Season 9 of Dana White’s Contender Series has officially kicked off, with one fighter impressing with a precise, casual-looking TKO victory.
The show returns as Dana White searches for more future stars of the UFC, with some of the top prospects from around the world competing against one another.
After the success of top UFC stars like Sean O’Malley and Kevin Holland, who made their name on the show, this next batch of hopefuls will be doing all they can to earn a contract with the UFC.
Here are the results from the first episode of the ninth season of Dana White’s Contender Series, including the two fighters who earned UFC deals with their performances.
Ilian Bouafia defeated Neemias Santana in the first fight of the new series
The top of the card bout between Illian Bouafia and Neemias Santana ended in a clear victory for the towering ‘Gorilla’ in a decision victory.
Bouafia was slightly hesitant on his debut in front of Dana White, as he was taken to the ground before being illegally headbutted in a controversial start to the fight.
What followed was a fight with little engagement, although Bouafia looked the more impressive of the two when he did engage in short, sharp bursts of attacks.
Bouafia won the bout via unanimous decision to kick off his US debut with a victory. However, he was not offered a contract by White for his performance.
Ty Miller earned a unanimous decision victory to retain his undefeated MMA streak
Ty Miller earned himself a contract with the UFC with his impressive victory over Jimmy Drago on last night’s show.
The American fighter piled on the damage to Drago with a host of rangey punches, showcasing the impressive hands that earned him the chance to impress in front of White.
The judges all saw him win all three rounds, and he impressed the boss enough to sign with the UFC soon after the win.
Baysangur Susurkaev impressed with a nonchalant knockout victory to earn his UFC contract
The most impressive performance on the first week of the show came from Baysangur Susurkaev, who produced the only finish of the first episode.
The Russian Middleweight used incredible technique to earn a TKO win over Murtaza Talha and announce himself to MMA fans in the United States.
In the first round, he very casually landed a laser-guided kick to the stomach of Talha, who immediately fell to the floor in pain.
It didn’t look like there was much power behind the attack, but the fight was quickly called off, and Susurkaev earned his UFC contract with an impressive win.
Radley Da Silva and George Mangos fought to a close decision finish
One fight where neither man impressed enough to earn White’s approval was when Radley Da Silva handed George Mangos the first defeat of his professional career.
Da Silva took the Australian to the canvas multiple times in the first two rounds, but neither man failed to do any meaningful damage throughout the fight.
While Da Silva won two of the three rounds according to all three judges, he did not do enough to earn a deal with the UFC.
Yuri Panferov dominated in his second appearance on Dana White’s Contender Series
Yuri Panferov returned to Dana White’s Contender Series to avenge his defeat two years ago with a big win on the first episode of the ninth series.
The ‘Russian Polar Bear’ suffered defeat to Torrez Finney when he appeared on the seventh series of the show, but he made no mistake in finishing Christopher Ewert in front of White this year.
It was an all-out brawl which showcased Panferov’s incredible boxing skills, before impressing with his wrestling ability as the fight wore on.
He clearly won each round and earned his victory, although a UFC contract still evaded him despite the win.
Dana White’s Contender Series Season 9 Episode 1 results
Here are the results for the five fights on the first episode of Dana White’s Contender Series episode 1:
- Ilian Bouafia defeated Neemias Santana by unanimous decision
- Ty Miller defeated Jimmy Drago by unanimous decision
- Baysangur Susurkaev defeated Murtaza Talha by TKO
- Radley Da Silva defeated George Mangos by unanimous decision
- Yuri Panferov defeated Christopher Ewert by unanimous decision