A series of upset wins and impressive performances meant that all five winners on this week’s episode of “Dana White’s Contender Series” were offered UFC contracts.
Ko Seok-hyun, Djorden Santos, Austin Bashi, Yuneisy Duben, and Quillan Salkilld joined the UFC roster on Tuesday night following an episode from the APEX in Las Vegas, Nevada, USA.
Ko Becomes First Korean To Earn UFC Contract Through ‘Contender Series’
Ko Seok-hyun became the 11th current UFC roster member from Korea and the first to enter the promotion through a “Contender Series” performance following his well-rounded win over Brazilian finisher Igor Cavalcanti.
Ko overcame Cavalcanti in both stand-up and ground exchanges, making it a clear decision win after three rounds. He had the superior striking early in the fight, connecting frequently with his left hand against an aggressive Cavalcanti.
The ground skills of Ko were on display for nearly all of the third round, taking down Cavalcanti early and dominating him with ground and pound for numerous minutes.
Ko has mainly fought on the Korean regional scene, earning him a regional belt in 2021 and allowing him to pick up 10 wins before.
Cavalcanti had an undefeated record of nine fights snapped on Tuesday, with all of his wins emerging via finish in the first round.
Santos Dominates Currie For Scorecard Victory
Djroden Santos overcame Cage Warriors vet Will Currie in the co-main event spot, using his striking to secure a comfortable unanimous decision win after three rounds.
With a mix of a stellar ability to stop takedowns and sharp stand-up skills, Santos swept scorecards to defeat Currie. He out-landed Currie significantly throughout the fight, piecing together combinations of shots to overwhelm him in the damage department. Currie attempted more than a dozen takedowns throughout the fight but was barely able to get his opponent onto the canvas.
Santos, an underdog coming out of Brazil, was competing for the first time in nearly two years when he won on Tuesday night.
Currie is a long-time fighter in one of the top European regional promotions, Cage Warriors, where he has previously challenged for a title and had a three-fight streak of wins before Tuesday night.
Bashi Remains Undefeated With One-Sided Victory
22-year-old Austin Bashi had a dominant performance against Dorian Ramos, closing out his one-and-a-half round-long grappling performance with a rear naked choke submission win.
Bashi overwhelmed Ramos on the ground, chasing takedowns early and staying in the face of Ramos with wrestling until he found the opening for a submission win.
Bashi attained an impressive 12 wins on the regional scene before this week, debuting back in 2020 and finishing more than half of his opponents along the way. With his contract offer on Tuesday, Bashi will become one of seven fighters on the UFC roster under the age of 23.
Ramos, who notably took the fight on a week’s notice, holds a belt in the Mexican regional promotion UWC. Tuesday was his third loss through 12 fights as a pro.
Underdog Duben Secures Contract With Massive Knockout
Flyweight prospect Yuneisy Duben pulled off an upset victory in emphatic fashion, scoring a massive knockout against Shannon Clark in just 73 seconds.
A huge, wailing overhand right from Duben floored Clark just over a minute into the fight, providing a walk-off finish that left the studio audience stunned. Duben proved to be the better striker before the finish, tagging Clark with numerous punches in the fight’s opening minute.
Duben entered the fight with some sportsbooks listing her as high as a +400 underdog. Due to the upset nature of the fight and the highlight reel finish, UFC CEO Dana White wasn’t going to wait until the end of the episode to sign Duben. Instead, she was offered a deal while still standing inside the cage.
This week’s “Contender Series” episode extended Duben’s career-long streak of only winning fights via finish. The Venezuelan talent has put away all four previous opponents within two rounds, with one fight lasting just 67 seconds due to a head kick.
Clark, who entered this week with an undefeated record of five wins, holds the LFA Flyweight Championship. She captured the title with a rare bulldog choke win in February, beating Thaiany Lopes.
Salkilld Gets Past Tough Young For Decision Win
Australian lightweight Quillan Salkilld opened the night with a hard-fought performance, earning a win that didn’t come easy against tough Gauge Young.
Salkilld walked away with a unanimous decision win, snagging two rounds on all three scorecards to walk away with the win and a UFC contract.
Salkilld worked a counter-boxing gameplan against an aggressive Young in the first and second rounds of the fight. Young charged forward with his striking, but Salkilld was able to connect with impactful punches in response.
Young was able to fight off the wrestling of Salkilld early on, getting taken down but often springing up to his feet before anything useful could be achieved on the ground. However, Salkilld remained persistent in his attempts, eventually being able to control a large portion of the third round by keeping Young on the mat.
The fight impressed UFC CEO Dana White, who stepped into the cage and spoke with both fighters before the decision was announced.
Tuesday marked Salkilld’s seventh consecutive win. He had previously attained a long run of victories in the regional promotion Eternal MMA, where he has defended a lightweight title twice.
Young has been a frequent visitor in American promotion FAC, attaining a record of eight wins and one loss since 2020. His sole previous loss prior to Tuesday came against Bellator alum Bobby Lee.
Quick Results
Main Card (8:00PM EDT / 5:00PM PDT) (ESPN+)
Bout 5: Ko Seok-hyun def. Igor Cavalcanti via Decision, Unanimous
Bout 4: Djorden Santos def. Will Currie via Decision, Unanimous
Bout 3: Austin Bashi def. Dorian Ramos via Submission, Rear Naked Choke (RD 2, 3:15)
Bout 2: Yuneisy Duben def. Shannon Clark via TKO, Strikes (RD 1, 1:13)
Bout 1: Quillan Salkilld def. Gauge Young via Decision, Unanimous
Knockdown News 