Dana White’s Contender Series, Season 8 kicks off in less than three months.
In recent weeks, the UFC matchmakers have been gearing up for a summer DWCS return, expected to launch Aug. 13. Athletes and matchups have slowly, but surely, been booked.
DWCS debuted in 2017 with an eight-episode inaugural season. Season 2 was held in 2018 with eight episodes, followed by a three-episode DWCS: Brasil. In 2019, DWCS was extended to 10 episodes, which it has been from Season 3 onward.
Each season, the number of fighters signed has increased. So far, the show has produced UFC notables like bantamweight champion Sean O’Malley, Maycee Barber, Geoff Neal, Ryan Spann, Sodiq Yusuff, Jamahal Hill, Taila Santos, Johnny Walker, Alex Perez, Bo Nickal, Jailton Almeida, Jack Della Maddalena and Marina Rodriguez, among others.
Scroll below to see the latest athletes and fights booked, which have been confirmed by MMA Junkie or posted about by the fighters involved. Many of the participating athletes first were reported by @MMA__Matchmaker on X. This list will be updated as more fighters and matchups are revealed.
Week 1 | Aug. 13
LAS VEGAS, NEVADA – SEPTEMBER 05: (R-L) Bruno Lopes of Brazil battles Brendson Ribeiro of Brazil in a light heavyweight fight during Dana White’s Contender Series season seven, week five at UFC APEX on September 05, 2023 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by Cooper Neill/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images)
- Middleweight: Mansur Abdul Malik (5-0) vs. Wes Schultz (6-1)
- Welterweight: Meng Ding (34-8) vs. Islam Dulatov (10-1)
- Light heavyweight: Bruno Lopes (12-1) vs. Mikheil Sazhiniani (13-2)
- Featherweight: Icaro Brito (7-1) vs. Ernie Juarez (8-0)
- Flyweight: An Tuan Ho (6-0) vs. Lone’er Kavanagh (6-0)
Week 2 | Aug. 20
Torrez Finney def. Yuri Panferov DWCS 66
- Middleweight: Andreas Berg Gustafsson (10-2) vs. Pat Pytlik (9-1) (Reporter Shawn Bitter)
- Middleweight: Torrez Finney (8-0) vs. Cameron Rowston (8-2) (Tapology)
- Heavyweight: Hugo Cunha (8-1) vs. Rizvan Kuniev (12-2-1) (Tapology)
- Bantamweight: Michael Imperato (12-6) vs. Cortavious Romious (8-2) (Reporter James Lynch)
- Bantamweight: Billy Brand (5-1) vs. Cody Haddon (6-1) (Tapology)
Week 3 | Aug. 27
- Bantamweight: Adam Bramhald (13-2) vs. Malcolm Wellmaker (7-0)
- Featherweight: Michael Aswell (9-1) vs. Bogdan Grad (13-2)
- Flyweight: Jack Duffy (7-0) vs. Jose Ochoa (7-0) (ESPN)
- Middleweight: Liam Anderson (6-2) vs. TBA
- TBA
Week 4 | Sept. 3
- Women’s flyweight: Shannon Clark (5-0) vs. Yuneisy Duben (5-0)
- Middleweight: Will Currie (12-3) vs. Djorden Santos (9-1)
- Featherweight: Austin Bashi (12-) vs. Tommy McMillen (6-0)
- Welterweight: Quillan Salkilld (6-1) vs. Gauge Young (8-1) (Reporter James Lynch)
- Welterweight: Igor Cavalcanti (9-0) vs. Seok Hyun Ko (10-2)
Week 5 | Sept. 10
- Light heavyweight: Raffael Cerqueira (11-0) vs. Uran Satybaldiev (7-1)
- Lightweight: Quemuel Ottoni (12-3) vs. Kody Steele (6-0) (MMA Mania)
- Light heavyeight: Yousri Belgaroui (7-3) vs. Anvarbek Daniyalbekov (8-0)
- TBA vs. TBA
- TBA vs. TBA
Week 6 | Sept. 17
- Bantamweight: Quang Le (8-0) vs. Aaron Tau (8-0) (Reporter Benny P)
- Welterweight: Daniel Frunza (8-2) vs. TBA
- TBA vs. TBA
- TBA vs. TBA
- TBA vs. TBA
Week 7 | Sept. 24
- Women’s strawweight: Alexia Thainara (10-1) vs. TBA
- Light heavyweight: Kevin Christian (8-2) vs. TBA
- Light heavyweight: Navajo Stirling (4-0) vs. TBA
- TBA vs. TBA
- TBA vs. TBA
Week 8 | Oct. 1
- TBA vs. TBA
- TBA vs. TBA
- TBA vs. TBA
- TBA vs. TBA
- TBA vs. TBA
Week 9 | Oct. 8
- TBA vs. TBA
- TBA vs. TBA
- TBA vs. TBA
- TBA vs. TBA
- TBA vs. TBA
Week 10 | Oct. 15
- TBA vs. TBA
- TBA vs. TBA
- TBA vs. TBA
- TBA vs. TBA
- TBA vs. TBA
Confirmed fighters without dates
Women’s strawweight: Fatima Kline (6-0)**- Women’s strawweight: Rose Conceicao (7-0)
- Women’s flyweight: Alice Ardelean (9-5)
Flyweight: Mitch Raposo (9-1)**- Middleweight: Matthieu Duclos (6-2)
- Middleweight: Heraldo Souza (9-1-1)
- Heavyweight: Lucas Camacho (6-0)
- Heavyweight: Arthur Lopes (6-1)
*Withdrew from bout
**Signed with UFC prior to bout
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