Dana White’s Contender Series: Season 8, Episode 2 Recap

Dana White’s Contender Series: Season 8, Episode 2 Recap

Dana White’s Contender Series: Season 8, Episode 2 is in the books. This episode was relatively tame in comparison to other Dana White’s Contender Series (DWCS) cards. Still, four fighters punched their ticket to the UFC. Here is what you can expect from each fighter as they enter the world’s premier MMA organization. The post will be ranked with the most promising prospects at the top.

Cody Haddon- Bantamweight

Cody Haddon was undoubtedly the top performer from this week’s DWCS episode. The Australian bantamweight rocked his opponent, Billy Brand, with a left hook and finished the fight with a rear-naked choke.

Haddon showed a well-rounded skill set in his DWCS victory. On the feet, he showed strong boxing. Haddon established his jab and found success in exchanges. This was done while landing shots to the body and kicking the leg.

Haddon ultimately closed the pocket, showed body shots, and came upstairs with a left hook. That left hook landed hard and dropped Brand. Despite being hurt, Brand was still in the fight. That did not last long, however. Haddon was able to get on top, land strikes, and lock in a rear-naked choke.

Haddon has a lot of skills that provide promise. At 25-years-old, he has a very well-rounded skill set. In comparison to other fighters his age, he is much further down the path of development. The striking looks impressive and he can grapple. What was most impressive was his finishing instincts. A lot of other fighters would have struggled to finish Brand, but Haddon was able to slam the door the moment he was hurt. Overall, he is a well-rounded fighter with great finishing skills.

Haddon is a great prospect who will likely go down as a top-tier prospect at the end of the season. In a stacked bantamweight division, he has a chance to make waves.

Rizvan Kuniev-Heavyweight

This episode of DWCS saw a solid heavyweight prospect earn a UFC. Rizvan Kuniev impressed as he finished Hugo Cunha with clinch strikes in the first round.

This was a strong performance from Kuniev. It was a matchup between two wrestlers, but it quickly became clear that Kuniev had more skills outside his usual department. In the clinch, he landed knees, elbows, and uppercuts. This set him apart from Cunha. Furthermore, despite being low volume, he was the cleaner distance striker.

In the current landscape of the heavyweight division, Kuniev has tools that should lead to success. The most clear is his offensive clinch work. Unfortunately, many UFC heavyweights love to push each other to the fence and watch minutes tick away. Kuniev should be able to beat a lot of cage pushers because of his clinch striking. Furtermore, his offensive wrestling will allow him to take out the division’s poor grapplers.

I am not attempting to proclaim Kuniev will be an elite heavyweight. Instead, he should be a bad matchup for a lot of fighters in the division. That should help him pick up UFC victories.

Cortavious Romious- Bantamweight

Cortavious Romious earned a UFC contract after winning a decision against Michael Imperato. The 30-year-old is an interesting prospect.

Romious showed a few positives and negatives throughout this bout. On the positive side, he is athletic, quick, has good kicks, and dealt with Imperato’s grappling. At the same time, he gets hit way too much, lacks finishing instincts, and has poor fight IQ.

The biggest concern for Romious will be how much he gets hit. In every striking exchange, he is there to be hit. If this fight was not enough evidence, his previous DWCS fight provided a more damaging image. On DWCS Season 7, Episode 10, Romious engaged in a brawl with Ramon Tavares and was knocked out in 30 seconds.

Romious does have the potential to win fights in the UFC. It is clear that he is athletic and has offensive skills. Plus, he has some submission upside. If he can sure up his defense, he will have solid performances. If he cannot, his fights will be rolling the dice and seeing who gets knocked out first.

Andreas Gustafsson- Middleweight

The final signee from this DWCS episode is middleweight Andreas Gustafsson. The 33-year-old earned a contract with a dominating clinch performance that resulted in a second-round knockout against Pat Pytlik.

This was a strange fight. Gustafsson had no interest in doing much outside of operating in the clinch. That worked well for him, however. Gustafsson wore on Pytlik which allowed him to pull ahead with elbows and knees.

Gustafsson showed incredible physicality in this bout. The physicality and cardio carried him to a victory. That will be a positive tool in the UFC.

My questions with Gustafsson surround the rest of his skill set. What happens if he is forced to strike for long periods? In this fight, he was countered and hurt on several occasions. Plus, he was unable to establish control when he landed takedowns.

I cannot get excited about Gustafsson. This is a 33-year-old welterweight that relies on clinch work while having underdeveloped striking and wrestling. If he can craft out a successful career with those skills he deserves respect. It is simply unlikely based on the current state of the welterweight division.

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