20 athletes have now been handed UFC contracts on this season of Dana White’s Contender Series. Tonight, another 10 hopefuls will battle it out inside the UFC Apex as week 6 rolls around.
The season has been one of the most memorable to date so far, with some big underdogs claiming huge upset wins and plenty of interesting characters getting their shot at the big league.
Lightweights will kick things off tonight as Dylan Mantello squares off against Ahmad Suhail Hassanzada. Neither man is a stranger to the Contender Series but both will be hoping for vastly different results to their first appearances on the show.
Mantello appeared on last year’s season and was stopped in the very first round by Kaynan Kruschewsky. Hassanzada faced Mantello’s team mate, Nazim Sadykhov, who stopped ‘Lion Of The Ring’ in the second round in 2022.
Middleweights will then square off as Yura Naito takes on Ateba Gautier. The unbeaten Naito has racked up 6 wins, since joining the professional ranks in 2020. The Japanese native has only ever competed under the Pancrase banner and of his six wins, five have came in the very first round.
Gautier undoubtedly poses the toughest challenge of Naito’s career. With 5 wins and only 1 loss, Gautier will be hoping to hand yet another prospect their first loss, and earn a UFC contract in the process.
The International Mixed Martial Arts Federation (IMMAF) have helped many a star develop their skillset on the amateur scene. 2017 IMMAF World Champion Benjamin Bennett will be hoping he can join teammates Justin Gaethje and Kamaru Usman, in the UFC ranks.
Standing in his way will be Joey Hart. ‘The Hitman’ has a 100% finish rate, with all six wins coming by way of strikes. His only loss was in his third professional contest, when he dropped a unanimous decision.
Heavyweights will collide in the co-main event, with the unbeaten Tallison Teixeira facing fellow Brazilian Arthur Lopes. In his six wins, Teixeira is yet to see the second round, picking up six first round victories.
Lopes has five straight wins heading into the bout but has only competed once since 2018, when he stopped Daniel Bucher just 20 seconds into their Souza Combat bout earlier this year. He enters the bout as a relative unknown quantity.
City Kickboxing are widely considered to be one of the most impressive gyms in the world. Undefeated Bantamweight Aaron Tau will be looking to be the latest athlete from the gym to earn a UFC contract.
‘Tauzemup’ has spent a large majority of his career competing under the XFC banner and in just his third professional bout, fought for the promotion’s Bantamweight championship. After claiming the title, Tau successfully defended the belt twice, before making the move to Featherweight in search of a second title. After stopping Shem Murdoch in the very first round, he was crowned the promotion’s champ champ, before dropping back to Bantamweight to defend his 135lbs title once more. However, since claiming both belts, in 2022, Tau has only fought once since, earlier this year at XFC 71.
Tau will face Elijah Smith in the main event of the evening. Since joining the professional ranks in just 2022 the American has been on a tear, competing seven times and building a 6-1 record. Heading into tonight’s bout, Smith is riding a four fight win streak, with three stoppages.
