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Dana White's Contender Series has been a huge success for the UFC this year. The UFC boss started the series as a way of searching for new young prospects and getting them signed.
Between July and September, there were 10 weekly events that took place, with at least one contract being given away every week. This included 49 total fights over the course of 10 events.
The UFC handed out 43 total contracts to the winners, which is a large number compared to the previous years. The first event was not very impressive, with just one contract being handed out.
Dana White then asked the fighters to up their performances and bring their all if they wanted to get signed. The players turned the competition up as 32 fights ended with a knockout or a submission.
Today, we take a look at the top five prospects that have signed with the UFC through Dana White's Contender Series:
5. Chris Duncan:
The Scotland native put on an impressive performance in week two of Dana White's Contender series in August. He fought Charlie Campbell in an explosive affair.
Looking to impress boss White, both fighters came out swinging and landed some wild punches. Duncan looked like he was about to get finished when he cracked his opponent with a right that hurt him.
Take a look at his performance:
Chris Duncam managed to close out the fight and got the stoppage win in the very first round of the fight. The fight impressed the UFC boss, who gave him a contract to sign and the Scotsman did not think twice before signing it.
4. Nurullo Aliev
Nurullo Aliev is a 22-year-old fighter from Tajikistan, the young fighter is unbeaten and made his mark in his DWCS debut.
He fought Josh Wick at DWCS 55 at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas. The youngster dominated the entire fight, taking his opponent down mid-round and then executing some brutal ground and pound before the referee called a stop to the contest.
Take a look at his performance:
Immediately after his fight, he searched for Dana White and spoke to him from inside the cage, telling him that he was ready to be in the UFC. The company's president seemed very impressed by the youngster's performance and gave him a contract straight away. Aliev has a lot of hype behind him with his entire country supporting his journey.
Every time he fights, he fights with the nation of Tajikistan on his back. The future seems very bright for him.
3. Joe Pyfer
Joe Pyfer's story is a heart-touching one. Before coming to DWCS, the American was about to go homeless because he was running short on money. He spoke to Dana White, and the UFC boss gave Pyfer enough money to pay his rent for the year and pursue his dream of becoming a UFC fighter. He was well rewarded as the American put up a great performance in his first fight.
Take a look at his debut performance:
The Contender Series veteran made his debut at UFC Vegas 60 against Alen Amedovski. In the very first round of the fight, Joe Pyfer landed an overhand right as his opponent lowered his hand. Amedovski got knocked out cold, but Pyfer connected with one more punch just to make sure. Following the fight, he expressed his gratitude to Dana White for believing in him.
2. Bo Nickal
Bo Nickal is possibly one of the fighters with the greatest potential from this year's DWCS. The American is an NCAA Division I National Standout who transitioned to MMA.
Nickal has grabbed the attention of the MMA world with his superior wrestling and grappling skills. However, he himself has revealed that he needs to work on his striking to become a complete striker.
He had two chances to get a contract with on DWCS. In his first fight, he was unable win within 60 seconds, as agreed with Dana White, so he did not get a contract. In the season finale, he put on an even better performance against Donovan Beard. Seconds into the fight, Nickal connected with an overhand left that sent his opponent to the floor.
Take a look at the fight highlights:
From there, he worked his way to submission and Beard tapped out within one minute of the very first round. Nickal secured a contract and will look to make his debut in 2023.
1. Raul Rosas Jr.
Raul Rosas Jr. recently made headlines for becoming the youngest UFC fighter. He made his mark on Dana White's Contender Series and was given a contract.
Rosas Jr. made his debut against Jay Perrin at UFC 282 at just 18 years old. He began his journey when he was 17 years old, with a 5-0 MMA record looking to get a contract on DWCS.
Following his win, he became the youngest fighter to sign a UFC contract, and a few months later he made his debut against Perrin. Rosas Jr. made quick work of his opponent, submitting him in the very first round.
Other contracted fighters
Here is the complete list of the remaining fighters that signed a contract with the UFC in 2022 through DWCS:
Jesus Santos Aguilar
Nurullo Aliev
Ikram Aliskerov
Farid Basharat
Blake Bilder
Gabriel Bonfim
Ismael Bonfim
Bruna Brasil
Clayton Carpenter
Waldo Cortes-Acosta
Hailey Cowan
Viktoriya Dudakova
Sedriques Dumas
Rafael Ramos Estevam
Brunno Ferreira
Jafel Filho
Darrius Flowers
Billy Goff
Denise Gomes
Jack Jenkins
Jose Johnson
Yusaku Kinoshita
Austen Lane
Daniel Marcos
Francis Marshall
Mateus Mendonca
Mick Parkin
Sam Patterson
Trevor Peek
Vitor Petrino
Jamal Pogues
Mateusz Rebecki
Claudio Ribeiro
Esteban Ribovics
Nazim Sadykhov
Cameron Saaiman
Vinicius Salvador
Erik Silva
Karl Williams
