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Dana White rips 2 DWCS winners, then awards both with UFC contracts

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Dana White rips 2 DWCS winners, then awards both with UFC contracts

Week 8 of
Dana White's Contender Series Season 10 featured just four
fights due to a last-minute cancellation.

Ilias
Bulaid and Erick
Visconde were scheduled to kick off the card in a featherweight
bout Tuesday at Meta APEX in Las Vegas. However, the bout fell
through at the 11th hour after Bulaid fell ill despite making
weight. The matchup has been postponed to
Week 10 of DWCS 2026.

Dana White blasted Adama Diop's performance before awarding him
a UFC contract at DWCS Week 8

Aieza
Ramos Bertolso (8-0) took on Camila
Reynoso (9-2) in a strawweight matchup. Bertolso dominated
Reynoso in all aspects before forcing her to tap to a Brabo choke
in the first round.

While she was a -500 favorite going into the fight,
Ultimate Fighting Championship CEO Dana
White initially didn't believe the odds. However, White
admitted that Bertolso proved the oddsmakers correct with her
dominant showing.

“Let's start with Aieza… So, you looked great on your feet, you
looked great on the ground,†White said while awarding Bertolso a
UFC contract. “You're 8-0, 25 years old; you were a 5-1 favorite. I
don't believe anybody is a 5-1 favorite, especially here at the
Contender Series. You were definitely a 5-1 favorite. You looked
amazing. And I think you're gonna be a great addition to the
115-pound division. Welcome to the UFC.â€

Ian
Escuza (8-0) earned a controversial stoppage victory in his
featherweight bout against Luca
Borando (9-2). Escuza dropped Borando with a knee and followed
with a flurry to secure the stoppage in just 32 seconds. During the
finishing sequence, Escuza landed another knee to a grounded
Borando.

White said he believed the fight should have been ruled a no
contest. While he was reluctant to give Escuza a contract, UFC
matchmaker Sean Shelby went to bat for the undefeated Peruvian.

“Ian, unfortunately for you, I disagree with the athletic
commission,†White said. “I think this fight should have been a no
contest. It was an illegal knee. I don't think it was intentional.
But not the way it should have played out. I don't know how you get
in here on a DQ or a no contest. But let me tell you this: Sean
Shelby just fought hard for you in the back. Sean Shelby said,
‘This guy is great; he is very talented.' Don't make Sean regret
this. Welcome to the UFC.â€

White handed out UFC contracts to all four winners Tuesday night.
Adama
Diop (7-1) failed to impress the UFC boss despite scoring a
stoppage victory over Zaurbek
Sabanov (5-1). White said he believes Diop will get knocked out
by UFC heavyweights if he fights the way he did Tuesday. However,
he gave the 31-year-old Senegalese a UFC contract with a stern
warning.

“Alright, big guy [Adama Diop], your fight was horrible, sloppy and
one of the worst fights I have ever seen on the Contender Series,â€
White said. “Your stand-up is horrible; you tried to wrestle your
way to a win till the crowd started booing you out of this place.
And if you fought in the UFC, a UFC heavyweight will knock your *ss
out the way this kid didn't and get the win. And here's the even
bigger problem: you're 31 years old. If you don't get this
opportunity tonight, what are you gonna do? Where are you gonna end
up? How's it gonna go? Don't f*cking make me regret this.â€

Paddy
Pimblett's teammate, George
Staines (9-0), scored a slam knockout against Loai
Abushaar (7-2) in the main event. White was impressed with
Staines' dominant performance against his 6-foot-4 lightweight
opponent.

“George, you were up against a massive guy at 155 pounds and you
absolutely destroyed him,†White said. “One of the greatest
finishes ever; you made it look easy. Congratulations and welcome
to the UFC.â€

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MMA

Chris Weidman reveals the one thing that makes Stephen Thompson angry

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Chris Weidman reveals the one thing that makes Stephen Thompson angry
Stephen
Thompson rarely loses his cool, except when it comes to
watching movies.

Thompson has long been considered one of the most affable fighters
on the
Ultimate Fighting Championship roster. Even Thompson's
opponents avoid provoking him, as nothing seems to faze the former
kickboxer. However, Chris
Weidman, a longtime friend of Thompson, recently recalled a
rare occasion when “Wonderboy†got angry.

UFC’s nicest fighter once cursed out kids for talking during
movie previews

Thompson and Weidman were watching a movie in a theater when a
group of kids behind them started talking. While the movie hadn't
even started, Thompson didn't want to be disturbed during the
previews. The former title challenger turned around and started
cursing at the kids, telling them to shut up.

“The only time I've seen him mad was in a movie theater,†Weidman
said on the “Deep Waters†podcast. “There's a group of kids sitting
behind us. And it's just the previews. ‘Wonderboy's sitting next to
me; we're eating popcorn. And he's just staring behind him. I'm
looking at him like, ‘Why's he turning around like that?' There's a
group of kids behind us; they're probably in their mid-twenties.
And he's like, ‘Shut up! I'm trying to watch this.' Dudes were
like, ‘Bro, it's the previews.' He's like, ‘I don't care. You
better shut the f*ck up.' He starts cursing. I'm like, ‘Wonderboy,'
yo, you good, man? It's the previews.' He does not play games.â€

Weidman revealed that both Thompson and his father, Ray, don't like
being disturbed while watching movies.

“He is obsessed,†Weidman added. “When he is watching movies, he is
so dialed in. And if anybody is taking him out of that, he loses
his mind. And his dad is the same way. They have this movie theater
room in the house. If you talk during the movies, they're just
looking at you like you're ruining their life. Like they're gonna
try and kill you.â€

Thompson (17-9-1) has fought the who's who of the welterweight
division in his 14-year UFC career. The 43-year-old is scheduled to
make his final walk to the Octagon against Charles
Radtke (12-5) at UFC
334 on Nov. 14 at Madison Square Garden in New York.

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MMA

Morning Report: Dana White shoots down $10M Misfits Boxing rumor, tells Eddie Hearn to meet in gym ‘and we can f*cking do it’

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Morning Report: Dana White shoots down $10M Misfits Boxing rumor, tells Eddie Hearn to meet in gym ‘and we can f*cking do it’

UFC 334 goes down this Saturday with two pretty damn intriguing title fights.

In the main event, undisputed* heavyweight champion Ciryl Gane goes for his first defense against, yes, one of the most talked-about fighters of 2026, the undefeated Josh Hokit. Folks, there’s a well-above zero chance that Hokit closes out the year as the UFC’s heavyweight king. Wowza.

Then you have the bantamweight matchup of destiny between champion Kayla Harrison and the GOAT herself Amanda Nunes. Where these two legends and the division go after UFC 334 is anybody’s guess, but this fight had to happen and it’s finally going down in Madison Square Garden.

So what’s your level of excitement as we kick off fight week?

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MMA

Andre Galvao says rules changed after he accepted Rousimar Palhares rematch

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Andre Galvao says rules changed after he accepted Rousimar Palhares rematch
Andre
Galvao is embracing a daunting challenge as he prepares to face
Rousimar
“Toquinho†Palhares at ACBJJ 23 on Nov. 13 in Rio de
Janeiro.

The Brazilian grappler will face Palhares in a rematch of their
2011 ADCC final, this time under rules that permit strikes to the
body.

Andre Galvao prepares for Rousimar Palhares at ACBJJ 23 under
rules allowing body strikes

Galvao, 44, told Sherdog that a renewed desire to compete and an
attractive offer from the promotion prompted his return. He
initially expected the rematch to follow the rules of their
previous encounter, but the format changed as plans developed.

“First they got my yes, then came the surprises,†Galvao said.
“Later on they told me it would be up to 100kg (220 pounds); then
that it would be nine minutes of fighting instead of seven; and
finally they informed me that punches and kicks would be
allowed.â€

The prospect of facing Palhares under those conditions concerned
some of Galvao's friends and students. However, the Atos Jiu-Jitsu
leader believes his MMA experience has prepared him for the
challenge.

“Several friends came to me and said, ‘You're crazy, coming back
right away against Toquinho and with strikes allowed?'†Galvao
recalled. “The fact is that since I built my career more in
Jiu-Jitsu and Grappling, the youngsters forget that I've already
had seven MMA fights, and during that period I was training with
champions like Anderson, Rafael Feijão and Ronaldo Jacare, so
taking punches isn't exactly something that scares me that
much.â€

Galvao nevertheless recognizes the threat Palhares poses.

“Toquinho is a monster, he's incredibly strong. I joke that I'm
prepared to face a monster on Friday the 13th,†Galvao said. “That
fight of ours in the ADCC final in London in 2011 is still
considered one of the best in history. I'm sure we're going to put
on another great fight and make history again.â€

Galvao won their first meeting 9-4 in the under-88-kilogram ADCC
final in Nottingham, England. Their rematch will headline ACBJJ 23
at Farmasi Arena.

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