If Dana White was less than impressed with what he saw on Week 1 of the Contender Series last week, he was absolutely over the moon with Week 2’s performances.
On a spectacular Tuesday night at the UFC Apex, White dished out UFC contracts to all five winners as the fighters delivered arguably the most spectacular night in the history of the Contender Series.
Chris Duncan def. Charlie Campbell via knockout (punch) – Round 1, 1:43
In the night’s featured bout, Scotland’s Chris Duncan made his second Contender Series chance count with a stunning first-round knockout of Charlie Campbell.
Both men let their hands go early, and Campbell made the early breakthrough as he appeared to put Duncan in major trouble.
But, as Campbell closed in looking to follow up and earn himself a contract-winning finish, Duncan exploded into life. A huge right hand dropped Campbell hard, and one follow-up shot was enough to knock his man out clean as Duncan blasted his way to a UFC contract in spectacular fashion.
Vinicius Salvador def. Shannon Ross via TKO (punches) – Round 2, 4:22
The co-headliner saw Vinicius Salvador claim a second-round stoppage of Shannon Ross as he claimed his 16th finish in 16 fights to earn a UFC deal.
Salvador dropped Ross with a huge punch, then followed up looking for the finish. But Ross weathered the storm well and fired back with solid shots of his own.
Salvador continued to pile on the pressure and scored a second first-round knockdown, but still wasn’t able to put away the Australian former rugby player, who showed his toughness to survive the round.
The action settled into a stand-up battle in the second round, with Ross looking more comfortable and competitive in the fight. But then, another big right hand from Salvador connected to put Ross in big trouble once again, as Salvador claimed the second-round TKO victory.
Francis Marshall def. Connor Matthews via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-26)
The one bout on the card to go the distance delivered action aplenty as Francis Marshall scored a shutout win over Connor Matthews.
Marshall largely dominated the three-round bout as he mixed up punches with an effective leg kick attack that kept Matthews guessing through the early stages of the fight.
As the bout progressed, Marshall mixed in his wrestling as he showed his well-rounded skills to earn scores of 30-27, 30-27, 30-26 from the three octagonside judges.
Waldo Cortes-Acosta def. Danilo Suzart via TKO (punches) – Round 1, 3:40
Waldo Cortes-Acosta wasted no time as he finished Danilo Suzart to earn himself a UFC deal.
Cortes-Acosta and Suzart threw heavy hands from the very start, but it was Cortes-Acosta who made the breakthrough with some big shots as he forced his man back against the cage.
With Suzart trapped against the fence, Cortes-Acosta continued to let fly with strikes and, after the action returned to the open, dropped Suzart with a big shot, then followed up to force referee Herb Dean to intervene and wave off the action at the 3:40 mark.
Billy Goff def. Shimon Smotritsky via TKO (punches) – Round 1, 3:37
Things looked worse than bad for Billy Goff in the opening seconds of his bout with Shimon Smotritsky when he was dropped hard by a huge head kick as Smotritsky looked close to capturing a quickfire first-round finish.
But incredibly, Goff weathered the storm, established himself in the fight and, after an incredible turnaround, finished his man with a barrage of strikes at the 3:37 mark to complete a stunning contract-winning comeback.
Dana White’s Contender Series: Week 2 Results
- Chris Duncan def. Charlie Campbell via knockout (punch) – Round 1, 1:43
- Vinicius Salvador def. Shannon Ross via TKO (punches) – Round 2, 4:22
- Francis Marshall def. Connor Matthews via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-26)
- Waldo Cortes-Acosta def. Danilo Suzart via TKO (punches) – Round 1, 3:40
- Billy Goff def. Shimon Smotritsky via TKO (punches) – Round 1, 3:37
