It was another night of great fights and performances for the final episode of Contender Series.
On Tuesday night, the tenth and final episode of season eight of Contender Series took place in Las Vegas at the UFC APEX, and after five fights, UFC CEO Dana White handed out four more contracts, plus one special accommodation for a fighter to keep developing and join the UFC later on.
The biggest performance of the evening was in the main event as Nick Klein ran roughshod over Heraldo Souza to score a 37-second stoppage and a UFC contract, but a number of other great performances were also rewarded.
With these new additions, that’s 42 total contracts handed out this season on Contender Series, with potentially a few other additions as well.
Klein runs over Souza
In the main event of the evening, Nick Klein ran over Heraldo Souza, scoring a quick rear-naked choke to earn his way into the UFC.
Klein was a slight underdog heading into the bout but didn’t at all look like it as he almost immediately scored a takedown and locked in a rear-naked choke without hooks. As Souza scrambled to defend, Klein was able to work his hooks in, and fully commit to the choke with Souza flattened out beneath him. After that, it didn’t take long for Souza to tap, just 37 seconds into the bout, and earn Klein his third straight submission finish.
Gurule outlasts Piccininni
In the co-main event of the evening, Luis Gurule took home a hard-fought split decision over Nick Piccininni, plus a UFC contract.
This was Piccininni’s second stint on Contender Series, having won a split decision over Jack Duffy on Week 3 that left Dana White wanting. And early on it looked like he might impress as the former three time D-1 All-American wrestler scored an early takedown and backmount. Gurule survived though and scrambled to his feet where he began to put an impressive pace on Piccininni with combination striking, while defending most of Piccininni’s attempts to wrestle.
It was a back-and-forth battle but in the end Gurule landed the more effective strikes over the course of the bout and left Piccininni on the wrong side of a split decision. Gurule is also one of Brandon Royval’s cornermen and was only in the fight as a short-notice replacement, which earned him White’s respect and a UFC contract.
DelValle dominates Monteiro
In the third fight of the evening, Yadier DelValle put a thrilling beating on Antonio Monteiro, winning a big unanimous decision in one of the best fights of this season.
Monteiro was game throughout the contest, but from the opening bell DelValle attacked him with pressure and pace. The most impactful round was the second where DelValle clubbed Monteiro around the cage and looked close to a finish but the Brazilian fighter survived the onslaught and event came back to have his own success late in the round. The third was more of the same though as these two went back-and-forth with DelValle consistently getting the better of it.
In the end, DelValle won the bout 30-27, 30-27, 30-26 and his dominant performance earned him a UFC contract.
Martinez outworks Hernandez
In the second fight of the evening, Julieta Martinez outworked Leslie Hernandez to claim a split decision.
Martinez showed a well-rounded game for all five rounds, landing big strikes on the feet, including a terrific flying knee and head kick, while also scoring takedowns and good work on the ground. In the end, one judge surprisingly scored it for Hernandez but Martinez took the other two and a split decision win.
Despite the win, Dana White did not offer Martinez a contract, telling her she has a bright future in the sport but that the 20-year-old is too young right now, instead offering to keep her training with the UFC Performance Institute in Mexico City until they bring her along later.
Micallef sleeps Ado
In the opening bout of the evening, Jonathan Micallef pulled off a quick submission of Mohamed Ado to earn his spot in the UFC.
Ado started off strong, even threatening Micallef with a power guillotine early in the round. However, Micallef was able to reverse position and quickly move to mount. From there Ado tried to scramble but fell right into Micallef’s triangle. Micallef rolled to his back and locked the choke in and when Ado refused to tap, the Canadian fighter ultimately went to sleep.
Check out the full results below.
Nick Klein def. Heraldo Souza via submission (rear-naked choke) — R1, 0:37
Luis Gurule def. Nick Piccininni via split decision (29-28, 28-29, 29-28)
Yadier DelValle def. Antonio Monteiro via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-26)
Julieta Martinez def. Leslie Hernandez via split decision (29-28, 28-29, 29-28)
Jonathan Micallef def. Mohamed Ado via submission (triangle choke) — R1, 3:01
Read the full article here
