The Contender Series

UFC: Dana White’s Contender Series targeting June return

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UFC, Dana White

One of the UFC‘s key avenues for new signings has a target for it’s return. John Morgan of MMA Junkie tweeted out last night that the promotion is currently targeting a June return for Dana White’s Contender Series.

The Contender Series wrapped up a ten week run last November. The UFC more than twenty new fighters to the roster on this latest round of The Contender Series. According to Morgan, the promotion has already started booking fights for the next season.

Whenever it debuts, this will be the fifth season of DWCS. So far, the show has done an incredible job of bringing new talent to the UFC. Some of the notable veterans are “Suga” Sean O’Malley, Dan Ige, Geoff Neal, Edmen Shahbazyan, Maycee Barber, Ian Heinisch, and more.

The reason the show is so exciting is the fact that fighters usually go all out to earn themselves a UFC contract. You will usually see several finishes in one night of fights and Dana White was very generous with contracts this last season.

Another batch of UFC fighters

As mentioned, season four was another hit for the UFC. The promotion brought in several fighters with a lot of talent and several fighters have already made their impact felt within the promotion.

Some of the standouts from last season include Phil Hawes, Jordan Leavitt, Dustin Jacoby, Jimmy Flick, Cory McKenna, and Natan Levy. The only one who has not made their UFC debut is Natan Levy.

However, we are including him here because the promotion is very high on him. Levy is from Israel and could be a key fighter for the promotion’s development in that region of the world.

The rest all have a combined record of 7-0 inside the octagon. The Contender Series is a proven avenue for the UFC to sign new talent and I can’t wait for June to roll around. Should be another fun round of fights and another batch of great talent that will be inserted into the UFC.

DWCS Week 9 Recap: Who earned UFC contracts last night?

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UFC, Dana White

The UFC returned last night with their ninth contender series card of 2020. The action was a little slower than last week, but despite that, several contracts were still handed out by Dana White. The newcomers are solid additions to their respected weight classes.

It was an odd night when it came to The Contender Series. Normally, fighters go all out to get finishes, but last night we saw some fighters play it easy. That’s not what Dana White is looking for when he puts on these cards.

Fighters who won but didn’t earn UFC contracts last night included bantamweight Danny Sabatello (9-1) and middleweight Mario Filipe De Sousa (12-1). Sabatello went to a very conservative wrestling game plan and grinding out a decision while De Sousa had a close fight that White thought he lost.

UFC Contract Winners

Luana Pinheiro

The first UFC contract of the night was handed out to strawweight Luana Pinheiro (8-1). The Brazilian strawweight entered the cage last night with everyone talking about her slick Judo. However, it wasn’t her judo that impressed Dana White last night.

Pinheiro has incredible power for a strawweight and she showed that off in her striking last night. She knocked out the last fighter she faced and she did it again last night. Halfway through the first round she blitzed and floored Stephanie Frausto.

The combination put her down and Pinheiro’s killer instinct went to work. She followed up with a few clean shots that forced the referee to stop the action. Not often are their ladies with that kind of power in the UFC‘s strawweight division.

Nikolas Motta

The second UFC contract of the evening was handed out to lightweight Nikolas Motta (12-3). Motta showed last night that he’s got very good striking and he showed that he can really impress UFC brass.

However, there were some drawbacks in his performance. Dana White was on the fringe about giving Motta a contract. Motta took on Joseph Lowry last night and appeared at times that he could finish the fight if he pressed on the gas.

However, Motta would hold back just a little. When Lowry would return, Motta would strike fiercely, but that lack of killer instinct nearly cost him a contract. However, in the end, Dana White rewarded his dominant decision victory with a UFC contract.

Natan Levy

The final UFC contract of the night was handed out to featherweight Natan Levy (6-0). Levy competes at featherweight, however, he took this opportunity at short notice and fought at a catchweight nearly 15 pounds above his normal weight class.

However, that didn’t stop Levy from dominating. Levy took on Shaheen Santana and used his superior grappling to dominate the fight. Santana came into the fight with a number of submissions which made the performance by Levy even more impressive.

Dana White seemed extremely excited because Levy is from Israel. The UFC has been looking for a fighter from Israel for a long time, and they might have found that contender in Levy. After dominating the whole fight, Levy finished things with a submission in the third.

DWCS Week 8 Recap: Who earned UFC contracts last night?

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UFC, Dana White

Last night the UFC returned with another round of fights on Dana White’s Contender Series. The Contender Series took a little bit of a break when the promotion headed overseas for another round of fights on the UFC‘s Fight Island.

However, they were back in the APEX last night and the fights did not disappoint. To me, it seemed like the action went quickly in the octagon. That might be because every fight was finished by knockout including two in the first round.

White was quick to get up last night to go do his post-fight interview. It was very clear that he saw some clear UFC talent amongst the four winners last night. The promotion added some very solid talent last night.

UFC Newcomers

Jared Vanderaa

The first fight of the evening featured a heavyweight contest between Jared Vanderaa (11-4) and Harry Hunsucker (6-3). When the fight got underway, it looked like Hunsucker had the big advantage on the feet.

Hunsucker had his hands down at times and appeared to be finding a groove in the first round. However, Vanderaa was able to land a takedown late in the first and he pinned Hucksucker against the fence. Some big ground and pound followed that haulted the action.

Dana White said that the UFC is always looking for heavyweight talent. Vanderaa earned himself a contract with the promotion after the fight last night. Definitely showed some holes in his game, but nothing he can’t clean up with time.

Luis Saldana

Arguably the most impressive UFC newcomer last night was featherweight Luis Saldana (14-6). Saldana took on Vince Murdock (11-6) in the second fight of the evening. Saldana was the taller fighter and enjoyed a decent reach advantage.

It was a great standup fight, but Saldana was just outclassing the smaller Murdock. Murdock had really good speed and power, but always seemed a little out of reach. Saldana did a beautiful job of sniping from range last night.

In the third round, Saldana landed a beautiful front kick to the face. A nice combination was then followed by another upkick that spelled the end for Murdock. Saldana followed up beautifully to end the fight and earn himself a UFC contract.

Ignacio Bahamondes

The third UFC contract of the evening was handed out to lightweight Ignacio Bahamondes (11-3). Bahamondes took on fellow lightweight Edson Gomez (6-2) in the third fight of the evening. This produced one of the highlight finishes of the evening.

In the first round of the fight, Gomez really tried taking the fight to the ground. Bahomondes was much slicker on the feet and he did a fantastic job of using his range. He also did a really good job of defending takedowns in the first round.

In the second round, Bahamondes really started to go to work. He landed some beautiful combinations including one that knocked Gomez’s mouthpiece out. Just about at the halfway point and Bahamondes landed a nasty front kick knocking Gomez out cold. That’s an easy way to earn yourself a UFC contract.

Carlos Ulberg

The final UFC contact of the evening was handed out to light heavyweight, Carlos Ulberg (3-0). Ulberg trains at City Kickboxing alongside the UFC‘s middleweight champion, Israel Adesanya. He took on Bruno Oliveira (8-2) in the featured fight last night.

Ulberg entered the cage with professional kickboxing credentials. Oliveira has really good striking as well, however, he relies more on his hands than his kicks. In the first round, Ulberg was doing a fantastic job of using his kicks to keep Oliveira just out of range.

Then out of no where, Ulberg lands a massive combination that sent Oliveira face first into the canvas. A devastating knockout and the UFC has added another solid fighter from New Zealand in the form of Carlos Ulberg.

DWCS Week 7 Recap: Who walked away with UFC contracts last night?

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UFC, Dana White

Last night, the UFC hosted their seventh and final episode of Dana White’s Contender Series for this current run. With the upcoming trip to Fight Island, the show is going to be taking a break for the next six week or so.

So far this year, the Contender Series has brought many new fighters to the UFC. In the six episodes leading into last night, Dana White had awarded 23 fighters UFC contracts through the first six weeks. White handed out three new contracts last night. Let’s take a look at the UFC newcomers.

UFC Newcomers

Before we dive into the newest members of the roster, there were two fighters who didn’t get contracts last night. Michael Lombardo (11-2, 1 NC) and Kyle Driscoll (12-3) both won decisions, but the UFC president wasn’t impressed enough to give either man a contract.

Danyelle Wolf

The first UFC contract of the evening was handed out to Danyelle Wolf (1-0). The record there is not a typo, last night was her MMA debut. Wolf came in as a professional boxer having fought over 40 times professionally in the squared circle.

White alluded to the fact that Wolf benefits from fighting at featherweight. The UFC women’s featherweight division is extremely light, and the promotion is looking to build up that weight class for the champion, Amanda Nunes.

The fight Wolf had last night was very competitive with Taneisha Tennant. In fact, there were quite a bit of people that scored the fight for Tennant. Normally you wouldn’t see Dana White give someone like this a contract, but the lack of featherweights assisted here.

Collin Anglin

The second UFC contract of the evening was handed out to featherweight Collin Anglin (8-1). Anglin had a fight that made White give a standing ovation once the fight was over. It was an absolute war, and White praised both Anglin and Muhammadjon Naimov.

Naimov stared out the fight strong, and I gave him the first round. However, Anglin really started to go for it in the final two rounds and took that fight. He earned that UFC contract last night, and both men were very impressive.

After the event, White said that Naimov was extremely disappointed in himself. However, White said that Naimov is on the short list in case someone falls out so don’t be shocked to see him with the promotion sooner or later.

Jordan Williams

The final contract of evening was handed out to the fighter who had the most impressive performance to me. Jordan Williams (9-3, 1 NC) was on his third attempt to get into the UFC being on DWCS. Third time was the charm last night.

Williams took on Gregory Rodrigues, and he left little doubt that he deserved to be inside the octagon. Just before the halfway point in the round, Williams pushed Rodrigues back and landed a combination from hell that put Rodrigues out.

Williams screamed after he won the fight, “Give me my contract!”. The camera panned to the UFC president who had a big smile on his face. The talented middleweight finally made it to the big show.

DWCS Week 6: Who won UFC contracts last night?

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UFC, Dana White

Dana White’s Contender Series was back last night for the sixth week of this season’s run. The UFC entered last night having given out 19 contracts over the span of five weeks. There has been a lot of great talent added to the roster.

Last night was another incredible night for the Contender Series. The UFC awarded another four contracts after some incredible performances from the fighters last night. Let’s take a look at the newest additions to the roster.

UFC Newcomers

Before we dive into the four fighters who were welcomed into the UFC, there was one winner who was left out. Sherrard Blackledge (5-0) was the one fighter who didn’t get a UFC contract despite his victory last night over Cameron Church.

White said that he loved what he saw for the first two rounds of the fight, but the third round left much to be desired. White said that they do like Blackledge, and because they do, they are inviting him back for the next run of the Contender Series.

Aliaskhab Khizriev

The first UFC contract of the evening was handed out to Russian prospect Aliaskhab Khizriev (13-0). Khizriev entered with a good amount of hype as a guy that was 12-0 and many people thought he deserved to be in the UFC already.

Khizriev made very quick work of his opponent. He was able to get Henrique Shiguemoto down to the ground quickly and secured a rear-naked choke within the first minute. Dominant performance by the UFC newest welterweight.

Drako Rodriguez

The second UFC contract was handed out to 24 year old bantamweight Drako Rodriguez (7-1). White was a fan of Rodriguez’s story after Rodriguez said that he got into fighting after watching the free UFC fights on SpikeTV.

Rodriguez also secured a first round finish last night. When he was on the ground with Leomana Martinez, he showed how slick his ground skills were. He transitioned through multiple submissions before securing a triangle choke in the first round earning him a shot in the UFC.

Another thing that White loved was Rodriguez’s attitude after the fight. He was more upset that he couldn’t show his striking. White said that he would be able to show it off inside the UFC.

Phil Hawes

The third UFC contract was handed out to middleweight Phil Hawes (8-2). Hawes had fought on the Contender Series back in 2017. That night, Hawes looked to wrestle a lot, and he was caught with a head kick that knocked him out.

Last night, Hawes really showed the UFC how much better he’s become. Hawes stepped forward with a variety of strikes before landing a big shot that floored Khadzhimurat Bestaev. Hawes quickly followed up for the first round TKO earning him a shot in the UFC.

Tafon Nchukwi

The final UFC contract of the evening was handed out to Tafon Nchukwi (4-0). Nchukwi looked sensational last night with nasty striking that really impressed Dana White. Nchukwi finished Al Matavao with a savage head kick in the second round.

White said that normally they would put someone like Nchukwi in a developmental deal with that little of experience. However, because of the nature of his win, he’s going right into the UFC. Nchukwi also holds a knockout over Contender Series vet and UFC newcomer, William Knight.

DWCS Week 5 Recap: Who walked away with UFC contracts last night?

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UFC, Dana White

Dana White’s Contender Series was back for the fifth week of 2020. The UFC has shelled out an astonishing 16 contracts through the first four weeks of the shows run this year. Dana White has been blown away by the prospective talent from this show.

The fights last night showed why the UFC uses the contender to sign new talent. The fights were very solid and you saw some real potential from guys last night. After the night was over, White and the UFC signed three new fighters to contracts.

UFC Newcomers

Before we dive into the new UFC fighters, there were two guys who won last night who didn’t get contracts. Melsik Baghdasaryan (5-1) and Tucker Lutz (10-1) both won decisions last night.

However, the UFC President was not ready to hand them contracts to get into the big show. Instead, he’s inviting them back for the Contender Series’ November run in a few months. If they win impressively there, he will sign them.

William Knight

The first UFC contract of the night was handed out to William Knight (8-1). Knight is a light heavyweight who stopped Cody Brundage in the first round. Knight survived some adversity early and finished the fight with some brutal elbows along the cage.

The UFC‘s light heavyweight division is the wild west right now with Jon Jones moving up to heavyweight. It will be interesting to see if the promotion continues to target light heavyweights. Knight is an exciting addition who’s finished all eight of his victories.

Ronnie Lawrence

The second contract the UFC handed out last night went to bantamweight Ronnie Lawrence (6-1). Lawrence put on a clinic last night from the opening bell to the end of the fight shutting out Jose Johnson over three rounds.

While White normally looks for guys who get finishes, he labeled Lawrence as, “Special.” Lawrence is going straight into one of the UFC‘s most stacked divisions. The bantamweight division is insanely deep and filled with killers, and they got another good one last night.

Jimmy Flick

One of the UFC‘s divisions that they are constantly looking to add to is men’s flyweight. The talent pool isn’t extremely deep, but they found themselves a new contender last night. Jimmy Flick (15-5) defeated Nate Smith by arm-triangle in the third round to earn himself a contract.

Not meaning to rhyme, but Flick is slick on the ground. The guy never stops looking for submissions and finishes. That is what really impressed Dana White last night. Given the lack of a deep talent pool, I wouldn’t be shocked to see Flick fighting a ranked contender sooner than later.

Who earned UFC contracts last night on the Contender Series?

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UFC, Dana White

Last night, the UFC hosted it’s third week of Dana White’s Contender Series. There were five action packed fights, and there were several newcomers added to the roster.

Last week, White was feeling very generous as he handed out five contracts to every single one of the winners. Last night he wasn’t quite that generous, but four of the five winners on the cards last night earned their way into the UFC.

12 UFC Contracts

It’s been incredible, but three weeks into this season of the Contender Series, and we’ve seen 12 UFC contracts handed out. The fights have been pretty good this year, and a lot of dynamic prospects have been added. Let’s take a look at the winners from last night.

Josh Parisian

The first UFC contract last night was handed out to heavyweight Josh Parisian (13-3). Parisian knocked out Chad Johnson in the first round of their fight. This was Parisian’s second fight on the Contender Series. Both ending in first round knockouts.

White said that he would love to get Parisian inside the UFC‘s PI to fine tune his skills. One thing is for sure and that is that Parisian has huge power at heavyweight. In 13 career wins, 10 have come by knockout with eight of those coming in the first round.

Orion Cosce

The second UFC contract of the night was handed out to welterweight Orion Cosce (7-0). Cosce was the biggest underdog on the card coming in against previously unbeaten Matt Dixon. Dixon was one of the highlights of the lineup on the card last night prior to the fights.

After losing the first round, Cosce showed his toughness and determination. Came back with a solid second round, and a dominant third. In the third, Cosce secured a crucifix and got the finish.

The only criticism White had was that at the end of the second round, Cosce stopped fighting with seconds left and touched gloves with Dixon. Despite that frustrating the UFC President, Cosce walked out with a contract last night due to his finish of Dixon.

Cheyanne Buys

The third UFC contract handed out last night went to strawweight Cheyanne Buys (5-1). Buys has a lot of fire about her which makes her very appealing to the promotion. She’s got very good overall skills and very crisp hands. Even talks a little trash in the cage.

White said that he’s expecting big things from Buys after her victory over Hilarie Rose. Buys will enter the UFC after winning four straight fights. A lot of potential in Cheyanne Buys.

Louis Cosce

The final UFC contract of the evening was handed out to the fighter that impressed me the most. That would be Louis Cosce (7-0) who knocked out Victor Reyna in the first round of their fight.

Reyna had never been knocked out before and he has been in there with guys like Daniel Rodriguez and Kevin Holland. Yet, Cosce went in and made it look easy. There is just a very easy power about Cosce.

His performance blew Dana White away. All seven of his wins have come via first round stoppage. The kid has never seen a second round, but as White pointed out, that’s a good problem to have.

Cosce is the brother of Orion Cosce who won the second contract of the evening. Both brothers fought at welterweight last night, but Louis said he will likely drop down to lightweight and fight there.

UFC: Dana White’s Contender Series Week 2 Contract Winners

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UFC, Dana White

Last night, the UFC president’s Contender Series had it second successful week after it’s return. The Contender Series has been turning out top talent for the last few years for the promotion.

The night was filled with five fights that delivered. Normally, Dana White hands out two or three contracts when there are five fights. However, last night, the UFC president was feeling a little more generous than usual.

Five UFC contracts handed out

White and the UFC signed all five of the fighters who won their fights last night. White joked that he was in a good mood after getting back from his recent vacation. Let’s take a look at the five fighters who are now members of the UFC.

Dustin Stolzfs

Dustin Stoltzfus (13-1) won in the most gruesome fashion last night in his fight. The new UFC middleweight had a solid back and forth battle going on with Joseph Pyfer.

Stoltzfus rolled for a knee bar late in the round, and once that didn’t work, a scramble found him in a position for a takedown. He picked Pyfer up and slammed him to the ground dislocating Pyfer’s elbow in the process.

Stoltzfus looked pretty good everywhere and with his experience, White was willing to give him a UFC contract.

Adrian Yanez

Adrian Yanez (11-3) looked absolutely fantastic last night. He stopped Brady Huang in just 39 seconds with an impressive striking display. The fight earned the bantamweight a UFC contract.

After the fights, White labeled Yanez as a sniper. The 26 year old bantamweight will now enter one of the deepest divisions in the UFC. He will enter his first octagon trip on a four fight winning streak that features three TKO’s.

Cory McKenna

The one fighter that had White the most on the fence about was Cory McKenna (5-1). McKenna came into last night as the underdog facing Crystal Demopoulos. However, the Team Alpha Male fighter was able to prove the odds makers wrong.

White wasn’t sure that she was ready for the UFC. McKenna is just 20 years old and still has a lot to learn and improve on. She does have five wins to her record now, and White decided to give her a shot.

She comes out of one of the better camps, and being just 20, she hasn’t even scratched the surface of what she’s capable of. Her only career loss came via split decision, but other than that, she’s looked very good in her young career.

TJ Laramie

TJ Laramie (12-3) was labeled as a savage by the UFC president. Laramie who is just 22 years old looked incredibly impressive last night. He found himself in some compromising positions at times, but the young fighter showed incredible poise.

His opponent, Daniel Swain, had him locked up a few times, but Laramie kept pushing through. Laramie got into a dominant position and landed massive shots on Swain. Swain struggled even getting back to his corner after the first round.

The beating was so bad that Swain couldn’t get off the stool and Laramie won via TKO. Laramie will now head into the UFC‘s featherweight division riding a four fight winning streak.

Impa Kasanganay

Impa Kasanganay (7-0) fought on The Contender Series for the second time last night. Both times, he’s walked away with a unanimous decision victory, but White didn’t seem extremely impressed.

However, with Kasanganay winning twice now, White was willing to give him a shot. One of the reasons why White was willing to do so is Kasanganay’s willingness to fight.

Kasanganay will be getting a very quick turnaround for his first official fight in the UFC. According to White in the post-fight press conference, Kasanganay will be taking on Maki “Coconut Bombz” Pitolo on August 22nd.