Phillipe Nover by unanimous decision.

Upon receiving the trophy, Escudero dedicated his win to his late father, who died just before he left for the show.

Escudero earned his first official win in the UFC on December 13, 2008, by defeating Phillipe Nover by unanimous decision during the main event of The Ultimate Fighter: Team Nogueira vs.

If they want to keep it standing, I am ready and willing to do just that.”[5] At UFC 103, in his first post-TUF fight, Escudero eventually earned an impressive KO win over Miller at 3:36 of the first round.

After dropping Miller with a strong jab, he followed up with two ground and pound strikes to the head of his opponent to stop the fight.

Escudero suffered his first professional defeat against Evan Dunham at UFC Fight Night 20 via submission in the third round.

[6] Escudero refused to tap until the armbar was at an extreme angle and left the ring under medical supervision before the victory presentation, leading to speculation that the arm was broken.

[7] After an MRI showed that Efrain's arm was healthy, and he confirmed that he would be fighting Dan Lauzon at UFC 114.

[9] Escudero was expected to face John Gunderson on September 15, 2010, at UFC Fight Night 22.

Escudero was originally expected to face Francisco Trinaldo on September 13, 2014, at UFC Fight Night 51.

[27] Escudero faced Leandro Silva on November 21, 2015, at The Ultimate Fighter Latin America 2 Finale.

Efrain instead fought against Akhmet Aliev for Fight Nights Global 59 on February 23, 2017, in Khimki, Russia.

When Escudero returned to the United States he quickly accepted a short notice fight against former Bellator title challenger and fellow Ultimate Fighter alumnus Fabrício Guerreiro.

Efrain decided to give himself a quick turnaround by helping fund, and run an upstart MMA promotion based out of Mexico called Lux Fight League.

Escudero faced Jason High in a lightweight tournament bout at PFL 2 in Chicago on June 21, 2018.

However, Escudero missed the 156-pound weight limit by over seven pounds, and the bout set for the PFL 5 show on August 2, 2018, was cancelled.

Escudero faced Gleison Tibau in a 160lbs catchweight bout at Golden Boy Promotions inaugural MMA event on November 24, 2018.

Though he left the school to join the UFC, he eventually returned to earn his Bachelor of Science in Criminal Justice in 2011.