The 10th annual season of Dana White’s Contender Series continued with plenty of action in Las Vegas.
DWCS began in 2017 and has produced a notable number of fighters currently on the UFC’s roster. Since the show’s inception, four have even gone on to claim UFC championships. Known as “The ultimate job interview,” DWCS features five fights weekly, over the course of 10 weeks, as combatants compete to impress UFC CEO and President Dana White and earn a UFC contract.
Last year’s edition saw 46 fighters earn a contract with the world’s leading MMA organization across 10 events, slightly up from the 42 handed out in 2024. Episode six of season 10 this week saw four prospects earn the opportunity to taste the Octagon’s bright lights.
Zevan Hunt vs Mayton Perea
Perea came out firing, with him and Hunt starting in a bit of a fire fight. Perea landed a strong right hand, then a second right dropped Hunt badly. Perea looked for ground-and-pound, but Hunt reversed and got into mount.
That mount lasted all of one second, however, as Perea got right back up and threw another flurry, dropping Hunt again. Some follow-up shots quickly ended this main event.
RESULT: Mayton Perea def. Zevan Hunt via KO (Rd. 1, 0:45): CONTRACT AWARDED
Oscar Ravello vs Igor Cavalcanti
Cavalcanti looked to pressure Ravello to the fence as the two felt each other out. A right hand dropped Ravello quickly, and Cavalcanti jumped on, landing plenty of ground-and-pound. Ravello did his best to endure, even getting up at one point. But Cavalcanti slammed Ravello head-first before some more ground strikes finished the fight.
RESULT: Igor Cavalcanti def. Oscar Ravello via TKO (Rd. 1, 1:38): CONTRACT AWARDED
Ednilson Santos vs Akbar Abdullaev
It didn’t take long for Abdullaev to win, nailing Santos with an overhand right with one of the fight’s first punches, causing Santos to collapse to the mat face-first and out cold.
RESULT: Akbar Abdullaev def. Ednilson Santos via KO (Rd. 1, 0:19): CONTRACT AWARDED
Luis Hernandez vs Hugo Guillon
Hernandez came out of the gate firing, pressuring Guillon to the fence and dumping him to the mat. Guillon got out of it a couple of minutes later and looked to use his range to keep Hernandez at bay. But Hernandez continued to press, landing a couple of strong body kicks to damage Guillon.
Guillon looked to stay in the fight, swinging away for his own big shot attempts. Hernandez tried to finish things with combinations, but Guillon kept himself in the fight, with both men landing big shots by the end of round one.
Guillon rocked Hernandez with a hook early, allowing him the opportunity to look for a D’Arce. But Hernandez escaped and reversed position, locking up a rear-naked choke and scoring the submission.
RESULT: Luis Hernandez def. Hugo Guillon via submission (rear-naked choke) (Rd. 2, 1:01): CONTRACT AWARDED
Tyshawn Williams vs Antonio Monteiro
Williams looked to press the action early despite Monteiro looking to use his long limbs to tag him with reach. Williams landed a couple of takedowns early and controlled the action with his grappling, keeping Monteiro in his grasp. Williams landed a strong knee on a clinch break before bringing the fight to the ground again, landing some strong ground-and-pound before the horn.
Williams’ grappling wasn’t as effective in round two, however. He battled with fatigue and struggled to get Monteiro to the ground and hold him, with Monteiro showing strong defense and landing where he could. Monteiro threw a jab that backed Williams up, causing him to slip on the edge of the cage. Monteiro followed down but was unable to lock up a successful choke.
A tired Williams was able to get the action back to the mat and used his grappling to win the round and take the fight.
RESULT: Tyshawn Williams def. Antonio Monteiro via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-27 x2): Contract not awarded; however, Williams accepts an offer from Dana White to make another DWCS appearance later this season.
