Four Fighters Earn UFC Contracts After Contender Series Week 8
Dana White handed out four UFC contracts after Dana White’s Contender Series Week 8 at the Meta APEX, signing every winner on a four-fight Tuesday card.
Aieza Bertolso, Ian Escuza, Adama Diop, and George Staines all left Las Vegas as UFC fighters after first-round or second-round finishes on Paramount+.
Dana White started with Bertolso, the 25-year-old Brazilian strawweight who submitted Camila Reynoso with an inverted D’Arce at 3:02 of Round 1. The LFA champion improved to 8-0 and looked every bit the 5-1 favorite Dana White said he never believes in on this show.
“You looked great on your feet,” Dana said. “You looked great on the ground.”
He told her she would be a strong addition to the 115-pound division and welcomed her to the roster. Laura Sanko made the official call as Bertolso walked the cage in a red hoodie.
Escuza’s contract came with a warning attached. The Peruvian featherweight stopped Luca Borando at 0:32 of Round 1 with knees and punches, moving to 8-0 with every win in the first round.
Referee Herb Dean and the Nevada Athletic Commission kept the TKO after reviewing an illegal knee to a grounded opponent. Dana said he disagreed with that ruling.
“Unfortunately for you, I disagree with the athletic commission,” Dana said. “I think this fight should have been a no contest.”
He said the knee was not legal and that he did not believe it was intentional. He also said he did not know how a fighter gets signed off a disqualification or a no contest.
Matchmaker Sean Shelby changed the outcome of that conversation. Dana White said Shelby fought for Escuza in the back and called him talented.
“Don’t make Sean regret this,” Dana White said. “Welcome to the UFC.”
Diop heard the harshest review of the night and still left with a deal. The 31-year-old Senegalese heavyweight stopped Zaurbek Sabanov by TKO at 2:13 of Round 2 and moved to 7-1 after earlier title wins in EFC and Hexagone MMA.
Dana did not dress it up.
“Your fight was horrible, sloppy, and one of the worst fights I’ve ever seen on the Contender Series,” he said. “Your standup is horrible.”
He said Diop tried to wrestle his way to a win until the crowd booed him. He added that a UFC heavyweight would knock him out if he fought the same way on the roster.
Age was the other issue Dana White put on the table. He asked Diop where he would end up if the opportunity did not come Tuesday.
“Don’t f*cking make me regret this,” Dana White said.
Staines closed the show and received the cleanest praise. The English lightweight, who trains at Next Generation MMA in Liverpool with Paddy Pimblett, slammed Loai Abushaar and finished him at 1:01 of Round 1.
Sanko noted it as the first slam knockout in Contender Series history. Dana White called it one of the greatest finishes he has seen on the show.
“You were up against a massive guy at 155 pounds, and you absolutely destroyed him,” Dana White said. “You made it look easy.”
Staines stayed undefeated and walked off with the contract after a finish that needed no committee review.
Sanko pointed out the global spread on a short card. Four fights featured eight countries, and Dana White said that depth is what the show keeps finding as the sport grows.
“It’s not just that there’s guys and girls from all different parts of the world, but how talented and good they are,” Dana White said. “It’s incredible.”
He repeated that he wishes Contender Series ran every Tuesday year-round. In the window the UFC does run it, he called it the best show on television.
The four new contracts raise Season 10’s total to 38 through eight weeks. A fifth fight, Ilias Bulaid vs. Erick Visconde, was pulled after Bulaid fell ill and moved to Week 10.
None of the four signees has a UFC debut date yet. Bertolso and Staines left with the strongest first impressions. Escuza and Diop left with contracts and public homework from the man who signed them.
