Would the message be received in the latest episode of Dana White’s Contender Series?
The first show of season six saw a fired up Dana White essentially tell prospective fighters to show him something. More accurately, he told them to “be Joe Pyfer” — the only fighter in week one to be awarded a UFC contract. Also the only fighter in week one to finish his fight, it should be noted.
As a result, the bar was set for fighters on week two. Who would respond? There were a few familiar faces on the docket: Chris Duncan was back for another look, after falling short last year. The impetus for giving Duncan a second chance was obvious — his first opponent had missed weight, leading to their fight being cancelled. That resulted in Duncan taking a bout short notice against Slava Borshchev; needless to say, that one didn’t go his way.
Bellator veterans Billy Goff, Waldo Cortes-Acosta, and Charlie Campbell (plus Duncan himself, who has also competed for Bellator MMA) were all in action Tuesday.
Dana White’s Contender Series 48 (season six, week two) goes down Tuesday, August 2, 2022 as always at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas, Nevada. The show airs on ESPN+, and UFC Fight Pass internationally. Full results from DWCS 48 can be found below.
In the opening fight at least, it seemed that Dana White’s message was received. Shimon Smotritsky, returning for his second stint on DWCS, landed a head kick on Billy Goff just seconds into the fight. Goff dropped, and Smotritsky went right after him, but Goff was able to survive on his back, and climb back up with Smotritsky still on him. Goff then managed to battle back, turned the tables, and began lighting Smotritsky up along the fence. That brought in the ref, with Goff securing the TKO finish.
Heavyweights Waldo Cortes-Acosta and Danilo Suzart didn’t have a pretty fight, it certainly wasn’t a technical fight, but they did stand and bang. Cortes-Acosta, with a boxing background, got the better of things on the feet, and they didn’t go to the ground until Suzart was dropped. Cortes-Acosta piled on with some follow-up punches, and sealed the deal.
The featherweight fight between Francis Marshall and Connor Matthews marked the first time the action would leave the first round on Tuesday. Not for lack of effort. Matthews had a great opening few minutes, but Marshall then took over, relying on takedowns and some punishing ground n’ pound. They’d end up going the distance, and while Matthews needed a finish, it was Francis Marshall still chasing it in round three. Matthews proved just too tough to put away.
The fourth fight of the evening was a featherweight banger. Vinicius Salvador may have had a padded record (having fought three 0-0 opponents after even after 12 pro fights of his own), but Shannon Ross was no can. Ross was dropped several times, but stayed in the fight, and even found success with his right hand. It was a Salvador right hand in the second, however, the set up the TKO finish.
Chris Duncan was in all sorts of trouble in the night’s final fight, dropped repeatedly. Multiple uppercuts from Campbell had Duncan staggering, but he managed to return fire, putting Campbell down with a right hand and completing the comeback!
Dana White’s Contender Series Season 6, Week 2 Weigh-In Results
Lightweight: Chris Duncan def. Charlie Campbell by knockout, Round 1, 1:43
Flyweight: Vinicius Salvador def. Shannon Ross by TKO, Round 2, 4:22
Featherweight: Francis Marshall def. Connor Matthews by unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-26)
Heavyweight: Waldo Cortes-Acosta def. Danilo Suzart by TKO, Round 1, 3:40
Welterweight: Billy Goff def. Shimon Smotritsky by TKO, Round 1, 3:37
Contract winners: Billy Goff, Waldo Cortes-Acosta, Francis Marshall, Vinicius Salvador, Chris Duncan
