Another four mixed martial artists were offered UFC contracts following the fourth instalment of Dana White’s Contender Series in 2020.
Middleweights Jamie Pickett and Collin Huckbody were added to the roster, while flyweight Jeff Molina and lightweight Rafael Alves were also signed to bolster their respective divisions in the UFC.
Find out how they earned their contract offers below!
Third time lucky for Jamie Pickett with TKO win over Jhonoven Pati
In the night’s headliner, Jamie Pickett took on Ring of Combat champion Jhonoven Pati at a chance of joining up with the UFC.
It was Pickett’s third attempt at making the jump, having lost his previous two appearances on the show. “The Nightwolf” left nothing to chance this time around.
Pickett got the better of Pati in the first round and absolutely let fly with his fists in the early stages of the second stanza.
Pati couldn’t handle the pressure as Pickett landed a string of power punches with both hands, succumbing to a TKO loss just 33 seconds into the round.
Rafael Alves submits Alejandro Flores
Titan FC fighter Rafael Alves made his moment count on Tuesday night as he snatched a guillotine choke to submit Alejandro Flores and earn his UFC contract.
The pair fought a fairly close first round with both men happy to fight on the feet.
Things took a turn in the second round when Flores went after the takedown.
Flores ducked under a left hook from his adversary before attempting a takedown. Brazil’s Alves caught Flores’ neck from the takedown attempt and worked on a guillotine choke, squeezing until Flores was forced to submit.
Jeff Molina puts on a show against Jacob Silva in unanimous decision win
Jeff Molina may have got the contract, but it was both he and Jacob Silva who put on a fine flyweight showcase on the night.
Molina, who is believed to have broken his foot in the opening round, displayed how good his striking is even under challenging circumstances.
His highlights included landing a big head kick in the second round and a crushing knee in the third, but Silva was unrelenting in his attempts to reverse his fortunes in the fight against an in-form competitor who was riding a six-fight win streak.
While landing those aforementioned strikes was impressive enough, Molina also displayed some solid fight IQ to bring the win – and a UFC contract – home.
Collin Huckbody taps Kyron Bowen with an arm-triangle choke
It took less than 90 seconds for Collin Huckbody to earn his chance to compete in the UFC.
The American quickly floored opponent Kyren Bowen with a takedown before moving into mount.
Bowen was unable to defend anything Huckbody brought to him on the mat as the latter shaped up for an arm-triangle choke.
Huckbody squeezed on it and Bowen was powerless to resist as he quickly tapped.
Dana White Contender Series: Week 4 full results
Middleweight: Jamie Pickett def. Jhonoven Pati by TKO (punches) at 0:33 of round two
Lightweight: Rafael Alves def. Alejandro Flores by submission (guillotine choke) at 2:55 of round two
Flyweight: Jeffrey Molina def. Jacob Silva by unanimous decision after three rounds
Lightweight: Anthony Romero def. Mike Breeden by unanimous decision after three rounds
Middleweight: Collin Huckbody def. Kyron Bowen by submission (arm-triangle choke) at 1:28 of round one
