Won Il Kwon suffered a brutal knockout in his first appearance on Dana White’s Contender Series in 2025 (watch here), and Apollo Gomes vows to leave him on the canvas again to secure a contract with the UFC on Tuesday’s DWCS in Las Vegas.
Gomes fights out of Chute Boxe in Sao Paulo, Brazil, and won three straight to earn a shot on Dana White’s show.
“The anticipation is through the roof,” Gomes told MMA Fighting. “I’ve been training really well. I’m going to put on a great fight, Dana White is going to be impressed, and I’m going to secure that contract.”
Kwon, his opponent, is a former ONE Championship contender who hasn’t fought since his DWCS defeat to Juan Diaz in Oct. 2025. The 31-year-old South Korean bantamweight was victorious in six of his past eight in ONE, losing twice to champion Fabricio Andrade.
“He’s a very tough opponent,” Gomes said of Kwon. “I think the UFC put this fight together because they know both of us are very tough and like to stand and bang. I believe I have a more complete game when it comes to MMA, but I know he’s going to come at me very hard. This is his second opportunity. He already lost his first one, so I know he’s going to come with everything he has, but he’s going to fall to my hands.”
Training with a long list of UFC fighters in Sao Paulo, from BMF champion Charles Oliveira to top contenders in Ian Machado Garry and Norma Dumont, Gomes feels destined for greatness.
“I’m really happy when you realize that your dream is getting closer,” Gomes said. “They help me a lot. They keep me positive, give me advice, send me positive messages. Seeing UFC fighters by my side, training with me, getting wins in the UFC and winning the belt, that makes me really happy. It gives me this feeling that I’m going to make it, that I’m going to get there and eventually fight for a title, or even win a belt myself.”
Gomes wants his UFC contract to be “a gift” to his late training partner and friend Allan Nascimento, a flyweight veteran who passed away this past August. Nascimento was a key part of his training, and even took him to Las Vegas once to corner him in a UFC fight.
“He really wanted to see me there,” Gomes said. “He would always tell me, ‘Take it easy, ‘Apollito,’ your time is coming. You’re going to be working with us there.’ You can be sure that, beyond my own story, I’m also going to carry his story with me in there. I’m going to bring that contract home for both of us.”
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