Dana White’s Contender Series is back for its ninth season. Last Tuesday night was the seventh episode of the season, so let’s look at each fight’s aftermath and make some observations from last night.
- Rafael Tobias def. Jair de Oliveira: Tobias was the biggest betting favorite on the episode and for good reason. He was nasty and consistent, which is why he was able to finish de Oliveira. As for de Oliveira, he’s a 5’9″ light heavyweight, which is very short for the weight class and as Anthony Smith pointed out, threw naked kicks that were getting beautifully countered by Tobias. These two Brazilians were the perfect embodiment of the two types of Brazilian prospect. One is the prospect who is legit and has fought under respectable promotions against respectable opponents (Tobias) and the other is the prospect with a great record on paper but has fought in lesser-known promotions against substandard opponents.
- Javier Reyes def. Justice Torres: It was a wild ride for Javier Reyes getting to the Contender Series. He was initially set up as a sacrificial lamb for top prospect Icaro Brito, who had visa issues and had to drop out. Robbie Ring was then briefly linked to this fight before quickly bowing out, allowing for Justice Torres to get this opportunity. Reyes went from sacrificial lamb to heavily favored based on the late-notice circumstances and looked every bit the heavy favorite here. I don’t know how he fares in the UFC, but he is a fun addition and a welcome Latin American body on the roster.
- Jeisla Chaves def. Sofia Montenegro: In terms of overall talent, this may have been the lowest-level fight on this season of the Contender Series. I could name 30 female fighters off the top of my head that were far more deserving of a Contender Series spot than these two. Hell, I could name 20 female flyweights that were more deserving of this opportunity. Neither are UFC-ready. This fight was good and competitive because they were of similar levels which was a low level. That said, both women understood the assignment: WAR. This fight was bloody, it was violent and it was everything Dana White wants to see. I’m not going to pretend I wasn’t entertained because I was. Lastly, I again would like to reiterate how much I hate them signing both fighters on this show because I don’t think somebody coming off a loss should be signed to the UFC roster (especially on a show like this). But, I am now beating a dead horse…
- Murtazali Magomedov def. Brahyan Zurcher: I figured Murtazali Magomedov was going to win this fight, but I cannot believe how fast he scored that knockout. He rocked Brahyan Zurcher with a stiff jab, which just shows how strong and powerful Magomedov is. Although we didn’t get to see him for a long period of time, he showed off that nasty striking, and we know he has good wrestling. He could be a guy to watch at 145.
- Mantas Kondratavicius def. Dani Barbir: Not much analysis here. Beautiful knockout by Mantas Kondratavicius. I think he has a ceiling on the UFC roster, but he definitely earned his way onto the roster.