Dana White’s Contender Series: Season 8, Week 1 Recap

Dana White’s Contender Series: Season 8, Week 1 Recap

Dana White’s Contender Series (DWCS) is back for the eight seasons. In the first episode, four fighters walked away with a UFC contract. Let’s discuss the newest UFC fighters and provide some insight into how their careers will play out. The post will be ranked with the most impressive prospects at the start and the least impressive at the bottom.

Lone’er Kavanagh- Flyweight

Lone’er Kavanagh was clearly the most impressive prospect from the opening episode of DWCS. The 25-year-old lightweight earned a UFC contract with a spectacular left hook knockout over An Tuan Ho.

Kavanagh showed a lot of skills during the short time the fight lasted. The most obvious was his speed. Kavanagh has good footwork and navigates range. This allows him to get in and out of range at a solid speed. Additionally, his strikes are quick and find the mark.

This fight showed Kavanagh’s shot selection. The ability to strike to all three levels is great for a prospect of his status. Kavanagh attacked the legs with kicks, took kicks to the body, punched to the body, and eventually landed a knockout punch. The shot diversity and selection were great.

Kavanagh is a great prospect. At just 25-years-old, he has a high level of talent. Furthermore, he will have the ability to make improvements. Overall, the combination of speed of striking skills will help him win fights at flyweight. I expect him to eventually get ranked. I would not be surprised if he climbs the rankings, either. It is impossible to make a bold claim one episode into the season, but Kavanagh will likely be one of the best prospects from this season.

Mansur Abdul-Malik- Middleweight

The second-best prospect from this episode of DWCS was Mansur Abdul-Malik. The 26-year-old middleweight earned a UFC contract with a second-round knockout against Wes Schultz.

This was a wild fight. Abdul-Malik landed a lot of damaging strikes in the first round, but Schultz’s chin held up. Schultz proceeded to return with crazy and wild exchanges. The fight did not feature much technique, but it was a crazy fight with unique moments. Ultimately, Abdul-Malik was able to use massive elbows from the top position to finish the fight.

Abdul-Malik is a very raw fighter. The physical strength and power are off the charts. His striking approach is not technical, but his shots did damage. This was best seen in his ground and pound. Once he got to a dominant position on the ground, it only took a handful of elbows to end the fight.

The future for Abdul-Malik will come down to his progression. It is entirely possible that he finds a tone of success or gets cut after a handful of fights. At the moment, his striking needs progressions. That said, I expect him to find more grappling success in the UFC. This matchup featured two collegiate wrestlers. It would have been a tough fight to win with a dominant grappling performance. Overall, Abdul-Malik is a classic high-ceiling, low-floor prospect.

Jose Delgado- Featherweight

In this DWCS bout, Jose Delgado landed a nasty knee to finish Ernie Juarez and earn a UFC contract. The 26-year-old featherweight looked impressive throughout his performance.

Delgado’s game plan was very clear. It seemed like Delgado wanted to throw the kitchen sink at Juarez until he landed the knockout. This was effective. Delgado was on the front foot throwing long combinations of punches, kicks, and knees. In addition, he mixed in a handful of takedowns. This pressure was clearly breaking Juarez before the fight landed.

Delgado is five-foot-11 and will carry a size advantage into a lot of fights. It looks like he knows how to use that length to land kicks and knees.

Delgado is not the first fighter to use pressure and volume to earn a contract on DWCS. This archetype has had mixed success in the UFC. The biggest concern with Delgado will be his striking defense and chin. His constant forward pressure will leave him open to be hit. The ability to withstand big shots will either make or break his UFC tenure. Regardless, fans will likely love watching him compete.

Bruno Lopes- Light Heavyweight

The final contract winner from DWCS was Bruno Lopes. The 31-year-old light heavyweight finished Mikheil Sazhiniani with body shots.

In the first round, Sazhiniani was winging big strikes. Eventually, one of those wild overhands landed and dropped Lopes. That did not end the fight, however. Lopes was able to recover and get back into the fight.

Sazhiniani did not remain a threat for long. Lopes was defending takedowns and getting out of the way of the big swing. This led to Sazhiniani gassing out which opened the window for Lopes to finish the fight with body shots.

I am not high on Lopes as he enters the UFC. This was his last DWCS fight. In his first outing, Brendson Ribeiro knocked him out. Now, in his second chance, he is knocked down against Sazhiniani. The flaws in his striking defense are massive. At the light heavyweight division, it does not take many strikes to be knocked out and Lopes gets hit way too much. It’s a terrible combination.

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