Season 8 of [autotag]Dana White[/autotag]’s Contender Series planning is underway.
The UFC talent acquisition series that pins promotional hopefuls against one another in front of the company’s brass is expected to relaunch Aug. 13 and run for 10 weeks until Oct. 15.
Two people with knowledge of the situation informed MMA Junkie of the timeline but asked to remain anonymous as the promotion has yet to make an official announcement.
Some fighters have already been notified of their selections for this season.
DWCS launched in 2017. The first two seasons featured eight episodes. A Brazil edition followed Season 2 with three tape-delayed episodes. In 2019, Season 3 featured 10 episodes – an episode count that has maintained each season since.
The series has become the main talent funnel to the UFC, leading to signings of future UFC champions and contenders such as Sean O’Malley, Jamahal Hill, Geoff Neal, Alex Perez, Anthony Hernandez, Maycee Barber, Johnny Walker, Mayra Bueno Silva, Brendan Allen, Bo Nickal, Jack Della Maddalena, Jailton Almeida, and more.