Dana White’s Contender Series 67: Grading the winners

Week 1 of Dana White’s Contender Series (2024) took place on Tuesday, and we’re grading the winners from the five-fight card, which streamed on ESPN+ from the UFC Apex in Las Vegas.

Since its inception in 2017, this series has shown to have legs in multiple ways while serving as a crockpot for contenders the UFC matchmakers can use to fill their roster for future events. With that trend in mind, here are the grades for the winning fighters – regardless of whether or not they earned a UFC contract –  and an assessment of their probability to return to a UFC stage.

Lone’er Kavanagh

Weight class: Flyweight
Result: Lone’er Kavanagh def. An Tuan Ho via knockout (punch) – Round 1, 2:35
Grade: A

Summary: Setting the tone for the night was a stunning knockout win by [auttotag]Lone’er Kavanagh[/autotag].

A half-Chinese phenom who hails from the United Kingdom, Kavanagh showed some flashes of his vaunted skills and swagger in what ultimately was a very short fight.

Kavanagh’s opponent, An Tuan Ho, was also a highly-touted prospect coming into this contest, but this night saw some brutal prospect losses for more than one undefeated fighter.

It’s nice to see that Kavanagh is also an explosive athlete to boot, which should serve him well in the weight class he competes in.

I’m also glad to see Dana White sign this kid without hesitation, as I hope that Kavanagh’s performance serves as a solid reminder for the UFC brass that flyweight is a banging division that deserves to be showcased.

Although Kavanagh appears ready enough for the winner or loser of next month’s matchup between Andre Lima vs. Felipe dos Santos, I suspect the promotion will put him up against Mitch Raposo for his first swing at bat.

Jose Miguel Delgado

Weight class: Featherweight
Result: Jose Miguel Delgado def. Ernie Jaurez via knockout (knee and punches) – Round 2, 1:25
Grade: A

Summary: Despite taking the fight on 11 days’ notice, [autotag]Marquel Mederos[/autotag] produced an emphatic knockout over Ernie Juarez to earn a UFC contract.

As I pointed out in my prospects to watch in 2024 column, Jaurez reminded me of a miniature Daniel Cormier with style and stature. Unfortunately for Jaurez, this also meant that, stylistically, his wrestle-boxing sensibilities would run him right into the power shots of Delgado’s southpaw stance.

Although Delgado’s flowy nature allows him to shift fairly liberally, the MMA Lab product operated best out of southpaw – establishing the desired double threats early that would eventually lead to his finish over Jaurez.

I appreciate the general structure and flow that Delgado brings to the table and see him being a good pickup for the UFC as a reliable action fighter for the foreseeable future. That said, he’ll need to shore his defense and awareness at boxing range given that his style inherently opens him up for counters that UFC-level opposition will likely test sooner than later.

Bruno Lopes

Weight class: Light heavyweight
Result: Bruno Lopes def. Mikheil Sazhiniani via TKO (punches) – Round 2, 4:14
Grade: C

Summary: Even though it was hard not to be happy for [autotag]Bruno Lopes[/autotag] getting signed on his second swing at bat on this stage, I found it difficult to get too enthusiastic about the Brazilian’s performance.

Despite understandably being thrown off by the awkwardly spastic blitzes of Mikheil Sazhiniani, Lopes appeared to be a bit too hesitant for my liking (something that was echoed by Paul Felder from the commentary booth).

This, of course, became apparent by the second round – which saw Sazhiniani gasping for air and looking to be hurt on multiple occasions. And though I was ready to write off Lopes after clinching with what was a clearly hurt Sazhiniani, the Brazilian fighter was able to land a direct hit to the body that properly showed his Georgian foe the door.

I’m not surprised that the UFC president signed Lopes given both his love for big men and the fact that the heavier divisions have traditionally lacked the depth and numbers of their contemporaries. That said, I suspect we’ll see Lopes assigned to the B-side of matchups ranging anywhere from Ibo Aslan to Magomed Gadzhiyasulov.

Rami Hamed

Weight class: Welterweight
Result: Rami Hamed def. Meng Ding via unanimous decision (30-26, 29-27, 29-27)
Grade: D

Summary: Despite the one-week notice and the fact that he was fighting through injury, I found it difficult to justify anything higher than a D for [autotag]Rami Hamed[/autotag].

I know that Hamed was facing a fiercely awkward fighter in Meng Ding who couldn’t seem to stop fouling him, but the Lebanese product was able to find some consistent openings throughout the fight that he either failed or had little interest in building upon.

I take Hamed at his word given that he was practically hobbling off the battlefield, but the Contender Series is a one-night audition that leaves little room for context or surrounding circumstances.

I’m not sure he’ll get a short-notice call-up to the octagon or the Contender Series considering his current health and showing, so don’t be surprised to see the matchmakers put Hamed on the docket for next season (where we’ll hopefully see him healthy and on a full camp).

In the meantime, I wouldn’t be shocked to see him paired up with names like Steven Nguyen or Luis Pajuelo in what would be guaranteed firefights.

Mansur Abdul-Malik

Weight class: Middleweight
Result: Mansur Abdul-Malik def. Wes Schultz via TKO (punches) – Round 2, 3:55
Grade: B

Summary: Closing out the night strong was [autotag]Mansur Abdul-Malik[/autotag], who ended up with another brutal stoppage via ground strikes on his resume.

To Abdul-Malik’s own admission, it wasn’t the prettiest performance in what was the longest fight of his career. Luckily for Abdul-Malik, he’s still incredibly young and is already surrounding himself with top talent.

I obviously have a bit of a bias here given both my history with his head coach Eric Nicksick and the fact that Abdul-Malik was one of my prospects to watch in 2023, but ended up giving him what I feel is an appropriate B grading.

Although Abdul-Malik allowed Wes Schultz to get away with way too many naked spins and shots, the 26-year-old displayed solid patience and an ability to take instruction from his corner in regards to measuring his strikes and not worrying about power.

However, I’d be willing to bet that even Abdul-Malik’s critics can see the obvious power and potential that exists within this prospect – earning him every bit of said distinction.

Given the current landscape, I wouldn’t be surprised to see the UFC pair Abdul–Malik up with someone like Treasan Gore or Sedriques Dumas for his promotional debut.