Another four fighters secured UFC contracts on this week’s episode of “Dana White’s Contender Series,” including a pair of talents who were given a second shot on the show.
Andreas Gustafsson, Rizvan Kuniev, Cortavious Romious, and Cody Haddon were all offered deals with the promotion following Tuesday’s episode from the UFC APEX in Las Vegas, Nevada, USA.
Clinch-Heavy Performance From Gustafsson Forces Finish
Sweden’s Andreas Gustafsson secured a contract for his finish win in the main event, utilizing his controlling clinch positions to unload with strikes that eventually stopped Pat Pytlik.
Gustafsson dropped Pytlik with a series of knees to the head from a clinch position in the second frame, causing referee Mark Smith to intervene in the fight with a little under half of the bout to go.
The 33-year-old Swede initiated clinches early in both rounds of the fight and used the position to score with numerous elbows to the head, putting him in control for practically all of the bout.
Gustafsson was coming over to the “Contender Series” following a pair of wins in Swedish MMA promotion Fight Club Rush last year. He has previously also appeared in KSW and Brave CF.
Pytlik was given a spot on this year’s “Contender Series” after performing in front of White as part of the “Lookin’ For A Fight” web series in January. The Canadian talent has notably dominated regional promotion Unified MMA over the years.
Heavyweight Kuniev Stops LFA Champ In First Round
Russian heavyweight Rizvan Kuniev caused a sudden end to his bout in the first round, putting away LFA Heavyweight Champion Hugo Cunha with a combination of shots.
Kuniev hurt Cunha with a knee to the body with just a few moments left in the opening round. A pair of follow-up elbows caused Cunha to crumple to the canvas and allowed Kuniev to close the show with ground and pound strikes.
Despite getting a finish win over Edivan Santos in the 2021 season of the “Contender Series,” Kuniev wasn’t offered a contract until he performed once again this week. His winning streak has only extended since that 2021 assignment, with Tuesday marking his 11th consecutive victory.
Cunha was appearing for the first time since capturing LFA’s heavyweight title last year, submitting Eduardo Neves in the second round. The 31-year-old has been an all-action fighter since his 2017 debut, having only gone the distance once.
Romious Gets Past Vet Imperato To Earn Contract
Cortavious Romious similarly also found success in his second “Contender Series” showing, securing a UFC contract after a solid three-round performance against Michael Imperato.
Romious had the better striking in the bantamweight clash, including a solid opening round where he scored a knockdown with a front kick to the body. He was also able to find success on the ground, reversing some positions from Imperato to attempt takedowns and land strikes.
Romious came up short in his “Contender Series” showing last year, getting stopped by Ramon Taveras in just 29 seconds. He got the call to compete on this year’s season after earning a 50-second regional win in April via armbar.
Imperato, a 34-year-old talent from Canada, was trying for a UFC deal a decade after his initial contract with the promotion was cancelled due to racist and homophobic comments he made in the past. He was coming off an upset win from January, beating former Bellator talent Ricky Bandejas in 52 seconds.
Haddon Scores Early Rear Naked Choke Submission
Cody Haddon showed viewers a little bit of everything on Tuesday night, putting together crisp striking before securing a submission in the first round against Billy Brand.
Haddon floored Brand halfway through his fight with a clean left hook, causing the first big moment in what was a competitive fight before. The 25-year-old looked toward grappling after landing some ground and pound shots, searching for a rear naked choke from the ground.
The choke didn’t immediately emerge for Haddon, but he eventually sunk in a submission that forced a tap from Brand.
Finishes aren’t unusual for Australia’s Haddon, who had stopped all six of his previous pro victories. Among his past wins was a victory earlier his year over Paul Loga to capture the HEX Bantamweight Championship in his home country.
Brand was receiving the “Contender Series” opportunity after putting together a four-fight run of wins on the California regional scene. He came into the show with a decade of experience when including his eight-fight amateur career.
White Rips Finney, Leaves Two-Time ‘Contender Series’ Fighter Without Contract
For the second time in his career, Torrez Finney left the “Contender Series” as the sole winning fighter who didn’t get offered a contract.
Finney’s unanimous decision win over Cam Rowston wasn’t enough to impress Dana White, who didn’t approve of his performance.
“You get absolutely decimated in the UFC with the performance you had tonight,” said White, who said Finney should get three more wins before considering another opportunity with the promotion. “Your performance [on the “Contender Series”] last year was better than this performance.”
Finney used an incredibly wrestling-focused gameplan to defeat Rowston, earning nearly 10 minutes of ground control through three rounds.
Undefeated Finney was coming back to the “Contender Series” after submitting Yuri Panferov in last year’s season. Despite not earning a UFC contract he comes out of the week with an incredibly solid record for a prospect, having picked up nine victories since his 2022 debut.
Rowston came into this weekend with a five-fight streak of finish wins from Australia’s regional scene.
Quick Results
Main Card (7:00PM EDT / 4:00PM PDT) (ESPN+)
Bout 5: Andreas Gustafsson def. Pat Pytlik via TKO, Strikes (RD 2, 3:20)
Bout 4: Rizvan Kuniev def. Hugo Cunha via TKO, Strikes (RD 1, 4:59)
Bout 3: Cortavious Romious def. Michael Imperato via Decision, Unanimous
Bout 2: Torrez Finney def. Cam Rowston via Decision, Unanimous
Bout 1: Cody Haddon def. Billy Brand via Submission, Rear Naked Choke (RD 1, 3:09)
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