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Forbes
4 days ago
- Sport
- Forbes
Dana White's Contender Series - Season 9, Week 1 Results
The ninth season of Dana White's Contender Series begins tonight, Tuesday, August 12, from the UFC Apex in Las Vegas. This season, Season 9 of the DWCS fight cards runs for 10 weeks. The fighters are competing to earn a UFC contract. Five fights are scheduled for this week's event in three different weight divisions. We will have live results, reactions, video highlights, and a list of UFC contract winners as the DWCS fight card takes place. Since the DWCS began in 2017, UFC CEO Dana White has awarded 287 UFC contracts to the competitors. Last year, in Season 8 of the DWCS , White handed out 42 UFC deals. Three fighters have become UFC champions after appearing on a DWCS card: Sean O'Malley, Jamahal Hill, and Jack Della Maddalena. Season 9, Episode 1 of the DWCS airs on ESPN+ at 7:00 p.m. ET. DWCS Season 9 Episode 1 Results - Winners DWCS Season 9 Episode 1 Results - Losers DWCS Season 9 Episode 1 Fight Card Results UFC Tonight: DWCS Season 9 Episode 1 Results Middleweight: Ilian Bouafia (6-0) vs. Neemias Santana (7-2-1) Welterweight: Ty Miller (5-0) vs. Jimmy Drago (7-2) Middleweight: Baysangur Susurkaev (8-0) vs. Murtaza Talha (7-1) Featherweight: Radley da Silva (7-1) vs. George Mangos (7-0) Middleweight: Christopher Ewert (7-0) vs. Yuri Panferov (8-1) DWCS Season 9 Episode 1 Results: Video Highlights DWCS Season 9 Episode 1: Official Scorecards Ilian Bouafia Vs. Neemias Santana A middleweight matchup between Ilian Bouafia and Neemias Santana is slated to headline the first episode of Season 9 of the DWCS. Bouafia brings a 6-0 record into the event. He is a 6-foot-five inch kickboxer, who last competed under the Ares FC banner. Bouafia's most recent fight was a February 2025 unanimous decision win over Paulin Begai. The bout marked the first time Boufia went the distance. His previous five outings ended via knockout, with four of those stoppages coming in the first round and the other in the second stanza. Santana is 7-2-1 over his career. He checks in at 6-foot-two. Santana is coming off a second-round knockout win over Marcos Vinicius on a March 2025 LFA card. He is 3-0-1 heading into Tuesday and has not lost since 2022. According to BetOnline, Bouafia is a -260 betting favorite over the +175 Santana. Bouafia uses his length well and uses a technical kickboxing style. As for Santana, he is a pressure fighter, who looks to use his power to wrap things up. The pick is Bouafia to win via knockout, but Santana, thanks to his approach, might be a pick to score an upset KO. Radley da Silva Vs. George Mangos This Radley da Silva vs. George Mangos bout takes place at featherweight. Da Silva (7-1) is a three-time defending featherweight champ under the Battlefield Fight League banner. The 30-year-old last defended that title in January with a second-round submission win over Drew Brokenshire. Da Silva has three submission wins, three decision victories and one KO. His only loss came in his first pro bout in 2013. Like his opponent in this scrap, the 21-year-old Mangos (7-0) is a defending champion. He won the HEX Fight Series crown in 2024 and has defended that belt, most recently knocking out Ethan Thomas in 34 seconds in their March 2025 scrap. Mangos has five submissions and two knockout wins. He has gone into the third round once. The current betting odds for Da Silva vs. Mangos has Mangos listed at -150 and Da Silva at +120. Both of these men are good grapplers, but Mangos might have the advantage there. He is also the better striker. With his better all-around skillset, the betting pick is for a Mangos decision win. Ty Miller Vs. Jimmy Drago In the middle of Tuesday's DWCS fight card is a welterweight matchup between Ty Miller and Jimmy Drago. Miller brings a perfect 5-0-0-1 record with him into the contest. The 25-year-old Miller is coming off a no contest on an LFA card in December. Before that he three knockouts and two decision victories. Drago is a former Ring of Combat champ. The 7-2-0-1 fighter is also coming off a no contest in his most recent matchup, a March 2025 scrap under the Cage Fury banner. Drago has four knockouts, two decisions and one submission win. He has one knockout loss and one submission setback. The betting odds for this bout find Miller at -185 and Drago at +155. The pick is for Miller to score a decision victory. Christopher Ewert Vs. Yuri Panferov Christopher Ewert and Yuri Panferov are scheduled to meet at 185 pounds. Ewert is a perfect 7-0 since making his pro debut in 2022. The 31-year-old was set to make his UFC debut at UFC 317, but a massive weight miss cost him that opportunity and his UFC contract. However, the promotion is giving him a second chance at a contract via the DWCS. Ewert has five knockouts and two decisions. He last fought in January of this year, going the distance on a Fury FC card. Panferov has an 8-1 record. The 28-year-old competed on the DWCS in 2023, losing to Torrez Finney via rear naked choke. Since that setback, Panferov is 2-0 with two knockout victories for CES. He has not fought since November 2024. Three of his career wins are by knockout, and the other five have come via submission. Panferov's most recent fight ended with 10 seconds left in the third stanza. Ewert is a -170 betting favorite over the +140 Panferov. Look for Ewert to be motivated to earn a UFC contract in this matchup after missing weight for UFC 317. He should be able to exploit the gaps in Panferov's striking and get a knockout win. Baysangur Susurkaev Vs. Murtaza Talha Opening Season 9 of the DWCS is a middleweight fight between Baysangur Susurkaev and Murtaza Talha. Susurkaev is the biggest favorite on the card at -350. He has an 8-0 record with seven knockouts and one decision. The 24-year-old is coming off a knockout on a February Fury FC card. The only question about Susurkaev is that he is taking this fight on short notice. The 29-year-old Talha fell short in 2023 when he had an opportunity to earn a DWCS deal. In that matchup, Rodolfo Bellato knocked out Talha in the second round. Since then, Talha is 1-0 with a win over Oleg Klimov who was 0-1 as a pro. So, it is a bit of a head scratcher as to why he is getting a second look on the DWCS. Talha is a +275 underdog. The pick is for Susurkaev to pick up a knockout win. We will have more on Season 9 of the DWCS as the events take place. On Tuesday night, we will have results, reactions and contract winners for Season 9, Episode 1 of the Dana White Contender Series.
Yahoo
06-08-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
After another knockout win at UFC Abu Dhabi, what's next for Bogdan Guskov?
Kicking off the main card this past Saturday at UFC Abu Dhabi was a matchup between two dangerous light heavyweight contenders. Bogdan Guskov (18-3) was looking to get the biggest win of his octagon career while Nikita Krylov (30-11) was looking to bounce back after a tough loss in his last fight. I didn't expect this fight to go the distance and it certainly didn't. When the fight started out both men seemed a little tentative knowing the danger that could be coming back at them should they overcommit on a shot and leave themselves exposed. Krylov seemed to be getting the better of things early on, but Guskov was staying composed. Eventually, Guskov caught Krylov flush coming in and Krylov went down. Guskov followed up with a bunch of shots and secured the massive TKO win at UFC Abu Dhabi which vaulted him into the top ten at light heavyweight. What's next after UFC Abu Dhabi? With his big knockout win, Guskov is now ranked 10th at light heavyweight. After stumbling in his octagon debut against former title challenger Volkan Oezdemir, Bogdan Guskov has won four fights in a row and all four wins have come via stoppage. Now, he'll set his eyes on the UFC's top ten contenders. In terms of what's next, I think that he should be lined up against a former champion. I really like the idea of Guskov facing off against Jamahal Hill. Jamahal Hill really is in a tough spot right now. After climbing to the top of the sport in January 2023 by becoming light heavyweight champion, he's lost three fights in a row and dealt with a number of injuries. He's coming off a disappointing decision loss against Khalil Rountree at UFC Baku and he really needs to bounce back. Given the styles of both men, I think it would be incredibly exciting with both men having so much to fight for. For Guskov, he could beat a former champion and move closer towards title contention. For Hill, it's a do-or-die fight because with a win, he'd be back on track. With a loss, you'd really have to start questioning what's next for him. Related Headlines NBA analyst vouches for Knicks to pursue former Clippers backup guard in free agency Yankees 'covet' superstar closer with insane fastball as a trade candidate Yankees linked to 41-year-old starting pitcher for some reason Knicks ranked as 2nd-best team in the East according to power rankings
Forbes
01-08-2025
- Sport
- Forbes
Dana White's Contender Series 2025 Schedule: August Fight Cards
The ninth season of Dana White's Contender Series gets underway in August. The full season runs from August 12 through October 14 and features five fights per card. At stake in each contest is a UFC contract. Last year, in Season 8 of the DWCS , UFC CEO Dana White awarded 42 UFC deals. Through the history of the DWCS, 287 UFC contracts have been awarded. Three fighters have become UFC champions after appearing on a DWCS card: Sean O'Malley, Jamahal Hill, and Jack Della Maddalena. Below, we look at the first three fight cards for the 2025 edition of the DWCS. All DWCS events take place at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas and stream on ESPN+ UFC 319 Main Card Set With High-Stakes Featherweight Co-Main Event DWCS Season 9 Week 1: August 12, 2025 Middleweight: Ilian Bouafia vs. Neemias Santana Welterweight: Ty Miller vs. Jimmy Drago Middleweight: Damian Pinas vs. Murtaza Talha Featherweight: Radley da Silva vs. George Mangos Middleweight: Christopher Ewert vs. Yuri Panferov UFC 320 Main Event: Magomed Ankalaev Vs. Alex Pereira 2 Opening Odds DWCS Season 9 Week 2: August 19, 2025 Featherweight: Manuel Exposito vs. José Mauro Delano Middleweight: Jonathan Kunneman vs. Cameron Rowston Bantamweight: Louis Lee Scott vs. Kaushik Saikumar Heavyweight: Josh Hokit vs. Guilherme Uriel Featherweight: Tommy Cuozzi vs. Ramiro Jimenez UFC 321 Main Event: Tom Aspinall Vs. Ciryl Gane Opening Betting Odds DWCS Season 9 Week 3: August 26, 2025 Light Heavyweight: Vitor Ferreira Costa vs. Ryan Gandra Featherweight: Márcio Barbosa vs. Damon Wilson Light Heavyweight: Alik Lorenz vs. Abdul-Rakhman Yakhyaev Lightweight: Cristian Pérez vs. Manoel Sousa Heavyweight: Brando Peričić vs. Elisha Ellison UFC Announces First Six Fights For Perth Card Including Main Event Over the past three seasons of the DWCS, White has awarded 131 UFC contracts. The season high came in 2023 when 46 contracts were doled out. In 2022 that number was 43, while last year 42 fighters were offered deals. Before Season 6 in 2022, the most contracts White offered was 39 in Season 4. The DWCS season moved to 10 events per year in 2019 and has held steady at 10 since then. We will have previews and predictions for each DWCS Season 9 fight card, as well as results and reactions live at the DWCS events take place.
USA Today
02-07-2025
- Sport
- USA Today
Ex-UFC champ Jamahal Hill blames injuries, lack of discipline for recent career slump
Jamahal Hill has a hard look in the mirror amid his recent losing streak. Jamahal Hill's career has taken several hard hits in recent years, putting the former UFC champion on a three-fight losing streak, an unprecedented run for him. In his latest defeat, which came in June at UFC on ABC 8 in Azerbaijan, Hill (12-4 MMA, 6-4 UFC) lost a one-sided unanimous decision against light heavyweight contender Khalil Rountree. Hill entered the bout with plenty of confidence, assuring fans and media that Rountree (14-6 MMA, 10-6 UFC) was not at his level of competition. "Sweet Dreams" still stands by those claims, but thinks he hasn't been up to his own level, causing the discrepancy between his comments and performance. "A lot was made of the thing I said before the fight, me saying the comments that Khalil is not on my level, and I said the same things about my last few fights," Hill said on his YouTube channel. "But to be honest, I haven't been on my level. I haven't been on my level for quite some time." Hill thinks his decline comes down to two factors – one he can't control and one he can. After winning the UFC light heavyweight title against Glover Teixeira in 2023, Hill was forced to relinquish his belt after rupturing his Achilles tendon in an MMA pickup basketball game, which left him out of action for several months. Hill thinks the injury has affected his fighting greatly, more than people can imagine. "I think people severely underestimate the injuries that I've dealt with and the challenges I've had to overcome with that," Hill said. "An Achilles tear to an athlete is a career-ender in a lot of cases and to many, many people. Then you compile that with the tears to the knees of trying to come back and force my way back. I've gone against a lot of advice that I was given by my team and people close to me." On top of suffering a serious injury out of his control, Hill also takes some responsibility for his career rut. He admitted to not training as hard as he should be in order to compete at a high level. It's a bad habit he developed early in his career, and one that he didn't feel he needed to address due to the success he was having. "I'm a natural talent," Hill said. "Things came naturally to me at a certain level. Before I could hang around outside of camp and do things the way I wanted to do them, and whenever I was in camp I was just able to work at a level that I feel put me in a very good position to go on and put on the performances that I put in earlier on in my career on my run to the title. ... It brings me back to a quote my coaches tole me a long time ago: 'Hard work beats talent when talent doesn't work hard.' My work and my output have to go up. I have to do more. I have to work harder and grind harder. I've entered my last three camps at the lowest, maybe 260 pounds. This last camp I was maybe at 265 pounds. That goes into that work."
USA Today
25-06-2025
- Sport
- USA Today
USA TODAY Sports/MMA Junkie rankings, June 24: Khalil Rountree Jr. enters top 5
The UFC's first trip to Azerbaijan featured an important light heavyweight contest in the main event. Former title challenger Khalil Rountree Jr. stuck, moved, and chopped away at the legs of former champion Jamahal Hill en route to a clear unanimous decision victory. Coming into the event, Rountree Jr. was ranked No. 8 in the light heavyweight division, but after the big win, he moves inside the top 5 at No. 4. On the prelims, flyweight Tagir Ulanbekov picked up a win over Azat Maksum by unanimous decision. Ulanbekov's four-fight winning streak is strong enough to enter the top 10 of the 125-pound division. Check out the latest USA TODAY Sports/MMA Junkie rankings.
